SOLVED. Juvenile/YA: boy who can levitate [s]

[Leela4]

I read this in the early to mid- 1980s. I can remember the premise, but nothing of the plot: A boy (teen probably) wakes up one morning to discover he can levitate. I think I remember he is able to teach the ability to his friends. I think the book had the feel of books by Ellen Conford, Richard Peck...

Naturally my first guess at the title is "The Boy Who Could Fly". However, it isn't any of the ones I've found so far.

[Stephen]

Sounds like a movie that I recall hearing about but never seeing. The kid's name was Lakki. Does that help?

[Leela4]

Hm, the Lakki thing appears to be a non-fiction sports movie.

I'm not *certain*, but I'd expect my memory of the book to have a different flavor if there was anything uncommon about it, like an unusual name.

The impression I have is the book was written by a man and that the characters were a close-knit bunch of teenagers including at least one girl. I only remember two bits: The boy waking up one morning and discovering he really was floating over his bed, not just dreaming about it. And I believe I remember him teaching one of his friends the proper frame of mind for levitating; I think the friend was lying on the main character's bed.

What puzzles me is none of this is plot. What did they *do* with this skill? And how did the book end? Did I get bored and stop reading? I don't remember anything about it being a mystery or thriller. You'd think it would have to be with this premise, since it isn't a fantasy (beyond the levitation). Although it would certainly be an interesting wrinkle in a sports story! Or maybe it was one of those 1960s philosophical revolution-type books.

[Mel]

Great, now you have me thinking about this. I'm relatively certain I read it too but darned if I can remember more about it...sounds a bit like Lois Duncan's style or Alexander Key's but none of theirs that I can remember.

The Boy Who Could Fly movie was about the relationship between a boy rendered mute by the tragic death of his parents and his new neighbour a teenage girl still reeling from the suicide of her fatally ill father. He believes he can fly (and in fact by the end of the movie shows that he can). There was a 1960s book by the same name but with a different premise about a gifted autistic kid with telepathic powers and the brother who tries to protect him.

Haven't read the book but neither is the story I think you are thinking of. Haven't been able to find it myself either but if it helps I think the key to the levitation is alpha waves which the boy figures out after doing some library research?

[Leela4]

> I think the key to the levitation is alpha waves which the boy figures out after doing some library research

Doesn't ring a bell, but I could easily have forgotten something like *that*. It would certainly fit with the little I remember.

It's likely I found it either by reading a blurb about it in another book, or by checking out the other books by an author I liked. Or maybe it's a outlier by an author who normally writes completely different books. (I liked mysteries and quirky historicals too.) Or the title might have just caught my eye when I was browsing a nearby author at the library. Argh!

[Mir]

Probably not right, but DWJones' The Ogre Downstairs has kids who accidentally make a chemical that causes them to levitate.

[Leela4]

Yeah, definitely not right, but looks like a fitting one to mention in this thread.

The little I remember about the book we're trying to identify suggests the levitation was the only fantastical element.

[Leela4]

I'm wondering if it might be Lifter by Crawford Kilian? Has anyone read this recently enough to describe it here? I can't find any decent descriptions.

[Leela4]

Yep, it's "Lifter". Solved!