Boy Wonders: A memoir
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15
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Average rating3
"In this intimate and humorous memoir about how childhood passions shape our adult selves, Cathal Kelly probes his youthful obsessions--from Star Wars to the Blue Jays, The Lord of the Rings to The Smiths. Vividly recalling a time when wearing a zippered, chainmail-laden Michael Jackson jacket seemed like a good idea, and The Beachcombers--"an adventure show about logging"--Seemed to make sense, Kelly recounts growing up in the 1980s in a working-class Irish household as the son of a tough Catholic mother and a largely absent and abusive alcoholic father. Navigating an often fraught and always bewildering youth, Kelly sought refuge in comics, books, bands, games, movies and TV. But looking back, he realizes that his obsession with Dungeons and Dragons or Who Framed Roger Rabbit was never just about the game or movie, but about the joy in discovery and the creation of an identity."--
Reviews with the most likes.
It's unfair and draws unintended parallels, but the entire time I read this I kept thinking of Jian Ghomeshi's attempt at taking us back to his childhood in the 80's growing up in Southern Ontario with his debut 1982. Like Jian, Cathal Kelly is a bit of a minor celebrity - a regular sports columnist for the Globe and Mail. But unlike Jian he's never been accused of sexual misconduct, and subsequently tried to make a whining comeback in the midst of the #MeToo moment. He's also a better writer than Jian but shares his shaggy dog style that is more tell than show. Strangely both books even feature a handful of lists.
Boy Wonders is still a wonderful account of growing up in Southern Ontario in the 70's and 80's. it hits all the familiar sweet spots of my childhood. Star Wars, bad TV, questionable decisions, and regrettable fashion choices. Cathal hits some beautiful notes over the course of the book and he manages to avoid having it devolve into narcissistic navel gazing. He's a likeable narrator with a collection of quick, thoughtful hits of a time I remember fondly as well. What's not to like?
This review is starting to feel a bit like the book, a tad rambling, somewhat wordy, but still entirely serviceable and good-natured. I'll damn the book further with the faint praise of “I liked it!”
