Mathew's Reviews > The Goldfish Boy

Matthew has a problem that is suffocating his lifestyle. He sees germs everywhere. On his parents, on the family cat and all the surfaces in his house and most importantly - himself. He will do anything he can to stop them spreading even if it means remaining in his bedroom, with a computer and a solitary window to stare out of, for the rest of his life. Matthew wasn't always this way, something happened in the past that triggered this illness and Goldfish Boy is, largely, a book about one young boy's resilience in facing up to this past and embracing it - germs and all.

Lisa Thompson's debut is well executed. A novel woven in multiple-mysteries, Goldfish Boy's central story revolves around a series of shocking events Matthew witnesses out of his germless, bedroom window which sets the whole community alive with intrigue. As the mystery unfolds from Matthew's window-space so do the stories of the cul-de-sac's residents as our protagonist begins to see the patterns of other people's pasts begin to unravel as well. Behind each door resides a carefully plotted story each of which has its part to play in untangling the greatest mystery of all: the guilt the chokes Matthew's past.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It reminded me of Hitchock's Rear Window but for children and this should take nothing away from the writer at all. Thompson's prose is so well balanced - she plays the slow reveals with real skill and presents a story that will keep the readers guessing right until the end. A great observer of people, Thompson draws us into the lives of this little community and, like Matthew, want to know each of their stories too. A very impressive debut by a writer who, I hope, is here for the long haul!