What he doesn’t know is that a secret history is about to be revealed to him about Chrissie’s family and his own that will spiral him into a coming of age journey that will take Jim the boy to the beginning of his adult life.

The Blue Star is the sequel to the book titled Jim the Boy, but don’t fret, Blue Star works well as a stand alone novel, though chances are you’ll seek out the first book shortly after finishing this one. Author Tony Earley’s writing defines simplicity by taking life as it is and simply painting it within a highly defined picture. His characters obtain such human qualities that they can be universally compatible with anyone who reads his works. Such easily identifiable characteristics make the novel an easy read and gets the reader so invested its hard to put the book down.

I found myself referencing John Whitman’s excellent young adult read Secondhand Lions because Jim Glass has three eccentric uncles that reminded me of young Walter’s two eccentric Uncles. In my mind I involuntarily imagined Jim Glass as the older version of Walter from Whitman’s novel. There is of course no fantastic tale here, only realism, and at the heart of it all there is love at a still relatively young stage in Jim’s life, and trying to understand what it all means.

I have to admit that by the back end of the book I was starting to get worn down by the story. Its not that the style of writing changes in a way that is not fluid with the rest of the book, but just because I found myself so invested in the relationship between Jim and Chrissie and my mind was formulating so many possible outcomes that I just couldn’t appreciate the subplots going on in the book. Once there was a moment in the book that did not openly discuss their relationship, no matter how in-depth, the descriptions of North Carolina scenery just didn’t seem to matter. I thank Earley for giving the novel a satisfactory ending where it seems he didn’t really have to as well and leaving a hope that we may someday find ourselves engrossed in Jim's life once again.

I highly recommend this read to anyone who enjoys “a day in the life” type of entertainment. it’s a simple book about life and all of its ugliness and beauty so well written I just have to praise it for what it is. Enjoy.

-AJ Garcia has been a writer for Shakefire.com since 2007.

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