Review Detail

Reader reviewed by Carrie S.

Remembering the Good Times by Richard Peck was a well written book. Travis is one of the main characters who found problems in the world that could not be solved. His dearest friends were Kate, Buck, and Polly. No one saw such a treacherous act coming. Travis, suffering from failed attempts to fly, ended up hanging himself in Kates orchard. Like I mentioned before, the author, Richard Peck, did an excellent job writing this novel. To begin with, it explains a sensitive subject, teenage suicide. Would the average person ever think that a straight A student that comes from a well known family commit suicide? No. This is what makes the book unique. An average person would never think of a kid like Travis to commit suicide. The author managed to make it happen though.
Richard Peck also has a variety of characters. You go from the meanest person in town, Polly, to the most sensitive person in town, Travis. Buck, another main character, is slightly shy. Buck was Travis best friend. Kate, another main character who was Travis best friend, has more responsibilities than an average teenager. She cares for her Great Aunt Polly and her mom is never around. These are the four characters that make up this novel. Examples of the other characters would be Skeeter, Rusty Hazenfield, and Sherrie Slater. These three people were mentioned mostly when it came time for Travis, Buck, and Kate to go to school. Richard Peck helped describe Kate, Buck, but mostly Travis characteristics by having Skeeter, Rusty, and Mrs. Slater come into the novel. To summarize, it helped a lot to have such a variety of characters. I would suggest that teenagers especially, read this well written novel. Great lessons will be learned.