Like a lot of high school sophomores, I had to read The Catcher in the Rye. And like a lot of high school sophomores in 1988, I didn’t really get what the big deal was about that book (besides the fact that Mark David Chapman carried it around before shooting John Lennon). I didn’t see why my teacher and so many other adults considered it such a brilliant piece of literature.
Tom Henderson, the narrator of King Dork, doesn’t understand the fuss, either. He views the teachers who push Catcher on their students as members of some oddly obsessed literary cult. In fact, Tom finds a lot to dislike about school in general, and this is where the book excels. it’s an exaggerated catalog of the petty cruelties and pointless busywork that is inflicted upon most American high school students. But King Dork truly shines in its portrayal of Tom, a confused, sensitive, withdrawn, creative, and typically libidinous adolescent whose greatest dream is to start a rock band with his equally disenchanted friend Sam. And like any pair of teenagers with visions of pop culture grandiosity, they spend most of their time inventing new names for their band (my favorite: The Mordor Apes). The book also has something of a mystery threaded into the plot–an element that feels undercooked and a bit forced. But this is a strong debut for Frank Portman and I look forward to his next work.
I’m now working on The Subtle Knife, the second volume in Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials trilogy.
