"Nothing is more unsettling than a kid with a gun." This is the mantra of the book I recently read: Boy Kills Man, by Matt Whyman. The story is placed on the gang ruled streets of Medellin, Columbia. Sonny, the narrator, is a young boy trying to make a life for himself on the streets, and provide for his mother. Sonny's life revolves around soccer, music, money, and his best friend, Alberto. Sonny and Alberto have mostly stayed out of trouble, making a living by selling cigarettes or doing odd jobs for shopkeepers, instead of for the contrabandistas, or gangsters of the town. However, everything changes – quickly. As Alberto becomes more and more involved with the gangs and mobsters, Sonny finds himself being left behind, being treated like a child. In whirlwind of guns and money, Sonny races to catch up to Alberto – before it's too late.
I really enjoyed reading this book. I grew to really like the characters, even the bad characters. This book is really interesting in that Whyman supplies a point of view not often heard in these types of stories. Instead of hating the gangsters, Sonny wants to be like them, a result of the poor conditions in which he grows up. To him, the gangsters are successful businessmen, rich, famous, and feared by the locals. Because the story is told from Sonny's point of view, it provides a look into the minds of those under the reign of the gangs and violence in Columbia, and how for them, sometimes being part of the gang is the safest option. Whyman writes in an interesting style as well, in a childish voice, because Sonny is young. The tone he uses is often naïve, but it's clear that Sonny grew up in a world where gangsters rule, and the folktales are of Robin Hood – like figures, not saints. I would recommend this to an older audience, because it is at times gruesome and scary, but is also very honest and truthful, and portrays real happenings in the world today.
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