Rumination: In the Thick of It

Disclaimer: I am not a parent, so the thoughts shared below come from a place of curiosity and genuine concern for the mental health and well-being of our youth. Plus, this is a blog about books, not my lack of parenting skills.

The Thicket. Courtesy of http://www.welloffman.com/TheThicket.jpg

Bad behavior. What really constitutes it? In reading the third installment of the Dollanganger series, If There Be Thorns, I got to thinking about how our childhood experiences create the summation of who we are as adults, as people. If you've followed the blog or ever read this series, then you know the dearth of family melodrama in all its disturbing glory from incest to revenge to marred relationships to confusion about person-hood. The story continues with Cathy's children, Jory, and more specifically Bart. He is a child coming undone. (You'll have to wait for the review to learn some of the details! If you've read the books, I'm sure you share the horrified look I have on my face right now.)

Bart is the youngest of the two and characterized as an insecure klutz. Who isn't awkward at the age of ten? But that all begins to change as he exhibits strange behavior and language after reading an old journey from a new neighbor. From crawling around and barking like a dog to engaging in mental jujitsu to garner simultaneous love and disgust at his actions, Bart digs a trench between himself and his family. They are in the thick of an added layer to the family dysfunction. This is quite complicated for one so young. Or is it? Children my not necessarily have the vocabulary to articulate complex emotions, but what does this say about who Bart is at his core? Is this just bad behavior or a sign of deeper psychological and/or spiritual issues?

Bart is impressionable as any pre-teen would be, but his layered emotions and even more tangled reasoning concerning his new friend and the journal is frightening, teetering on the verge of story lines like The Omen and The Childhood of a Leader. This leaves me to wonder not so much about how his family will protect Bart from an outsider, but how will they protect themselves from him.

We'll see what happens on Friday, August 28th with the review of If There Be Thorns. In the mean time, don't be too freaked out!