This review is part of Melody’s Summer Reading: Diversity Spotlight. Enjoy!
Forgive Me, Leonard Peacock by Matthew Quick
Narrated By: Noah Galvin
Release Date: August 13, 2013
Publisher: Hachette Audio
Genre: YA Contemporary, Mental Health, LGBT
Running Time: Unabridged | 6 hours 19 minutes
Source: Free via Summer 2014 Sync Program
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In addition to the P-38, there are four gifts, one for each of my friends. I want to say good-bye to them properly. I want to give them each something to remember me by. To let them know I really cared about them and I’m sorry I couldn’t be more than I was—that I couldn’t stick around—and that what’s going to happen today isn’t their fault.
Today is Leonard Peacock’s birthday. It is also the day he hides a gun in his backpack. Because today is the day he will kill his former best friend, and then himself, with his grandfather’s P-38 pistol.
But first he must say good-bye to the four people who matter most to him: his Humphrey Bogart-obsessed next-door neighbor, Walt; his classmate, Baback, a violin virtuoso; Lauren, the Christian homeschooler he has a crush on; and Herr Silverman, who teaches the high school’s class on the Holocaust. Speaking to each in turn, Leonard slowly reveals his secrets as the hours tick by and the moment of truth approaches.
In this riveting look at a day in the life of a disturbed teenage boy, acclaimed author Matthew Quick unflinchingly examines the impossible choices that must be made—and the light in us all that never goes out.
Oh man, this book is so sad. It’s heartbreaking. The pain that consumes our main character is immense and so unpleasant and in all of this, Leonard demands your attention which is so important because he really needs to be heard. He’s drowning in darkness and can’t see a way out and even the people concerned about him are paralyzed in fear of not being able to be the help that he needs. This is a troubling look at the people crying out for help, the few who are listening, and the one of those few who make strides to save a life.
Everybody is flawed and perplexed on how to best live out this journey called life and seeing how that core human relatability plays such a huge part into how Leonard sees the world and each person in his life… seeing the relationship dynamics in this tangled web of honesty and neglect and desire… it’s quite fascinating to say the least. It’s raw. It’s earnest. It’s disturbing as Leonard makes a point to say goodbye to the people he’s decided he needs to before committing murder and then suicide.
Leonard is such a richly crafted character and Matthew Quick is such a gifted writer, I was immediately hooked by the voice of this story and the conflict our main character faces. What a conflict it is. I will say that of the four people he sets out to visit, I did feel that following Lauren, the Christian homeschooler he had a crush on, was a bit repetitive and didn’t have as much depth as it could have but other than that, I was really engrossed in the story and hung on every word.
I listened to the audiobook for this novel and wow. Young stage and screen actor, Noah Galvin narrates and takes this story to the exact level that I’d hoped and then he knocks it even further out of the park than that. This audiobook was absolutely fantastic. Noah has become one with Leonard and his emotions claw at your heart. This is what great audiobooks are all about! I wish every audiobook were this good. And yes, this is basically the precedent I’m comparing all other audiobooks to now. Tall order. I know, it’s probably not fair of me to do that. But. That’s what’s happening.
One of my favorite moments? When Leonard goes to give his teacher, Herr Silverman one of his most treasured possessions and then Herr Silverman brings up suicide, recognizing this personal exchange as one of the signs. Tears welled in my eyes as the gravity of this moment sank in. Wow. Absolutely moving. I know Forgive Me, Leonard Peacock was a fantastic listening experience for me but no matter how you consume this story, it will be just as thought provoking and poignant and I especially urge anyone in a position where they are in authority over children to please, please read this book. And pass it on. These words may resonate with someone in a way that could open up their eyes and they could see a spark of Leonard in someone in real life who needs help. Read. Spread the word. And as Ellen always says, be kind to one another.
Forgive Me, Leonard Peacock by Matthew Quick is available today.