A book a day: Laird Koenig & Peter L. Dixon: Children are looking

Original Language: English

Títutulu Original: The Children Are Watching

Year of publication: 1971

Translation: Alicia Frieyro

Valoración: More than recommended

Who can kill a child? Narciso Ibáñez Serrador asked us in a mythical film based on a terrifying novel by Juan José Plans. Well, that was because neither Chicho nor the protagonists of his film had read this novel (well, he maybe), because the five child who starred in it, of course, wants, more than once, to kill them … also to love them, of course, because, after all, they are nothing more than children and behave as such … in the best and in the worst sense.

Let’s put ourselves in context: Malibu, in the soled California, at the beginning of the 70s. In a house at the foot of a private beach the five brothers/as Moss, between 9 and 4 years old, spend in charge of Graziela -to which the little monsters call avocados -, a Mexican maid who does not speak a word of English, while his parents -he, film producer, Oscarized actress, she -roll a film in Italy. Yes, in effect, this situation does not seem the most advisable for some small girls and even less when, from an incident that I will not tell best, the kids remain alone in the house, under Kathy’s leadership, the largest in the group. They And them –Three guycitos and two girls- delighted, of course, because that allows them to spend the day watching TV (today it would be playing with the game console or with the mobile) and eating nurseries, although it will also force them to be on guard in front of inopportune visits and, above all, unwanted intruders … but I advance (and take it as a spoilerif you want) that, by then, the horror story will take time started …

With a lot of cunning, the authors of the book present us to five children who represent five stereotypes of different personality and behavior, from the girl ready but Marimandona who is Kathy to Marti, the smallest and, therefore, candida of the five. Going through the sensitive and intelligent Sean, the skylight and, finally, the hyperexcited and possibly future gymbro Patrick It is impossible not to empathize with any or even, at one time or another, with everyone. On the other hand, Koenig and Dixon articulate the novel through not very long chapters, which are in themselves, small stories full of suspense; In all of them the brothers must face some more or less peliaguda difficulty that keeps the reader the vilo, even when it comes to somewhat predictable trouble. However, that no one expects to meet a novel of “white” youth adventures, types of the five or the Hollister. Or, in any case and if you want, it could be a parody of this type of literature, so popular once, since in Children are looking There is nothing white, nothing to which we can grab us waiting for a more conventional and reassuring story. And yet, that well works (or how their authors do them) the usual “fictional covenant”, which causes not only to seem plausible what we are reading, but that we accept all its edges and dark recesses, while recommending the impatience to know how all this dislocation will end. That is tremendous, I say …

Also by Laird Koenig and reviewed in a book a day: The girl who lives at the end of the road