Play Book Tag discussion

The Treehouse by Andrew J. Brandt
3.5 stars rounded up to 4
Audible

In the woods that butt up against their quiet east Texas town, middle schoolers Lucas, Elijah and Tyler have spent the last three months building a secret treehouse. On the first night of spring break, they sneak out to finally spend the night in the finished project. Things quickly turn nightmarish when they witness a man bury a body just a few yards from their perch above the forest floor.

High school junior Allison Beaker isn't allowed to have a boyfriend, but she sneaks out at night to spend time with Brandon, a senior boy who plays on the varsity baseball team. On one of these occasions, their midnight rendezvous is interrupted when she and Brandon witness a man dump a body in the trunk of a car. Unable to tell their parents what they've witnessed or where they were, the boys decide it's up to them to catch the killer, in fear that he may strike again. However, his next victim may be close to home and they quickly discover themselves, and their loved ones, in the killer's crosshairs.

In completing this book, I have read everything that Andrew J. Brandt has published. To say the least, I am a huge fan of Brandt's writing and the approach he takes with his novels. I knew going in that The Treehouse was his first book and likely would not be quite as high level as say his most recent work, Palo Duro, but I enjoyed this one tremendously despite that.

My favorite aspect of this book was how Brandt explores the theory of The Bystander Effect. The basic idea behind the Bystander Effect is that people fail to intervene because of the presence of others. Most often this surfaces as people witness a crime or bullying and fail to intervene. They often think others will intervene that are more qualified or worry about their own safety if they intervene. Brandt explores this concept by having witnesses to a crime that do not want to intervene because they are worried about the reactions of others. It is a twist on the Bystander Effect but it is a very poignant twist for the world we are currently living in and really had my mind exploring this concept.

One consistent aspect in reading Brandt's work is that I enjoy his characters tremendously. I always find them to be well developed, but it goes beyond being developed. The characters in his novels feel like real people. After teaching middle school for most of my ten year teaching career the three boys were exactly like students I have had. The combination of being brave in their own way and yet blindly stupid in their decisions was exactly what I would expect for boys entering seventh grade, especially when together.

Overall, while this novel is not as polished as more recent works by Brandt, it is absolutely worth the read and a delightful listen as well.