Dougie Hanson is invisible to nearly everyone in this haunting, lonely tale. He’s extremely close to his best friend, Andy, even though Andy’s a popular athlete. When they aren’t together, Dougie works on the elaborate model train he’s been building for nearly three years; the 11-foot-long suspension bridge built of matchsticks is nearly done. The bridge contains 22,400 matches in all (Dougie likes both numbers and matches). As the bridge approaches completion, glimpses from Doug’s eyes reveal a life more troubled than he admits. His parents worry, his therapist asks if he’s taking his meds and a female schoolmate accuses him of stalking. The mentally ill Dougie, who evokes echoes of Faulkner with his unreliable narration, is confronted with truths he can’t bear. The deceptively simple prose doesn’t keep secrets from its readers, but Dougie’s harrowing mysteries are no less tragic for their visibility. (Fiction. 12-16)
