Book review on Murphy's boy By: Torey Hayden - Essay Example

Her work in psychology stems from her educational background; she has a degree in psychology with a bias in education. Her personal life has not been without challenges even though she is a staunch promoter of family virtues and principles. For instance, she was married in 1982 but later on divorce. However, she has a daughter from the marriage. In total, the author has written four books which have been thematically focused on the virtues that she holds very dear. The following discourse focuses on the Murphy’s Boy.

The book will be reviewed in terms of summary, plot, relevance, as well as literary sophistication. The book talks about Kevin. In the book, Kevin is in a rehabilitation center for adolescents. However, he seems to be a very different character from all the others in the center. In fact, he is said to have always hid himself under chairs which he arranged in a way that protected him from interacting with people. The chairs that he arranged were like cages. In fact, this made the personnel at the facility call nickname him the zoo boy.

In the book, it is quoted, “Zoo-boy. The legs of the table were his cage. With arms up protectively over his head, he rocked. Back and forth, back and forth” (Hayden 1). Other than that, Kevin never wanted to interact with people. Besides, he had a dislike for taking a shower and being naked. He was about 16 years at the time. It was because of the situation that Kevin was in that Torey was called upon to counsel him. In the book, Torrey says, ‘I started to talk to him, keeping voice soft and welcoming, the way one talks to timid puppies.

I talked of why I had come, of what I was going to be doing with him’(Hayden 10). Later on, Kevin would reveal another side of him. The realization was that he had been subjected to various forms of abuse by his stepfather. From the situation, Torrey knew that the boy needed love just like everybody. In fact, inasmuch as he appeared scary to many people, to her she did not. The book is a valid piece of narration. This is based on the fact that the story in the book is real life. In fact, Torey used to work as a counsellor mainly targeting children.

It is in one of her endeavours that she met Kevin. The story is a real life situation since Kevin has reportedly come out in one of the reviews on the book to defend what was narrated. In fact, he recovered from the withdrawal syndrome and even finished high school. Later on, the boy who seemed to have no future even married and had a daughter. Other than that, Kevin even worked in a hospital after graduating from a community college. This just goes to show the extent that the narration in the book is true.

It is quite relevant and factual in terms of content and narration. The story in focus is a memoir about the developments between a counsellor and Kevin. The author’s conclusion in the story influenced me in very many ways. For instance, the way the author relates with Kevin reveals how love can transform people. Before meeting the author, Kevin seemed to be a boy whose condition was unbearable. He seemed to suffer and no one else apart from Torey could help him. What she did was to approach the boy in a loving yet emphatic way.

This worked wonders as the boy immediately started changing until he later on led a normal life. Another thing that is a revelation in the book