SINS OF THE FATHER
Chris Lynch
HarperTeen
Fiction
ISBN-10: 006074037X
ISBN-13: 9780060740375
240 pages

Since they were snot-nosed six-year-olds, Skitz, Drew and Hector have been inseparable. Skitz is the unpredictable one, with no filter between his brain and his mouth; Hector is the strong, silent one; and Drew is the one who keeps their group together. Now they're faced with another trinity --- their Catholic school faculty, which consists of Monsignor Blarney, Father Shenanigan, and the outspoken renegade, Father Mullarkey --- that threatens to break them apart and send them in three different, dangerous directions.

Drew worries about Hector the most. Normally nonviolent, Hector flies into a rage when Skitz suggests that Father Shenanigan might be sexually abusing him. Hector spends more time than ever away from Skitz and Drew, becomes withdrawn and secretive about his home life, and seems to become more ill every day, dosing himself with Saint Joseph baby aspirin and RC Cola. Drew knows that no matter what the Fathers say or do to him, he must keep his promise to Hector: to wait for Hector if he "falls behind."

Skitz, never the most stable of people, becomes even more impulsive and erratic when he learns that he is one incident away from being kicked out of school, following the breaking of a window. Drew feels there is almost nothing he can do to make Skitz act "normal" until he discovers the real reason behind Skitz's inability to sit down and shut up at crucial moments. Now, he not only has to save Skitz from Hector, but he must save Skitz from himself.

In a time of controversy over teacher-student relationships, especially where the Catholic Church is concerned, SINS OF THE FATHERS fearlessly explores what it means to be loyal in the face of a seemingly impenetrable adversary. It's true that Chris Lynch's disjointed writing can be a difficult read, but stick with the book. Drew is admirable even in his most obnoxious moments, and the ending is hopeful if horrifying.

   --- Reviewed by Carlie Webber

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