Book Review: Corpse of Freedom by Dax and Lloyd Garner

Every so often, there comes a book for young adults that tells such a compelling story that adults of all ages would enjoy reading it as well. I am fortunate enough to have been given an advance copy of such a book; and it ain't your average coming-of-age drama!

"Corpse of Freedom" is the story of Ryan, a typical suburban American loser teen with way too much time on his hands, living only for the pursuit of pleasure. Set in fictitious Everdale, the story begins with Ryan and his equally worthless friends digging up a corpse late one night for kicks. They decide to hit the grave of a teenage boy named Jeffery Neil, only because he happened to die on the day they planned their ghoulish endeavor.

After a night of drunken revelry with the cadaver, Ryan's so-called friends leave him with Jeffery as the dawn breaks. Having no place to hide the body, Ryan decides to take Jeffery home and put him up in his filthy bedroom (in a house where his parents are conspicuously absent).

Later on, Ryan gets curious about his new friend, and Googles his name, finding an online journal he kept before he died. In this journal, Jeffery chronicles his thoughts, opinions, and experiences, and they open Ryan's eyes to the reality of his pathetic, mundane existence. He starts to realize that most of the folks in his suburban hellhole are actually brain-dead drones whose lives are going nowhere.

Jeffery philosophizes that there are three kinds of people in this world; eagles, turkeys, and vultures. The average person is a turkey, an exceptional person, an eagle, and corporate and government types are vultures. Ryan learns that vultures are birds of death that force the masses into the netherworld of mediocre equality so they can prey upon the fruits of their labor or, as Jeff puts it, Vultures force eagles to walk because turkeys can't fly!

Living with the corpse (and the fact that he desecrated his grave), he develops a ghastly relationship with him. Plagued by nightmares and hallucinations, Ryan becomes obsessed with the printout he made of Jeff's online journal, reading it daily. Gradually, he stops hanging around his former posse, who believe they've been cursed for digging up Jeffery's corpse, and blame Ryan for predicaments that they all brought on themselves.

All the while, a mysterious ghoul of a man discovers Jeffery's open grave, and swears revenge on the grave robbers, eventually tracking down Ryan and his new friend, and eagle of a young man named Manuelo (who happens to be at the wrong place and time). What harm does this man intend for our hero? What is his connection to the dead young man? Why can't the Everdale police department figure out why there's an open grave in the cemetery?

Well, I jolly well can't give away too much. The important thing is that "Corpse of Freedom" is a great story for young adults in the tradition of J.D. Salinger and S.E. Hinton. This novel has it all: sex, fast cars, humor, action, adventure, and a cast of colorful characters filled with personality.

But the added bonus is when the hero discovers the life of SWEET LIBERTY outside this taupe-colored world of corporate superstores, soulless commercial pop music, and spoiled suburban brats driving their mommy/daddy-mobiles to high school dances and cocaine parties. This gruesome friendship opens Ryan's eyes to a wonderful life of excelence, individuality, and personal freedom that his compatriots in the fishbowl will never see.

"Corpse of Freedom" is written by two brothers, Dax and Lloyd Garner, both Arizona State University graduates who hold BA's from the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communications. The book is due out in February 2008, and will be available through Amazon.com.