4 out of 4 stars
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The Sword Swallower and a Chico Kid written by Gary Robinson is about two characters, Duke Reynolds the sword swallower and Gary Robinson the Chico kid. It is composed of three parts where the lives of the two main characters are discussed into details in the first two parts, then in the third part the author brings together the two characters and also discusses how they influence each other.
Gary Robinson stood out at school as a well-liked and a funny student which made him very likeable. He was an outgoing boy and he became the student body president at his school, Central Valley High. This outgoing personality led him into bad company and he started abusing drugs while still at school. He became an alcohol addict and all he did best was drinking and partying with his friends. He spent most of his time partying that he rarely attended his classes throughout his college, since he was still fresh in college when he joined partying and drinking most of his time as his friends did.
After school he realized himself and discovered that after missing most of his classes he did not gain any concept in college to use when employed in the field he studied for. This frustrated him and led him to choose odd jobs in spite of going to college, since he did not have any knowledge from the college. He wasted his time in college. As his life continues to deteriorate he meets with Duke Reynolds who adds some hope in his life. Duke was famously known for his sword swallowing skills where he performed at the circus or out in the streets. Sword swallowing was not the only ability he had to catch attention, he could also act as a human blockhead and also do fire breathing. However, he was also an alcohol addict and this often led him to jail.
The author tries to concentrate on developing the characters where he brings out their dark and bright sides of both of them. Gary was an alcohol addict but he was likeable and funny which makes him not to be a useless person in the whole story. Also the author shows the bright side of Duke when they interacted lightly with Gary after meeting. What I liked in this book is that the author brings the characters together and they had a close and humorous interaction. The book is not for people who hate stories about alcoholism or any bareness because it runs throughout the book. Though, there is a lot of humor throughout the book which makes it very interesting.
In general, the book is so interesting and it gives the reader the motivation to read each and every next development of the story. I would rate this book 4 out of 4 stars. I liked the book despite some few errors because they did not affect the aim of the author. I would recommend the book to the persons who do not find it hard to read about drug abuse and alcoholism.
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The Sword Swallower and a Chico Kid
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