Last Sam's Cage

by David A. Poulsen

Book Overview

Life's not going so good for Eddie Slater. At 15, he's already been labeled a young offender. He's got an abusive stepfather. He's a runaway. And now, he's living in a zoo -- a real zoo, but it still... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0995970807
• ISBN13: 9780995970809
• Release Date: February 2018
• Publisher: Red Hawk Books
• Length: 232 Pages
• Weight: 0.60 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 5.5" x 8.5"
• Age Range: 14 to 17 years
• Grade Range: Grades 9 to 12

Customer Reviews

Last Sam's Cage

This is an amazing book that i would definatly recommend to ANYBODY! My teacher had originally told my to read it, telling me it was an irrisistable book! She told me i would love it, and would not be able to put it down. Just as she had said, that is exactly what happend. Many of my classmates also found the book to be the same way. My teacher even ended up buy another copy of Last Sam's Cage, because too many people wanted to read it, but there wasnt enough of it to go around! i ensure you that you will LOVE this book if you ever get around to reading it, and will want to read it over and over. it is truly a book that everyone can enjoy, and will be loved by all for many years to come!

An excellent read

The basic premise makes it sound like an early reader's storybook: a boy, unhappy at home, runs away to live in the zoo. Last Sam's Cage, however, is anything but a child's flight of fancy. It is, in fact, a realistic, gritty novel for teens. Eddie Slater, fifteen, is the victim of the kind of abuse at home that we know happens all too often. His father has died, and his mother has remarried to someone not so nice. The marriage quickly degenerates into a destructive co-dependent hell, with Eddie caught in the middle. As his life spirals out of control, Eddie finds himself on the street, running with a dangerous crowd and into trouble with the law. The abuse he suffers at his stepfather's hands, meanwhile, escalates to the point where his very life is in danger. Eddie has to escape, if only to save himself. But to where? Remembering happier times spent at the zoo, Eddie heads in that direction. He soon finds the sprawling, extensive Calgary Zoo to be an ideal escape from it all. Using skills he learned on the street, Eddie evades security and moves right in. He finds a nook, a place to hide at night. There are problems, of course: Eddie is not exactly on the feeding schedule. He must steal to survive, even to the point of breaking and entering. Then there is Jack, a grown man who hangs around the kids at zoo. Why does Jack seem to want to help? Eddie's natural sense of distrust puts him on guard. Could Jack be some kind of pervert? Author David A. Poulsen expertly covers all the bases, leaving no loose ends. We learn much more about both Jack and Eddie, and how past experiences can shape a life. The reader is never allowed to lose track of the fact that Eddie is, at heart, a basically good kid. Nor does the author gloss over how Eddie's home life came to be the hell it is. At one point, we watch him confront his mother only to learn just how even adults can mess up their lives. The story's various threads weave together at the end to create a climax rich in drama and suspense. In all, Last Sam's Cage is a realistic, satisfying novel that holds no punches. This is not Poulsen's first novel dealing with runaways; I found Billy and the Bearman a good read as well.

Great for young adult readers!

You'll be captivated from the first page when you read about Eddie sneaking out of the house to run away from his abusive step-dad. Eddie is 15 and now homeless, finding solace in the Calgary Zoo. While there he writes in his journal about his days and you get a great insight into this gentle and confused survivor. He befriends a middle-aged man who ends up saving his life in the end. I won't give the whole thing away but I read it before giving it to my 12 year old son and he read it in two days and loved it! Any book that can captivate a 12 year boy is a winner in my opinion. We're off to get more of David Poulsen's books and Last Sam's Cage is definately on a few of my Christmas lists to buy.