The Kneebone Boy by Ellen Potter

Potter, Ellen The Kneebone Boy, 282 p. Feiwel and Friends, 2010.  $16.99.  Content: G (though there is an embarrassing scene where they have to use a bucket for a toilet).  The three Hardscrabble kids, Otto, Max and Lucia have had an extremely difficult time since their mother disappeared years earlier and their father is often gone, off painting portraits of exotic ex-royals.  When Dad takes off on his next trip, the kids head off to stay with Angela in London, but through a misunderstanding they are adrift – take off for a small village – Snoring-by-the-Sea – where they find a deep mystery.  Is this woman their mother? Is there really a monster-boy, the Kneebone Boy, locked up somewhere close by?  The children must brave a dangerous path to find answers to their questions, with no guarantee of a happy outcome.  While the Hardscrabble’s story may look like a Lemony Snicket, it is totally different.  I was expecting a fantasy, but instead this is the third of the books I have read of children dealing with a parent who is mentally ill.  EL, MS - OPTIONAL. Cindy, Library Teacher