I can think of maybe three books that have left me speechless, books where I turned that last page and then sat there with my fool mouth hanging wide open. The Body of Christopher Creed is one of them.
Christopher Creed is the class loser. His personality is just wrong. No matter how hard he tries, he can’t fit in. He says the wrong things and wears the wrong clothes and generally makes a pest of himself. Maybe the saddest part is that he doesn’t realize what a dweeb he is. He just keeps trying. It’s pathetic.
Then he disappears.
Is it murder? Did he run away? Maybe it was a suicide?
I’ll warn you right now, there are no clear answers. Christopher’s classmate Torey sure wants to know, because his name has been linked to the disappearance. As Torey starts to investigate the mystery, he begins asking some tough questions: Was he guilty? How about his peers? Did their ostracism go too far? Is Christopher dead because of them?
Plum-Ucci crafts a gripping plot unlike anything you’ve read before. The characters are dangerously well-done: every time you read about Christopher, you remember the pain of the times you’ve been picked on; worse, you begin to remember those times when you were the bully. Lucid, believable writing and truly unique storytelling make this a truly stunning young adult novel. It’s impossible to describe the power of this Printz winner, but don’t take it from me: the brisk plot makes this book seem much shorter than its 248 pages. You have no excuses. Go check it out.
I really like this book…I think that the ending was the best part! But i think i was most excited when Chris disapperared!
Yeah, the ending’s the best part. I’ve never read anything else quite like it, though in terms of surprise endings and electrifying plots, I’m reminded of Mark Zusak’s book I Am The Messenger.
This book is very exciting. We would really like to see a sequal.
I wanted to enjoy the ending, but i found no peace with it.
I reminded me of the book the giver when the end, also leaves you hanging, and to be honest i was quite disappointed with it.
I think a good sequel, perhaps of the search for Chris Creed, when Torey is middle-aged would be a good read.
What is the theme of this book???
please comment back!
thanks!
-Caitlyn
Caitlyn,
Most books have more than one theme, and that’s definitely true in The Body of Christopher Creed. This sounds like a homework question, so I’m not going to tell you directly what those themes are. But I will tell you how you can figure it out on your own.
Ask yourself this: “What is the author trying to teach?” What does the book say about the way people act– or about how they shouldn’t act? There are several ways to answer those questions, and any one of them can be your theme.
does anyone know the setting mood and plot of the body of christopher creed?
in what way would the storys moral be ‘what comes around goes around’?
one of the themes could be categorizing people
can somone tell me all the characters from the book and how they relate to Torey???
Ray,
The best way to figure out who the characters are is to read the book. If you haven’t done that yet, you should. It’s a fantastic story and a quick read.
Wow. I just finished it & the ending was so creative. I loved it. I would definitely read a sequel.
Yes, fantastic ending, wasn’t it? But in a way I don’t want a sequel; part of the intrigue of the story is that we don’t get to find out what happened. That’s the beauty of it– anything, or nothing, could have happened. We’ll never know.
errr…. didnt understand the ending who is VICTOR ADAMS?
i just got done reading that book like an hour ago… now im not the brightest person breathing but although i was irritated at the fact of Chris’s body never really being discovered, there was a sense of releif on that last page. Either that last comment was by a heavy inspector or actually Christopher Creed. i understand that torrey mentioned a lot of crap in the book about Chris’s where-abouts but it almost felt like Chris himself has changed his named and assured Torrey via email that he is safe and will soon come to surface… i mean look at that digger guy, was he killed?? no he left to a new location. it costs a fortune to publish a book would an author waste time mentioning bits and peices within the novel that meant nothing? and im pretty sure Chris Creed knew of his “nobody-likes-me-ness” because he blamed it on his mom, like Bo and Ali did…i have a deep gut feeling that Victor Adams was Chris. Big fan of the internet?? and remember the website where Torrey even FOUND those particular email address!!! everybody within those comments were somehow assosiated with Chris Creed or his email address… O YEA and on page 331 Victor used the word “venture” like 3 TIMES!!! and on page 80, Alex complained of him over-using the word venture when he hit him over the map. man… i really need to ask the author lol
yeah, I definitely knew Victor Adams was Chrisopher as soon as I got to the word “accomodating”. Remember when one of them earlier (forgot who it was) said that Christopher had once used the word “accomodate”? Plus, the name Victor Adams! That is the ONLY name in all the recipients to Torey’s letter that used a real name, and not a mixed-and-matched one. And then of course, “I would venture to say…” was repeated way too many times!! Victor Adams has got to be Chris himself or a really, really, REALLY good psycho-analyst. I never would have noticed the part about Mrs. Creed’s sisters if he didn’t mention it. Also, the scene in the woods was REALLY creepy. The corpse… ew. And the psychic… -shudders- Too creepy. I don’t like that scene.
Personally, I found this book intriguing. The fact that the small details were actually keys to try to solve, well not so much solve, more like understand why Chris ran away. I have to agree with Nita when she says “…although i was irritated at the fact of Chris’s body never really being discovered, there was a sense of releif on that last page.” I found that I was very relieved when the body Torey found was not Chris’. The fact that the letter at the end pretty much got into the mind of Chris makes me think that he is in no way dead. In my opinion, this book was a truly amazing and suspenceful mystery. The fact that Chris’ fate was never revealed does irritate me alittle, but even i have to admit that it does add to the mystery. Especially with the letter at the end. In short, this book was awesome!
Ok
So my 1st tyme readin the book was my freshmen year n 04
N I jus recently revisitd the novel
Off top it is a great read n will greatly fill the hungerd minds of those cravin suspense and mystery
The things that still bother me
Chris’s uncle
He was not even a suspect in the boiz disappearance
The boi spent a whole summer n margate lost his virginity n everything n that I felt was a major point of interest
The book never went n2 y justin didn’t want ms. Creed with the diary or how he knew of it
The ending 2 me is obvious
Chris pulld a digger
N its ironic that torey is the 1 2 locate him
Lyke his mom did digger way bac wen
But the fact that the person used toreys name which is viktor adams is also kind of a hint to the fact that 1 its creed and that 2 creed knew about the digger hines event
Lastly the treasure
What was it
I styll have a lingering notion n my mind which rivals my thot he myte b alive which is that creed had plottd his disappearance way b4 he did it
I believe his map was the location 2 him being found
But who knos
All n all great story worth a read
At first I didn’t really like this book. It didn’t start the way I’m used to books starting, but quickly picked up. It was hands down the best mystery I have read yet, with the best twist ending to any book I have read. I espdecially LOVE how well it ended, leaving me completely amazed that such a slow starter could end so perfectly.
Definitely pick this one up if you like a good mystery. If it’s a little slower than what your used to, stick with it because it will most likely get better.
the booked sucked!!!!!!
I finished the book today and feel like i should talk about it. I really enjoyed the book and thought it had a perfect ending. The fact that the disapppearance of Creed is still a mystery at the end left me thinking maybe he did run away to his aunts house and he didn’t want to be discoverd yet. All in all I thought this was a great story how the people we least care about can be the ones who can ultimately change our lives. This book is a great mystery and is definetly reccomended to read my me!
-Jess
~Thanks for reading my thoughts and I hope you enjoyed the adventure of Torey Adams as much as I did!
I’m not a fan of reading, in fact I despise them, but out of nowhere I had the urgency to read. So I decided to stop by the media after school to pick up a book. I just randomly picked up a book that looks intriguing, and what do you know I picked up this book. I began reading this the next day, and first thought was, huh it seems intresting enough. Before I knew it, I spent almost 4 hours reading this book. I finished the book in less than two days!!! … a bit suprsing.. considering reading is not my taste. anyways… I guess what im trying to say is that, this book is really good, seeing that it hooked me right at the begining. One more thing, I always thought that Leo may be Chris. I had an assumption that he might be him.. then again I could be wrong… GOOD BOOK!
The book was boring and dull
Do not read
Stupid plot
Ray, This is the best book ever.
I think Ali is REALLY hot.
i think torey should have got with her after she broke up with bo.
PS did I mention she was hot
RaY-
If you did not read it- you can’t decide it was boring and dull with a stupid plot!
This book was amazing! I don’t know why you wouldn’t like it! Especially the ending. But some people just aren’t into mysteries. So, can’t Ray can have an opinion without being judged? Look at how muck time has passed between the two comments. He probably HAS read the book. Peace!
–Have a great day!
can someone tell me how would you change the ending
I’m not sure I could or would change the ending – leaving it wide open allows you to fill in your own ideas (much as people here have done), makes you remember it longer and think about it harder. If this is a high school assignment, I’d say it should make people a little more thoughtful in ways that books aimed at younger audiences don’t.
Good book – thanks for the recommendation Jessica.
despite what ray said, i thought that was the best book ever! I didn’t really get the ending though, was that some random guy named Victor Adams or was it really Chris Creed? After I finished the book, my first reaction was to read the beggining. I think everyone should read it… at first it was really boring, but then all of a sudden BAM!