Staff Review: “Slog’s Dad” by David Almond; Illustrated by Dave McKean

It was spring when Slog’s dad returned, just as he’d said he would. Slog and his best friend Davie encounter the mysterious man in front of the butcher shop. Slog is overjoyed at the return of his father, but Davie is apprehensive. After all, Slog’s dad died in August.

In fifty-two short pages that alternate between text and pictures, Almond and McKean created a story so tangible that it disturbed me... in a good way. Told from Davie’s point of view, he witnesses his best friend’s jovial father being whittled away, literally, by a mysterious disease. When the father returns after death, his body whole again, Slog doesn’t doubt his presence for a moment and launches into a joyful reunion. Davie lends a healthy dose of uneasy doubt that this strange man, who barely resembles the man he remembered, is who he claims to be. McKean’s artwork enhances the story and foreshadows details revealed later in the narrative. Almond resists the current trend among authors for young people to reveal every minute thought experienced by a character and instead successfully develops characters through actions and words.

In the end, the reader is left to decide whether or not the mysterious man was who he claimed to be. Considering the short length and ambiguous ending, I’d highly recommend this book for discussion groups, especially in a classroom setting where the teacher would be unafraid of tackling  issues of the Afterlife. Teens who enjoyed the format of the book “The Invention of Hugo Cabret” by Brian Selznick but are looking for something darker would really enjoy “Slog’s Dad”. Though the target audience is probably middle school, I’d recommend this book to older teens who enjoy psychological thrillers and the work of Edgar Allen Poe.  


--Kelly B., Headquarters