There's a lot of love going around out there right now for this book, but I thought it was so so. I liked the complicated yet realistic relationship between Rudy and Teeth. Teeth is fully developed and very interesting especially regarding his complicated identity as half-fish, half-human. I was pretty disappointed with the characterization of Teeth's family. Other than his family thinking that he's abnormal, I'm not sure why they disown him and why his mother still cries every week on the day he was born. The miraculous conception is also a little weird but definitely fantastical so I just went with it.

The focus of this book is solely on (1) the development of Rudy's character and (2) the torment of Teeth and the unveiling of his self-hatred. These two aspects of the book were intriguing, complex, and kept me interested in the storyline. I particularly enjoyed Rudy's growing determination and his maturation. Other aspects of the book got ignored such as back story for the island, why the fishermen are so demented, and where these people getting their income from.