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robertrivasplata 's review for:

Child Star by Box Brown
4.0
dark funny reflective sad fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Complicated
Diverse cast of characters: No
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Box Brown's darkly loving homage to 80s-90s lowest forms of popular entertainment. Follows the life & career of a character combining aspects of every child star of the era. The details on the various fictitious publications & fake movie posters are great. Like many other Box Brown books, Child Star explores the meeting of celebrity, pop culture, & nostalgia. I look forward to seeing his thoughts on the subject in The He-Man Effect. I feel like Brown wanted us to suspect lil' Owen's parents were trying to make him small from the start, so that they could have a child star. Very reminiscent of Bojack Horseman, but without any promise of a redemptive arc.