Paula Fox Critical Essay | Critical Review by Times Literary Supplement

SOURCE: "Doing Their Own Thing," in Times Literary Supplement, October 16, 1969, p. 1198.

In the following review, the anonymous critic praises The Stone-Faced Boy but recommends it for mature readers.

… Gus, the hero of The Stone-Faced Boy, is something of a lone wolf, although he is the middle child of a family of five. As a protection against the teasing of other children, he has learnt never to show his emotions. Now he finds he is unable to do so, even when he wants to, and this worries him. He develops a habit of feeling his face to see if he is smiling. "Pretty soon he would have to start carrying around signs—signs that read: laughter; scowling; puzzlement; curiosity; anger—which he would have to hold up over his head." If, however, the reader thinks this book is going to be the story of how he solves this problem,...
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