Rating: 
Summary: Huck on the Bayou
Review: A 15-year old boy hunts and fishes to eat, while his father is away hunting gators and drinking. When he occasionally goes to school, he does well, except when the local bully grabs him. Forget about the banality of evil. There is a series of shoot-outs. Everything about this story is colorful: the cajun language, the small-town society, the food, the swamp and its inhabitants. The boy has a delightful sexual initiation with a black girl. My reading was frequently interupted by my laughing out loud. In the end justice and kindness prevail, but I was sorry to the the book end. Fortunately, there is a sequel, "Junior's Leg," which picks up the story about ten years later.
Rating: 
Summary: Huck with a Cajun patois
Review: Huck Finn with a Cajun patois. Fifteen year old Emile "Meely" Labauve is part ruffian, part home spun philosopher, and completely charming. He is a wise, uneducated man-child, fighting the basic battle--how to survive in a hostile world. This good short read (250 pages) takes you into Meely's world, where a man (even a fifteen year old man) is judged by his ability to survive by his wits, his honor, and his courage. Like any good novel it takes you to a place you may have never been, in this case, the swamps of Louisiana in the early 1960s. Ken Wells' debut novel is extremely entertaining. Mr. Wells' characters are vivid, memorable and authentic. His tale is both simple and complex. In this coming-of-age tale, Meely comes face-to-face with prejudice, loneliness, and sex (for the first time); not to mention alligators, snakes and bad cops. Althought it is a tale of children, it delivers an adult lesson. Meely's saga contains lots of action (swamp car chases, wild animals, shootouts) but its real power comes from Meely's conflict with prejudice: white vs. black; rich vs. poor; young vs. old. In Meely's world, his friend Joey, the educated son of a rich landowner, saves the day by defying his class prejudiced father by doing what is right instead of what is safe. Make no mistake, this is an entertaining tale, not a philosophy book. But like Mark Twain's Huck, Meely Labauve, if you are not watching, can sneak up on you and teach you something about life.
Rating:
Summary: Best Novel I've Read in Ages!
Review: I loved this novel. Got a copy of Meely LaBauve from my brother last week, down in Mazatlan. He said it was "really good."
He was right and then some. A satisfying, funny, fun read, its different and compelling.
I think what I like best is that after reading this book I was left with the urge to read all the rest of the books by author,Ken Wells. There are some authors I love, Isaac Singer, Elmore Leonard, and a few others, and I know I'll read another book by Mr. Wells.
When just now I looked up the book here on Amazon.com, I was surprised and disappointed that it was ranked where it was. This book ought to be a run away bestseller, really. It would make a good movie too. Unless you're really uptight (sexually) you'll enjoy this book. Heck, even if you are uptight, read it anyways, you'll still like it.
Rating:
Summary: poignant and pleasing cajun coming-of-age tale rings true
Review: Ken Wells has written an enormously pleasing and emotionally-compelling coming-of-age novel in Meely LaBauve. The son of a reprobate father (who is suffused with his own private suffering at the loss of his wife some seven years earlier), the fifteen-year old Meely LaBauve absolutely enchants the reader with his comic, tragic and courageous antics. Told through the eyes of the protagoinst, the novel's use of cajun bayou dialect and direct dialogue enchances its credibility. I found myself utterly captivated by Meely's character and deeply moved by the predicaments encountered, faced and surmounted. As well, the novel is drop-dead funny, and you will find yourself laughing out loud through most of the book.Wells seems to have been able to combine elements of To Kill of Mockingbird (sensitivity to racial injustice and the need to combat racism), the novels of Farrol Sams (it ain't the size of the dog that counts) and the enduring tragi-comic view of Mark Twain's Huck Finn. Readers will encounter life as lived on the periphery in the cajun bayous of Louisiana; Meely's forced independence (he too suffers real pangs of loneliness in the wake of his mother's death) is countered beautifully by his social environment -- one which contains a truly mendacious schoolyard bully, an African-American teen-aged woman who introduces him to the delights of "heaven," and teachers, whose commitment to education in 1961 include liberal dosages of corporal punishment. Great novels must resonate with humanity and inspire us to envision communities based on tolerance and respect. My late father once called me his "podnah," and when the Meely's dad uses that phrase...well, more than just memories come to mind. Mr. Wells has made a small part of Louisiana his universe, and that universe has become my own. So, "podnah," spend a few hours with Melly LaBauve and discover how Ken Wells has crafted a truly great novel.
Rating:
Summary: poignant and pleasing cajun coming-of-age tale rings true
Review: Ken Wells has written an enormously pleasing and emotionally-compelling coming-of-age novel in Meely LaBauve. The son of a reprobate father (who is suffused with his own private suffering at the loss of his wife some seven years earlier), the fifteen-year old Meely LaBauve absolutely enchants the reader with his comic, tragic and courageous antics. Told through the eyes of the protagoinst, the novel's use of cajun bayou dialect and direct dialogue enchances its credibility. I found myself utterly captivated by Meely's character and deeply moved by the predicaments encountered, faced and surmounted. As well, the novel is drop-dead funny, and you will find yourself laughing out loud through most of the book. Wells seems to have been able to combine elements of To Kill of Mockingbird (sensitivity to racial injustice and the need to combat racism), the novels of Farrol Sams (it ain't the size of the dog that counts) and the enduring tragi-comic view of Mark Twain's Huck Finn. Readers will encounter life as lived on the periphery in the cajun bayous of Louisiana; Meely's forced independence (he too suffers real pangs of loneliness in the wake of his mother's death) is countered beautifully by his social environment -- one which contains a truly mendacious schoolyard bully, an African-American teen-aged woman who introduces him to the delights of "heaven," and teachers, whose commitment to education in 1961 include liberal dosages of corporal punishment. Great novels must resonate with humanity and inspire us to envision communities based on tolerance and respect. My late father once called me his "podnah," and when the Meely's dad uses that phrase...well, more than just memories come to mind. Mr. Wells has made a small part of Louisiana his universe, and that universe has become my own. So, "podnah," spend a few hours with Melly LaBauve and discover how Ken Wells has crafted a truly great novel.
Rating:
Summary: Wow! A perfect book for my 15 year old son!
Review: My son doesn't really enjoy reading but he has book reports due for school. Thank goodness for this book. It is the first one my son has read completely and on time without my prodding. He will want to read Junior's Leg next. Thank you, Ken Wells, for your contribution to my son's successful newfound joy of reading.
Rating:
Summary: Louisiana coming-of-age debut novel; wonderful
Review: There aren't too many of these around: a Cajun coming of age novel. In fact, I'll bet this is the only one, and it's a winner. Just made for reading aloud (especially to a young teenage son), the story is told in first person by a 13yo kid who lives in a falling-down (literally) shack back in a Louisiana bayou with his usually absent gator-hunting, kindly, nearly-always-drunk, renegade father who never recovered from his wife's death 8 yrs earlier during childbirth. The sexual initiation scene with Cassie in the middle of a field is unrivaled. Somebody needs to make a movie of this book!
Rating:
Summary: unforgettable scenes and a timeless main characture
Review: This book came recommended by a friend-NPR. My only complaint was that it took so little time to read! A great short novel is like an aperitif; you are practically drooling for the main course. (Thankfully a bad short novel is over and done with soon!) I hope we see Meely again soon. This plot really couldn't have been drawn out too long, but another trip here would be most welcome. Besides Meely being such a great main character, Mr. Wells has some unforgettable scenes in this little gem which you won't be able to forget. An exploding cow? Incredibly funny and a 'gross out' at the same time. It almost seems Mr Wells actually saw this happen or was nearby when it did. I would LOVE to ask him about that! This fast paced book has a satifying conclusion that suits it, but we are left to wonder what happens to Meely next? Does he find his dad? Please Mr. Wells, don't make us wait too long to visit with Meely and your wonderful bayou.
Rating:
Summary: High School English Class
Review: This book was WONDERFUL. I read it as part of a literacy class for my Masters of Education. There are so many themes and life lessons discussed in this book that i truly believe it could be used as the ONLY book in a high school (11th grade?) english class.
Rating:
Summary: A PO' WHITE BOY WINS OUT
Review: This is a delightful, easy-to-read novel that has a great insight to the society of the have-nots in the deep South. The main character, Meely, is a 14 yr. old that gets by primaily due to his own wits. There is a very interesting part, toward the end, where Meely is asked to identify a corpse. The results of this are hilarious and problem-solving. Believe everyone should like this story; 'tis a dandy.
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