The Boy from the Basement by Susan Shaw

Charlie is a young boy in a sheltered world - too bad that sheltered world is the basement where his abusive father keeps him as punishment. Charlie's only experiences with the outside world were from when he was younger, and when he sneaks up at night to pee off the porch. The basement is cold, but if he's lucky, his mother has hidden an apple, or more often then not bread and peanut butter (the easiest thing to sneak for her). Too bad Charlie accidently gets himself locked out one night - and a fever makes his head swim so he ends up lost and waking up in a hospital. Readers follow Charlie as he heals, both physically and emotionally, at the hospital and at a good foster-home. However, Charlie has to survive his feverish nightmares first - and no one else seems to see the giant spider in the corner!

This book was such an engaging story that I couldn't put it down. I may have even driven rather fast from the bookstore I'd started skimming it, just so I could start reading it again when I got home. The story doesn't skimp on the harshness of Charlie's situation, so I wouldn't recommend the book for less mature and/or younger readers. However, this book could be a good book for talking about family health, physical health, and healing. It is also good for reluctant readers, and below grade level readers.