The Boys

The Boys: Ron Howard & Clint Howard

Brothers Ron and Clint Howard pen a compelling memoir about their lives as child stars and the sons of two loving parents.

Ron Howard played Opie Taylor in “The Andy Griffith Show,” Richie Cunningham in “Happy Days” and is the Oscar-winning director/producer of numerous movies.

Clint Howard is a familiar face as a character actor from his appearances as the cowboy toddler Leon in “The Andy Griffith Show,” the child star of the “Gentle Ben” TV series and numerous character roles, often in his brother’s movies, throughout his adulthood.

The Howards take turns writing portions of “The Boys” under headings of Ron and Clint. They write about their extraordinary turns as child actors – “Andy Griffith” fans will appreciate Ron’s insights into the show but will likely want to know more about making the beloved sitcom – but the heart of the book is a love letter to their parents.

Because even though Ron Howard was making more money than the professional baseball players he adored as a kid, and Ron and Clint were both in popular TV shows, Rance and Jean Howard ensured their sons had as normal of a childhood as possible.

Rance and Jean met while performing in theatre. When Ron was born, Jean set her theatre ambitions aside but Rance continued auditioning for and getting acting jobs. Needing a young child in a movie, Ron was hired along with Rance. Rance coached his son for the part – a role the acting father would repeat regularly with both of his sons as they were cast in movies and TV shows.

While the Howard brothers were part of the 1960s television culture, their remembered childhoods read like the coming of age story of many young boys for the ‘60s. Regular kids who happened to have extraordinary jobs.

“The Boys” follows Ron and Clint into becoming young adults. Ron shares stories from “American Graffiti,” “Happy Days” and making the transition from child actor to adult actor to movie director. Clint shares some of his travails of going from child actor to adult seeking acting roles.

“The Boys” is an interesting read from two faces that have been familiar for decades. An insightful account of two child actors who defied the typical traps of childhood stardom.

Never Go Back: Lee Child

When you reach the 18th book in author Lee Child’s Jack Reacher series, “Never Go Back” seems to be the perfect title.

It’s also a little bittersweet for my run of reading all of Child’s Jack Reacher books. Because that means there are only about a half dozen or so Jack Reacher novels left.

I started reading the series back in February 2022 after watching the first season of “Reacher” on the AmazonPrime streaming service.

My late father-in-law had attempted to get me to read the Reacher books a few times but I never felt nudged to read them. I watched the Tom Cruise movies where the actor plays Reacher but they didn’t push me to seek the books either.

My father-in-law said Cruise was a good actor but physically too small to play the giant Jack Reacher. Alan Ritchson as the Amazon “Reacher” is a better fit, especially after finally reading a Reacher book.

So, each month since February 2022, I have read a Jack Reacher book.

Bringing us back to “Never Go Back” and, in some ways, Tom Cruise. “Never Go Back” was the basis for the second Tom Cruise Reacher movie. But if you think you know the story because you’ve seen the movie, think again.

The plot basis is similar: Reacher, a former military police major, finally visits the MP officer who helped him via phone a few books back. A voice he liked very much on the phone. But when he arrives at his former Army headquarters, Major Susan Turner isn’t there; she is a suspect in a crime. Within a few minutes of his arrival, Reacher is informed he has been wanted for incidents that happened during his time in the Army, he’s inducted back into the military and taken into custody.

But not for long. Reacher breaks himself and Turner out of custody. Together, they stay ahead of the Army, the police and the FBI as they work to clear their names.

Some long-time readers may be disappointed or relieved by the ending – very different from the Tom Cruise movie conclusion – but shouldn’t be surprised by it.

Reacher continues being Reacher – a former MP drifting from adventure to adventure across the U.S. … at least for another half dozen books and the second season of the Amazon show scheduled to be released in December.