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A variation of the Green Man (unless of course Dead Papa Toothwort is just another name for the same) genre. Porter has a gift for description and naturalists who never read fiction might appreciate how he digs into the earth’s need for death and deterioration to feed life and perpetuation. The imagery is as rich and fragrant as damp earth and dead plants.

As DPT hears all, Porter also gets a chance at social satire and irony as he tells the tale of a precious little British hamlet that becomes the epicenter of 24-hour news when a boy especially in tune with nature (and thus special to YouKnowWho) goes missing.

Then the big three become the boy’s parents (Dad gets the usual bad dad treatment, Mom is an author of gross crime dramas) and his art teacher, an eccentric neighbor who becomes a person of interest. At this point the book resembles the old Twilight Zone episode “The Monsters on Maple Street�� with accusations and suspicion in ascendance ( to Toothwort’s delight �� and maybe yours, if you love to see the damned human race hoisted on its precious petard).

Dragged a tad in the long search segment but otherwise both entertaining and a cut above your average writing. Porter’s an interesting writer.