# 33 Snowfish

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2003 novel by Adam Rapp

33 snowfish Author Adam Rapp Cover artist Timothy Basil Ering Language English Publisher Candlewick Press Publication date March 1, 2003 Publication place United States Media type Hardback and paperback Pages 192 pp (first edition, hardback) 179 pp (Paperback) ISBN 978-0-7636-1874-2 (first edition, hardback) ISBN 978-0-7636-2917-5 (Paperback) OCLC 50477270 LC Class PZ7.R1765 Aae 2003

***33 Snowfish*** is a 2003 novel by [Adam Rapp](/source/Adam_Rapp).[1] The [American Library Association](/source/American_Library_Association) made the book one of their 2004 book picks.[2]

## Plot

*33 Snowfish* follows the character of Custis, a 10-year-old orphan living with his "owner" Bob Motley, who [sexually abuses](/source/Child_sexual_abuse) him, in a dilapidated house in [Rockdale, Illinois](/source/Rockdale%2C_Illinois). After overhearing that he was to star in a [snuff movie](/source/Snuff_movie), Custis steals a small pistol and escapes through a hole in the wall. While hiding from Motley's crew and begging for quarters in a [video arcade](/source/Video_arcade) at the [Joliet Mall](/source/Westfield_Louis_Joliet), Custis spots Boobie (whose real name is Darrin Flowers), a strange boy with black eyes and a single painted fingernail. Custis decides to follow Boobie into Crazy Lou's Woods, a private woodland supposedly owned by an ex-military cat farmer. Custis and Boobie soon become friends.

Custis, having no home, and Boobie, who has an unstable relationship with his parents, set up a makeshift home in the woods with a tent and steal electricity from a nearby paper factory. Soon they are joined by Curl, Boobie's 14-year-old girlfriend who is [addicted to drugs](/source/Drug_addiction) and supports herself as a prostitute, and finally, Boobie's baby brother, whom Boobie abducts after murdering his parents. The four of them take to the road in a stolen [Buick Skylark](/source/Buick_Skylark) to flee the police who are searching for Boobie, engaging in [dumpster diving](/source/Dumpster_diving), robbery, and begging in various [Chicago suburbs](/source/Chicago_suburbs) along the way.

## Characters

- **Custis** – A 10-year-old homeless boy who escaped from a [child pornography](/source/Child_pornography) operation. Custis carries a loaded handgun (a "gat") with three bullets and a broken trigger. He suffers from a seizure-like condition that he refers to as "migration *(sic)* headaches" which cause him to black out and wake up in different locations. He has frequent dreams about a mysterious individual called Big Tiny, who was said to have been his mother.

- **Curl** – A 14-year-old girl from [Bolingbrook, Illinois](/source/Bolingbrook%2C_Illinois), who used to live with her disabled aunt Frisco who forced her to turn tricks in their apartment. Curl is kind-hearted, acting as an older sister to Custis, as well as extremely superstitious, believing that she had met Boobie because she sat on top of a pile of [Chex cereal](/source/Chex) on the first of May. She expresses a desire to settle down and marry both Custis and Boobie.

- **Boobie (Darrin Flowers)** – A 17-year-old boy from [Joliet, Illinois](/source/Joliet%2C_Illinois) who is a violent [pyromaniac](/source/Pyromania). Boobie rarely speaks, choosing to express himself via his drawings. He is possessive of Curl and extremely protective of Custis, with whom he shares a special friendship. Boobie eventually murders his parents and abducts his infant brother, and goes on the run from the police in a stolen [Buick Skylark](/source/Buick_Skylark).

- **Boobie's brother** – An unnamed infant who sleeps in a gutted [Magnavox TV](/source/Magnavox) in the back of Boobie's car. He has blue eyes and an odd seam down his forehead, for which he is thought to be unintelligent or defective by the others. He is regarded as a likely source of income if he can be sold.

## Reception

Critical reception for *33 Snowfish* has been positive,[3][4][5] with the book garnering praise from the [School Library Journal](/source/School_Library_Journal) and [Kirkus Reviews](/source/Kirkus_Reviews).[6][7] [Publishers Weekly](/source/Publishers_Weekly) commented on the book's language and content, stating "Readers may have trouble stomaching the language..., as well as the horrors so flatly depicted and, in the end, so handily overcome."[8] A reviewer for *Kliatt* also mentioned the book's mature themes, saying the book was "Not for every taste, but the grittiness and realistic dialogue here may help this bleak though ultimately uplifting novel find a readership."[9]

[The English Journal](/source/The_English_Journal) commented on the book's mature themes, citing it as one of several books that would help challenge teen readers.[10]

*33 Snowfish* has been criticized by conservative activists, along with other [young adult fiction](/source/Young_adult_fiction) titles, for potentially exposing children to excessively violent and sexual themes.[11][12] In 2021, [the school board](/source/Spotsylvania_County_Public_Schools#Governance) of [Spotsylvania County, Virginia](/source/Spotsylvania_County%2C_Virginia) voted to remove it from school libraries along with other "objectionable" content, with two school board members expressing support for [burning the books](/source/Book_burning) in question.[13] The decision was later reversed.[14]

In an article with Horn Book Magazine, Candlewick Press's editorial director commented that Rapp's original version of *33 Snowfish* contained stronger language which had to be edited down before it could be sold.[15]

## References

1. **[^](#cite_ref-1)** Schall, Lucy (2007). [*Booktalks and Beyond: Promoting Great Genre Reads to Teens*](https://archive.org/details/booktalksbeyondp0000scha). Libraries Unlimited. pp. [30](https://archive.org/details/booktalksbeyondp0000scha/page/30)–33. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-1-59158-466-7](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-1-59158-466-7).

1. **[^](#cite_ref-2)** ["Best Books for Young Adults Annotated List 2004"](https://www.ala.org/yalsa/booklistsawards/booklists/bestbooksya/annotations/2004bestbooks). *[Young Adult Library Services Association](/source/Young_Adult_Library_Services_Association)*. July 30, 2007. Retrieved June 16, 2023.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-3)** Gallo, Don (July 2004). "Bold Books for Innovative Teaching: Summer Reading: 2004". *The English Journal*. **93** (6): 114. [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.2307/4128905](https://doi.org/10.2307%2F4128905). [JSTOR](/source/JSTOR_(identifier)) [4128905](https://www.jstor.org/stable/4128905).

1. **[^](#cite_ref-4)** Hahn, Daniel (2007). [*The Ultimate Teen Book Guide*](https://books.google.com/books?id=BsdXfXX69jgC&pg=PA1). Walker Childrens. p. 2. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-0-8027-9731-5](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0-8027-9731-5).

1. **[^](#cite_ref-5)** Stephens, Jonathan (Fall 2007). ["Young Adult: A Book by Any Other Name . . .: Defining the Genre"](http://scholar.lib.vt.edu/ejournals/ALAN/v35n1/pdf/stephens.pdf) (PDF). *The ALAN Review*: 39, 41. Retrieved December 24, 2012.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-6)** ["35 Going on 13: Books for the Bleak Midwinter"](http://www.libraryjournal.com/article/CA6622442.html?q=angelina+benedetti). *Library Journal*. Retrieved December 24, 2012.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-7)** ["Review: 33 Snowfish"](https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/adam-rapp/33-snowfish/). *Kirkus Reviews*. Retrieved December 24, 2012.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-8)** ["Children's Review: 33 Snowfish"](http://www.publishersweekly.com/978-0-7636-1874-2). *Publishers Weekly*. March 2003. Retrieved December 24, 2012.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-9)** Rohrlick, Paula (March 2003). "Review: Rapp, Adam. 33 Snowfish". *Kliatt*. **37** (2): 16.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-10)** Glenn, Wendy (November 2006). "Bold Books for Teenagers: Trusting Texts That Trust Students". *The English Journal*. **96** (2): 89–90. [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.2307/30047139](https://doi.org/10.2307%2F30047139). [JSTOR](/source/JSTOR_(identifier)) [30047139](https://www.jstor.org/stable/30047139).

1. **[^](#cite_ref-Collum_11-0)** Collum, Jason. ["Be careful, little eyes ..."](https://afajournal.org/past-issues/2004/may/be-careful-little-eyes/) *AFA Journal*. Retrieved November 12, 2021.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-Gaffney_2014_pp._730–739_12-0)** Gaffney, Loretta M. (August 12, 2014). ["No Longer Safe: West Bend, Young Adult Literature, and Conservative Library Activism"](https://www.ideals.illinois.edu/bitstream/handle/2142/54903/62.4.gaffney.pdf?sequence=2) (PDF). *Library Trends*. **62** (4): 730–739. [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.1353/lib.2014.0019](https://doi.org/10.1353%2Flib.2014.0019). [hdl](/source/Hdl_(identifier)):[2142/54903](https://hdl.handle.net/2142%2F54903). [ISSN](/source/ISSN_(identifier)) [1559-0682](https://search.worldcat.org/issn/1559-0682). [S2CID](/source/S2CID_(identifier)) [19630118](https://api.semanticscholar.org/CorpusID:19630118). Retrieved November 12, 2021.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-13)** Uphaus–Conner, Adele (December 17, 2020). ["Spotsylvania School Board orders libraries to remove 'sexually explicit' books"](https://fredericksburg.com/news/local/education/spotsylvania-school-board-orders-libraries-to-remove-sexually-explicit-books/article_6c54507a-6383-534d-89b9-c2deb1f6ba17.html). *The Free Lance-Star*. Retrieved November 12, 2021.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-14)** Wallace, Danielle (November 16, 2021). ["Virginia school board reverses course on ban of 'sexually explicit' books after move seen as unconstitutional"](https://www.foxnews.com/us/virginia-school-board-sexually-explicit-books-ban). Fox News. Retrieved December 3, 2021.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-15)** Campbell, Patty (May–June 2007). "The pottymouth paradox". *The Horn Book Magazine*. Vol. 83, no. 3. p. 311.

v t e Adam Rapp Novels The Copper Elephant (1995) Little Chicago (2002) 33 Snowfish (2003) Plays Red Light Winter (2005) The Sound Inside (2018) The Outsiders (2023) Films directed Winter Passing (2005) Blackbird (2007) Loitering with Intent (2014)

Authority control databases Open Library

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [33 Snowfish](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/33_Snowfish) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/33_Snowfish?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.