The darkest note in the story it's what no conventional sci-fi blockbuster would dare to include is the Mortensen character's despairing realization that he must be prepared at any moment to fire a bullet into hisbelovedson should they be captured, since the bandits who roam the land would rape and kill the boy if he didn't.
While I introduced him to Harry Potter, a beloved teacher gave him Wild Things, and a pal shared a couple of his own Goosebumps just when my son needed a friend as well as a good read.