Blood Brothers

Blood Brothers

By Peter Corris

Jack and Bart are best mates, whose friendship seems all but over. While Bart is recovering from a broken leg, he is also coping with his new girlfriend, his single-parent mum and her boyfriend, and his need to know more about his father who he has never met. Jack on the other hand, has lost himself to anger – lashing out at his mate, dabbling in drugs and alcohol, and crashing a car that kills another friend.

While the bond of friendship means so much to Bart that he is willing to track down his criminal father in the search of answers, we don’t actually get to see any of that friendship in the story – the book starting when the friends are already estranged – and so it’s a bit difficult to understand why Bart clings to the friendship so loyally. Otherwise though, it’s an interesting read with strong themes of mateship, fitting in, and growing up in a contemporary Australian setting.

Our Little Secret

Our Little Secret

Author: Allayne Webster

Edwina’s best-friend’s older sister, Anne-Marie, has been raped, and the topic of her small town’s gossip is: did she ‘ask for it’ – were her clothes too slutty, was she too flirtatious, had she been drinking at the time?

This theme of consent /ambiguous consent /non consent to sexual advances is explored with confidence and forthrightness by the author. Edwina finds herself flattered by the attention of Tom, a much older young man. Her choices are clouded by her experimentations with alcohol and drugs. She knows she said ‘no’, but she continues to see Tom and submit to his demands for sex. They eventually break up and it is some time before a kindly teacher, herself a rape survivor, suspects what has happened to Edwina and offers her support.

This is a message-driven novel. Webster juxtaposes the plight of Anne-Marie, who is silenced, doubted and unsupported, with Edwina, who is supported and encouraged to speak by her courageous teacher. The messages are clear and uncompromising. Unfortunately, this quite clinical approach to the storytelling carries over to the people in the story. They lacked depth and emotion, and seemed reduced to the message-relaying roles that the author had assigned them.

It’s a big message though, and, from any and every source, one that every girl needs to hear.

The Straight Road to Kylie

The straight road to Kylie

Author: Nico Medina

Hip and savvy, fast paced and partied out, this story is absolutely dripping with pop-culture references.

Jonathan is gay, and out and proud, until the most popular girl in the school offers him a deal. If he will go back in the closet, and be her boyfriend for their final school year, she will pay for him to go to London to attend a Kylie Minogue concert. Accepting the deal is easy, but when a cute boy enters the scene, Jonathan must weigh the cost of denying his true self.

This novel is full of fun, parties, fabulous humour, rich kids, drinking, and swearing. And it’s a really interesting and clever twist on the theme of acceptance/denial of gay identity. Jonathan is a very strong character, confident and happy with how he is living his life. It is the reaction of his friends to his new found ‘straight-ness’, and his interest in a possible boyfriend, that cause him to reexamine his sense of self.

I have to say that I feel Jonathan’s life as a young gay student - totally out, totally accepted, totally confident and proud - might seem more like a fantasy story for many gay kids. That being acknowledged though, it is a fun, fabulous read.