Description
Heartfelt and poignant, this coming of age story explores father-son relationships, against a backdrop of small town rivalries, buried truths, with themes of sustainability, preserving the past and environmental care.
When Dad goes to jail, Matthew and his mum move to the coast, so mum – an artist – thinks she can renovate her late father’s old place to sell it to get them back on their feet. Matthew strikes up a friendship with Old Bill, an Indigenous man who becomes a father figure to him, and teaches him how to find and eat pippis, fish (and to make a few dollars from it). Dad gets out on parole and moves back in with the family, but his anger fractures the newfound peace and everything is once again at stake, and in peril.
Review
Matthew’s Dad is in jail for stealing cars - not that Matthew cares much, he never liked him anyway.
Matthew really only has his Mum and his one friend, Asha, in his life.
But when they can’t pay the rent Mum decides to move to the old shack on the coast that her father bought, but never got around to fixing up before he died. Matthew and Asha agree to keep in touch but distance doesn’t make that easy.
When Matthew meets Bill, an Indigenous man and local fisherman, who nobody in town talks to, they quickly form a bond. Bill teaches Matthew to be a great fisherman but also how to respect the land and their ancestor’s connection to it. Everything is looking up, and Matthew’s Mum has started to paint again, and has also started doing up their place.
But all this comes to an abrupt halt when his Dad gets out of jail and arrives in town wanting them all to return to the city. His Dad still has his usual temper, no time for Matthew, and is back to his old ways, stealing things. But when he gets injured in a boating accident, and Matthew saves his life, it seems like the hard bump on his head may have changed his personality for the better. Maybe they can stay and have a normal family life?
And then Asha arrives for the holidays, and they have both grown up a lot. Might they be more than just friends…
This is a terrific novel filled with great characters. With themes of doing the right thing, families growing and changing, friendships in many forms, holding grudges and learning to move on, as well as learning about Country and First Nations’ traditions, this is an ideal novel for those aged 13 to 16 years.
Reviewed by Rob
