Jasper Jones

by Craig Silvey

Hardcover, 2011

Call number

J FIC SIL

Collection

Children's/YA Fiction

Genres

Young Adult

Publication

Knopf Books for Young Readers (2011), Edition: Book Club Edition (BCE), 320 pages

Description

Young Adult Fiction. Young Adult Literature. HTML:A 2012 Michael L. Printz Honor Book Charlie Bucktin, a bookish thirteen year old, is startled one summer night by an urgent knock on his bedroom window. His visitor is Jasper Jones, an outcast in their small mining town, and he has come to ask for Charlie's help. Terribly afraid but desperate to impress, Charlie follows him into the night. Jasper takes him to his secret glade, where Charlie witnesses Jasper's horrible discovery. With his secret like a brick in his belly, Charlie is pushed and pulled by a town closing in on itself in fear and suspicion. He locks horns with his tempestuous mother, falls nervously in love, and battles to keep a lid on his zealous best friend. In the simmering summer where everything changes, Charlie learns why the truth of things is so hard to know, and even harder to hold in his heart.… (more)

User reviews

LibraryThing member madepercy

I usually would not read fiction of this variety but my hand was forced by circumstances. Nonetheless, the critics’ reviews had me anticipating a novel which explores Australia’s deep-seated racist culture in such a way as to put Silvey in the same league as the American Harper Lee. Lee wrote

about the racism she observed as a child and I was expecting something similarly honest from Silvey. Instead, a lazy combination of artist and critic that would have bewildered Oscar Wilde left me with a potentially good read, including some brilliant teenage dialogue, which otherwise lacks credibility. The lazy combination began with the critic who obviously didn’t read the entire book and instead simply regurgitated Silvey’s own references to Harper Lee and Mark Twain. This was off-putting as it smacks of the cultural cringe which sits comfortably with racism as a form of illogical behaviour so prevalent in Australian society. Silvey writes well and parts of the story had me racing ahead to find out what happened next, but it also left me confused. The first half of the book reads like a set-text for high school English (much like “To Kill a Mockingbird”) while the second-half suddenly jolts into racism, teenage sex, child sexual abuse, adultery, and the emptiness and boredom of living in a small Australian mining town. When viewed in isolation, this might be seen as a jolting technique to break away from the set-text model. Hopefully teachers will not be as lazy as the critic and will read the entire novel before setting the text for younger students. Yet endlessly painful anachronisms signify the author’s lack of historical knowledge and keep rearing their ugly heads throughout the story, leaving the reader begging for an honest word from Hemingway rather than another distraction from Silvey. To be sure, fiction is made-up, but researching the setting and the context properly adds credibility and ensures the reading of fiction is not an intellectual insult. Despite the accolades and the awards for “Jasper Jones”, I give Silvey a credit grade for a well-written piece of work that suffers from too many themes, too many anachronisms and a lack of credibility that ultimately stems from lazy research.

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LibraryThing member jazzamatazz

This novel restored my faith that a good novel need not be work.
I picked it up thinking I would read one page and immediately was drawn into the mystery. Enagaging characters and a well written plot, this is an easy rewarding read. Do not be put off by the teenage main character! This book is not

a 'teen' book, it's a book for anyone. Charlie is a friendly boy drawn into something way over his head, he ossilates from being charmed by his new status as a trusted friend of the town football ledgend Jasper Jones, (an older Aboriginal boy), and terrorised by his new horrible knowledge of a murdered girl.
great read.

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LibraryThing member thelittlereader

i think it's only fitting to post a review of a wonderful book on the day of its release, although unfortunately, it is not being released in the U.S. at this time. *sniffle* but, seriously, if you are somewhere that is lucky enough to be able to purchase this book (like the UK), do it and do it

now!

the opening chapter will lead you to believe that this book is dark and almost depressing, when the young Jasper Jones turns to Charlie Bucktin in an act of desperation after discoveri...more i think it's only fitting to post a review of a wonderful book on the day of its release, although unfortunately, it is not being released in the U.S. at this time. *sniffle* but, seriously, if you are somewhere that is lucky enough to be able to purchase this book (like the UK), do it and do it now!

the opening chapter will lead you to believe that this book is dark and almost depressing, when the young Jasper Jones turns to Charlie Bucktin in an act of desperation after discovering the body of a young girl in "his spot" in the woods. but, honestly, it's misleading. it is true that some very serious issues are discussed - prejudice, divorce, violence - but, it is done in such an unassuming way that you can almost forget the dead girl. it's nearly secondary to the exploration of joyousness of adolescence, although that's not really fair, because everyone thinks the girl is missing and everyone is talking about her.

Charlie is a lanky, bookish 13 year old boy and he lives a fairly charmed life in a small mining town in Australia. although his parents are a little imbalanced, they are a realistic and almost endearing family. when he isn't home, Charlie is with Jeffrey, who "despite being roughly the size of a garden gnome, [he:] can manage to be intimidating." let me just state that Jeffrey is all kinds of awesome, and the two boys together were the highlight of the book. from their intense debate about which superhero was the best, to their love of cricket (which i definitely couldn't follow, but still found amusing), their dialogue was some of the most entertaining that i have read in a very long time. the characters were all so well developed with a wry sense of humor that i couldn't help but fall in love with all of them.

but, the book does eventually come down to Jasper and his story, as the title suggests. he is of Aboriginal descent and is labelled as trouble by all of the parents in town. however, he is seriously underestimated and misunderstood and the unfolding of his story, along with the obvious dead girl thing, introduced the more serious undertones to the book. Jasper was the type of kid that was strong on the outside for the purpose of survival, but was still just a kid that needed to know he was a good person. and i think that's something that a lot of people can relate to in some way or another.

"I don't need to trick meself into thinkin anyone else is listenin, or even cares. Because it doesn't matter. I matter. And I know I'll be alright. Because I got a good heart, and fuck this town for makin me try to believe otherwise. It's what you come with and it's what you leave with. And that's all I got."

the characters really made this book for me. though the narrative and dialogue tended to ramble a bit, it was the carefree sort of rambling that was so entertaining that i didn't really mind. however, if you are the type of person who needs really dense, realistic plots, you may find Silvey's style to be a little distracting. arguably, the boys were unreasonably wise beyond their years at times, but the writing was so engaging that it didn't matter to me. this is a book that has the appeal of a lighthearted Young Adult book and the literary appeal of a heartier piece of fiction, with a dabbling of romance and suspense. it was a joy to read and has definitely been one of my favorite reads this year!

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LibraryThing member SamuelW

If you are a young Australian male about to read To Kill a Mockingbird, don’t. Read Jasper Jones instead. Or, if your English teacher insists, read both. This book does for Australia what Harper Lee’s classic novel does for America. It delivers the same plot elements – the young protagonist,

the small town community, the dark-skinned outcast, the infamous recluse – and explores the same themes – racism, loss of innocence, courage, secrecy – all transposed into a quintessentially Australian setting and narrated with absorbing energy, authenticity and humour. There will be something in this novel for every Australian reader to relate to. Silvey’s prose captures the internal narrative of adolescence perfectly, right down to the last flutterings of anxiety and speechlessness when confronted with a member of the opposite sex. His characters are as realistic as they are charismatic, and their dialogue is read-out-loud, laugh-out-loud gold. Charlie’s best friend, Jeffrey Lu, deserves a special mention in this department.

Whatever Silvey does, his short, sharp and distinctive narration brings his reader right up close to the action. His cricket game scene is recounted with such tension and excitement that even readers who couldn’t care less about cricket will be glued to the page. Every emotion is contagious, every idea is thought provoking, every trial and trouble is riveting. The blending of literary depth and narrative force is a rare joy. The entire novel just works.

While the material may not be new, Silvey’s writing manages to avoid any feeling of retreading old ground. Mad Jack Lionel, who might otherwise have been a familiar and one-dimensional character, is well presented in the few short scenes the plot can afford him. Even the inevitable feel-good moments are more complex than one might expect. Silvey treads the line between literature and popular fiction, but never lets the quality of his writing slip for a moment, defying any attempts to pigeonhole his work as a mere rehashing of familiar plot devices and themes.

Having just finished Jasper Jones, I am seized by an uncontrollable urge to read it again – which is a problem, as I have an equally strong urge to immediately lend it to everyone I know. I am still unsure which urge will win.

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LibraryThing member Summer_Missfictional

More like 3.5 stars.

"I don't understand a thing about this world: about people, and why they do the things they do. The more I find out, the more I uncover, the more I know, the less I understand.

Many are boldly making the claim that this is the Australian To Kill A Mockingbird. I don't think I

agree with this, in the sense that it didn't affect me as much as the latter did. The similarities are there, nonetheless. It shows the cruel world from an innocent 13-year-old's point of view, much like what To Kill A Mockingbird does.

It's easy to see how someone would love this. It has many of the qualities people look for in a book, but for me, I can't bring myself to give it more than three and a half stars.

I have to give it to Silvey, he has a lot of talent. The writing is quite absorbing and unique, and while it did take some getting used to, it started to grow on me. A bit clumpy at times, but still compelling. I might even go so far to say that this is one of the best reflection of a teen boy's voice; a quality you'd be hard-pressed to come across in YA.

Charlie is the main character of the novel. For a majority of the novel, I would describe the guy as a wimp. He's the kid that gets bullied just for being smarter than everyone else, the kid that would rather be reading than hanging out with other teens. His awkwardness and low self-confidence are shown in the tone of the writing. I don't know if I love him, or even feel a sort of bond with him, but I will say that he is very well-developed, as are the other characters.

Here's a hilarious quote that had me cracking up:
"My brain is a vast, barren, jokeless plain where wolves howl and at the moon over rocky overhangs and the wind kicks up twists of sand and tumbleweed."

At times, though, his thoughts seemed way too mature for a person his age. C'mon, no teen talks like a freaking philosopher all the time. We might mistake him for an old man. It simply wasn't realistic.

There's Charlie's best friend, Jeffrey, who is hands down my favorite character of the book. While Charlie is a bit on the unrealistic side, Jeffrey is exactly how a teen is. I wish I counted the amount of times he called Charlie an idiot in the span of one chapter.

Jasper Jones is the town outlaw, the scapegoat of all the town's problems. If a flower dies, it's Jasper Jones' fault. If you lose your ring, Jasper stole it. Same with if a girl is murdered. You get the picture.

Which brings me to the town in which the story takes place. It's the ignorant town that is exactly how I picture one of those overly-conservative towns down in the South. They blame everything on one person, treat the Vietnamese immigrants like shit, (this is set during the Vietnam War), and just portray pure ignorance.

Yup, you guessed it, just like in To Kill A Mockingbird.

Where the novel fell flat, I think, is the mystery aspect. It didn't interest me at all. It could be that I didn't care much for the person that the mystery was related to, or that mystery really isn't the genre for Silvey and he should stick to coming-of-age novels.

There were way too many sub-plots the author was trying to fit into one book. What puzzled me is how many different issues there were, but the plot still managed to move SO SLOW.

I like how the Vietnam War and Cold War were brought up, adding more maturity to the novel. While only subtly alluded to, I did appreciate their mentioning and their significance during that time.

I can't help but feel that this book and the praise along with it is pretentious, which I think took away from my enjoyment of the book. I was hoping to love this, but it didn't cut it for me.

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LibraryThing member JulesDitterich

Loved the book but found it very disturbing.

LibraryThing member SashaM

OK. Let me start by saying that I am not the target audience for this book-it is a YA novel And if I had to narrow that target down more I would say that it is a definitely a BOY novel. The bad jokes, the hypothetical quizzing (would you rather have a hat of venomous spiders or penises for

fingers?) and much of the dialogue is very 14 yo boy: which is great because that is exactly who the protagonist is and as this is frequently set as an English text in Australian high schools it does a great job of being relatable to its' target audience. (I recently had a customer tell me that this is the first school book her 13 yo son had read without protest).

I didn't love this book. I did warm to it as the story progressed. My initial impression was basically Silvey had created a homage to various American writers (Truman, Lee, Hemingway to name a few). This wasn't helped by the constant references in the first few chapters (becomes less frequent as the book progresses) and the protagonist's own literary ambitions.

The issues covered in the book - race, racism, abuse, small town spitefulness, bullying and family drama - are definitely put in a context with is relatable to teenagers and I completely understand why this book is on the school lists year in, year out.

Having said all of that I did not feel that this was a truly great example of Australian Literature and I would not recommend it as such. It was more of an Australianised take on themes which have been covered originally by American writers (the same writers that are referenced so frequently throughout). Not to say that we do not have these issues just that this story did not feel like and original take on them.

As an adult reader (who reads a lot of books) I did figure out most of the plot "twists" pretty much as the character it involved was introduced - I'm not sure if the telegraphing of plot points was intended by Silvey or not.

I would recommend this book to teenage boys (and girls) who like a book that will make them think and it has enough mystery & humour to keep most kids interested. Not for the under 12's though.

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LibraryThing member presto

Japser Jones, half Aborigine is regarded as the terror of Corrigan, a small town in Australia. When one night he taps on the bedroom window of Charlie Bucktin, it heralds the beginning of Charlie's rite of passage into new person. Although the two boys have never spoken before, the slightly older

Jasper recognises in Charlie an honest and sensitive nature, someone he can trust with hie terrible dilemma, and someone who will help him.

Charlie, nearly fourteen years old, narrates the story. Charlie and his Vietnamese friend, the diminutive Frederick Lu, despite the latter's prowess at cricket are not part of the in-crowd at school; Frederick's race and Charlie's intelligence and interest in books and writing set them apart. But the two are close friends, and the good natured banter, liberally peppered with insults, the two enjoy is a pleasure to read.

The story weaves between Charlie's shared plight with Jasper, his friendship with Frederick, Frederick's goal to be accepted into the cricket team, and Charlie's budding romance with a young girl not unconnected to Japser's problem.

Japser Jones is a story of friendship and loyalties, a thriller, and a coming of age story. It is full of humour and has plenty of drama. Silvey prose reads with great ease. He has created memorable characters especially in both Jasper and Frederick. His description of the closing action in the cricket match is a minor masterpiece, perfectly capturing the tension and excitement (even for someone who has not interest whatsoever in the game of cricket).

If I have a complaint it is that Craig Silvey occasionally gets on his hobby horse, and at times gets dangerously close to begin guilty of the very same thing he clearly abhors, he needs to do a little more homework before making generalisations.

That aside Japser Jones is a delightful story with some very likeable characters, it has to be highly recommended.

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LibraryThing member ChrisWarren

An excellent read. At first, the self-reference to "To Kill a Mockingbird" was offputting but the book did really explore the same themes in an Australian context.

LibraryThing member sueo23

This is one of the best Australian novels I have read in the last 10 years. The characters are completely believable and lovingly brought to life by Craig Silvey. There are certainly elements of Harper Lee's "To Kill a Mockingbird" in the storyline, but no sense of plagarising that classic at all.

Central character Charlie is a sympathetic and accessible character, while his best mate Jeffery Lu is a wonderfully humourous and at the same time, fragile, character. Jasper Jones is the kid every town has...the one that gets blamed for everything bad, but who in reality is just as flawed, vulnerable and sensitive as anyone else. Charlie's parents : his Dad a late-blooming novelist trapped in a sham marriage; his mother a shrill, harpy who feels she deserved better than Charlie and his Dad. There are fantastic minor storylines going on all through this novel and it is a definite page-turner. You are gathered in to Charlie's world right from the opening paragraph and Silvey doesn't let go until the final paragraph. His writing is superb and I can't wait for his next work to be published. I well-deserved nominee for the Miles Franklin Award. I hope it wins!

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LibraryThing member Lidbud

Jasper Jones by Craig Silvey

Charlie Bucktin has a terrible secret. One hot night, Jasper Jones the town outcast - part aboriginal and universally despised comes to his window. Charlie is thirteen, clever, bookish and doesn't really fit in in the mining town of Corrigan, a rather unlovely place

where racism and prejudice run deep. Jasper has witnessed some thing terrible, and he needs Charlie's help. Charlie and Jasper are both tormented with guilt following Jasper's awful discovery, and the town is filled with suspicion. During the summer, he comes into conflict with his mother, and falls in love for the first time.
Some of the best scenes in the book take place between Charlie and his friend Jeffrey Lu. Jeffrey is witty, clever, and great at cricket, but he is also Vietnamese, and this is 1965, and young Australian men are being sent to Vietnam. As the anger in the town simmers, Jeffrey's family are easy targets.
Despite the sometimes grim subject matter, this is not at all a grim or depressing book. Silvey has a lightness of touch, writes great dialogue and his three-dimensional characters almost jump from the page.
Highly recommended.

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LibraryThing member teresa1953

Almost an homage to "To Kill A Mockingbird", this book has a great storyline. I found it a little difficult to get into at the start, but "Jasper Jones" became a page turner about a quarter of the way through.

The eponymous Jasper is the town's bad boy who gets the blame for everything untoward

that happens and he seeks out Charlie's help on the discovery of a tragic event. There are fine depictions of early love, racial tension and small town bigotry. I loved the banter between Charlie and Jeffrey and it was a fine illustration of life in mid 60s Australia.

A bit far fetched in places, but no less charming for it.......I recommend this book wholeheartedly.

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LibraryThing member JanetWS

'Jasper Jones' has everything for teenagers, young adults and adults of any age who care about what our young people face in their growing up lives. Craig Silvey's writing is clever and intelligent, his talent with the English language is enviable and accessible, also fun.

I enjoyed the story-line,

but, not knowing too much about cricket, got a bit lost on the technical detail of the sport, but that's easy to forgive because I was rooting for Jeffery Lu all the way. Charlie and Jeffrey are depicted as true friends in a way that only kids can understand but which adults can learn about or remember themselves. And the friendship between Charlie and Jasper is put into stark contrast. Put their families into this mix and a very good story has emerged by a talented storyteller.

As others have written in their reviews, the banter between the Charlie and Jeffrey was great fun and it never once seemed that Craig Silvey struggled with the language of the age group. (I'm no expert)

I admired Silvey's intertwining of the characters' fears and ambitions and the banter into the guts of the story, indeed each of the characters' own stories.

Incest is a horrid topic and Craig Silvey has put the topic at the centre of the tragedy cleverly (sorry to spoil the story) without pounding it and he's done it a in a sensitive manner and dealt with it carefully. Yes, I wanted the bastard to suffer more.

PS I also loved reading his acknowledgements

I look forward to more of Silvey's work for sure.

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LibraryThing member lberriman

Looking at the cover of this book I thought I was in for a fun and frivolous ride (I don't like to read blurbs before I start a book). I was not very far into my journey when I realised this was not to be the case. Despite my misconceptions I was enthralled. I enjoyed Silvey's style of writing and

his character development of Charlie.

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LibraryThing member whirled

With its themes of racism and small-town narrow-mindedness, and featuring a reclusive character strongly reminiscent of Boo Radley, Jasper Jones reads like To Kill A Mockingbird, Down Under. I doubt the author would claim to be in league with that Southern Gothic masterpiece - and neither he

should, having made the common mistake of imbuing his 13-year-old lead character Charlie Bucktin with a sophistication well beyond his years. Though I found his writing sometimes tended towards clumsiness and verbosity, Craig Silvey has nonetheless delivered an entertaining portrait of life in mid-1960s regional Australia.

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LibraryThing member CloggieDownunder

Jasper Jones is Craig Silvey’s second novel. It is set during a hot summer in 1965 in a small West Australian town, Corrigan, and narrated by thirteen-year-old Charlie Bucktin. Charlie is surprised by Jasper Jones’ appearance at his sleepout window: Jasper needs his help. Jasper, mixed race,

rebellious and solitary, represents danger and intrigue for Charlie: he is desperate to impress him and so goes along with Jasper. This action unleashes a sequence of events that will change Charlie, Jasper and the people of the town of Corrigan. Silvey’s elegant prose touches on racism, adultry, truth and lies, human weakness, falling in love, trust, small-town boredom, cricket, coming of age, love of literature, hope and despair and long-kept secrets. Silvey’s characters are compelling, his dialogue is credible and his plot takes a few unexpected turns. The subject matter could have been heavy going, but Silvey provides us with exceptional comic relief in the delightful Jeffrey Lu, Charlie’s best friend. Jeffrey’s conversations with Charlie provide many laugh-out-loud moments. Charlie’s relationship with his father, Wes, and later with his prospective girlfriend, Eliza, provide a heartening contrast to some other aspects of the story. Jasper Jones is an outstanding and decidedly enjoyable novel: let us hope for more like this from Craig Silvey.

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LibraryThing member TheWasp

It's the summer school holidays when Jasper Jones comes to Charlie's window and urges him to come with him to help him. A terrible crime has been committed and Jasper thinks that he will automatically be accused simply because of his "outcast " reputation. Charlie, sensing Jasper's innocence,

agrees to help but in doing so places himself in a situation from which there is no escape.

I assume this book is written for young adults, and in a way is a "coming of age" book. It deals with betrayal, family dynamics, racism, community, relationships, bullying, secrets and death and while I lost interest in some of the dialogues this may be that for me, those types of conversations were decades ago. A good story although not the outcome I expected.

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LibraryThing member akmargie

I'm conflicted about this one, which means this review will be long, unfocused and rambling. Basically I found some characters interesting and complex and others grating and obnoxious. Not that I think the reader should like every character, I just really didn't appreciate the characterization of

some, particularly the female characters. Yes this is told from Charlie, an 13 year old narrator but all the sympathetic characters are guys. It bugged me.
Maybe this is just one of those books that I need some distance from.

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LibraryThing member Carolinejyoung

This wasn't a bad book but it didn't make me want to pick it up to find out what happens next so I decided to give up part way through and read something else.

LibraryThing member vietnambutterfly

Jasper and Kevin are outcasts in their own way in a small country town in West Australia. Jasper knocks on Kevin's window one night and gets him to help deal with the body of Laura who is haning from a tree out of town. The mystery deepens as they try to find out who was invloved and why it

happened.
there are touches of To Kill a Mocking bird and other classics - this is done unashamedly with references to Atticus Finch and the Bo Radley character. Issues of bullying, racism and growing up alienated in a small country town are dealt with along with family secrets and breakdwon.
I questioned the 13/14 year old Kevin's almost adut like perspective on events and was a little over the clasic references to make the book an Australian To Kill a Mocking bird but read to the end and found the end surprising and satisfying.

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LibraryThing member DaptoLibrary

More often than not, small town fiction seems to work. There is something about the dynamics of a small community that rattles our literary cage; that is certainly the case in our group anyway.
Jasper Jones was generally enjoyed by everyone, finding it more or less realistic and probable,

particularly the relationship between Charlie and Jasper. A few of us brought up the issue of Charlie’s mature views and articulation of the story, but we were willing to forgive this small point for the well manufactured plot’s sake.

Our discussion took a few turns, but basically centred on small town prejudice, injustices and hidden abuse; were they really so prevalent in small isolated communities and are they still. These issues do seem to come up often in fiction, which we do not find surprising nor unrealistic (I think we are all realists at heart). But we did detect a small amount of superficial
‘hollywoodifying’ in Jasper’s case and some of us went so far as to say the story as a whole was a little far fetched.

We did agree that this did not lessen the story’s impact for our club’s purposes though, and the well written visual descriptions, character development and conclusion made the reading journey more than satisfactory. Mockingbird it is not … but then we don’t believe the author ever intended it to be.

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LibraryThing member peggygillman

Was it murder or suicide? Not quite as good as the many reviews but still OK. Set in Australia in the middle to late sixties. I liked that the mother turned out to be rotten and finally left the son and father.

LibraryThing member edspicer

Silvey, C. (2011). Jasper Jones. New York: Knopf/Random House. 312 pp. ISBN: 978-0-375-86666-1. (Hardcover); $16.99.

As a teacher for many years, I regularly see young students who have not learned how to interact with other students. Some call these students bullies and sometimes they are correct.

However, there is another side to bullying that is not as often recorded. Students will come tell me about something the bully has done, even when they do not have any direct evidence that proves it. I have had students tattle on this prototypical boy for things he did even when he was absent. Silvey’s book is about this boy, Jasper Jones, the answer to all that is wrong in the mining town of Corrigan. Straight off the bat, Jasper takes Charlie to show him something that will forever change Charlie: he shows him the dead body of Laura Wishart hanging from a tree. Jasper and Charlie are not friends. They do not hang out together, but Charlie instinctively trusts him and is flattered that the town bad boy has come to him for help. Charlie is not popular and is honored by Jasper’s trust. Charlie is a bookish thirteen-year-old and he quickly understands that Jasper WILL be the one blamed for the death, especially considering that the location is a place Jasper has often taken girls, including Laura. Jasper cuts Laura down from the tree and Charlie helps him dump her body into the river, with blocks of granite tied to her to keep her from surfacing. Eventually Corrigan begins a search for Laura, and Charlie is complicit in her disappearance (and death). Afraid to say anything because of his involvement and because he believes Jasper, Charlie is, nevertheless, racked with guilt. As predicted, the town suspects Jasper and even Charlie has his doubts. This book is 312 pages and all of this action happens in the first fifty pages! Silvey fills the pages with references to Huckleberry Finn, To Kill a Mockingbird, and several other texts that provide readers with clues to Charlie’s personality. One book that he does not use is Crime and Punishment even though Charlie agonizes over his part in Laura’s disappearance. Since Jasper and Charlie are not close friends, they cannot be seen together. Consequently, much of the book, in To Kill a Mockingbird fashion shows Charlie’s interactions with the town as he and Jasper attempt to puzzle out who killed Laura. Charlie’s best friend is Jeffrey Lu, a Vietnamese boy, who is “ruthlessly” bullied. The “Boo Radley” of the book could very well be Mad Jack Lionel—the test of bravery is to steal peaches from his property, which is beyond Charlie’s bravery threshold. The final linchpin character, and the character who provides the novel with most of its dramatic tension, is the girl that Charlie likes: the dead girl’s sister, Eliza Wishart. The exploration of racism from several different lenses is brilliant because this book is not just a painful look at racism. It also explores how we tell the truth to our friends and let’s not forget the humor! Silvey’s book often sparkles with its dialog between Charlie and Jeffrey who are not always sure that they should be friends:

“I shake my head. Jeffrey leans back and yawns. He scratches his chest.
‘I feel like an icy cold beer,’ he says.
‘What? Why?’
‘I don’t know. It always looks so refreshing. I wishhhh to be refreshhhhed by an icy cold beer.’
‘But you’ve never had beer.’
‘So?’
‘So how can you feel like something you’ve never tasted?’
‘You’ve never kissed Eliza Wishart before, but you still wanted to do that.’
I roll my eyes at him.
‘That’s a lot different to a beer.’
‘Telling me. A beer is farrrr superior. You don’t have to sit around holding its hand and saying nice things about its hair.’
‘Jeffrey, you’re a volcanic eruption of stupidity.’
‘I’m a volcanic eruption of truth; you know it.’” (p. 224)

The gradual discovery of the many truths germane to Laura’s death makes sense and surprises the reader. The character growth we see in Charlie feels as real as it is hard earned, much like the growth of Scout or Jeb. Purchase this Printz winner for all high school libraries. This is an obvious book to pair with many of the books required in AP English classes, so make sure to purchase an extra copy for AP English teachers.

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LibraryThing member DaptoLibrary

We had a few conflicting ideas about the the merits of Jasper Jones. The majority loved the story concept, setting and characters, finding much to discuss about the racial intolerance of small communities. Not just here in Australia, but throughout the world and its history.
We were left with many

question though and Mary in particular was a little frustrated with some of the short-sighted ignorance portraited within the community.
Could something like this happen today? Again, we were a little divided here with opinions in both camps. A good sign that this book is open to much deliberation, something our group always enjoys.
Vanessa was busy this month and only got through two chapters, but she is keen to finish and will continue to form her own views on the story's climax. Sandra declared that she 'has already raised three teenage boys and is not particularly keen to read about them!' Fair enough Sandra, there is nothing more refreshing than an honest opinion!

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LibraryThing member tzugirl

It is a wonderful experience to pick out and read a book that somehow reflects a current thread that is slowly rippling in your own life consciousness. As a grandmother and guardian of two teenage boys, 12 and 14, it is a challenge to take a trip down memory lane to my teenage years and remember

the agony of puberty in the company of my parents and the freedom and fun I enjoyed with my friends. Life's little secrets of the mischievous antics with my girlfriends at the beach - was not a repeated topic of conversation at the dinner table with my parents.

My grandchildren live in an Australian country town, and come to Sydney for school holidays. They often tell me of the boring hot days during summer school terms, flies and insects, and how boring it is with nothing to do. Like Charlie Bucktin, the 14 year old grandson has taken to wandering around the town streets with his mates.

The book reveals a deep friendship between Charlie and Jeffrey Lu, who continually call each other a specific term of endearment. "You are an Idiot" one or the other will say, or "You're a queer". The easy flowing style of writing lends itself to the boys continual banter. I have heard my two grandsons goad each other in the same way, getting both upset and laughing at each other almost at the same instant. As I followed the story of Charlie's adventure with Jasper Jones, who is the named bad boy of the town, Craig Silvey's writing lights up the emotional turmoil of a boy's first encounter with girls, and their tussle with choices of right and wrong, good and evil, when to take action and when to hold your counsel.

The book brings to the fore the conflicts of racism, bullying and the insulation of small communities, that can create a herd mentality which is fuelled by rumour and gossip in lieu of generally good common sense and truthful facts. The unusual and immediate friendship of trust between Jasper and Charlie, is evenly compared to the depth of the loyalty of the long term friendship that Jeffrey and Charlie cultivate each day. Each friendship has moments of joy and sadness, and both bring experiences which change all of their lives.

The shyness of Charlie as he experiences his first love interest, brings to mind a tussled haired boy with glasses shuffling his feet in the red dust, who is nervous and does not know where to look or put his hands. The characters feel genuine and are the main stay of the story line which is interesting with a few surprises.

Jasper Jones is like a long warm summer's afternoon, the buzzing of dragon flies over limpid shady pools, of quiet wishes, dreams and hopes. Highly recommend a quiet corner for this delightful yarn.

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