Teen/YA: March 2006 Archives

Gambling! How many times might the Geography teacher blow his nose, how many times might the French teacher interject “Well” into his discourse and how many times might maths teacher, Wobblebottom, scratch?! The possibilities are endless and soon Harvey and George’s “Chancer Syndicate” becomes the speak of the school.

The stakes are raised, however, when school football hero Jonny insists that money be betted rather than ice-creams or student servitude. Several sub-plots are skilfully interwoven at this point in the novel – George feels animosity towards Harvey who succumbs to Jonny’s demands, Harvey’s flawless sister Cynthia finds out about the syndicate and threatens to tell, only to be appeased through deception that her heart-throb Jonny might holster feelings towards her, finally and most concerning of all, Harvey’s locker is broken into and the week’s wagers are stolen…

Through a series of deft moves some form of resolve is reached for each of the above and the constituent parts of this novel make for a real romp of a read that will leave readers ravenous for more by Pete Johnson. On concluding the novel one can’t help but wonder whether Harvey and George have learnt more practical skills and greater awareness than their prescribed school-life could ever have taught them… a chilling conclusion to be left pondering.

This is the ideal book for reading in one sitting on a long, hot summer’s evening when the ways of the world feel slowed and yet, somehow, more sharply focused.

Linzi Alex Glass shows a real affinity for writing ethereal, poetic prose. She conjures indelible images that carry an almost overwhelming weight of nostalgia for childhood’s transience. Taking as its central preserve the notion that failing relationships appear at their strongest to those who know little about their ‘insiders’, “The Year the Gypsies Came” forces consideration into the costs invoked when appearances gain greater standing than substance and inner-workings.

The pace at the start of the novel is lethargic, perfectly capturing the ways in which the Iris family feel to have stagnated amidst the heat of the summer. There is a sense in which great undercurrents of emotion already ebb and flow beneath the thoughts and actions of each of the characters even at early stage, however. It is the news that guests will be staying with the family, ‘gypsies of a kind’, that pours placatory oils over unsettled waters…

Any thoughts that Jock, Peg, Otis and Streak might be conciliatory influences quickly become dispelled as these large-as-life guests make their appearance. The travellers have a raw, untamed and – at points – almost savage approach towards life and its living. They bring with them their own set of values and their own prejudices which contrast greatly to the Iris family’s civilised, genteel outlook.

The urge of mother, Lily Iris, to find adventure and pace in her life and the eagerness of her husband to appease such desires leads daughters Sarah and Emily into danger and ultimately to the tragedy that besets the famil,y tearing its very fabric apart.

Here is writing that is seductively sensual, here is writing that is at once powerful, yet tender, here is a story that arises from a loose thread that once pulled leads one deeper and deeper to uncover layer upon layer of memory and self perception… a remarkable work.

Here is a difficult story to review. It’s aims and ambitions are admirable, as are much of the ways in which these are executed. There is a sense of unease, however, in the politicised comment against the countries who are arbitrating war. This is no criticism on Jarman’s skill as a writer, however, for the context of actions both in favour and against war – posited here through divergent siblings Tom and Hilde - must necessarily be read as allegorical and it is on this level that the novel succeeds best. Here is a book that is not afraid to pose difficult ethical and moral questions, that unflinchingly probes into the political motives of war and that provides a powerful and poignant plea for the role of active peace-weaving rather than the decimation of people.

Hilde and her brother Tom are relocated to a U.S. air force base when their mother takes part in women’s peace demonstrations in Iraq against the war. Hilde recoils from the Anglo-American culture of the camp and, somewhat unwillingly, becomes involved in an archaeological dig. Whilst there Hilde uncovers and removes from the site of the dig a gold brooch. So begins the interweaving of Hilde’s contemporary story of conflict and peace efforts and Mathilde’s earlier peace-weaving plight in Anglo-Saxon times, thus forcing the uncomfortable assessment of how far society has evolved in the intervening years.

This is the kind of book that not only requires reading, but that demands thought over the issues it poses, a book that requires discussion and that ultimately must raise understanding... There lies the foundations for change...