A Waste of Good Paper by Sean Taylor
May. 9th, 2012 09:56 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
quippeThe Blurb On The Back:
Pete says this is a writing book that he’s only giving me. And it’s so I can write in it every day. BUT SORRY PETE there’s nothing I want to write.
Peter’s an ALL RIGHT teacher. But even so it’s a DUMB IDEA he’s got about this book. Because the problem last year was to do with WHAT PEOPLE WERE SAYING ABOUT MY MUM. And what happens if they start dissing her again like that this year? Writing anything in this frigging journal book isn’t going to stop them doing that.
And it isn’t going to stop Jason’s mum’s ex-boyfriend turning up with two broken arms and getting Jason to deliver mysterious packages for him, either. Or the mayhem that surrounds him at school, or the fear of going back into care, or the memories of all the other bad things that happened last year. And it isn’t going to stop Jason LOSING IT.
When Jason’s teacher gives him a notebook and tells him to write in it every day, Jason doesn’t see the point. Writing doesn’t change anything. He’s stuck in a school for kids with emotional and behavioural problems where classmates Barry and Raju wind him up to get him into trouble and his mum’s a recovering drug addict working hard to make ends meet.
Jason initially writes about school, including a visit by Aaron and Richard, who use music and stories to get through to the kids. He’s gripped by a story about a boy and his talking horse and desperately wants to play the djembe drum at an end of term performance.
But when his mum’s ex boyfriend, Jon, turns back up in his life, Jason finds something else to write about. Jon’s in trouble. Serious trouble. To get out of it he needs Jason to deliver packages for him. Jason doesn’t want to but Jon’s bad news and he’s not above using violence to get his way …
Sean Taylor’s YA novel is an emotionally powerful story about a kid who’s never had a break and who struggles to express the rage and the loneliness that he feels inside.
Jason’s first person narration is almost pitch perfect and I loved the notebook device. Taylor avoids the main clichés while giving him a voice appropriate to his background. My only criticism of the book is that although Jason alludes to it, he doesn’t use the f-bomb even though it’s the word that most kids from his situation reach for. I don’t want gratuitous swearing, but here I felt that it would have given just a touch more realism to the story. That said, I thought the way that Jason expresses his emotions and the fact that he can’t quite explain why he loses control so easily was all too believable and the classroom scenes – especially the way that Barry goes out of his way to wind Jason up – are spot on.
There’s humour in the book and a number of moments had me chuckling out loud. I also liked the central device of the story told my Aaron and the way that Jason and the other boys relate to it.
All in all, this was a great book with a lot of heart to it that makes you think about kids like Jason in a totally different way.
The Verdict:
Sean Taylor’s YA novel is an emotionally powerful story about a kid who’s never had a break and who struggles to express the rage and the loneliness that he feels inside. Although I would have liked the language used to have been grittier, the narrative voice is otherwise pitch perfect and I fully believed in Jason, his emotions and his situation. This book is well worth a look.
A WASTE OF GOOD PAPER was released in the UK on 3rd May 2012. Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the ARC of this book.
Peter’s an ALL RIGHT teacher. But even so it’s a DUMB IDEA he’s got about this book. Because the problem last year was to do with WHAT PEOPLE WERE SAYING ABOUT MY MUM. And what happens if they start dissing her again like that this year? Writing anything in this frigging journal book isn’t going to stop them doing that.
And it isn’t going to stop Jason’s mum’s ex-boyfriend turning up with two broken arms and getting Jason to deliver mysterious packages for him, either. Or the mayhem that surrounds him at school, or the fear of going back into care, or the memories of all the other bad things that happened last year. And it isn’t going to stop Jason LOSING IT.
When Jason’s teacher gives him a notebook and tells him to write in it every day, Jason doesn’t see the point. Writing doesn’t change anything. He’s stuck in a school for kids with emotional and behavioural problems where classmates Barry and Raju wind him up to get him into trouble and his mum’s a recovering drug addict working hard to make ends meet.
Jason initially writes about school, including a visit by Aaron and Richard, who use music and stories to get through to the kids. He’s gripped by a story about a boy and his talking horse and desperately wants to play the djembe drum at an end of term performance.
But when his mum’s ex boyfriend, Jon, turns back up in his life, Jason finds something else to write about. Jon’s in trouble. Serious trouble. To get out of it he needs Jason to deliver packages for him. Jason doesn’t want to but Jon’s bad news and he’s not above using violence to get his way …
Sean Taylor’s YA novel is an emotionally powerful story about a kid who’s never had a break and who struggles to express the rage and the loneliness that he feels inside.
Jason’s first person narration is almost pitch perfect and I loved the notebook device. Taylor avoids the main clichés while giving him a voice appropriate to his background. My only criticism of the book is that although Jason alludes to it, he doesn’t use the f-bomb even though it’s the word that most kids from his situation reach for. I don’t want gratuitous swearing, but here I felt that it would have given just a touch more realism to the story. That said, I thought the way that Jason expresses his emotions and the fact that he can’t quite explain why he loses control so easily was all too believable and the classroom scenes – especially the way that Barry goes out of his way to wind Jason up – are spot on.
There’s humour in the book and a number of moments had me chuckling out loud. I also liked the central device of the story told my Aaron and the way that Jason and the other boys relate to it.
All in all, this was a great book with a lot of heart to it that makes you think about kids like Jason in a totally different way.
The Verdict:
Sean Taylor’s YA novel is an emotionally powerful story about a kid who’s never had a break and who struggles to express the rage and the loneliness that he feels inside. Although I would have liked the language used to have been grittier, the narrative voice is otherwise pitch perfect and I fully believed in Jason, his emotions and his situation. This book is well worth a look.
A WASTE OF GOOD PAPER was released in the UK on 3rd May 2012. Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the ARC of this book.
