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Jasper Jones
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Review
Jasper Jones confronts inhumanity and racism, as the stories of Mark Twain and Harper Lee did... Silvey's voice is distinctove: astute, witty, angry, understanding and self-assured --Weekend Australian
Impossible to put down... There's tension, injustice, young love, hypocrisy ... and, above all, the certainty that Silvey has planted himself in the landscape as one of our finest storytellers --Australian Women's Weekly
A finely crafted novel that deals with friendship, racism and social ostracism...Saluting To Kill a Mockingbird and the Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Silvey movingly explores the stifling secrets that lurk behind the most ordinary of facades --Marie Claire
'Terrific... this is an enthralling novel that invites comparison with Mark Twain and isn't found wanting.
Silvey is able to switch the mood from the tragic to the hilarious in an instant' -- Mail on Sunday
'A finely crafted novel that deals with friendship, racism and social ostracism... Saluting To Kill a Mockingbird and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Silvey movingly explores the stifling secrets that lurk behind the most ordinary of facades' -- Marie Claire
'Silvey's story of a claustrophobic Australian mining town and two of its native, naïve sons is suspenseful, charming and very readable indeed' -- Mslexia
'Craig Silvey's Rhubarb was one of my favourite Australian novels of 2004 and heralded a major new voice in Australian literary fiction. His next offering in Jasper Jones is another beautifully constructed book with a page-turning narrative and outrageously good dialogue' --Dr Wendy Were, Artistic Director and Chief Executive, Sydney Writers' Festival
`Silvey weaves a story of romance, intrigue and racism that is "unputdownable". A perfect book to take on lazy beach holidays.' -- No.1 Magazine
'"Catcher in the Rye" meets "To Kill a Mockingbird" in a novel that confronts racism, injustice, friendship and the tenderness of first love - as seen by bookish, guileless, 13-year-old Charlie Bucktin, led astray by the intriguing, dangerous eponymous outcast, Jasper Jones.' -- Easy Living
`Beautifully written and one of the great Australian books of the year'
-- Chosen by chef Bill Granger in `My 10 best' in The Independent's new paper, i
`Magical' --Simon Shaw, Mail on Sunday - Paperbacks of the Year
Impossible to put down... There's tension, injustice, young love, hypocrisy ... and, above all, the certainty that Silvey has planted himself in the landscape as one of our finest storytellers --Australian Women's Weekly
A finely crafted novel that deals with friendship, racism and social ostracism...Saluting To Kill a Mockingbird and the Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Silvey movingly explores the stifling secrets that lurk behind the most ordinary of facades --Marie Claire
'Terrific... this is an enthralling novel that invites comparison with Mark Twain and isn't found wanting.
Silvey is able to switch the mood from the tragic to the hilarious in an instant' -- Mail on Sunday
'A finely crafted novel that deals with friendship, racism and social ostracism... Saluting To Kill a Mockingbird and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Silvey movingly explores the stifling secrets that lurk behind the most ordinary of facades' -- Marie Claire
'Silvey's story of a claustrophobic Australian mining town and two of its native, naïve sons is suspenseful, charming and very readable indeed' -- Mslexia
'Craig Silvey's Rhubarb was one of my favourite Australian novels of 2004 and heralded a major new voice in Australian literary fiction. His next offering in Jasper Jones is another beautifully constructed book with a page-turning narrative and outrageously good dialogue' --Dr Wendy Were, Artistic Director and Chief Executive, Sydney Writers' Festival
`Silvey weaves a story of romance, intrigue and racism that is "unputdownable". A perfect book to take on lazy beach holidays.' -- No.1 Magazine
'"Catcher in the Rye" meets "To Kill a Mockingbird" in a novel that confronts racism, injustice, friendship and the tenderness of first love - as seen by bookish, guileless, 13-year-old Charlie Bucktin, led astray by the intriguing, dangerous eponymous outcast, Jasper Jones.' -- Easy Living
`Beautifully written and one of the great Australian books of the year'
-- Chosen by chef Bill Granger in `My 10 best' in The Independent's new paper, i
`Magical' --Simon Shaw, Mail on Sunday - Paperbacks of the Year
Book Description
An unforgettable coming-of-age novel from a dazzling new talent
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This is a great book - one of those ones that you feel a sense of loss when you finish. It's moving and funny and tense in turns, but always utterly compelling.
Charlie Bucktin is a bright 13 year old boy living in a small town in Western Australia in the early 1960s. He has a fraught relationship with his mother, a crush on Eliza Wishart and his best friend Jeffrey Wu is a hilariously funny Vietnamese refugee. Late one night, Jasper Jones, the half-aboriginal town "bad boy" knocks on his window and asks for his help. Jasper is trying to avoid getting accused of a crime that he says he didn't commit. Charlie helps him, but now he's saddled with a dark secret, which is gnawing away at him.
It's hard to summarize this book because it's so many things. It includes a mystery, romance, peer pressure, racism, hypocrisy, abuse, marital problems and a searing sense of place. It's been described as an Australian version of "To Kill A Mockingbird" and indeed it often (somewhat heavy handedly) references that novel, as well as Mark Twain. The mystery is the central plot which gradually unfolds, but along the way Charlie learns that there are many other secrets hiding in this town and that life is more complicated than he formerly realized. An outstanding book.
Charlie Bucktin is a bright 13 year old boy living in a small town in Western Australia in the early 1960s. He has a fraught relationship with his mother, a crush on Eliza Wishart and his best friend Jeffrey Wu is a hilariously funny Vietnamese refugee. Late one night, Jasper Jones, the half-aboriginal town "bad boy" knocks on his window and asks for his help. Jasper is trying to avoid getting accused of a crime that he says he didn't commit. Charlie helps him, but now he's saddled with a dark secret, which is gnawing away at him.
It's hard to summarize this book because it's so many things. It includes a mystery, romance, peer pressure, racism, hypocrisy, abuse, marital problems and a searing sense of place. It's been described as an Australian version of "To Kill A Mockingbird" and indeed it often (somewhat heavy handedly) references that novel, as well as Mark Twain. The mystery is the central plot which gradually unfolds, but along the way Charlie learns that there are many other secrets hiding in this town and that life is more complicated than he formerly realized. An outstanding book.
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Huckleberry Finn, The Famous Five, Stand By Me; Jasper Jones reminded me of all those great childhood buddy books I read as a boy. However, this is not a book for children with strong language, a thick vein of racism and social bigotry running through it as well as murder, incest and paedophilia thrown in!
Jasper Jones is an outcast, mixed race tough-nut that all the boys want to be, all the girls want to be with and all the parents despise. Whenever anything goes wrong in the outwardly respectable little town of Corrigan, suspicious eyes always turn to Jasper. When he makes a grizzly discovery he surprisingly turns to Charlie, a skinny, bullied but incredibly intelligent local lad, for help. Charlie, thrilled that Jasper would chose him, jumps at the chance. From the moment Charlie becomes privy to Jaspers secret his life is irreversably changed and the respectable face of Corrigan begins to unravel.
Not since I read Khaled Housseini's "A Thousand Splendid Suns" have I been so attached to the central characters of a book. I was immediately sympathetic to Charlie, his home life having close comparison's to my own childhood. Set in the 1960's during the Vietnam conflict, Charlie's best friend is a Vietnemese boy, which doesn't come without consequences, Jeffrey Lu. Jeffrey is the most courageous and loveable character I've come across in a long while and the dialogue between them is absolutely razor sharp having me laughing out loud on the train to work and attracting amused glances from fellow passengers.
However, the title character himself remains something of an enigma as we only scratch the surface of his family's tragic tale and he doesn't occupy that much page space. This does not detract from the story at all though as Jasper and the Lu's are central to the plot in that they, especially Jasper, are the outsiders, the perpetual scapegoats that can be used to explain and excuse all the wrong doings of a community. However, Jasper with Charlie's help is about to give the little town of Corrigan one hell of a wake up call.
The most enjoyable read I've had in a long time. Hats off to any author who can have me on the edge of my seat over a game of cricket!
Jasper Jones is an outcast, mixed race tough-nut that all the boys want to be, all the girls want to be with and all the parents despise. Whenever anything goes wrong in the outwardly respectable little town of Corrigan, suspicious eyes always turn to Jasper. When he makes a grizzly discovery he surprisingly turns to Charlie, a skinny, bullied but incredibly intelligent local lad, for help. Charlie, thrilled that Jasper would chose him, jumps at the chance. From the moment Charlie becomes privy to Jaspers secret his life is irreversably changed and the respectable face of Corrigan begins to unravel.
Not since I read Khaled Housseini's "A Thousand Splendid Suns" have I been so attached to the central characters of a book. I was immediately sympathetic to Charlie, his home life having close comparison's to my own childhood. Set in the 1960's during the Vietnam conflict, Charlie's best friend is a Vietnemese boy, which doesn't come without consequences, Jeffrey Lu. Jeffrey is the most courageous and loveable character I've come across in a long while and the dialogue between them is absolutely razor sharp having me laughing out loud on the train to work and attracting amused glances from fellow passengers.
However, the title character himself remains something of an enigma as we only scratch the surface of his family's tragic tale and he doesn't occupy that much page space. This does not detract from the story at all though as Jasper and the Lu's are central to the plot in that they, especially Jasper, are the outsiders, the perpetual scapegoats that can be used to explain and excuse all the wrong doings of a community. However, Jasper with Charlie's help is about to give the little town of Corrigan one hell of a wake up call.
The most enjoyable read I've had in a long time. Hats off to any author who can have me on the edge of my seat over a game of cricket!
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback|Amazon Vine™ Review
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This is an amazing book. In many ways it bears a resemblance to To Kill a Mockingbird and Catcher in the Rye but in so many other ways it is unique and not easy to find comparisons. Not having read much Australian literature I don't have much to go on but I can tell you this novel is extremely well-written and carries you along effortlessly. As in all good writing it catches you right from the start and brings you quickly into a relationship with the characters. There is a seriousness about the work and a pointed commentary on 1960s Australian culture but in so many ways it is timeless and could easily be set in our time. Obviously, the main character may not be entirely believable if compared to 13 year olds today so some give and take is required but it is still a very good book. It would fit effortlessly into any curriculum today. Young adults, especially young men, should find the story relevant to their lives, even today. There is enough moral quandary for decent and entertainaing discussion. And even if you don't like cricket or sport the description of Jeffrey Lu's saving the home side from a terrible defeat is wonderfully written. As a comtemporary piece of fiction that spans the age groups of possible readers this one is excellent. Adults and young adults from 13 or 14 will be thoroughly engrossed in this book. You will be wise to read it before the film comes out - as the film rights have already been secured and you will want to know the story before you see it on the screen.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Fantastic wee book!
Bought this book as it was recommended by Marcus Zusak as part of the world book night. So glad I did. One of the best books I have read this year. Read more
Published 21 days ago by Book Thief
Interesting enough to overcome the reservations
Craig Silvey has written a brave book. Charlie Bucktin, growing up in what emerges as a dysfunctional family in small-town Australia, becomes an inadvertent accessory to a crime. Read more
Published 3 months ago by G. M. Sinstadt
An homage to "To Kill a Mocking Bird"?
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... Read more
Published 11 months ago by Freckles
An enjoyable read
I really enjoyed reading this book, a perfect coming of age read. I read this in a weekend as it's a very easy and flows well. Read more
Published 11 months ago by Noo Noo
excellent Aussie literature
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. Read more
Published 13 months ago by Cloggie Downunder
Sun, hammack, cold drink.........and Jasper Jones
Well summers in UK are not like the one I was used to have in Italy.....so as soon a little sunhine comes out well is a race to uncover the hammack grab a book and reach for a beer... Read more
Published 14 months ago by alex
fabulous
This book is a fabulous mix of romance, secrets, racism and abuse. It reminded me of To Kill a Mocking Bird but was in fact unique to itself. Read more
Published 16 months ago by kehs
Slow start, explosive end
Having read other reviews I thought this book would be a quick read, but I've found it slow going. Very long chapters don't help and the lack of the title character for large parts... Read more
Published 18 months ago by Book chatter
Wish more people knew about this book!
When I stumbled across this book and read the blurb I was intrigued and wanted to know more about the story, despite the fact it is a little different from books I usually read I... Read more
Published 18 months ago by Emma Richards
something different
lovely book, nice to read something different. I have lived in Australia & could relate to lots of experiences in the book
Published 20 months ago by E. Tod
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