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New Boy (Paperback)

by William Sutcliffe (Author) "Along with the rest of the staff, the chaplain at my school failed to notice that the place had long since been taken over by..." (more)

3.9 out of 5 stars See all reviews (35 customer reviews)

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Product details

Paperback: 208 pages
Publisher: Penguin; New Ed edition (4 Jun 1998)
Language English
ISBN-10: 0140279105
ISBN-13: 978-0140279108
Product Dimensions: 17.2 x 11 x 1.6 cm

Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars See all reviews (35 customer reviews)

Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 111,346 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)
Popular in these categories:
#4 in Books > Fiction > Authors, A-Z > S > Sutcliffe, William
#52 in Books > Fiction > Gay & Lesbian > Fiction General > Gay

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Product Description

Amazon.co.uk Review

The New Boy of William Sutcliffe's hilariously touching debut novel causes a bit of a stir when he arrives at Mark's posh private school. For a start, Barry is devastatingly handsome and causes girls and boys to buckle at the knees. Mark is more than a little jealous, considering himself to be much less attractive. But he spots an ally in Barry and the two quickly become friends though Mark's feelings for Barry are often confused. For a start, he finds himself lusting after the boy in the showers but refuses to think it's because he is gay. Meanwhile, Barry is getting busy with most of the female population within a 50-mile radius, including an affair with one of his own teachers. Mark quickly realises that if he is ever going to be a hit with the opposite sex, he needs Barry's help. But he learns that Barry is hiding a few secrets of his own.

This wonderfully funny and engaging novel is a fast and captivating read, as Sutcliffe hits so many marks about the clichés of school life. The neurotic teachers, the geeky pupils and the rites of passage will all strike a chord within most readers, and the characters are effectively and warmly drawn. Mark and Barry's relationship is so wonderfully captured; their brief conversations are mainly populated with swearwords and degenerate into arguments by their end. There are examinations of both religion and, more importantly, homosexuality, and it's a comfort to see these issues treated with a respectful sense of humour. In the end though, New Boy isn't so much a novel about being gay, more about being who you want to be. --Jonathan Weir

Product Description

NEW BOY is a dark modern comedy about the hormonal angst of a Jewish lad growing up in north-west London's bagel belt. "Sutcliffe has managed to pull off a worthy British companion to Portnoy's Complaint" Jay Rayner,Observer "Well-written,clever and very funny" Literary Review "Smart,entertaining stuff...somewhere between Adrian Mole and Holden Caulfield" Philip Hensher,Mail on Sunday

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Inside This Book (Learn More)

First Sentence
Along with the rest of the staff, the chaplain at my school failed to notice that the place had long since been taken over by Jews and Asians. Read the first page

Browse Sample Pages
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover

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	76% buy the item featured on this page: New Boy 3.9 out of 5 stars (35) �4.98
	10% buy Whatever Makes You Happy 4.2 out of 5 stars (6) �5.97
	6% buy Are You Experienced? 4.4 out of 5 stars (70) �5.71
	4% buy Geography Club 4.1 out of 5 stars (10) �8.99

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Customer Reviews

35 Reviews

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(2)

Average Customer Review

3.9 out of 5 stars (35 customer reviews)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars So funny and easy to read., 28 Dec 2002

By A Customer

The first chapter of this book had be hooked. It is written in such a way that the narrator is talking to you and knows this is a book (being shown from the 'im finding this chapter very hard'). I must say that this is perhaps the easiest book I have ever read. The language is simple to follow and the sheer enjoyment the prose gave me to dead made this book unputdownable. Except, of course, for the moments in which I had to put the book down becuase I was crying from laughter (which happened several times). I suggest you buy this book NOW. And be prepared for painful sides.

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15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars I think this book has been misjudged by some..., 22 Aug 2000

By A Customer

The vast majority of reviews here focus on the comedy elements of this book, but I think they have missed the point somewhat. 'New Boy' isn't fundamentally a comedy, it's the sad tale of a sexually confused adolescent losing his only one true love because he can't come to terms with his emotions and his homosexual tendancies. Ok so it contains a lot of laughs, but can anyone read this book and not feel pity for the main character as he sees others steal Barry away from him? Books such as this and Joseph Heller's 'Catch-22' can all to easily be labelled as plain comedies, but they often have a far more meaningful and inspirational subtext. While I would agree that the ending was somewhat rushed, and I wish it turned out the other way too, life isn't always like that, and if you will pardon the phrase, s**t happens! I admire Sutcliffe in a way for creating a slighty shocking, non-sentimental ending, but he really should have used more pages.

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7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the funniest novels I have read!, 2 Aug 2000

By A Customer

Totally brilliant! I read and loved the 'Love Hexagon' but somehow this surpasses it - it is more unusual. It may be set in a boys school, revolving around spotty adolescents discovering their sexuality but it's a book for everyone - whatever their age - because it is simply so hysterical. The humour is wicked, sometimes nasty, and neverending, often filthy (hilarious jokes on wanking into a milk bottle). The observations about life in a boys school are spot-on. The only let-down is that, unlike 'The Catcher in the Rye', there are no moving passages. It's too cynical for that. It also means it leaves you with a slightly empty feeling - as if Sutcliffe was far too afraid of approaching anything close to sentiment - or anything basically touching. But it's so funny, it doesn't matter - you will be in stitches!

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Most Recent Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars ' New Boy '
This is well worth purchasing . It is about to be produced on stage in the West End starring Nicholas Hoult . Thoroughly recommended .

Published 7 months ago by G. W. Swift

5.0 out of 5 stars Very Funny Indeed
I loved this book, every single side splitting page. Not giving this book its due credit because the main character is difficult to empathise with is madness. Read more

Published 22 months ago by Booklover

3.0 out of 5 stars A good read
My mistake was going into this book with expectations of eventual events which, hertbreakingly never happened. Read more

Published on 6 Jan 2005

5.0 out of 5 stars New Boy
New Boy is a fantastic book which incorporates realistic characters, a fantastic and believable plot, with the odd twist and turn here and there. Read more

Published on 2 Jul 2004

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the best books I have ever read!
I read "New Boy" around two years ago and have just got around to reviewing it. I have never forgot reading this book, I read a few pages of my friends copy and knew I had to buy... Read more

Published on 18 Jun 2004

4.0 out of 5 stars Adrian mole meets South Parks - Very good
The politically incorrect thoughts of a sixth form Jewish Adrian Mole.
Ok, the narrator is a bit simpleminded sometimes and may not at all time be the best of choice as a... Read more

Published on 24 Feb 2004

1.0 out of 5 stars Not worth the effort
How this book managed to sneak under the radar of the Penguin editor and actually get published I will never understand but it did and the literary world is a poorer place for it... Read more

Published on 5 Feb 2004 by Lisa L. Hansen

3.0 out of 5 stars Funny in places but left me feelilng angry and empty.
The author has a firm grasp of comedic writing and obviously draws on his own experiences of school life which we can all relate to. Read more

Published on 15 Jan 2004

3.0 out of 5 stars Moving
This book's ending disturbed me greatly, the feeling that there had been no point whatsoever in his relationship with Barry but the book is very funny and the narrator's voice... Read more

Published on 13 Jan 2003

2.0 out of 5 stars Irritating
The only reason that I even started this book is because I attend the school in which the book is set. Read more

Published on 24 Oct 2002

› See all 35 customer reviews...

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