Australian author Craig Silvey offers readers a glimpse into the prejudice, hypocrisy, community and simple way life in a small Australian country town the 1960s in his latest novel Jasper Jones (Windmill Books, 2010). Readers are offered a captivating mix of light-hearted dialogue and penetrating observations of people and their motives as secrets are revealed in the summer heat.
Jasper Jones – Plot Summary
Bookish 13-year-old Charlie Bucktin is startled with the town bad boy Jasper Jones taps on his window one sweltering summer night. Excitedly he follows Jasper anticipating a wild adventure only to be shocked to discover that Jasper has a secret to share that will change Charlie’s world forever.
Carrying Jasper’s secret with him like a heavy burden, Charlie is further challenged by tensions at home and his growing awareness of the impact prejudice is having on his best friend Jeffrey, who is Vietnamese. Providing a lighter contrast to these heavy issues is Charlie’s infatuation with Eliza Wishart and his trading of playful mocking insults with Jeffrey, who is in turn infatuated with his own cricketing skills and his desire to replicate the achievements of his sporting hero, Australian cricketer Doug Walters.
The cleverly written dialogue perfectly reflects the drawling, lazy speech of teenage boys without being clumsy or overdone, doing almost as much to evoke the sluggish heat of the Australian outback summer as descriptions of the oppressively high temperatures. The speech and physical descriptions of the characters mesh well, providing well developed and complex images of the central characters that add a real depth to the unfolding drama.
Over the summer as some circumstances improve and others develop in unexpectedly confronting ways, Charlie Bucktin grows up and discovers the incredible power of a story to shape the way people think, feel and react.
Drama in a Small Australian Country Town
At heart, Jasper Jones is the story of Charlie Bucktin’s growing understanding of the world around him and how people’s behaviour is influenced by what they believe to be true and what they want to believe, rather than actual truth.
Jasper Jones and another town outcast Mad Jack Lionel, and to a lesser extent Jeffrey and Eliza’s families, demonstrate the power a story has to shape how an individual is perceived and judged by a community. Assumptions are made based on half-truths and misinformation that lead to false accusations and snap judgements from people happy to deflect attention away from their own insecurities and fears.
The mystery of Eliza Wishart’s missing sister Laura is central to the plot, but discerning readers will easily pick up clues that will have then guessing the outcome of that storyline long before the final pages. Despite this, Jasper Jones keeps readers enthralled until the end through the insightful reflections of Charlie and the at times very entertaining dialogue, particularly between Charlie and Jeffrey.
There are serious issues dealt with throughout the story including marriage breakdowns, infidelity, alcoholism, sexual assault and racism involving the physical abuse of Jeffrey’s parents. There is low to moderate level bad language used at times during the dialogue, particularly by Jasper, Charlie and Jeffrey. Motivated by Laura’s disappearance, Charlie researches past serial murder cases and details given in the book are confronting and based on real-life events.
To counterbalance some of these darker themes and preoccupations, Charlie is fascinated with literature and often refers to ideas and concepts from the novels he has read, which include works by Mark Twain. Charlie and Laura discuss Breakfast at Tiffany’s and Charlie and Jeffrey make numerous 1960s social and pop culture references in their verbal sparring matches including discussions of topics as diverse as Australian cricket, The Wizard of Oz and an ongoing debate about which superhero is better, Superman or Batman.
Australian Author Craig Silvey
Award-winning author Craig Silvey grew up on an orchard in Dwellingup, Western Australia and now lives in Fremantle. He wrote his first novel, Rhubarb, at the age of 19. He has since released a picture book titled The World According to Warren starring the guide-dog from Rhubarb.
In addition to his literary interests, Silvey is the singer/songwriter for the band The Nancy Sikes. There is further information about his books and music at his website.
The Power of a Story
Both Charlie and his father want to be writers and it is the power of narrative that gives Charlie the energy to fight through the difficult days of summer. As mentioned earlier, the unfolding drama of Laura Wishart's disappearance keeps the story moving forward, but it is Charlie’s own insights and maturing perspective that keeps readers turning pages.
Jasper Jones is an evocative and at times confronting story. The more challenging aspects of the narrative are balanced by some very entertaining dialogue between Charlie and Jeffrey and some extremely insightful moments of private reflection for Charlie.
Best for those aged 15+, Jasper Jones is sure to also appeal to adults. Craig Silvey is a talented author who is certainly worth keeping track of in the years to come.
Review copy details:
Jasper Jones (ISBN: 978-0-099-53754-0, 299 pages)
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