About the Author:
Chris Lynch lives in Scotland where he divides his time between Ayr and Edinburgh. Orginally from America, where he has had many of his powerful teen novels published, this is his first book to be published in the UK.
From School Library Journal:
Grade 5-8-At 13, Earl is bigger and physically more mature than the other kids in his school, and he doesn't hesitate to use violence to handle conflicts. His tough-talking father actually eggs him on and encourages him to take care of himself. The novel follows a week in the boy's life after he has been suspended from school for fighting. In a rhythmic first-person narration, Lynch gets inside the head of the type of student who exists in many schools-the misunderstood kid whose confusion and anger gets him pegged as a brute and a bully, yet hidden beneath are layers of sensitivity, vulnerability, and loneliness. Readers are privy to Earl's confused thoughts about his parents, religion, his one friend, and an older girl on whom he has a crush. During that same week, he shows the first inklings of a new understanding of the world, learning that most situations are not black and white, and right and wrong are not defined in terms of absolutes. Things come to a head when Earl spots his father with another woman. In a conclusion that seems somewhat hurried and jumps ahead in time, he is last seen adjusting to his parents' divorce and is beginning to understand himself better. While there isn't much story here, the novel successfully captures the nuances of Earl's character, and is superbly written.
Todd Morning, Schaumburg Township Public Library, IL
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.
"About this title" may belong to another edition of this title.