Late on a hot summer night in 1965, Charlie Bucktin, a precocious and bookish boy of thirteen, is startled by an urgent knock on the window of his sleep-out. His visitor is Jasper Jones, an outcast in the regional mining town of Corrigan. Rebellious, mixed-race and solitary, Jasper is a distant figure of danger and intrigue for Charlie. So when Jasper begs for his help, Charlie eagerly steals into the night by his side, terribly afraid but desperate to impress. Jasper takes him to his secret glade in the bush, and it's here that Charlie bears witness to Jasper's horrible discovery. With his secret like a brick in his belly, Charlie is pushed and pulled by a town closing in on itself in fear and suspicion as he locks horns with his tempestuous mother; falls nervously in love and battles to keep a lid on his zealous best friend, Jeffrey Lu. And in vainly attempting to restore the parts that have been shaken loose, Charlie learns to discern the truth from the myth, and why white lies creep like a curse. In the simmering summer where everything changes, Charlie learns why the truth of things is so hard to know, and even harder to hold in his heart.
My Rating: 5/5
I was very interested in reading this book because not only did it have an intriguing premise but it is also set in my home state.
I really liked all the characters especially Jeffrey as he was witty and funny. I really liked the inclusion of cricket as it is one of my favourite sports, and how much details was put into it.
I found that the mystery of the murder was pushed into the background, as I was more focused on the characters especially Charlie and Jasper.
The only problem I had with this book was the length of the chapters. In 299 pages there were only 9 or so chapters. I hate stopping in the middle of a chapter, but I had to sometimes with this book.
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