Jasper Jones

Jasper Jones by Craig Silvey is set in a rural Australian town in the mid 1960s. Teenager Charlie Bucktin is called to his window one night by Jasper Jones and is taken to a scene he would rather not have seen. He is asked to keep a terrible secret which will affect the whole town. The town holds many other secrets as well which are eventually revealed. On the way we meet Charlie's best friend Jeffrey Lu who always looks on the bright side and this helps him with life in this sometimes bigoted town. The story is told through Charlie's eyes as he confronts tragedy and grows up too quickly. This book made the Miles Franklin short list in 2010. 4/5