SOMETHING MORE ABOUT MO

OK yesterday was Mo Johnson day but it is quickly turning into Mo Johnson week. More congratulations are due. On Tuesday I mentioned how much I loved her first release Boofheads. Well so do a lot of other people and it was selected as a Notable Book in the CBCA Book of the Year Awards for 2009. Here is a review I did when it was released in September 2008:

Boofheads by Mo Johnson Walker Books AustraliaYoung Adult Paperback rrp $18.95

This is a wonderful book. The sort that makes teenage boys want to read. It’s no surprise that Mo Johnson, a former English teacher at an all boy’s high school, knows her readers so well. But girls will enjoy Boofheads too and probably learn something about how their male peers think.

Boofheads begins with one of my all-time favourite first lines:

Change tiptoed into our lives with her eyes down, like a shy chick coming late to class.

And from there on, it just gets better.

Boofheads is the story of three life-long mates – Casey, Ed and Thommo. For the first time, they are stepping apart. Ed has been talent scouted by the Bombers and signed to the Youth Development Squad. He has a whole new gang of football friends. Casey is spending most of his time with girls – and not just his own girlfriend. Thommo finds he has more and more time on his own.

This is a book which not only explores male friendship with sense of humour, but also examines the darker side to coming of age. Teenage drinking, drugs, peer pressure, homosexuality and date rape are issues the boys must face and come to a decision about.

When the boys attend a party, things go terribly wrong. Mates no longer stand together. Casey walks away, Ed might not make it through the night and Thommo is left to play the hero.

Can three boofheads pull it back together after all that?

Give this book to a teenager and let them tell you.