THE BOGAN MONDRIAN BY STEVEN HERRICK

The Bogan Mondrian by Steven Herrick is a YA novel shortlisted by the CBCA in 2019.

The story follows Luke Saunders, who lives in the Blue Mountains and attends the local high school (sometimes). He hates maths, prefers hanging out with his buddy Blake and always tries to look out for his mum. They are both dealing with their grief over the death of Luke’s dad. He and his mum struggle at times for money but still enjoy time spent together over the occasional pizza.

While school interferes with Luke’s passion for taking photographs of the natural world and characters in his life, he manages to balance enough class time and absenteeism to live a life he believes his father would approve of.

Luke has also noticed the new girl Charlotte, a rich city kid who has presumably been transplanted to his school as some form of punishment. She’s beautiful and way out of his league but a mutual dislike of the principal unites them. A friendship forms and as they get to know each other, Luke discovers the reason Charlotte is so distant. Her father is violent so she and her mother live in a constant bubble of fear and growing tension. With Luke’s help, Charlotte manages to film one of the harrowing incidents and together they confront her father and give him an ultimatum. Move out or be exposed.

The novel is full of interesting people, all whom help shape Luke’s life. A shady character called Rodney proves to be helpful rather than dangerous and his next-door neighbour Mr Rosetti, who teaches him swear words in Italian and promises to look over his school essays. Together with the corner shop’s new owners and Mrs Grady from across the road, Luke is nurtured by this small community.

The themes of courage, friendship and loss run throughout this wonderful novel. Steven Herrick’s portrayal of Luke is especially endearing and captures the ups and downs of late teenage hood.

For Ages: 13+ years

Number of Pages: 256 paperback.

Published: September 2018

Themes: Courage, friendship, loss and domestic violence.

Rating: 4/5