Boy Swallows Universe by Trent Dalton

Before reading this book I wouldn't have thought it was possible for a story to be both shockingly dark and then whimsical within a few paragraphs. This novel is one of a kind and despite all the bad stuff going on all around, it is really a story about love.

Love allows for difference, and the lead character, twelve year old Eli, accepts people for how they are in the present moment and looks for the good in their heart and soul. Sometimes there is no good to be found, and on those occasions an enemy is made, but some people with serious criminal records can have good in their hearts if you care to look for it.

Eli's brother August has been mute since they were both involved in a serious accident which nearly killed both of them. They were travelling in the car with their father when the vehicle left the road and went over the edge a dam, plunging them into the water. The boys were hauled out lifeless, but by some miracle they were both revived and in that same moment August's voice left him. It was never clear whether their father intended for the car to go in the dam, but their mother thought he did and she left him taking the boys with her.

The boys ended up in another very poor neighbourhood living with Mum's new boyfriend Lyle, and surrounded by people involved in drug dealing and turf wars. The boys are happy enough because they love Lyle and he teaches them moral values, although they later find out that he is also involved in the drugs trade as a way of making enough money to get them all to a better place.

Since being revived at the scene of the accident, Eli's Mum believes that the experience has left the boys with special powers, and August in particular seems to have visions of things that go on to happen in the future. He spends a lot of time alone spelling out his thoughts in the air with the tip of his finger, and Eli has got so used to it that he can read what August is saying if he gets to the right angle to see. The writing often doesn't make sense at the time and old Slim, who keeps an eye on them during the day, recons that August has all the answers even when no-one knows what the questions are.

There's a lot to think about when reading this book. The lines between good and bad become blurred and there is a strong message that love and hope can overcome the worst of times if you just keep believing that all will come right in the end. This is a brilliant book that was gripping from start to finish and not surprisingly an International Best Seller.

Comments

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