Spurt: A Balls and All Story (Christopher Miles, Hardie Grant Egmont)

As Year Eight draws to an end, Jack Sprigley is feeling left behind in the physical development department by his classmates, and just plain left behind by his friends. The street cred he gained from starring in a reality TV show two years earlier has run thin, almost entirely forgotten except by three Year Seven students who, like Macbeth’s witches, seem to predict and influence Jack’s destiny. When the chance to star in a where-are-they-now TV special presents itself, Jack sees an opportunity to ‘fake it till he makes it’, but with one false step his lack of development could be broadcast to a national audience. An over-achieving TV producer encourages Jack in his lies and deceptions, but it soon becomes apparent to his friends and family that Jack is changing in all the wrong ways. Spurt is a refreshing take on body image, acceptance and the need to fit in. The novel’s moments of profundity are subtle yet powerful, and masterfully balanced with humour. This book would sit nicely on the shelves of readers aged 12 to 15 who have outgrown Andy Griffiths, perhaps alongside Morris Gleitzman’s novels—although Spurt is appealingly naughtier.

James Paull is a bookseller for Gleebooks in Blackheath

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Category: Reviews