48 Shades of Brown

Earls, Nick. 48 Shades of Brown. Houghton Mifflin Company; 1999. ISBN:0618452958.

Plot:
Dan is a senior in high school in Australia. His father has just taken a position in Geneva for a year. Dan has a choice, he can go with his parents to Geneva or stay with his Aunt Jacq and continue his senior year. Initially, Dan goes to Geneva, but after two weeks he is on a plane back home. Except that Dan won't be living in his home, it has been rented out for the year. He will be living with his twenty year old aunt and her roommate Naomi. What Dan hopes will be an awesome experience turns out to be full of landmines and social guffaws. Calculus just might get the better of him and why does Naomi have to be so incredible? Confronted with unexpectedly missing his family, sexual situations and trying to be 'cool', Dan's senior year is full of self revelation and many humorous moments.

Critical Evaluation:
This coming of age story is typical in that Dan grows and changes into a better understanding of himself and those around him. The unusual part of the story is the genre. This reads like chick lit with humor and a light tone, but the protagonist is male. Written in the first person, we get all of Dan's egocentric and insecure thoughts and observations. An interesting convention used by author Nick Earls is there are no quotation marks in the book. When someone other than Dan is speaking, the text is in italics. The remaining text is in a normal font. The line between Dan's thoughts and what he actually speaks out loud to others is blurred. This convention made the book a little confusing, but it does put the reader 'smack dab' in the middle of Dan's thinking process. Knowing his thoughts and insecurities prompts empathy for Dan, and helps adults appreciate the angst of the teen years. There were a couple reference to items that were unfamiliar to an American reader, one example is a Chuppa-Chup. A Google search revealed that this is a lollipop. You learn something new everyday.

Reader's Annotation:
Dan spends his senior year living with two university students. Every senior boy's perfect fantasy, right?!

Information About the Author:
Born in Northern Ireland, Nick Earls has lived in Australia since he was eight years old. As writer of adult and teen novels , his latest work was co-written with Rebecca Sparrow. 48 Shades of Brown was the Book of the Year for older readers by the Children’s Book Council in 2000 in Australia, and a Kirkus Reviews selection in its books of the year for 2004.

Genre:
Contemporary Life/Romance

Curriculum Ties:
Accepting people regardless of their sexual orientation.

Booktalking Ideas:
Sometimes situations turn out differently than we plan.
School and family pressure.

Reading Level/Interest Age:
Gr. 10+

Challenge Issues:
This book discusses sexual topics like orgasms and sexual satisfaction. A main character also comes out of the closet.

It is important to read the material that is challenged and encourage all parents, library officials, and anyone else involved in the process to educate themselves in this way. Having a complete working knowledge of the collection policy is vital as well.

Why Book Included:
This is a complete departure from my normal reading. I wanted to try something new.