The Piper’s Son by Melina Marchetta

Most of us who live in Australia have heard about the film Looking for Alibrandi which was released in 2002. Some will know that it is based on the debut book of the same name by Melina Marchetta. I have thought about watching the movie or reading the book a number of times over the years but never quite got around to it as I thought it was one for teenagers and an “Australian” story, and thus probably a bit twee in the way of The Castle and other such films. This year I have been reading a blog called Persnickety Snark as a way to find out more about Young Adult fiction, and Adele who writes it is a big fan of Melina Marchetta. Influenced by this and the appearance of Melina’s latest book, The Piper’s Son, in the bookshops I thought I would finally read one of her novels. In fact, I have now read two – Saving Francesca which introduces the characters that appear in The Piper’s Son, and then The Piper’s Son.  I was so impressed.

I won’t say too much about the storylines – you can look this up for yourself at Melina's webpage – but both of these books are about families, relationships, and friendships. What’s new you might say?  In the Young Adult genre I have read a couple of books that, to me, try too hard to be both “literary” and deliver the “anguish” of growing up. The characters and the writing seem so unnatural for the age group that they are directed at.  I didn't feel this way when reading Saving Francesca and The Piper’s Son. The writing flows, the descriptions are just right – not too flowery but still with enough depth to evoke a clear picture of the scene that the reader is reading about. The emotions of the characters are believable, as is the way the characters speak. In The Piper’s Son, Melina uses technology which our teenagers are very familiar with which gives it relevance to the readers it’s aimed at. The use of emails and SMS messages between the characters as they support each other is so right for the today’s young people.

In The Piper’s Son, I felt the confusion and despair of the main character Tom Mackee, who is in his early 20’s and is struggling to deal with the effect his uncle’s death two years previously has had on his family. While technically an adult, he has the life experience of a child, and resorts to drugs to cope with his world falling apart. Dominic, Tom’s father, can’t handle his brother’s death and uses alcohol to prop himself up to the point where Tom’s mother takes his younger sister interstate until his father can get his act together. Just when his father should have been looking after Tom, Tom was expected to look after his father without the help of his mother, and he is angry at the desertion by these people on whom he should be able to lean on in these tough times. Compounding this is his relationship with the girl he loves, but whom he let down and didn’t have the confidence to explain to her why, pushing her away when he should be gathering her close. The story has a strong theme of friendship and how important it is when times are tough, as Tom’s friends from High School stand by him even when he isn’t someone you’d want to know.

Do you sometimes feel a little sad when reach the last word of the last page of a book you didn't want to finish?  That is how I felt when I finished The Piper's Son, I wanted more.  If you haven’t read Melina Marchetta’s books, don’t be put off by the Young Adult label. The Piper’s Son is a great read for any age (maybe not your grandmother, as some themes may be a little out there for her).