Stechzeit

by Bernard Beckett

‘Sex was a latecomer to the party of Malcolm’s life, and when it did arrive, it didn’t come dressed in any of the usual guises…’ Malcolm is sixteen. With the mind of a scientist, the body of a teenager, and an ambition to reconcile the two, he embarks upon his latest research project – sex. Join Malcolm in his journey, as he meets the cast of characters who will take him a little closer to the center of life’s mystery. Will Charlotte find true love? Will Kevin get his man? How did Juliet lose her virginity and will the school principal succeed in having Malcolm’s project banned? Malcolm is just eh man to find out. Hilarious, with a marvelous sting in the tail.

Genres: Young Adult, High School, Humor, Friendship, Realistic Fiction, Sexuality, Romance

160 pages, Paperback

First published December 12, 2004

About the author

Bernard Beckett, born in 1967, is a high school teacher based in Wellington, New Zealand, where he teaches drama, mathematics, and English. Genesis was written while he was in a Royal Society genetics research fellowship investigating DNA mutations. The book has already received international acclaim, including two literary prizes in Beckett's native New Zealand. Rights to Genesis have been sold in twenty-one countries.

Reviews

[Clare Snow]

I loved this when I read it years ago. I looked at it today and it's signed by the author, with my name. I must have seen him at a book festival and taken it along to get signed.

Maybe I should reread it - it's short, my fav

[Rachel Tao]

Why was this so creepy??? Malcom literally tried to film two people having s*x WITHOUT their permission, tries to convince his friend Juliet to become a prostitute, tells his MOTHER that he wants to sleep with her, and his mother tells him about her first time. Wtf

[Lisa J Page]

Great theme and believable characters

[Brina]

Oh man, was für eine Enttäuschung.
Als ich gestern in die Bücherei ging, habe ich das Buch spontan mitgenommen, weil mir das Cover so gut gefallen hat. Doch leider hat sich das Buch zu einem Flop entwickelt.
Die ersten fünfzig Seiten fand ich noch gut und unterhaltsam, die letzten hundert Seiten waren allerdings eine Qual. Die Handlung wurde immer absurder und hat in mir nur ein müdes Kopfschütteln hervor gebracht.

Allerdings ging es mir nicht nur bei der Handlung so, sondern auch bei den Charakteren. Einige Charaktere wie Brian oder auch Malcolm waren mir durchweg unsympathisch und ich konnte mich nur selten in ihre Gedanken hineinversetzen.
Malcom lebt für die Wissenschaft und ist sehr ehrgezeig, was den nächsten Wettbewerb betrifft. Er möchte ein Thema behandeln, dass alle schockieren wird und dennoch neugierig macht. Nach kurzer Zeit steht sein Thema fest: Sex!
Er geht jedoch so unglaublich unbeholfen, gefühlskalt und naiv an die Sache heran, dass es nur schief gehen kann. Er befragt Klassenkameraden und Freunde auf sehr unfeine Art nach ihrem Liebesleben und braucht unbedingt ein Versuchsobjekt, mit dem er Erfahrungen sammeln kann. Sorry, aber DAS war mir dann doch ein bißchen too much.
Es ist klar, dass einige Jugendliche während der Pubertät leicht merkwürdige und nicht nachvollziehbare Dinge tun, aber die Handlung war mir dann doch zu viel, vor allem wenn man bedenkt, dass dieses Buch ab 14 Jahren empfohlen wird.

Der Schreibstil ist jedoch ganz nett. Bernard Beckett schreibt recht flüssig und ich bin trotz schlechter Handlung ganz gut durch die Seiten gekommen. Die Kapitel sind kurz gehalten und die Geschichte wird aus mehreren Perspektiven erzählt. Neben dem Hauptcharakter Malcolm kommen auch andere Jugendliche, wie Kevin, Charlotte oder Juliet zu Wort. Mit gerade mal 156 Seiten ist die Geschichte recht kurz, aber insgesamt gut verpackt.

Die Aufmachung des Buches ist aber wie oben bereits gesagt sehr süß gemacht. Der tolle Blauton, sowie die Blume und die Biene passen gut zusammen und zum Titel. Dazu ist im Buch eine Art Daumenkino vorhanden, denn man kann auf jeder Seite sehen, wie sich die Biene mehr der Blume nähert.

Insgesamt konnte mich "Stechzeit" nicht überzeugen. Unauthentische Charaktere und eine mehr als überspitzte Handlung haben mir keinen Lesespaß bereit. Eine Kaufempfehlung kann ich leider nicht aussprechen.

[Sophie]

Careless, depth-less, plotless. Did this book seriously win a prize for YA fiction in NZ? There was nothing to these characters; no spark or chemistry in their interactions, the writing style was bare-bones scrip-writing storytelling, and the twist at the end was in very, very bad taste. YA fiction is not an excuse to be lazy with your writing. It seemed like the author was hoping no-one would notice by he including alot of (highly implausible) discussions about sex - and by discussions, I mean about three sentences worth of dialogue. The blurb made this book sound really promising (sex, science, love and first-times) but this novel was a miserable failure.

[Rudi Landmann]

This is a very strange book. It reads like a bedroom farce, played out by teenagers in a New Zealand high school. (And indeed, this book novelises a play). I guess my main problem is that I found it impossible to suspend my disbelief, not at the characters' openness about their sexualities, but at their confidence.

I really liked Malcolm though and could relate to his teenage geekiness :)

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Reading this one on old-school paper! Why can't everything be on Kindle right now, dammit?!

[Sammy Ayoun]

My teacher suggested this book to me. This book fits the "a book written by a New Zealander" square on my bingo board. I learned that with a creative mind you can achieve anything and that you can never be too old to learn new things. Malcolm is an interesting character because he discovers new things at a late age where I think most people would find out about quite a bit earlier, but he still makes the most of it.

[Wendy Bamber]

I really enjoyed it. It made me laugh and I really understood this geeky character who seems harmless enough to be popular, though a little shaky with the girls. I also like to see a New Zealand author doing a good job of fiction for both sexes, teenage boys probably wouldn't choose to read this but they should.

[Laura]

This is the third Bernard Beckett book I've just read. Not as clever or philosophical as the other two, this was still a great read, and one of the best YA novels I've read in a while. The characters were very real and it had some wonderful laugh-out-loud moments. Highly recommend if you're looking for a short, light diversion.

[Feby]

Hilarious. Utterly hilarious.

[Emma Mckay]

Very clever,very funny. Wonderfully written. Two enthusiastic thumbs up

[Ashleigh]

It just didn't work with me. I couldn't get into it.