Snitch

by Edyth Bulbring

13-year-old Ben Smith attends St David's, where rugby is a compulsory sport. After the annual derby against Voortrekker in which a St David's player is severely injured and rushed to hospital, Ben inadvertently catches a glimpse of a bottle labelled Methyltestosterone in the player's tog bag. But when he is told "It's just vitamins, OK?" by another team member, he remembers some references from the team's facebook pages and realises that it is steroids. What follows turns Ben's life upside down.

144 pages, Paperback

Published May 20, 2016

About the author

Edyth Bulbring is an award-winning author of nine Young Adult novels: The Summer of Toffie and Grummer which was shortlisted for the English Academy's 2010 Percy FitzPatrick prize for Youth Literature (Oxford University Press, February 2008); Cornelia Button and the Globe of Gamagion (Jacana, April 2008); The Club (Jonathan Ball Publishers, September 2008); Pops and The Nearly Dead (Penguin, March 2010); Melly, Mrs Ho and Me (Penguin, September 2010); Melly, Fatty and Me which was awarded the English Academy's 2012 Percy FitzPatrick prize for Youth Literature (Penguin, September 2011); The Mark which was awarded the English Academy's 2016 Percy FitzPatrick Prize for Youth Literature (Tafelberg September 2014) and Snitch which won the 2017 M.E.R Prize for best Afrikaans or English youth novel (Tafelberg, May 2016).

She was born in Boksburg and grew up in Port Elizabeth, South Africa. She worked as a journalist for fifteen years and was the political correspondent at the Sunday Times of South Africa covering the first democratic elections. She likes dogs, trees and junk shops.

Reviews

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book but I don't like that there was no character development and many of the issues faced in the book were not overcome but just brushed aside.

[Rowena · Rating 4 out of 5]

Should be required reading for parents!

[Dennis · Rating 3 out of 5]

its nice

[Lungile]

its a good book for teenager to read really hilarious too

[Jayne Bauling · Rating 4 out of 5]

Contemporary YA, set in South Africa. Sharp and funny and real. Ben and his mother are great friends. She gets it right, never embarrassing him or betraying his confidence – until the day he confides that he has sussed that the senior rugby team at his school are using steroids … Now, this rugby-obsessed, emphatically un-decolonised, school cherishes its brutal traditions, and Ben quickly finds himself in a scary and lonely place. Cast out of the pack, how will he survive, especially socially, or can he find a new reality? Clever writing and a clear-sighted portrayal of that mix of repulsive and endearing that characterises so many teenage boys, from an author with an admirably light touch.

[Tiah]

Hilarious. Took the edge off chaperoning school outing. I'd put in quotes, but some kid already ran off with my copy.

[Nerine Dorman · Rating 5 out of 5]

The first thing you notice about this edition of Snitch by Edyth Bulbring, is the cover, which reminds me of some of the vintage Adrian Mole diaries (with some of the absurd humour). But all resemblance ends there because while our protagonist is awkward, he's no Adrian (and for that I'm grateful). And, while this is a YA book, typically of Edyth's writing, it goes much, much deeper.

Ben Smith is what we can consider your everyday troubled teen. He lives with his mom, Sarah, and his sister Helen (who has blue dreads), as well as their aptly named dog Terror. His dad passed away when he was little, but his "uncle" Charlie visits often.

Without spoiling the story for you, I'll say this much, that we follow the heartaches and trials of Ben's school career when he is the subject of terrible bulling for Reasons [redacted due to spoilers]. The bonds of friendship and family are severely tested as Ben endures his ordeals ... and experiences that very first teenage love.

If I have to look at an underlying theme that runs through this book, it's about overcoming the labels that others apply to you. Bulbring's writing is at times humorous and poignant. She remains, as always, a keen observer of interpersonal relationships and how we often damage each other without meaning to. Snitch is accessible and highly enjoyable, and I'll add, not just for younger readers. And she's very much in touch with the issues that affect those who are coming of age.