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I Had Such Friends
When Charlie Parker dies, it affects everyone who knew him. Everyone, that is, except for seventeen-year-old Hamish Day, the boy who lives on a cabbage farm and only has one friend. But Hamish soon finds himself pulled into the complicated lives of the people left behind. Among them is Annie Bower, the prettiest girl in school. As he uncovers startling truths about his peers, his perspectives on friendship, love, grief and the tragic power of silence are forever altered.
Meg’s own teaching experience has enabled her to delve deeper into the true nature of a universal high school experience. I Had Such Friends will speak to high school students/teenagers on a personal level, and foster important conversations among Australian youth, school and family culture on issues including abuse, failure and neglect.
With hard-hitting themes including unrequited love, abuse, neglect, sexuality, bullying, prejudice, death and suicide, I Had Such Friends is a poignant journey of self-discovery, grief and the tragic power of silence. A gripping look at adolescent pain with a narrative maturity that accurately reflects its YA milieu, I Had Such Friends resonates with young adult audiences and pushes them to reflect on their own ‘sliding doors’ moment.
Meg’s own teaching experience has enabled her to delve deeper into the true nature of a universal high school experience. I Had Such Friends will speak to high school students/teenagers on a personal level, and foster important conversations among Australian youth, school and family culture on issues including abuse, failure and neglect.
With hard-hitting themes including unrequited love, abuse, neglect, sexuality, bullying, prejudice, death and suicide, I Had Such Friends is a poignant journey of self-discovery, grief and the tragic power of silence. A gripping look at adolescent pain with a narrative maturity that accurately reflects its YA milieu, I Had Such Friends resonates with young adult audiences and pushes them to reflect on their own ‘sliding doors’ moment.
278 pages, Paperback
First published August 1, 2018
21 people are currently reading
824 people want to read
About the author
Meg Gatland-Veness
3 books25 followersMeg Gatland-Veness is a high school drama teacher in New South Wales, Australia.
Meg Gatland-Veness was born in a tiny country town called Milton and now lives on the Central Coast of New South Wales with her boyfriend and two cats. She attended the University of Newcastle where she studied a Bachelor of Arts and a Bachelor of Secondary Teaching.
Meg has been writing stories for as long as she can remember and reading them even longer. She always carries a notebook with her in case inspiration strikes or she encounters a beautiful new word. Equal to her love of words is her passion for championing local youths and fostering important conversation about issues facing young Australians.
When she's not writing novels, Meg is a high school drama teacher who channels her creativity into choreographing and directing musicals, writing poetry, singing and dancing.
Meg Gatland-Veness was born in a tiny country town called Milton and now lives on the Central Coast of New South Wales with her boyfriend and two cats. She attended the University of Newcastle where she studied a Bachelor of Arts and a Bachelor of Secondary Teaching.
Meg has been writing stories for as long as she can remember and reading them even longer. She always carries a notebook with her in case inspiration strikes or she encounters a beautiful new word. Equal to her love of words is her passion for championing local youths and fostering important conversation about issues facing young Australians.
When she's not writing novels, Meg is a high school drama teacher who channels her creativity into choreographing and directing musicals, writing poetry, singing and dancing.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 148 reviews
February 1, 2019
I Had Such Friends is a YA book but absolutely speaks to older adults too. This book is wonderfully written and very relevant to today's society. It tackles some tough subjects and has very likeable characters that you care about. I would love to read a sequel and see how these teen's life's have evolved.
This book will s set in rural Australia and centres on the life of teenagers who are discovering who they are and where they fit into the world. It starts with the popular boy Charlie being killed in a car accident. Hamish, the second least popular boy in school does think it will affect him but little does he know the chain of events about to happen. Charlie's girlfriend was the popular and prettiest girl at school Annie. Annie starts to notice Hamish. At the sameness time the rebel and outsider boy Peter also befriends him. Charlie is an innocent boy, son of cabbage farmers. His life is finally starting to become more than school and the farm.. but is he ready for it?
This is a very emotional book which deals with a lot of tough subjects... grief, love, sexuality, abuse, bullying and general teenagers growing up. Thanks to Pantera Press and NetGalley for my advanced copy of this book to read. All opinions are my own and are in no way biased
This book will s set in rural Australia and centres on the life of teenagers who are discovering who they are and where they fit into the world. It starts with the popular boy Charlie being killed in a car accident. Hamish, the second least popular boy in school does think it will affect him but little does he know the chain of events about to happen. Charlie's girlfriend was the popular and prettiest girl at school Annie. Annie starts to notice Hamish. At the sameness time the rebel and outsider boy Peter also befriends him. Charlie is an innocent boy, son of cabbage farmers. His life is finally starting to become more than school and the farm.. but is he ready for it?
This is a very emotional book which deals with a lot of tough subjects... grief, love, sexuality, abuse, bullying and general teenagers growing up. Thanks to Pantera Press and NetGalley for my advanced copy of this book to read. All opinions are my own and are in no way biased
February 2, 2019
Content warnings include grief, physical abuse, sexual abuse, neglect, homophobia, alcoholism, discussion about prior drug use, bullying, accidental death and suicide (including method used).
Charlie Parker, who was loved by everyone (including his teachers), has died. The entire school has been deeply affected by his death at the beginning of Year 12. Well, everyone except Hamish and his only friend Martin. Hamish hasn’t been the same since a tragedy in his own family years ago and he thinks he knows what Annie, Charlie’s girlfriend and the prettiest girl in school, is going through.
I appreciated that this book highlights the fact that you really don’t know what is going on in other peoples’ lives. Behind the smile of the prettiest girl in school there could be a world of pain. Beneath the bravado of the star football player there may be secret shame. I wish that these kids had been given help for their problems or at least been able to tell a trusted adult instead of another kid who didn’t know what to do to help.
I loved that not only does the author live in the same county as me but we even live in the same state. For those of you living in America you will probably never understand how wonderful it feels to actually find your local area represented in a book when it happens so infrequently. Whenever I find a book by a local author I always relish all of the minor details.
In this book the distance between places was measured in kilometres and the temperature was in celsius so I didn’t have to convert any numbers in my head as I was reading. A character ate Vegemite on toast for breakfast. I love Vegemite! The beat up car one of the characters drives? I drive one of those! The tar melting on the road and sticking to the bottom of your shoes? Welcome to summer in Australia!
Once Upon a Nitpick: In chapter 15, Hamish and another character go to the beach. It’s specifically noted that the other character leaves his football in the car and Hamish has a little internal monologue about why this is the case, but on the next page Hamish takes a photo of the other person with the football on the beach. However they never go back to the car to retrieve it.
The sentences that addressed the reader only served to pull me out of the story and the repeated use of “As you know” irritated me. For example,
Charlie Parker, who was loved by everyone (including his teachers), has died. The entire school has been deeply affected by his death at the beginning of Year 12. Well, everyone except Hamish and his only friend Martin. Hamish hasn’t been the same since a tragedy in his own family years ago and he thinks he knows what Annie, Charlie’s girlfriend and the prettiest girl in school, is going through.
Back then, I thought I was invincible. Back then, I didn’t realise children could die.It’s a hard book to review for a couple of reasons. Most of the time I didn’t even like the main character, particularly when he kept ditching his only friend because someone more popular was suddenly paying attention to him. I also spent most of the book wondering why a specific character suddenly wanted to spend time with Hamish when they were polar opposites in most respects. This is explained towards the end but, although I liked the other character, I didn’t really take to their unusual friendship. I had guessed a big reveal early on so I didn’t feel the impact of that when it happened.
Some conversations work better in dark rooms where faces are hidden by the quiet.At times it felt like I was playing YA Social Issue Bingo while reading this book (look at length of my content warnings list if you don’t believe me) but at the same time it was realistic because many high school kids really do have to deal with all of these issues and more.
I appreciated that this book highlights the fact that you really don’t know what is going on in other peoples’ lives. Behind the smile of the prettiest girl in school there could be a world of pain. Beneath the bravado of the star football player there may be secret shame. I wish that these kids had been given help for their problems or at least been able to tell a trusted adult instead of another kid who didn’t know what to do to help.
I loved that not only does the author live in the same county as me but we even live in the same state. For those of you living in America you will probably never understand how wonderful it feels to actually find your local area represented in a book when it happens so infrequently. Whenever I find a book by a local author I always relish all of the minor details.
In this book the distance between places was measured in kilometres and the temperature was in celsius so I didn’t have to convert any numbers in my head as I was reading. A character ate Vegemite on toast for breakfast. I love Vegemite! The beat up car one of the characters drives? I drive one of those! The tar melting on the road and sticking to the bottom of your shoes? Welcome to summer in Australia!
Once Upon a Nitpick: In chapter 15, Hamish and another character go to the beach. It’s specifically noted that the other character leaves his football in the car and Hamish has a little internal monologue about why this is the case, but on the next page Hamish takes a photo of the other person with the football on the beach. However they never go back to the car to retrieve it.
The sentences that addressed the reader only served to pull me out of the story and the repeated use of “As you know” irritated me. For example,
I guess I don’t need to tell you that Martin hated the beach. As you know, he couldn’t really swim, and he didn’t look too great with his shirt off.Thank you so much to NetGalley and Pantera Press for the opportunity to read this book. I am rounding up from 3.5 stars. I’m interested in reading this author’s next book.
February 26, 2022
edit: i reaaaaally want to read this again
==
IM SOBBING IN A QUIET LIBRARY. IM ABOUT TO START WAILING I SWEAR.
This is the saddest book I’ve read in a while honestly. I’m at the library and I can’t see what I’m typing because of my tears and my phone is on 14% but I needed to update about this book ASAP.
READ THIS BOOK. PLEASE. IT DESTROYED ME.
==
IM SOBBING IN A QUIET LIBRARY. IM ABOUT TO START WAILING I SWEAR.
This is the saddest book I’ve read in a while honestly. I’m at the library and I can’t see what I’m typing because of my tears and my phone is on 14% but I needed to update about this book ASAP.
READ THIS BOOK. PLEASE. IT DESTROYED ME.
September 4, 2018
A copy of this novel was provided by Pantera Press for review.
I would say that it’s pretty hard to get published in general. I would also say that I think it’s a little bit harder to get published in Australia. I would say that it’s harder to publish queer books in general. And I would also say that it’s harder to publish queer books in Australia. I think these things are pretty well known and evident, and not so much a personal feeling on the subject of publishing and publishing queer books.
For a long time the only queer books that did get published were Tragic Queer Stories. Those stories that, mostly, served as a lesson for non-queer readers. A lesson of ‘look how hard life is for queer people’, a lesson of ‘look how you shouldn’t treat queer people’. They were, for the most part, stories about queer people for non-queer readers.
Luckily enough, we seemed to have mostly moved on from this. There are books about queer people for queer readers. Queer books that aren’t lessons in tragedy. Queer books that are fucking happy. Of course, there are still Tragic Queer Stories, and I’ll talk about my personal feelings on those kinds of stories in general at a later time. These Tragic Queer Stories, especially ownvoices ones, can be cathartic for the writer. They can also provide solidarity to the reader. Even though I am not a big fan of Tragic Queer Stories in general, I can see that ownvoices ones can hold importance.
Now, you might be wondering why this review has started off like a discussion of publishing and queer books and Tragic Queer Stories. It’s because all of these things come into play when talking about I Had Such Friends. I Had Such Friends is an Aussie Queer YA novel. It is also a Tragic Queer Story. Before I even go ahead and detail my thoughts and feelings on that, I just want to ponder aloud how this non-ownvoices Tragic Queer Story is one that made it out there. I thought we were well beyond publishing queer stories for non-queer people to teach them lessons, and yet that is exactly what I Had Such Friends felt like to me. Not once did I Had Such Friends read to me like a book for a gay Australian teenager. Not once. The whole thing felt like an expose on how horrible homophobia is, and how you shouldn’t treat queer people like shit because they actually take it to heart, and how being queer is so lonely and terrible and how life can be not worth living because of it.
Yeah, that’s really not what a queer teen needs. And I’m sure people will disagree with me but reviews are personal, and this is how I feel. I don’t think queer teens need a book where a boy realises he’s gay, falls in love, gets found out and subsequently bashed up for his sexuality, and how the bullying was so bad for his boyfriend that his boyfriend killed himself. I struggle to see the light in that for any queer teen, and I struggle to understand why this, of all Aussie queer YA manuscripts floating around out there, is the one that is going to make it into the hands of Aussie queer teens. I know some people might say that Aussie queer teens have had things like this happen to them. And yes, I am sure they have. But my response to that is: if a story like this needs to be told then it needs to be told by an ownvoices writer. In this case, a gay Aussie guy needed to write this story, if this story really is what Aussie queer teens need.
While I was reading I Had Such Friends, and realising what I have detailed above, I felt so despondent. I felt so despondent because these Tragic Queer Stories that are largely serving as a lesson for non-queer people are still around. And still being praised. I’ve seen reviews of this book saying that it was heartbreaking and so sad and that it will stay with them. And I just think… is that all queer stories are for some people? Heartbreaking, sad, ‘stay with you’ stories? I’m sick of Tragic Queer Stories serving as tear-jerking fodder for non-queer readers.
I guess I haven’t really talked much about the book itself, and that’s because even though I was not on board with the entire premise of the book, I was not a fan of anything inside it. The main character was a horrible person who bullied his own best friend (who turned out to be a homophobic asshole but we didn’t know that until the very end), and the only POC in the book was stereotyped in ways that made me question whether anyone who read this book before publication realised how completely harmful that is. Hardly anything happened in the book, and when things did the main character was a passive bystander who refused to help himself or the boyfriend he claimed to love. He put himself first, always, and I couldn’t stand it.
All in all, I Had Such Friends was not for me. It was not for me, and these stories will never be for me. I only hope that one day queer stories for non-queer readers are a thing of the past. And that if we must tell Tragic Queer Stories we leave them in the hands of people who know who they're writing them for.
© 2018, Chiara @ Books for a Delicate Eternity. All rights reserved.
trigger warning: homophobia, use of homophobic language, use of ableist language, suicide jokes, fat shaming, lesbophobic statement, death of a sister via fall, reference to death of teen via car crash, bullying, money struggles, child abuse/domestic violence, suicide of a partner, hate crime (physical assault of gay characters), reference to sexual abuse/child molestation, reference to death of a pet, protagonist with depression
I would say that it’s pretty hard to get published in general. I would also say that I think it’s a little bit harder to get published in Australia. I would say that it’s harder to publish queer books in general. And I would also say that it’s harder to publish queer books in Australia. I think these things are pretty well known and evident, and not so much a personal feeling on the subject of publishing and publishing queer books.
For a long time the only queer books that did get published were Tragic Queer Stories. Those stories that, mostly, served as a lesson for non-queer readers. A lesson of ‘look how hard life is for queer people’, a lesson of ‘look how you shouldn’t treat queer people’. They were, for the most part, stories about queer people for non-queer readers.
Luckily enough, we seemed to have mostly moved on from this. There are books about queer people for queer readers. Queer books that aren’t lessons in tragedy. Queer books that are fucking happy. Of course, there are still Tragic Queer Stories, and I’ll talk about my personal feelings on those kinds of stories in general at a later time. These Tragic Queer Stories, especially ownvoices ones, can be cathartic for the writer. They can also provide solidarity to the reader. Even though I am not a big fan of Tragic Queer Stories in general, I can see that ownvoices ones can hold importance.
Now, you might be wondering why this review has started off like a discussion of publishing and queer books and Tragic Queer Stories. It’s because all of these things come into play when talking about I Had Such Friends. I Had Such Friends is an Aussie Queer YA novel. It is also a Tragic Queer Story. Before I even go ahead and detail my thoughts and feelings on that, I just want to ponder aloud how this non-ownvoices Tragic Queer Story is one that made it out there. I thought we were well beyond publishing queer stories for non-queer people to teach them lessons, and yet that is exactly what I Had Such Friends felt like to me. Not once did I Had Such Friends read to me like a book for a gay Australian teenager. Not once. The whole thing felt like an expose on how horrible homophobia is, and how you shouldn’t treat queer people like shit because they actually take it to heart, and how being queer is so lonely and terrible and how life can be not worth living because of it.
Yeah, that’s really not what a queer teen needs. And I’m sure people will disagree with me but reviews are personal, and this is how I feel. I don’t think queer teens need a book where a boy realises he’s gay, falls in love, gets found out and subsequently bashed up for his sexuality, and how the bullying was so bad for his boyfriend that his boyfriend killed himself. I struggle to see the light in that for any queer teen, and I struggle to understand why this, of all Aussie queer YA manuscripts floating around out there, is the one that is going to make it into the hands of Aussie queer teens. I know some people might say that Aussie queer teens have had things like this happen to them. And yes, I am sure they have. But my response to that is: if a story like this needs to be told then it needs to be told by an ownvoices writer. In this case, a gay Aussie guy needed to write this story, if this story really is what Aussie queer teens need.
While I was reading I Had Such Friends, and realising what I have detailed above, I felt so despondent. I felt so despondent because these Tragic Queer Stories that are largely serving as a lesson for non-queer people are still around. And still being praised. I’ve seen reviews of this book saying that it was heartbreaking and so sad and that it will stay with them. And I just think… is that all queer stories are for some people? Heartbreaking, sad, ‘stay with you’ stories? I’m sick of Tragic Queer Stories serving as tear-jerking fodder for non-queer readers.
I guess I haven’t really talked much about the book itself, and that’s because even though I was not on board with the entire premise of the book, I was not a fan of anything inside it. The main character was a horrible person who bullied his own best friend (who turned out to be a homophobic asshole but we didn’t know that until the very end), and the only POC in the book was stereotyped in ways that made me question whether anyone who read this book before publication realised how completely harmful that is. Hardly anything happened in the book, and when things did the main character was a passive bystander who refused to help himself or the boyfriend he claimed to love. He put himself first, always, and I couldn’t stand it.
All in all, I Had Such Friends was not for me. It was not for me, and these stories will never be for me. I only hope that one day queer stories for non-queer readers are a thing of the past. And that if we must tell Tragic Queer Stories we leave them in the hands of people who know who they're writing them for.
© 2018, Chiara @ Books for a Delicate Eternity. All rights reserved.
trigger warning: homophobia, use of homophobic language, use of ableist language, suicide jokes, fat shaming, lesbophobic statement, death of a sister via fall, reference to death of teen via car crash, bullying, money struggles, child abuse/domestic violence, suicide of a partner, hate crime (physical assault of gay characters), reference to sexual abuse/child molestation, reference to death of a pet, protagonist with depression
July 6, 2018
This one is right up there for me. It is the kind of voice I love and I'd personally call this a cross-over novel, one that works for adults and YA. It is set in a small Australian town where people play footy, surf and the culture of bloke is at it's peak. It is tough to stand out in this place. You fit or you don't. If you don't you'll be picked on and persecuted and made to pay. Hamish is a poor, skinny kid who has nothing cool about him. The story takes place over Hamish's last year of high school. His only friend, Martin, whom he really doesn't like but you've got to talk to someone, is even more hideously uncool. Hamish has been stuck with him by default even though he can't stand him.
At the start we are told that Charlie one of the schools most popular guys has been killed in a car crash which also involved the utterly gorgeous Annie, the school sweetheart, most beautiful creature who ever walked the earth. Annie has survived and emerged sad and lonely. Hamish has worshiped her from afar but always known that he has no chance with her. She and Charlie are the school elite, but now Charlie is dead and everything is different. Change is on the way, one day Peter the school bad kid, gives Hamish a ride home from school and everything starts to happen. Peter and Hamish become the kind of friends who don't talk about anything but spend time together and gradually gradually they begin to build a relationship. At the same time Hamish and Annie are becoming girlfriend and boyfriend and Hamish has gone from untouchable to being in demand. But all is not what it seems.
This book is about relationships, attitudes, sexual tension and racism. You have so much in here! I loved Peter, I loved him so much more than Hamish and what happens to him is horrific. I loved so much about this book but I admit that it isn't perfect. There are some problems with the writing in places. And I really had a problem with Annie, she seems to be almost unnecessary to the story other than a bit player. I loved the relationship with Hamish and his parents and could totally see that playing out. I thought the sex was really well written too. There are problems but overall I thoroughly loved the story and the way that the scenes felt so realistic. I loved Hamish struggling to keep up with Peter at the beach with the way he pondered lying to his parents.
I'd love to see this book in lots of small town libraries, it is shocking and I think quite realistic in the way the casual homophobia is visited upon teenagers. It is certainly not a hopeful book. The actions of the teenagers and their rage against Peter and Hamish is horrific to read. It makes you understand why country Australians race to the big cities to reinvent themselves as gay people. I know this happens in every country! I read this at the time that I watched Hannah Gadsby and her Nannette show and possibly that is why is resonated so strongly with me.
I'm going to be buying and recommending this book. Possibly with a tighter review than this, as I've got a bit statementy here!
If you are a fan of Jasper Jones and books by Scot Gardner then this book is going to work for you.
Thanks to Netgalley for access to this book.
At the start we are told that Charlie one of the schools most popular guys has been killed in a car crash which also involved the utterly gorgeous Annie, the school sweetheart, most beautiful creature who ever walked the earth. Annie has survived and emerged sad and lonely. Hamish has worshiped her from afar but always known that he has no chance with her. She and Charlie are the school elite, but now Charlie is dead and everything is different. Change is on the way, one day Peter the school bad kid, gives Hamish a ride home from school and everything starts to happen. Peter and Hamish become the kind of friends who don't talk about anything but spend time together and gradually gradually they begin to build a relationship. At the same time Hamish and Annie are becoming girlfriend and boyfriend and Hamish has gone from untouchable to being in demand. But all is not what it seems.
This book is about relationships, attitudes, sexual tension and racism. You have so much in here! I loved Peter, I loved him so much more than Hamish and what happens to him is horrific. I loved so much about this book but I admit that it isn't perfect. There are some problems with the writing in places. And I really had a problem with Annie, she seems to be almost unnecessary to the story other than a bit player. I loved the relationship with Hamish and his parents and could totally see that playing out. I thought the sex was really well written too. There are problems but overall I thoroughly loved the story and the way that the scenes felt so realistic. I loved Hamish struggling to keep up with Peter at the beach with the way he pondered lying to his parents.
I'd love to see this book in lots of small town libraries, it is shocking and I think quite realistic in the way the casual homophobia is visited upon teenagers. It is certainly not a hopeful book. The actions of the teenagers and their rage against Peter and Hamish is horrific to read. It makes you understand why country Australians race to the big cities to reinvent themselves as gay people. I know this happens in every country! I read this at the time that I watched Hannah Gadsby and her Nannette show and possibly that is why is resonated so strongly with me.
I'm going to be buying and recommending this book. Possibly with a tighter review than this, as I've got a bit statementy here!
If you are a fan of Jasper Jones and books by Scot Gardner then this book is going to work for you.
Thanks to Netgalley for access to this book.
July 20, 2018
"...I saw you standing there and you looked so separate from everyone around you. You looked how I felt."
Meg Gatland-Vaness, a young Australian author has delivered a terrific debut YA novel with I Had Such Friends. There was much to enjoy about her story even though it covered topics that have been addressed many times before.
Hamish is a 17 year old high schooler in rural Australia. His family is strapped for cash - often the plight for our farmers - and this was made evident in the small details about the state of their home, the lack of luxuries, the need for thrift. His home life is quiet as he and his parents have retreated into themselves following a family tragedy. He seriously lacks confidence, has only one friend (who is perhaps more nerdy than himself) and is bullied often at school. That is until he is befriended by one of the cool footballer kids, and the prettiest girl in the school. However things are not necessarily what they appear, secrets abound and things do not work out for the best.
Covering all manner of themes including grief, domestic violence, emeging sexuality, friendship, bullying and suicide this was a moving story. I'll admit I predicted several of the bigger events - hoping to be wrong because I cared about these characters - but this did not detract from the story. At times I felt Hamish's self deprecation was a little overdone but then I'd recall my own angst ridden years, the uncertainties and fears felt by many teens and could only empathise.
Though it's decades since I was in the target market for YA fiction I continue to take great pleasure from this genre and I Had Such Friends was no exception. Sincere thanks and congratulations to Meg Gatland-Vaness, Pantera Press and NetGalley for the opportunity of reading this digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Meg Gatland-Vaness, a young Australian author has delivered a terrific debut YA novel with I Had Such Friends. There was much to enjoy about her story even though it covered topics that have been addressed many times before.
Hamish is a 17 year old high schooler in rural Australia. His family is strapped for cash - often the plight for our farmers - and this was made evident in the small details about the state of their home, the lack of luxuries, the need for thrift. His home life is quiet as he and his parents have retreated into themselves following a family tragedy. He seriously lacks confidence, has only one friend (who is perhaps more nerdy than himself) and is bullied often at school. That is until he is befriended by one of the cool footballer kids, and the prettiest girl in the school. However things are not necessarily what they appear, secrets abound and things do not work out for the best.
Covering all manner of themes including grief, domestic violence, emeging sexuality, friendship, bullying and suicide this was a moving story. I'll admit I predicted several of the bigger events - hoping to be wrong because I cared about these characters - but this did not detract from the story. At times I felt Hamish's self deprecation was a little overdone but then I'd recall my own angst ridden years, the uncertainties and fears felt by many teens and could only empathise.
Though it's decades since I was in the target market for YA fiction I continue to take great pleasure from this genre and I Had Such Friends was no exception. Sincere thanks and congratulations to Meg Gatland-Vaness, Pantera Press and NetGalley for the opportunity of reading this digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.
August 18, 2024
quite a lot of yap but it was kinda good
July 10, 2018
‘It was scary having someone know the things that made you vulnerable.’
This YA novel is set in a small town somewhere in rural Australia, where Hamish Day lives with his parents on a struggling cabbage farm. Hamish Day is seventeen years old when Charlie Parker dies. Unlike Hamish, who only has one friend, Charlie was popular. Charlie’s girlfriend, Annie Bower, is the prettiest girl in the school. Hamish and his friend Martin Archer are on the periphery: bullied and ridiculed, surviving. But things change for Hamish after Charlie Parker dies. Peter Bridges, school rebel, becomes friendly with him, as does Annie Bower.
To write more about the plot may reduce the impact of the story on those yet to read it. Be warned, there are a number of confronting issues here, including abuse, grief, suicide, and grappling with sexual identity. The story unfolds in the self-conscious and occasionally awkward voice of Hamish, and it took me a little while to get into the rhythm of the narrative. But the further I read, the more realistic Hamish’s voice became for me. I was returned at times to my own teenage years, to my own recognition of many of these issues. I was reminded of how painful the journey of self-discovery can be, of how our teenaged sense of self is influenced and develops.
Hamish has a lot to learn, and much of that learning will be painful for him. Can we ever make the transition through adolescence to adulthood less fraught, less painful? I found much of this novel sad, but not without hope. I wonder how the young adults reading it feel?
Note: My thanks to NetGalley and Pantera Press for providing me with a free electronic copy of this book for review purposes.
Jennifer Cameron-Smith
This YA novel is set in a small town somewhere in rural Australia, where Hamish Day lives with his parents on a struggling cabbage farm. Hamish Day is seventeen years old when Charlie Parker dies. Unlike Hamish, who only has one friend, Charlie was popular. Charlie’s girlfriend, Annie Bower, is the prettiest girl in the school. Hamish and his friend Martin Archer are on the periphery: bullied and ridiculed, surviving. But things change for Hamish after Charlie Parker dies. Peter Bridges, school rebel, becomes friendly with him, as does Annie Bower.
To write more about the plot may reduce the impact of the story on those yet to read it. Be warned, there are a number of confronting issues here, including abuse, grief, suicide, and grappling with sexual identity. The story unfolds in the self-conscious and occasionally awkward voice of Hamish, and it took me a little while to get into the rhythm of the narrative. But the further I read, the more realistic Hamish’s voice became for me. I was returned at times to my own teenage years, to my own recognition of many of these issues. I was reminded of how painful the journey of self-discovery can be, of how our teenaged sense of self is influenced and develops.
Hamish has a lot to learn, and much of that learning will be painful for him. Can we ever make the transition through adolescence to adulthood less fraught, less painful? I found much of this novel sad, but not without hope. I wonder how the young adults reading it feel?
Note: My thanks to NetGalley and Pantera Press for providing me with a free electronic copy of this book for review purposes.
Jennifer Cameron-Smith
July 4, 2018
Heftig en turbulent.. een achtbaan van emoties terwijl Hamish zichzelf ontdekt.
May 22, 2019
This review includes spoilers that I will not be tagging. Don't read beyond this point if you don't want to get spoiled.
If I had to compare this to another book, it would be A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara. This is the Australian YA equivalent of A Little Life. Both are depressing tragedies featuring gay men that end in suicide.
Both were also written by women.
I have to reference Chiara's review on this book because they're right. Women who are straight as far as we know, should stop writing queer tragedies with m/m relationships. Let's leave those kinds of stories for OwnVoices authors. LGBTQ teens, in this case gay boys, should be represented in books where they're given hope and support, rather than be fed books where the message is that being gay will only result in tragedy for them. They're already going to experience homophobia in real life, and hopefully one day they're not going to anymore, but for now why keep writing books about them where they die? Where their boyfriends die? Where they get bullied and almost beaten to death?
Queer tragedies not written by OwnVoices authors should be out of fashion by now, because all they do is feed straight people's sick fascination of what it's like to be a victim of homophobia or transphobia.
One thing I did like about this book was the actual writing. The thing is, personally, books about small-town country Australia either bore me to death or keep me reading well into the night. This book was somewhere in the middle but the fact that I didn't dnf this immediately is an indicator that the writing itself had something going for it. The story was mostly repetitive and very slow in the first half but again, the fact that I finished it meant that the writing itself was adequate.
That's about all I liked. The second biggest grievance that I had with this book was the main character himself, Hamish. His self-deprecation wasn't charming or funny, it was just downright annoying. He kept alluding himself to being unathletic, scrawny, lame, nerdy, etc., which I wouldn't really care about except he kept comparing himself to 'being girly'. I genuinely don't know what year this book was set in but I'm going to assume it was set in the 21st century since there are references to computers and technology, but why does Hamish sound like a character from the 90's? I thought we all stopped using 'girl' as an insult? He was just unlikeable. He kept referring to Martin, his ONLY friend, as the biggest, most friendless loser in school, while he was second, which really annoyed me and made him sound like he had some sort of superiority complex.
Not to mention that, out of all the main characters in the book, he was the most uninteresting. And we had to read the book from his perspective.
But the biggest grievance I had with this book was that Peter Bridges, a gay Maori boy, commits suicide.
It wasn't enough that this book started with a gay kid's death (although he did die in a car accident). The author truly felt like this book should end with another gay kid's death, the first gay kid's boyfriend before he died, in fact, to make it full circle.
It just... it sickened me. Peter was poor, was abused by his alcoholic mother, had an absent father and stepfather, did not do well in school, was neglected and stereotyped by teachers, was hanging on by a thread socially because of his athleticism in football, and even that he didn't get to keep. I've always had a problem with books where the most marginalised character has the most problems and dies or doesn't get a happy ending, especially if they were not written by an OwnVoices author. I don't know how to articulate it but it rubs me the wrong way when the only characters who get a happy ending are all white or the least marginalised. This is where another A Little Life comparison comes in since the main character in that book
My final thoughts are: this book was a waste. The writing was good, the story was slow at first but turned out to be really compelling. I would've given it 3 stars if it wasn't so deeply problematic. I'm just not here for white authors writing books where a gay Indigenous/character of colour or any other marginalised person dies because of the very factors that marginalise them. I wish the synopsis had actually let me know what really happens in this book before I bought it, because I wouldn't be opposed to borrowing it from the library.
Skip this one. Read OwnVoices novels instead. Read books where characters who have struggled throughout their lives actually get happy endings instead.
If I had to compare this to another book, it would be A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara. This is the Australian YA equivalent of A Little Life. Both are depressing tragedies featuring gay men that end in suicide.
Both were also written by women.
I have to reference Chiara's review on this book because they're right. Women who are straight as far as we know, should stop writing queer tragedies with m/m relationships. Let's leave those kinds of stories for OwnVoices authors. LGBTQ teens, in this case gay boys, should be represented in books where they're given hope and support, rather than be fed books where the message is that being gay will only result in tragedy for them. They're already going to experience homophobia in real life, and hopefully one day they're not going to anymore, but for now why keep writing books about them where they die? Where their boyfriends die? Where they get bullied and almost beaten to death?
Queer tragedies not written by OwnVoices authors should be out of fashion by now, because all they do is feed straight people's sick fascination of what it's like to be a victim of homophobia or transphobia.
One thing I did like about this book was the actual writing. The thing is, personally, books about small-town country Australia either bore me to death or keep me reading well into the night. This book was somewhere in the middle but the fact that I didn't dnf this immediately is an indicator that the writing itself had something going for it. The story was mostly repetitive and very slow in the first half but again, the fact that I finished it meant that the writing itself was adequate.
That's about all I liked. The second biggest grievance that I had with this book was the main character himself, Hamish. His self-deprecation wasn't charming or funny, it was just downright annoying. He kept alluding himself to being unathletic, scrawny, lame, nerdy, etc., which I wouldn't really care about except he kept comparing himself to 'being girly'. I genuinely don't know what year this book was set in but I'm going to assume it was set in the 21st century since there are references to computers and technology, but why does Hamish sound like a character from the 90's? I thought we all stopped using 'girl' as an insult? He was just unlikeable. He kept referring to Martin, his ONLY friend, as the biggest, most friendless loser in school, while he was second, which really annoyed me and made him sound like he had some sort of superiority complex.
Not to mention that, out of all the main characters in the book, he was the most uninteresting. And we had to read the book from his perspective.
But the biggest grievance I had with this book was that Peter Bridges, a gay Maori boy, commits suicide.
It wasn't enough that this book started with a gay kid's death (although he did die in a car accident). The author truly felt like this book should end with another gay kid's death, the first gay kid's boyfriend before he died, in fact, to make it full circle.
It just... it sickened me. Peter was poor, was abused by his alcoholic mother, had an absent father and stepfather, did not do well in school, was neglected and stereotyped by teachers, was hanging on by a thread socially because of his athleticism in football, and even that he didn't get to keep. I've always had a problem with books where the most marginalised character has the most problems and dies or doesn't get a happy ending, especially if they were not written by an OwnVoices author. I don't know how to articulate it but it rubs me the wrong way when the only characters who get a happy ending are all white or the least marginalised. This is where another A Little Life comparison comes in since the main character in that book
My final thoughts are: this book was a waste. The writing was good, the story was slow at first but turned out to be really compelling. I would've given it 3 stars if it wasn't so deeply problematic. I'm just not here for white authors writing books where a gay Indigenous/character of colour or any other marginalised person dies because of the very factors that marginalise them. I wish the synopsis had actually let me know what really happens in this book before I bought it, because I wouldn't be opposed to borrowing it from the library.
Skip this one. Read OwnVoices novels instead. Read books where characters who have struggled throughout their lives actually get happy endings instead.
July 9, 2018
[Disclaimer: I received a copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review]
TW: child abuse, sexual abuse, suicide, homophobia
I Had Such Friends is an Aussie YA contemporary centred around a teen named Hamish, the son of farmer parents in a small Australian town. Hamish has approximately one friend, until a boy at school dies and he's pulled into the lives of the people left behind.
I won't lie, the synopsis for this is a bit misleading. I went into it expecting a really gripping and emotional tale of grief, love, and queerness, but it was a slow and meandering YA contemporary with most of the gritty stuff pushed into the last act. It was character-driven, sure, but there was no clear direction for the first two-thirds of the story.
I would've enjoyed it as a character-driven story if the protagonist was remotely interesting or likeable. Unfortunately Hamish is duller than white bread, and the only personality trait he has is that he's kind of an asshole (at least in his internal monologue - in person he's a total doormat). I get that this is a story from the POV of an emotionally-stunted socially awkward teen in a small country town, but his personality is completely hollow and it didn't inspire me to keep reading.
Though it did have its shortcomings, I really enjoyed the last act and the stark view it presents of mental illness, grief, child abuse, homophobia, and queerness. While the first two thirds of the story showcased (ad nauseum) the ennui that can accompany living in a small town, the final act looks at the really dark underside of country life and the feelings of hopelessness that isolation and lack of access to services can foster. It's dark, it's sad, and it did make me tear up a little.
I want to consume and be more of a champion of Aussie YA, but this book felt like every Aussie YA novel I had to read in high school. From the setting down to the tone, it just felt like something I'd read before - and not in a great way. The setting isn't interesting, the protagonist isn't interesting, and though there are some interesting themes of queerness, abuse, and grief in here, it's too much of a struggle to get to those plot points.
I wanted to like it, but unfortunately it just wasn't for me.
TW: child abuse, sexual abuse, suicide, homophobia
I Had Such Friends is an Aussie YA contemporary centred around a teen named Hamish, the son of farmer parents in a small Australian town. Hamish has approximately one friend, until a boy at school dies and he's pulled into the lives of the people left behind.
I won't lie, the synopsis for this is a bit misleading. I went into it expecting a really gripping and emotional tale of grief, love, and queerness, but it was a slow and meandering YA contemporary with most of the gritty stuff pushed into the last act. It was character-driven, sure, but there was no clear direction for the first two-thirds of the story.
I would've enjoyed it as a character-driven story if the protagonist was remotely interesting or likeable. Unfortunately Hamish is duller than white bread, and the only personality trait he has is that he's kind of an asshole (at least in his internal monologue - in person he's a total doormat). I get that this is a story from the POV of an emotionally-stunted socially awkward teen in a small country town, but his personality is completely hollow and it didn't inspire me to keep reading.
Though it did have its shortcomings, I really enjoyed the last act and the stark view it presents of mental illness, grief, child abuse, homophobia, and queerness. While the first two thirds of the story showcased (ad nauseum) the ennui that can accompany living in a small town, the final act looks at the really dark underside of country life and the feelings of hopelessness that isolation and lack of access to services can foster. It's dark, it's sad, and it did make me tear up a little.
I want to consume and be more of a champion of Aussie YA, but this book felt like every Aussie YA novel I had to read in high school. From the setting down to the tone, it just felt like something I'd read before - and not in a great way. The setting isn't interesting, the protagonist isn't interesting, and though there are some interesting themes of queerness, abuse, and grief in here, it's too much of a struggle to get to those plot points.
I wanted to like it, but unfortunately it just wasn't for me.
July 24, 2018
A moving story about teenagers in a small town in Australia, this emotional novel reminded me just how awful adolescence was, and made me so grateful, yet again, that I don’t have children, as it would be so hard helplessly watching them survive it all - endlessly worrying that they may not.
Hamish Day is the son of poor cabbage farmers, and the second most unpopular kid in school. His only friend, Martin, is even more despised - even by Hamish. When the most popular boy, Charlie, is killed in a car crash, Hamish doesn’t think it will affect him, but then Peter, the school rebel and football star, invites him to hang out together, and Charlie’s girlfriend Annie, the most beautiful girl in his year, asks him on a date. Bewildered, but hopeful that finally he has some defence against the bullies, and his crushing loneliness, he opens himself up to love and friendship. It’s best to go in to this not knowing too much more.
This is a YA book that works equally well for adults (well this adult, anyway.) Teenagers these days have even more to deal with than we did, although some issues are eternal - cliques, dysfunctional families, bullying, the conflict of wanting to be cool but wanting to succeed academically as the ticket out...
The writing was eloquent and the characters realistic. Hamish’s relentless self-deprecation and self-pity, even though he knows he’s not the only one suffering, were tiresome but accurate, but you still care what happens to him. He’s pretty awful to poor Martin, and admits it, but doesn’t know how to be any different - the terrible part of growing up.
Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review. Please note the ARC format is not suitable for Kindle and requires Adobe Digital Edition to read.
Hamish Day is the son of poor cabbage farmers, and the second most unpopular kid in school. His only friend, Martin, is even more despised - even by Hamish. When the most popular boy, Charlie, is killed in a car crash, Hamish doesn’t think it will affect him, but then Peter, the school rebel and football star, invites him to hang out together, and Charlie’s girlfriend Annie, the most beautiful girl in his year, asks him on a date. Bewildered, but hopeful that finally he has some defence against the bullies, and his crushing loneliness, he opens himself up to love and friendship. It’s best to go in to this not knowing too much more.
This is a YA book that works equally well for adults (well this adult, anyway.) Teenagers these days have even more to deal with than we did, although some issues are eternal - cliques, dysfunctional families, bullying, the conflict of wanting to be cool but wanting to succeed academically as the ticket out...
The writing was eloquent and the characters realistic. Hamish’s relentless self-deprecation and self-pity, even though he knows he’s not the only one suffering, were tiresome but accurate, but you still care what happens to him. He’s pretty awful to poor Martin, and admits it, but doesn’t know how to be any different - the terrible part of growing up.
Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review. Please note the ARC format is not suitable for Kindle and requires Adobe Digital Edition to read.
August 8, 2018
I received a free copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review
I was sorely disappointed by this book and I can't really pinpoint exactly why. The plot was average, but I've read it before. The characters were okay but nothing special. The twists were also not very twisty and I could see them coming from a mile off. If I'd read this book a couple of years ago, I would have definitely been more impressed by it. So, while it wasn't for me, I still recommend it to readers who haven't read many books like this.
I was sorely disappointed by this book and I can't really pinpoint exactly why. The plot was average, but I've read it before. The characters were okay but nothing special. The twists were also not very twisty and I could see them coming from a mile off. If I'd read this book a couple of years ago, I would have definitely been more impressed by it. So, while it wasn't for me, I still recommend it to readers who haven't read many books like this.
August 14, 2018
This is a hard one for me to review. While I found the story itself engaging and I got emotional in some places, I found that Hammish's narration to be pretty flat, this could have been because he was depressed, but I felt like he was just telling a story and I was having to find the emotion in it for myself, he seemed to convey none of the emotion from his narration which should have been there. It touched on some important issues, teen bullying, sexuality, grief, depression and suicide.
Thanks to NetGalley and Pantera Press for a copy in return for an honest review.
Thanks to NetGalley and Pantera Press for a copy in return for an honest review.
July 29, 2018
I devoured this book, im not even sure I did anything else between starting it and finishing it. This book absolutely broke my heart and took some turns I wasn't expecting. It deals with a few heavy topics but balances it out with some very witty lines and humorous moments. I just loved everything about it. We all have a friend like martin haha.
July 20, 2018
Full review here: http://georgiasbookishthoughts.com/20...
December 4, 2018
I have received a free copy of this book through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.
When Charlie Parker dies, it affects everyone who knew him. Everyone, that is, except for seventeen-year-old Hamish Day, the boy who lives on a cabbage farm and only has one friend. But Hamish soon finds himself pulled into the complicated lives of the people left behind. Among them is Annie Bower, the prettiest girl in school. As he uncovers startling truths about his peers, his perspectives on friendship, love, grief and the tragic power of silence are forever altered.
With hard-hitting themes including unrequited love, abuse, neglect, sexuality, bullying, prejudice, death and suicide, I Had Such Friends is a poignant journey of self-discovery, grief and the tragic power of silence.
3.5 stars
When Charlie Parker dies, it affects everyone who knew him. Everyone, that is, except for seventeen-year-old Hamish Day, the boy who lives on a cabbage farm and only has one friend. But Hamish soon finds himself pulled into the complicated lives of the people left behind. Among them is Annie Bower, the prettiest girl in school. As he uncovers startling truths about his peers, his perspectives on friendship, love, grief and the tragic power of silence are forever altered.
With hard-hitting themes including unrequited love, abuse, neglect, sexuality, bullying, prejudice, death and suicide, I Had Such Friends is a poignant journey of self-discovery, grief and the tragic power of silence.
3.5 stars
July 10, 2018
3.5 Stars for this ARC,(thanks to NetGalley and Pantera Press). Opinion is my own.
High School is brutal, especially for kids like Hamish...poor, skinny, no friends. But, things are not always what they seem. This book starts out slow, then moves quickly over half way through. Abrupt ending. So many topics being dealt with....bullying, child abuse, neglect, death, homophobia. As a parent of a HS child, my heart broke for these kids. So many secrets and no adults to help them navigate life issues. Set in Australia, the author does a good job of describing the surroundings and situations.
High School is brutal, especially for kids like Hamish...poor, skinny, no friends. But, things are not always what they seem. This book starts out slow, then moves quickly over half way through. Abrupt ending. So many topics being dealt with....bullying, child abuse, neglect, death, homophobia. As a parent of a HS child, my heart broke for these kids. So many secrets and no adults to help them navigate life issues. Set in Australia, the author does a good job of describing the surroundings and situations.
January 9, 2019
“It all started when a kid died.”
As chilling and captivating opening sentences go, this one was a good hook.
Charlie Parker, beloved by all, has died, and the community is left to pick up their shattered lives and move on. Hamish didn’t know Charlie, but he soon comes to know the people that Charlie left behind, and in the process he learns more about himself than he ever thought possible.
I’ve heard/seen this coming-of-age young adult novel likened to The Perks of Being a Wallflower and Thirteen Reasons Why, and I can definitely see Charlie’s innocence and Clay’s naivety in Hamish Day. I could also feel Finch and Violet’s (All the Bright Places) individual turmoils, as well as the isolation and exclusion of Jasper Jones.
This book does not pull its punches, it is raw, it is unforgiving, and it takes a serious (albeit on the surface) look at the vast array of social issues affecting our youth (and let’s face it - everybody) today: abuse, bigotry, bullying, depression, sexuality, suicide and death. What I felt, was a glimpse of the sheer desperation of people trying to hold on, emotionally, mentally, physically, financially.
I enjoyed the poignancy of this story, and commend the difficult issues that it covers. It was well-written, and as an Australian myself, I could just about feel the dusty rural roads, and smell the salt in the air, plus there was a good use of breaking the 4th wall which kept me engaged, a week later, I am still thinking about this story and find myself missing the characters.
Thank you to Meg Gatland-Veness, Pantera Press, and NetGalley for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
As chilling and captivating opening sentences go, this one was a good hook.
Charlie Parker, beloved by all, has died, and the community is left to pick up their shattered lives and move on. Hamish didn’t know Charlie, but he soon comes to know the people that Charlie left behind, and in the process he learns more about himself than he ever thought possible.
I’ve heard/seen this coming-of-age young adult novel likened to The Perks of Being a Wallflower and Thirteen Reasons Why, and I can definitely see Charlie’s innocence and Clay’s naivety in Hamish Day. I could also feel Finch and Violet’s (All the Bright Places) individual turmoils, as well as the isolation and exclusion of Jasper Jones.
This book does not pull its punches, it is raw, it is unforgiving, and it takes a serious (albeit on the surface) look at the vast array of social issues affecting our youth (and let’s face it - everybody) today: abuse, bigotry, bullying, depression, sexuality, suicide and death. What I felt, was a glimpse of the sheer desperation of people trying to hold on, emotionally, mentally, physically, financially.
I enjoyed the poignancy of this story, and commend the difficult issues that it covers. It was well-written, and as an Australian myself, I could just about feel the dusty rural roads, and smell the salt in the air, plus there was a good use of breaking the 4th wall which kept me engaged, a week later, I am still thinking about this story and find myself missing the characters.
Thank you to Meg Gatland-Veness, Pantera Press, and NetGalley for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
June 27, 2018
I had to sleep on this one before I could review it. It's a story that's going to stay with me for a while.
3.5 stars but I've decided to round up after all. I Had Such Friends is a tale of two halves. The first half I found a bit frustrating, written in the style of a 16 year old boy & clearly trying to aim for that demographic, I didn't think I'd be able to push through. Hamish is an unpopular teenager living on a farm in the outskirts of a small town in rural/coastal Australia. He narrates the story of his final year of high school, beginning with the accidental death of one of his classmates.
I struggled with the simplicity of the narrative at the start. The second half of the story revolves around new relationships that Hamish forms, town secrets & grief. I loved how the after effects of grief & loss were explored and loved the realism of navigating teenage relationships.
I disliked that every person in the story had a "hidden secret". It was a bit overdone & the ending was a bit rushed. contrived maybe, a bit too neat & tidy. I saw the twist & the ending a mile away.
This is something I can picture being taught in English classrooms around the country although it may be just a bit too dark
3.5 stars but I've decided to round up after all. I Had Such Friends is a tale of two halves. The first half I found a bit frustrating, written in the style of a 16 year old boy & clearly trying to aim for that demographic, I didn't think I'd be able to push through. Hamish is an unpopular teenager living on a farm in the outskirts of a small town in rural/coastal Australia. He narrates the story of his final year of high school, beginning with the accidental death of one of his classmates.
I struggled with the simplicity of the narrative at the start. The second half of the story revolves around new relationships that Hamish forms, town secrets & grief. I loved how the after effects of grief & loss were explored and loved the realism of navigating teenage relationships.
I disliked that every person in the story had a "hidden secret". It was a bit overdone & the ending was a bit rushed. contrived maybe, a bit too neat & tidy. I saw the twist & the ending a mile away.
This is something I can picture being taught in English classrooms around the country although it may be just a bit too dark
July 5, 2018
I really enjoyed this book in spite of the sad parts. Hamish, a high school senior in Australia, is the narrator and he is funny and honest. HE tells it like it is. I wish he had a better self-image because he called himself a loser constantly, which obviously he wasn't. He has one best friend and he lives with his parents on a remote cabbage farm. This is the story of how he made new friends through a series of events that happen in his life. A classmate dies, another classmate starts talking to him and hanging out with him out of the blue and a girl asks him out. I don't want to ruin the story because even though the book is short, a lot happens. Hamish learns to love and be loved and how to have other friends and succeed whereas before he was just kind of stuck in a rut. He is a great character, soooo funny and sarcastic and does not sugar-coat his life before his new friends or after. Definitely worth reading! Tackles some tough subjects like suicide, sexuality, loneliness, alcoholism and child sexual abuse. Honest and real.
June 28, 2018
I was totally captivated by this story. Hamish’s distinctive narrative voice had me hooked. His tone was flippant but so poignant. His sense of loneliness broke my heart. I thought the writing was quite beautifully spare and evocative. Loved it.
August 25, 2018
This book was amazing and very well written. I would definitely recommend this book but I needed lots of moral support from my friends when PETER DIED. LIKE WHY WOILD YOU DO THAT TO ME HE WAS MY FAVOURITE CHARACTER!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 8, 2019
This story follows Hamish, a self described scrawny farm kid loser who hates farming, during his last year of high school. We journey with Hamish as he discovers his sexuality, self-identity and true friendship. This story is filled with grief, hate, and heartbreaking sadness.
Things I liked:
♥ Going on Hamish’s journey with him.
♥ Hamish’s self confidence and self-worth growing as the story progressed.
♥ Hamish learning how to let people into his heart again.
♥ Hamish figuring out the whole friendship thing and making a lifelong meaningful and healing friend in Annie.
♥ Peter finding comfort, friendship, and someone he could confide in with Hamish.
Things I disliked / made me sad:
I feel Peter should have been able to end up in the flat with Hamish and Annie. He could have done labouring work, while Hamish and Annie attended Uni. The story would have still carried valuable messages, but have left your heart warmed in the end.
I had such friends was a beautiful story and I did really enjoy it, I just feel it doesn’t offer any kind of hope to a person in Peter’s situation. Peter was without a doubt my favourite character in the story. I liked Hamish and Annie. But I loved peter. Even in our much more progressive modern society people in Peter’s situation still do not make it out, that’s why in my mind his character should have.
Who would like this story:
Anyone who wants to read something ‘real’ feeling.
Anyone into ‘day in the life’ style contemporary reads.
#LoveOZYA aficionados.
#AusQueerYA aficionados.
Trigger Warnings: child abuse, homophobia, bullying, death and suicide.
I will be keeping an eye out for more books by Meg Gatland-Veness and am keen to read what she writes next.
Things I liked:
♥ Going on Hamish’s journey with him.
♥ Hamish’s self confidence and self-worth growing as the story progressed.
♥ Hamish learning how to let people into his heart again.
♥ Hamish figuring out the whole friendship thing and making a lifelong meaningful and healing friend in Annie.
♥ Peter finding comfort, friendship, and someone he could confide in with Hamish.
Things I disliked / made me sad:
I feel Peter should have been able to end up in the flat with Hamish and Annie. He could have done labouring work, while Hamish and Annie attended Uni. The story would have still carried valuable messages, but have left your heart warmed in the end.
I had such friends was a beautiful story and I did really enjoy it, I just feel it doesn’t offer any kind of hope to a person in Peter’s situation. Peter was without a doubt my favourite character in the story. I liked Hamish and Annie. But I loved peter. Even in our much more progressive modern society people in Peter’s situation still do not make it out, that’s why in my mind his character should have.
Who would like this story:
Anyone who wants to read something ‘real’ feeling.
Anyone into ‘day in the life’ style contemporary reads.
#LoveOZYA aficionados.
#AusQueerYA aficionados.
Trigger Warnings: child abuse, homophobia, bullying, death and suicide.
I will be keeping an eye out for more books by Meg Gatland-Veness and am keen to read what she writes next.
September 9, 2019
My youngest daughter - 13yo - has been suggesting for a while that I read this book. It is her second favourite book and she has read it multiple times. It’s a great YA novel and a great read for adults too. It’s a contemporary Australian story of teenagers ( 17-18yo) and their lives and friendships. It covers so many topics - friendships, bullying, popularity, sexuality, alcoholism, physical abuse, poverty, wealth, dreams, aspirations, suicide, generation gap, grief and love! The five main characters - the popular girlfriend , the popular guy who is killed , his best friend, the second most and least popular boys in the school - are unique and relatable. It’s sad but gee the writing is good and you do see hope and fleeting moments of happiness in these kids.
August 18, 2018
Wow this is so different front he usual books I read. I went into this not thinking to much of it but my god it pulled some of the strings in my heart! That ending though 😭
March 30, 2020
Sadly I did not enjoy. This book was very confusing and it took a long time to get to the main point of the story.
August 25, 2018
3.5 Stars. This packs a punch.
May 5, 2020
It took me awhile to get into this read.. I actually put it down and wasn't going to finish it. Then BOOM! At the half way point I couldn't put it down and it was pulling on my heart strings big time. Such an emotional rollercoaster of a teenagers life and their pushed aside struggles.
July 1, 2018
Review originally posted on A Keyboard and an Open Mind July 2, 2018:
I feel like this book could have been good but it tried to tackle too many big issues in a short amount of space and ended up not doing them the justice they deserved.
There was also the issue that for probably 75-80% of the book, I just couldn’t stand the main character. He had basically no redeemable qualities, though he did finally get his act together towards the end. He is awful to his so-called best friend (and for someone who calls himself a nerd, he sure was judgey about cosplay and video games and anime). He’s pretty sexist, judging all the girls at school except the one he’s friends with because of course, she’s not like those other girls. And he’s so terrified of sounding like a girl or coming across as sissy, like that’s the worst thing you could possibly be perceived as.
One could argue that this is a fairly typical representation of a lot of country boys, and you’d probably be right… but I can’t stand when this stuff is unchallenged within a text. And highlighting it with the occasional “I know it made me a bad person to think that” doesn’t really make him any better. ve
Oof. That was a bit of a rant. Sorry. Hamish just really bugged me.
The story tries to tackle sexuality, grief, domestic violence, and coming of age issues, and sometimes it nearly hits the mark. But I just never felt any kind of emotional pull while reading, and I predicted the outcome, too. It just never really felt true enough. A lot of this is probably because I didn’t like Hamish enough to care, but I think also the writing style was a bit detached and disjointed, making it hard to really get drawn in.
I do think Gatland-Veness shows promise as a writer. This one just didn’t work for me.
This review is part of my 2018 Australian Women Writers Challenge. Click here for more information.
Thank you to Pantera Press and NetGalley for a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
I feel like this book could have been good but it tried to tackle too many big issues in a short amount of space and ended up not doing them the justice they deserved.
There was also the issue that for probably 75-80% of the book, I just couldn’t stand the main character. He had basically no redeemable qualities, though he did finally get his act together towards the end. He is awful to his so-called best friend (and for someone who calls himself a nerd, he sure was judgey about cosplay and video games and anime). He’s pretty sexist, judging all the girls at school except the one he’s friends with because of course, she’s not like those other girls. And he’s so terrified of sounding like a girl or coming across as sissy, like that’s the worst thing you could possibly be perceived as.
One could argue that this is a fairly typical representation of a lot of country boys, and you’d probably be right… but I can’t stand when this stuff is unchallenged within a text. And highlighting it with the occasional “I know it made me a bad person to think that” doesn’t really make him any better. ve
Oof. That was a bit of a rant. Sorry. Hamish just really bugged me.
The story tries to tackle sexuality, grief, domestic violence, and coming of age issues, and sometimes it nearly hits the mark. But I just never felt any kind of emotional pull while reading, and I predicted the outcome, too. It just never really felt true enough. A lot of this is probably because I didn’t like Hamish enough to care, but I think also the writing style was a bit detached and disjointed, making it hard to really get drawn in.
I do think Gatland-Veness shows promise as a writer. This one just didn’t work for me.
This review is part of my 2018 Australian Women Writers Challenge. Click here for more information.
Thank you to Pantera Press and NetGalley for a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
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