Summary

This story, a coming-of-age tale, follows Jamie, a quiet high school student who lives in a downtrodden town in coastal Australia where his family has fished for generations. The town’s economy has shifted from fishing to tourism, and the demographics have changed. The story circles around Jamie’s newfound clout at school, which earned him the attention of a popular girl, Alison, as well as that of the town bully, Dory. Dory used to date Alison and was rumored to have killed a Chinese poacher. A secondary plotline of the story involves Jamie’s mum, a former painter with advanced multiple sclerosis. In the story’s opening pages, Jamie’s dad, a former fisherman told Jamie and his younger brother Michael that he wanted to sell their house and move to nearby Moroomba, where their mum could get better treatment.

In a...