Nailed

I read Nailed in one sitting. This said, that was a week ago and now that I'm ready to blog about it, I'm having difficulty remembering much more than thinking that it felt authentic. I'm going to pause now and try to come up with something better than that.

Right. Flint is famous among Michigander's as being a place that you leave (unless you're Michael Moore, and then only part-time). Patrick Jones apparently grew up there, but he went the popular way of Interstate 69. Nevertheless, his second novel is set in Flint. Bret isn't your typical good-student protagonist; he's reformed goth with long, green-streaked hair (when it isn't purple) and his relationship with his father, well, couldn't get worse. He lives for the theater and his band, but outside of drama class he doesn't care much for school. He learns that his father's adage "the nail that sticks out the farthest gets hammered the hardest" has merit when he quickly makes enemies with his sports coach English teacher and the bullish principal, not to mention enduring the typical everyday jock v. alt-teen conflict.

I liked this. Bret seemed real - he makes normal mistakes and acts like a teen, right down to moments of irrationality (not that you have to be 16 for that). He gets hurt, he acts out, he grows and takes charge of his life. It is a solid book. There's sex, language and clearly issues with authority, so it's for the higher-end reader.