Bonesland (paperback)

Shortlisted for the 2017 Text Prize As soon as I finish school I'll have the car packed. I'll thunder past the dull cardboard boxes that Banarang calls shops, I'll skim over the Bridge Street potholes without feeling a bump and I'll fly up the freeway, bound for the city and civilisation. Bones Carter is done with Banarang and his backwater existence. There's not much to do but hang out with his friends, make bad rap music and count down the days until the end of school and the beginning of his new life in the city. Then Naya comes to town. Brilliant, black and beautiful, she wants to change the world. She thinks Bones is a well of untapped potential. Bones thinks she's delusional—but she makes him feel more hopeful than he has in a long time. Bonesland is a wild ride through the small-town agonies of adolescence, packed with sex, drugs, love and hip-hop. Brendan Lawley is a writer living in Melbourne. Bonesland is his first novel. 'This amusing, poignant coming-of-age story deftly addresses some of the issues facing today's teens, from mental health to social media, and puts a fresh spin on a familiar message about the value of being yourself.' Books+Publishing "As soon as I finish school I'll have the car packed. I'll thunder past the dull cardboard boxes that Banarang calls shops, I'll skim over the Bridge Street potholes without feeling a bump and I'll fly up the freeway, bound for the city and civilisation." Bones Carter is done with Banarang and his backwater existence. There's not much to do but hang out with his friends, make bad rap music and count down the days until the end of school and the beginning of his new life in the city. Then Naya comes to town. Brilliant, black and beautiful, she wants to change the world. She thinks Bones is a well of untapped potential. Bones thinks she's delusional, but she makes him feel more hopeful than he has in a long time A wild ride for young adults through the small-town agonies of adolescence, packed with sex, drugs, love and hip hop. Bones Carter spends much of his time trying to avoid germs and the school bully Chase Barnes. Then he meets Naya Kajang, a new exchange student. Naya is brilliant, black and beautifuland wants to free the world of prejudice. She thinks Bones is a well of untapped potential. Bones thinks shes a bit lame. But she makes him feel something he didnt think he could. A hilarious and touching debut full of oddball humour and incredible heart.