Tom Wright - What Dies In Summer

Rating: 5/5

Review:
Readable, engrossing and insightful

I enjoyed this book very much. It is exceptionally well written for a first novel and it held me engrossed throughout.

The story is set in Dallas, Texas in an unspecified time, but before computers and mobile phones. (Judging by some of the musical references, it seems to be around 1970.) It is narrated by Biscuit, an adolescent boy living with his grandmother and this is really a coming-of-age story with crimes more-or-less in the background for much of the book. For me, even the denouement and discovery of the criminal, although well done, was less gripping than Biscuit's own internal story which is beautifully told. As a portrait of a boy's moral and sexual awakening I thought this was quite exceptionally insightful, sympathetic and involving. Tom Wright catches brilliantly the jumbled thought processes and feelings of adolescence and I found Biscuit a very believable and engaging character. The portrait which emerges of Biscuit's feelings of desire and awkwardness for his girlfriend, for example, is almost painfully recognisable and is one of the best evocations of that first infatuation that I know.

Wright also generates a very good sense of the place and morals of the time there, especially as Biscuit muses about the nature of religious belief, including little gems like, "What it came down to was that I had a hard time seeing prayer as a practical tool in the face of real danger." There is a subtle, growing sense of menace, too. It's all beautifully done and I was completely swept up in it.

If I have a criticism it is that there is just a little too much drama in Biscuit's life to be wholly plausible, even if each part is completely plausible in itself. This is a small niggle, though. I found this an excellent read which carried me along, engaged me with a well-drawn cast of characters and left me with lots to think about afterward. A little against my expectations, this is a five-star book for me and I recommend it very warmly.