by Craig Silvey
First published 2011
Charlie Bucktin is thirteen, bookish, and unprepared for the urgent knock on his bedroom window one summer night. Jasper Jones stands outside, an outcast in their small mining town who needs Charlie's help with something terrible. Charlie follows him into the darkness, desperate to impress despite his fear. Jasper leads him to a secret glade where Charlie sees a horrible discovery that will change everything. Now Charlie carries this secret like a weight in his stomach while his town turns inward with fear and suspicion. He clashes with his difficult mother, experiences his first nervous romance, and struggles to control his overeager best friend. The summer heat builds as Charlie learns hard lessons about truth and the pain of holding secrets in his heart.
Genres: fiction, coming-of-age, mystery, contemporary
Vibes: atmospheric, emotional, intimate, suspenseful
Tropes: coming-of-age, found-family, unreliable-narrator
Setting: Mining Town
Period: Summer
320 pages · Library Binding · Knopf Books for Young Readers