Spud

Publishers Weekly

John Milton, 13, a scholarship student at an elite boys' boarding school in South Africa, records his disturbing but often hilarious exploits in this diary-style first novel set in 1990. As the year begins, President F.W. de Klerk decriminalizes the African National Congress and orders the release of political prisoner Nelson Mandela-but not even massive societal upheaval can get pre-pubescent boys to think about something other than girls, or set aside their depraved trick-playing. Nicknamed Spud because of his small "willy," John reports without judgment the events around him. The large cast of housemates includes mayhem leaders Rambo and Boggo, who instruct in "how to rape and pillage schoolgirls," Gecko, who succumbs to every passing malady, and Fatty, an overeater intent on breaking the school's sustained-fart record. The faculty is another can of mixed nuts: the drama teacher, unimaginatively named Eve, seduces an underclassman; the Guv begins English class by calling Henry James "a boring poof" and tossing his novels out the window. In many ways Spud appears to be a literary cousin of Louise Rennison's Georgia Nicholson, whose diaries also detail, in colorful slang, life with whacked-out relatives, obsession with emergent sexuality and school-related capers. There's a bit more heft here-away from home, Spud sees his parents' racism clearly-but he doesn't come of age: he's a star choirboy whose voice hasn't broken. After all, there are three years of school left and a sequel due next fall. Ages 12-up. (Oct.)

Copyright 2007 Reed Business Information

Best Life

A rare book that men and their sons can laugh about together.

Entertainment Weekly

A deeply funny chronicle of male adolescence. B+

Redbook

An instant laugh . . . Meet Spud, and expect the unexpected.

Times Lifestyle

Achingly funny.

School Library Journal

Gr 8 Up
This South African import, very successful in its own country, makes the ocean crossing uneasily. Written in diary format, the story tells of a 13-year-old boy who is in his first year at boarding school in 1990, the year that Nelson Mandela is released from prison. He is called "Spud" because of the diminutive size of his genitals. The book documents the sometimes violent, sometimes chaotic atmosphere of his school. Characterized on the cover as "a wickedly funny novel," the book tries hard but fails to exhibit any humor. Spud's parents are presented as ridiculous and bizarre, with his father nailing his doors and windows shut and calling Spud to tell him that "the barbarians are at the door" when Mandela is released. There is plenty of sexual and South African slang terminology. With plodding language and little insight into the many characters at the boarding school, the novel is unlikely to find much of a readership.
—Sue GiffardCopyright 2006 Reed Business Information.

Kirkus Reviews

If anyone's capable of portraying hell, it's John Milton. In this case, hell is an elite, all-boys boarding school in Durban, South Africa, in 1990, and Milton is 13-year-old John "Spud" Milton, his nickname referring to the diminutive private parts of this preadolescent boy, an indicator of the level of humor and behavior (and privacy) at the school. Spud is a good guy, a companionable narrator whose journal captures his first year-classmates Mad Dog, Rambo, Gecko and Fatty, and teachers Sparerib, Viking and The Guv. Spud is a good observer and, unfortunately, his portrayal of boarding-school life rings true. A parallel story line-Nelson Mandela's release from prison-lends depth to Spud's tale as he begins to develop a social conscience. Some readers may tire of 300-plus pages of random acts of meanness and the parade of quirky characters, but those humored by it will be eager for the forthcoming sequel. A bestseller in South Africa, it's likely to be a hit with American readers as well. (Fiction. 12+)