Review: Jasper Jones by Craig Silvey

Jasper Jones by Craig Silvey.

Alfred A. Knopf Book for Young Readers
Publication Date: May 2011
List Price: $16.99
ISBN-13: 9780375866661

Review: A robbing, thieving and smoking teen comes to a window. A murderer is revealed. And the love and life of another teen is told. This all happens in Jasper Jones, a story written by the fabulous author, Craig Silvey. The main character in Jasper Jones is Charlie Bucktin, a literature loving thirteen-year old. He is the main character in this exciting mystery.

Late at night, Charlie Bucktin wakes up to the soft tapping on his window. He looks out and is surprised to see Jasper Jones, a notorious neighborhood thief. He follows him, hoping for a popularity boost but finds a dead girl. Charlie is immediately tied in with a murder case - a murder case that Jasper Jones insists that they try and solve. Charlie is scarred but still tries to live on his life. He finds the girl of his dreams, Eliza Wishart and supports his best friend Jeffrey Lu, as he tries to join the cricket team. Although the story is about his life too, the main plot is the murder of Laura Wishart. Will they solve the murder, will Charlie get the girl, and will his life go unscathed? You are going to have to read Jasper Jones to find out.

What I liked about Jasper Jones is the diversity of the story. It switches between a mystery to the life of Charlie Bucktin and back. However, sometimes it drags on with too many descriptions, making Jasper Jones boring at times. But for the most part, it is packed with action, so Jasper Jones can never be too boring. The characters are fully developed, so it is easy to understand their problems, and their way of tackling the problems. The dialogue of the story is simple and easy to understand. There is an abundant use of swear words, though, and controversial topics being discussed. If this bothers you, I don't think that this is the book for you. The plot is a multiple-problem plot, and all problems are resolved, in an easy to understand logical fashion. Although Jasper Jones can slow down at times because of over explaining, it is still interesting and is a fast read. The excitement level starts high but gradually decreases as the mystery decreased and the life story of Charlie Bucktin increased. The excitement increases again at the end, though, when some unexpected things happen. On a scale of one through five, I rate this book a three and a half because it is a good read but not quite as good as other books that I have read and enjoyed more than Jasper Jones. In conclusion, Craig Silvey is a great author and if your basic requirements of a book fit this, Jasper Jones is right for you.

Review written by Sean (6th grade student).

We would like to thank Random House for providing a copy of Jasper Jones for this review.

Have you read Jasper Jones? How would you rate it?