Bantam

Set in a small country town in Central Australia, Bantam tells the story of a year in the life of Mick and his mates as they stumble through the tragi-comic roller-coaster ride of adolescent life on the dole. Their despairs are many, their friendship life-saving and their epiphanies small graces that stud the novel like jewels. Terry Whitebeach is a Tasmanian writer, presently living and working in Central Australia. Bantam, written in collaboration with her son Michael, whose letters and phone calls to his mother were the inspiration for the book, is her second novel for young adults.