Tom survived a devastating flood that claimed the lives of her sister and parents. Now she lives with Bill in his old shed by the lake. But it's time to move out—Tom is pregnant with Bill's baby.
Jonah lets her move in with him. Mrs Peck gives her the Fishmaster Super Series tackle box. Nana is full of gentle good advice and useful sayings.
And in her longing for what is lost, Tom talks to fish: Oscar the carp in the pet shop, little Sarah catfish who might be her sister, an unhelpful turtle in a tank at the maternity ward. And the minnow.
The Minnow is a moving and powerful coming-of-age story with a whimsical element that belies the heartbreaking truth of grief and loss. Tom is a character you will never forget.
Beautiful new Australian fiction
This is a powerful debut novel from an Australian author, and the winner of the 2013 Text Prize for Young Adult and Children's Writing. The Minnow is strange and beautiful and difficult to categorise. It has a young narrator with an old voice, and a plot shaped by grief and a teenage pregnancy. I thought this might be depressing, but its not Tom is knowing and pragmatic, and her observations often wryly funny. Her conversations with fish and her dead grandfather lend the book a surreal, dream-like aspect. I was moved both by the story and the writing. Besides that, the cover is just gorgeous Recommended with extreme fondness. Reviewed by 33as.
Amy, 23/08/2014
