My sheltered childhood is long behind me but I had a sense of disbelief when I read about the brutality of boarding school life in Boy on a Wire. Long-listed for the 2010 Miles Franklin, it’s a fictionalised memoir, based on Jon Doust’s own experiences at a boarding school in Western Australia in the 1960s. The routine violence that was inflicted even for minor misdemeanours was institutionalised by both masters and boys. Relentless bullying and bastardisation were part of the school tradition, and dobbing was never done. As a teacher myself, I cannot imagine working in such a brutal and degrading atmosphere, much less trying to learn anything there as a student. See my review at http://anzlitlovers.wordpress.com/201...10review australia c21st2 s Vicki157 41

Meet Jon Doust; he is a funny man and a survivor. Funny in that he is a stand-up comedian with a natural gift for a story, and a survivor in the sense he had mercury poisoning (pinks disease) as a child, survived, and then lived through the cruelty of boarding school to tell the tale.

He has dedicated this fictionalised autobiographical work to all those boys who experienced bullying and harsh schooling days and have carried their scars into manhood.

Boy on a Wire
Set in Western Australia, Boy on a Wire draws on Doust’s personal experience of being sent, in his early adolescence, from a small country town to a boys’ boarding school in the city.

Small in stature, he had to be quick on his feet and fast with his mouth. Luckily for Doust, he had both of these qualities.

The main protagonist is Jack Muir (Doust); hot-headed, smart-mouthed and totally loveable. Readers follow him on his journey through the perils of school life as he grapples with what is good and evil in the world, takes on the bullies, both children and adults, and lives in constant fear of everyone, including God, his superhero.

Jack is a champion of the underdog. When the less-fortunate are picked on he takes on the responsibility of seeking revenge, all the while wondering if he may indeed also have a bit of Satan in him.

Questioning his religion, Jack lives with constant guilt. He is measured against his older brother Thomas, a somewhat golden child, and often wishes him dead. When Thomas has an accident, Jack takes the blame and his guilt escalates.

Humour in Boy on a Wire
For a stand-up comedian it is not surprising that humour comes naturally in the novel and although at times very dark and sad, Doust’s writing leaves us with hope and the sense of optimism that all will be fine in the world.

In an interview with Jo Case at Readings 15 April 2010, Doust states “My family have always used humour to cope with illness, failings and flaws and I have a background in stand-up comedy. My personal sense of humour has a darkness and I am a regular user of it as a survival tool.”

As well as the humour, it is Doust’s characters who are the real winners in this memoir. They are colourful, repulsive, sensitive and cruel. Doust follows them into adulthood with the final pages of the book being dedicated to a list of where they are now. It is hard to gauge if the list is the truth or a product of Doust’s humour. Regardless, the result is satisfying and in most cases, deserved.

About Jon Doust
Jon Doust was born in Bridgetown and lives in Albany, Western Australia. He is an author, comedian, motivational speaker and lover of organic fruit and vegetables. This is his first book for adults but he has previously has success with two children’s novels.

Boy on a Wire was longlisted for the 2010 Miles Franklin Literary Award which celebrates the best in Australian literature. Unfortunately Doust did not make the shortlist.

Boy on a Wire (Fremantle Press, 2009, ISBN 9781921361456, 236 pages.)
1 Robyn MundyAuthor 9 books54

Long-listed for the Miles Franklin Award. This memoir follows Jack--a boy whose exuberance and wit continually lands him in trouble--through the brutal and brutalising years of boarding school. A raw, no-holds-barred 1st person narrative that will resonate with any reader who's been there.1 Amanda CurtinAuthor 7 books75

Jack Muir tells his story of boarding-school life, families, friendship, coming of age -- sometimes funny, sometimes brutal -- in a voice that is disarming, fresh and engaging, so well sustained throughout. I won't forget it.1 Jennifer (JC-S)3,099 243

‘I know I have to go. It’s a family tradition.’

Jack Muir, from a small town in Western Australia, is sent off to boarding school in the early 1960s. He doesn’t want to go. His older brother is already there: Jack has become used to being in his shadow. But leaving home means leaving his mother, of having to fit into a world where difference is not valued and where punishment can be brutal. While I don’t have any personal experience of corporal punishment at school, I do remember ‘the cuts’ being administered to others at my government primary school in Tasmania. Fear and pain are hardly great motivators for learning.

And in Jack’s boarding school, the boys also dole out punishment to each other.
How will Jack survive? Physically and emotionally?

Jack is not always a able character: he has the arrogance of youth, and his wit is not always comfortable. But he is also compassionate and tries to look out for some of the more vulnerable boys.

I read this book and wondered how many of the boys would survive their experiences. I wondered, too, about what kind of adults and parents these boys would make. Have we learned nothing since the 19th century? There’s little kindness shown to the boys in this book: even minor transgressions are punished; boys are expected to be competitive and tough.

‘There is a kind of freedom in not winning.’

I read this novel on the recommendation of a friend and will be looking to read the other two books in the series ‘One Boy’s Journey to Man’. The journey is harrowing in parts, but the writing is superb, and I really want to read the next stage of Jack’s journey. While I think that this novel is pitched at adults, many teenagers might take comfort from knowing that they are not alone navigating the challenging path from childhood.

Jennifer Cameron-Smith
aussieauthor2020 australian-author librarybooks Julie (Bookish.Intoxication)837 34

I was sent a copy of this title from the Publisher, in exchange for an honest review.

I wanted to love this book. I wanted it to show the other side of Australia, the side that books often overlook. In that respect I got what I wanted, this book is raw and gritty and on many levels, emotionally charged. But for me, I truly felt as though it was too long, that there were so many chapters that just felt they were re-worded repeats of previous chapters. I couldn’t connect with the protagonist past the first 30 pages. I felt a real connection to him early in the book, I wanted him to do well, to escape the world of his mother and father and make something of himself, and when he got to boarding school, I thought that was his chance, but he didn’t and it wasn’t. But I guess that is the point of the book. To show how life repeats, to show how socio-economic status and culture works. I struggled also with the writing style, it is incredibly slow paced, but the chapters are so short, it sort of makes up for the pacing. I the short chapters, you can read one in under three minutes.

I do feel a little guilty for not liking this book. I requested it from the lovely people at Fremantle Press in exchange for some publicity and a honest review, but I wish it could have been more positive.

On closing, I loved the Australian-ness of this novel, I just wish there was more content and less repetition.

Amy3 30

I think the concept and ideas behind the book are great, but unfortunately I really couldn't stand the style of writing. I'm sorry to say I found it unenjoyable to read, so I moved on to something else. I'm glad that I seem to be in the minority because I do idolise Australian authors and their stories.did-not-finish Kylie AbeccaAuthor 8 books40

Brilliant. Moving. Insightful

I chuckled, I had tears in my eyes and a hand to my face in shock horror. This book hurled me through every emotion and left me raw and battered by the last page, just as every good book should. Terezija Quinn11

I really enjoyed this book, very raw, very real. The feel of the main character is very Holden Caulfield-. Martin1,629 9

with the 1/2.

An oldie but a goodie...1960's WA was a tough time especially for a young man being sent to boarding school.
Insightful and an emotional read. ChrisAuthor 1 book98

Fabulous writing. Best read of 2009.

See the youtube clip at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FBXcAN...

Sent to boarding school at a young age, Jack Muir decides he’s a survivor. He gets by with a quick wit and a fast mouth. Others aren’t so lucky.

This story from stand-up comedian and writer, Jon Doust, is humorous and deeply poignant—a close-to-the-bone tale of how underdogs survive the system.

+ Playwright Reg Cribb on BOY ON A WIRE - a beautiful, honest testimony to adolescence in all its smelly, warty, effluent glory.

+ ‘The boarding school memoir or novel is an enduring literary subgenre, from 1950s classics such as The Catcher in the Rye to Curtis Sittenfeld’s Prep. Doust’s recognisably Australian contribution to the genre draws on his own experiences in a West Australian boarding school in this clever, polished, detail-rich debut novel. From the opening pages, the reader is wholly transported into the head of Jack Muir, a sensitive, sharp-eyed boy from small-town WA who is constantly measured (unfavourably) against his goldenboy brother. The distinctive, masterfully inhabited adolescent narrator recalls the narrator in darkly funny coming-of-age memoir Hoi Polloi (Craig Sherborne)—as does the juxtaposition of stark naivety and carefully mined knowingness.’ — Bookseller+Publisher

http://www.fremantlepress.com.au/book...

Bri45 3

Set in the far west of Australia in the early 1960s, Boy on a Wire sees Jack, a rural lad, sent off to the city to attend boarding school. Boy on a Wire is his narrative of the experience. Jack isn't always a able protagonist but he is a bit of a larrakin lad and definitely a product of the times. He feels he can never live up to his parent's expectations or be the golden child that he feels his older brother is. Jack wants us to think he is one of the lads - larger than life and somewhat invincible -but his vulnerabilities are clearly shown and so he comes across as raw, honest and real. I will definitely be reading the follow up to Boy on a Wire, the recently released To The Highlands. 2012 australian-writers fiction ...more Jennifer Goerling30

i did not enjoy this book was arogant and off putting Donna382 2

I gave this 5 stars because I couldn't put it down. It was funny, it was real, it was thought provoking. Great job Jon! (not just saying that 'cos he's a local boy!!) Katya1 review1 follower

Beautiful, thought-provoking, funny, sad, engaging. Gorgeously honest and touching without being sentimental. A lovely insight into a man a time and a place. EmilyAuthor 4 books23

Great little book, found a few typos in it being the pedant that I am. Noticing an interesting pattern of Intertextuality in books this one. Rae Morgan10



Very humorous, but I am sure that many men who grew up in private religious schools in Australia could relate to this tale that was based on Dousts' experience. Deborah Barnett43 2

Thank you Jon for your honesty. It was a pleasure to meet you and now I just want to meet you again and ask questions. big-sky-authors owned Sheryl294 3

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