Dear Miffy

 If you are after a book on many teen issues, Dear Miffy has a selection. While the side issues are abandonment, betrayal, deceit, sibling death, shoplifting, police harassment and drug use, the issues it focuses on are violence and its consequences, class differences, sex, depression and suicide. The attempted suicide on the main character’s life is handled with gritty realism. Marsden has tapped in to the teen psyche (My family has first-hand suicide experience). Encouraging, if brief, use of humour alleviates the grim story in places.  As alarming as it sounds, Tony could be any of the several teens I personally know and count as my circle of friends, such is Marsden’s authentic character portrayal. For an author as advanced in years as Marsden, attempting to characterize a violent, suicidal, hormonal sixteen year old boy without sounding ineffectual is an impressive accomplishment ( )

BLURB:

Dreamed about you again.
Like I do most nights.

Sometimes it's nighmares,
sometimes it's good dreams,
sometimes I have to change the sheets.

CONTENTS MAY OFFEND SOME READERS

COMMENT:

This was a great read. A little hard to get into at first but it turned out well. Great for teens if you don't mind them reading a little language. ( )