Gowie Corby Plays Chicken

I first read this when I was about eleven, the same age as the character of the title. The story, style and characters are all tough, vivid and unsentimental. The main character is a disruptive, bullying loner from a broken home who's let down by everyone except his pet rat and a new girl at school called Rosie, a deeply compassionate African-American who befriends and helps him. There's a particular bit in the book where Gowie is being caned on the hands by the headmaster for the latest in a long line of misdemeanours, and although the headmaster stops after one lash and dismisses him, sensing that the punishment will make no difference anyway, Gowie asks, "Aren't you going to cane me any more?" The headmaster says, "You want to be caned?" to which he replies, "No, but I don't want not to be." The headmaster continues to thrash him, and when he goes out, he says he was "crying for a lot of things that have nothing to do with having hands that hurt." It was written in 1979 but it's timeless stuff, like all great writing. Rebecca Taylor

Gowie Corby is a tough English schoolboy who is enemies with everyone: Stuart, the self-important captain of the football team, Johnathan Johns, the brainy, prissy teacher's pet, and especially the odious and sniveling Heather. Then one day a black American girl named Rosie comes to school, and surprisingly, she and Gowie become friends. They are complete opposites; Rosie is brainy, hard-working, and optimistic, while Gowie is unstudious, rebellious, pessimistic, and fascinated by fictional horror. Gowie is able to confide his family troubles to Rosie and her friendship helps teach him how to get along with the people he despises. This book is written from Gowie's point of view, and his humorous narration of events and adept characterization of his teachers and schoolmates makes for a very interesting read. Viewed by another person, Gowie would just be another bully, but by reading his retelling of events readers can sympathize with him.