Nailed by Patrick Jones

“I didn’t quit because everyone, including Dad, thought I would. Instead I took the hard road.” - Bret Hendricks    

ISBN: 0802780776
Format: Hardcover 
Price: $16.95 

Bret Hendricks is fed up with the macho egotists at Southwestern High School. Over the years, most nonconformists students have learned to ignore their bullying taunts. As for Bret, his days of silence are at an end. What begins as witty sarcasm leads to political speech, vandalism, school suspensions, and a brutal fist fight remniscent of Fight Club. Bret’s attempts to rise above his persecutors’ abuse is just one challenge, however, as other issues crowd for attention: struggling father-son relationship; love interest turned sour; back-stabbing friend and through it all, a steady stream of concerned adults eager to step in and offer out-of-touch advice. Patrick Jones shows a knack for creating characters that may speak to disaffected teens. However, there are times when he has too many ideas, and his reach exceeds his grasp. To better harness this exciting and engaging voice in teen literature, and to realize his potential as a novelist, he may need to scale back some of his superfluous ideas, in order to bring his true strength, his characters, to the forefront. 

FYI for teen reader’s advisory folks:
- You might try promoting this to teens who demonstrate the “sticking it to the man” attitude.
- If you’ve met Patrick Jones, you’ll recognize the similarities between the author and main character including: a dedicated passion for wrestling; Monty Python jokes; an honest and free spirited individual.
- Also check out this interview with Patrick Jones and teenlibrarian blogger Miranda Doyle.