Candy

Reason Book Chosen

I chose this book because the reviews were mixed, and because Kevin Brooks is an acclaimed young adult author. Also, I wanted to branch out in this genre, to read a novel with a protagonist whom is Caucasian and that is set in a different country (England).

Bibliographic Information

Author: Kevin Brooks

Publisher: Chicken House

ISBN: 0439683270

Copyright Date: 2005

Genre

Urban Fiction, Mystery/Suspense

About the Author

Kevin Brooks is an English author whom has written several young adult novels, including Lucas and Martyn Pig. He has won several award, including the North East Book Award and the Branford Boase Award. He was also shortlisted for the Carnegie Medal. His novels mostly all have elements of mystery and suspense.

Reader’s Annotation

An average boy, a not so average girl. Is it lust, or a life more exciting than his own that Joe can’t resist?

Plot Summary

Joe, a white, upper-middle class, suburban Englander, and Candy, a young, white, teen prostitute meet briefly in the London Underground and share a quick meal at McDonalds, until it is interrupted by Candy’s angry pimp, Iggy.  Joe, whose own life is run of the mill and uneventful, can’t stop thinking about Candy, and her exciting life and mesmerizing aura, for weeks. Joe writes a song about her and performs it, and tells his sister and her boyfriend all about her.  Joe goes to great lengths to find Candy, even though he has been warned to stay away from, and in the process puts himself and others at risk. Joe’s lust for Candy leads him into a world unlike the one he knows, where violence and drugs prevail. He finds himself telling lies on his journey to get to the truth about who Candy really is, and how to save her.   

Critical Analysis

This book is well written. The style is familiar and the main character is someone you feel like you could have a conversation with. The reader sees and identifies with his insecurities, his vulnerabilities. His inner dialogue is tangential, but interesting. Joe’s emotions and lust, as well as teen passion in general, is well captured in these pages. Joe, is a pretty average teen, yet it somehow doesn’t seem odd that he is chasing after a drug-addicted prostitute and avoiding getting killed by a pimp. Maybe this is because he is also struggling with being grounded and not lying to his father. Joe is a likeable and dynamic guy, funny, quirky, and way to caught up in his own head. He is trying to make sense of his feelings and the world, all at the same time. The only negative commentary is that while the second half of novel has more of a plot, the first half, with less plot and more emotion, is more interesting. The ending seems to lack the same intensity, momentum, and charisma of the first half. Joe doesn’t change all that much, his character hardly evolves.

Themes/Issues/Tags

England, Teen Prostitution, Lust, Romance, Drugs, Violence

Controversial Subject Matters

Romanticizing life on the streets/life as a prostitute

Defense: The darker side is also portrayed

Booktalking Ideas

Topic- First Love

Topic- Lust

Have you ever felt bored, wanted to find excitement?

Show a picture of Candy (the cover) and read the scene in which Joe first sees her.

Also read some of the song lyrics from the song that Joe writes about her.

Character hook- Choose some of Joe’s internal monologue passages to read aloud. Create a passage of how Iggy might see Joe (Iggy’s internal monologue) and read aloud.

Curriculum Ties

British Culture - Street

Reading Level

12 +

Interest Level

12-17