REVIEW: Honeybee by Craig Silvey

TW: Readers should be advised that this review contains references to suicide and gender dysphoria.

Readers who fell in love with Trent Dalton’s Eli Bell need to introduce themselves to Craig Silvey’s Sam Watson, the protagonist of his new novel Honeybee. It’s a heartbreaking, uplifting and vividly told new story that is unequivocally Australian and bound to be one of the must-read books of the year.

Craig Silvey (Photo by Daniel James Grant).

It begins on a highway overpass late at night near Fremantle, where fourteen-year-old Sam has climbed the rail and is calmly looking at the road below. Next to Sam, an old man called Vic smokes his last cigarette. Because of their chance meeting, neither will die that night and soon after Vic and Sam both resolve to save the other and an unlikely friendship is forged.

You’ll learn what brings both characters together that night in a painful and moving story of poverty, abuse, crime, isolation, gender, identity and grief. There will be tears of sorrow but there will also be tears of joy. In addition to a vulnerable mother and a dangerous stepfather, Sam will encounter some wonderful and unlikely allies who will inspire a failed bank robbery, an incredible drag night, some world class cookery and a ride on one of the most badass motorcycles ever produced. In the moments you can keep your eyes dry, you’ll have a heck of a lot of fun reading this novel.

Through it all is Sam’s journey to discover their true self. A story to which Silvey, a cisgendered author, has committed years of crafting in order to tell with respect and integrity. The result speaks for itself.

There is so much that will captivate and move you in Honeybee. I hope it finds its way into the hands of as many readers as Silvey’s smash hit Jasper Jones. A book this good is a rare and magical thing.

—Honeybee by Craig Silvey (Allen & Unwin) is out on the 29th of September.

If you’re struggling with issues around gender identity or sexual orientation, call Q Life on 1800 184 527 or visit qlife.org.au.

For 24/7 crisis support, call Lifeline on 13 11 14.

This book is part of Booktoberfest, the festival of new books!

Honeybee

by Craig Silvey

'Find out who you are, and live that life.'

Late in the night, fourteen-year-old Sam Watson steps onto a quiet overpass, climbs over the rail and looks down at the road far below. At the other end of the same bridge, an old man, Vic, smokes his last cigarette.

The two see each other across the void. A fateful connection is made, and an unlikely friendship blooms. Slowly, we learn what led Sam and Vic to the bridge that night. Bonded by their suffering, each privately commits to the impossible...

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Ben Hunter

Ben is Booktopia's dedicated fiction and children's book specialist. He spends his days painstakingly piecing together beautiful catalogue pages and gift guides for the website. At any opportunity, he loves to write warmly of the books that inspire him. If you want to talk books, find him tweeting at @itsbenhunter