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rowena_wiseman's review
4.0
Fall on me is a novella by Nigel Featherstone, published by Canberra-based Blemish Books. I was intrigued with the blurb ‘… when Luke, an intelligent, provocative teenager, decides to risk all by making his body the focus of an art installation, Lou is forced to revisit the dark secrets of his past, question what it means to be a good father, and discover that there's more love in his life than he could ever have imagined.’
It is a softly-spoken book in many ways, that explores art and people's responses to it. I was reminded of the Bill Henson controversy over his photographs of naked teenagers, at that moment when they blossom from child to adult. Featherstone's book similarly asks the question is it art or pornography? Beauty or something unsavoury?
In Featherstone's novella, it is a 17 year old, Luke, who has taken photographs of himself to display in a very brave installation. The book is told from Luke's father's point of view, Lou is a courageous single father, focused on making his business successful, so that he can pay the rent and take care of their son. They have an enviable relationship, despite the hardships of their past.
The mystery of their past keeps us reading, but it is their charming relationship that makes this novel outstanding; a father wanting to protect his son, but also trying not to hold him back from having a voice.
It is a softly-spoken book in many ways, that explores art and people's responses to it. I was reminded of the Bill Henson controversy over his photographs of naked teenagers, at that moment when they blossom from child to adult. Featherstone's book similarly asks the question is it art or pornography? Beauty or something unsavoury?
In Featherstone's novella, it is a 17 year old, Luke, who has taken photographs of himself to display in a very brave installation. The book is told from Luke's father's point of view, Lou is a courageous single father, focused on making his business successful, so that he can pay the rent and take care of their son. They have an enviable relationship, despite the hardships of their past.
The mystery of their past keeps us reading, but it is their charming relationship that makes this novel outstanding; a father wanting to protect his son, but also trying not to hold him back from having a voice.
randomreader405a3's review
4.0
Stunning, beautiful; a story that's perfectly scoped for the length of a novella. Full review at allthenovellas.com.
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