https://tinyurl.com/bdcehkjb

ISBN: 9780975625729

A YA story written in the first person voice of a teenage boy growing up in a small country town in the Sixties. Begins with the central character as a twelve year old and evolves to his teenage and young adult years.

Reflects the mores and values of the times and celebrates the informal rite of passage that boys of the era experienced. Terry encounters adventure, love, death and ultimately personal tragedy in his journey to adulthood.
Terry Spriggs and friends have a series of boyhood escapades including cubby building, lighting grass fires, setting off firecrackers, sneaking into a morgue and hill trolley racing.
From grade one Terry is in love with Stephanie Miller and his motivation is always to impress her. Most of his attempted heroic feats end in personal disaster.
In high school he eventually loses her to his best friend Darryl. He has other girlfriends and eventually in his last year of high school loses his virginity.
He suffers the loss of his war hero grandfather who had been his mentor. He finally attains hero status by rescuing two children from their father attempting murder-suicide.
An apparently near death experience while surfing brings him into an uncomfortable relationship with God.
Stephanie contracts leukaemia. He leaves high school to study at University and becomes Stephanie’s constant companion until her death.