Showing results by narrator "Simon Johns" in All Categories

The story takes place aboard a transatlantic ocean liner. A passenger named Brisbane is puzzled when the steward behaves oddly while taking his luggage to his stateroom, number 105. In the middle of the first night, Brisbane is further perplexed when his roommate suddenly leaps down from the upper berth and runs out of the cabin. In the morning, Brisbane learns that his roommate has gone overboard - and was the fourth consecutive occupant of the same upper berth to do so.

The unnamed narrator of the story lives alone in a dark, ancient castle surrounded by a dense forest. He never sees sunlight, and he has no memory of human contact. One day, desperate to see the sun, the narrator decides to climb the ruined tower which is the only part of the castle taller than the trees. After the dangerous climb to the top room of the tower, the narrator is delighted to see the moon through a grating. Soon, however, he discovers the horrible truth behind his confinement.

It was the long hot summer of 1979 in London, and Michael Berlin is 15, a skater, wild, adrift and out of control. With school over, he lands his dream job at Skateboard Kingdom and wastes no time getting in over his head. He and his friends rush toward a summer of youthful excess played out against a soundtrack of Bowie and Blondie in the shadow of Thatcher coming to power in a country on the brink. With humour and heart, he recounts his bad-boy antics and the resilience and refuge that intense male friendships can provide.