Hearing the perspective of a young man experiencing both love and anxiety creates scenes so vivid and powerful that I found myself wondering whether the writer was remembering genuine events from his own life. Though the narrator, Sam, may be somewhat dimwitted at times, his flaws create a greater sense of realism. Nick Hornby’s Slam avoids this pitfall with a richly characterized and genuine perspective. Many books that aim to write from a teen perspective fall flat or feel out of touch. Jess Lahey is an educator and author of The Gift of Failure. I think I’ll just turn it on and see what happens. I may not persuade Finn to watch About a Boy, but I went ahead and downloaded the audiobook for our next car trip. Slam prompted some great talks about sex, pregnancy, abortion, social support for young parents, and the songs we’d choose to accompany our major life events. It also encouraged organic conversation-without the usual blushing, fidgeting, or desperate fight-or-flight response.
That helped defuse any awkwardness listening to the book together. Hornby offers up humor and clever satire amid the typical fear accompanying the saga of teenage pregnancy. In the book, Sam’s ex-girlfriend discovers she is pregnant.
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