My Side of the Story (Will Davis, 2008)

In a change of pace from the murky world of occupied Britain the next book I polished off in a matter of days was My Side of the Story, a first person account of the life of Jaz (real name Jarold), a 16 year old gay teenager living in Shepherd’s Bush. It’s a bit like that American ‘classic’ Catcher in the Rye as the story is told in a teenage vernacular and concerns a bit of a social misfit, where it differs is that I found Catcher hard going and not particularly enjoyable, whereas My Side is fun and an easier read.

I was a bit unsure I’d like Davis’ style, as the prose is peppered with ‘likes’ and I hate the way people use the word, as like, filler all the like time, and there are other stylistic devices that really evoke the teenage voice. Davis uses ‘like’ in place of ‘said’ and not too frequently, and so it’s not distracting once Jaz gets going, and some of his language made me smile, such as his acronym LIC GAS, which stands for Like I Could Give A Shit, and descriptions like ‘I was the definition of sorry’. Once I immersed myself in Jaz’s story I warmed to him and enjoyed his way with words.

The plot isn't complex, Jaz has a realistic existence, sneaking out to a gay club with his best friend Al, dealing with school bullies and Goths, and suffering with his dysfunctional parents, and there’s a simplistic joy to the familiarity of the character’s life. I could identify with some of the emotions and experiences Jaz goes through so it was easy for me to sympathise with his views on life, love and being gay. He’s a bit more negative and surly, and typically teenage about some aspects, but unlike the protagonist in Catcher in the Rye, I never found Jaz irritating or unlikable.

Although the story deals with Jaz’s coming out to his parents and at school, it’s never cloying or sentimental. There are real emotions expressed, and Jaz occasionally finds himself bursting into tears for no reason, as the enormity of the things he’s going through dawn on him, revealing chinks in his LIC GAS bravado. Davis has written an honest account of what the internal monologue of a gay teen in Britain today might be like, and while this may not be an earth-shattering literary sensation, it’s a lovely, refreshingly written tale that is deceptively charming.