Fourteen

Optioned for a major film, Fourteen is this generation's Holding the Man a moving coming-of-age memoir about a young man's search for identity and acceptance in the most unforgiving and hostile of places: high school. This is a story about my fourteenth year of life as a gay kid at an all-boys rugby-mad Catholic school in regional Queensland. It was a year in which I started to discover who I was, and deeply hated what was revealed. It was a year in which I had my first crush and first devastating heartbreak. It was a year of torment, bullying and betrayal not just at the hands of my peers, but by adults who were meant to protect me. And it was a year that almost ended tragically. I found solace in writing and my budding journalism; in a close-knit group of friends, all growing up too quickly together; and in the fierce protection of family and a mother's unconditional love. These were moments of light and hilarity that kept me going. As much as Fourteen is a chronicle of the enormous struggle and adversity I endured, and the shocking consequences of it all, it's also a tale of survival. Because I did survive.Longlisted for the 2021 ABIA Biography Book of the Year ';Teenagers should read this book, parents should read this book. Human beings, above all, should read this book.' Rick Morton bestselling author of One Hundred Years of Dirt ';I love this book a beautifully written account of a young man struggling with his sexuality, overcoming shocking abuse and finding his way to pride.' Peter FitzSimons, bestselling author ';Shannon is unflinching in recounting the horror, but he is also funny, empathetic and, above all, full of courage.' Bridie Jabour, author of The Way Things Should Be ';A slice of life as experienced quite recently in the ';lucky country'.' The Hon Michael Kirby, AC CMG ';Shannons bitter struggle is painfully recognisable and happening in playgrounds around the world. But he not only triumphs, he relives his past using his best weapon: beautiful words.'Australian Women's Weekly ';A stunning memoir about heartbreak and acceptance a unique, hilarious and bittersweet insight into the heart of a boy, the courage of survival, and the fierce love of a mother.'Frances Whiting,Courier Mail ';Australia hasn't changed all that much from what Shannon describes inFourteen. Marriage equality isn't the end; there is still such a long way to go, and books like this are an important part of that journey.' FIVE STARS.Good Reading ';Intensely raw and incredibly moving.'OUTinPerth A book in which many will undoubtably see themselves and take solace The Age