Not sure I should go too deep into reviewing Pissants by Brandon Jack because I’m quite certain that the demographic of readers of this blog is wildly different to that of Brandon Jack’s novel. Anyway…
First up – why did I pick up a book about a group of players at an unnamed (but high-level) AFL club? Curiosity. Because it’s written by an ex-Sydney Swans player and I thought, ‘Can he write?’ (yes, huge assumption and stereotyping thinking otherwise).
I was also interested in the formatting of the book – there are plenty of pages of straight text, but Jack throws in footnotes, WhatsApp chats, betting slips, and chapters of dual dialogue where a player is being interviewed and what he says runs alongside what he is actually thinking. Some readers will find this a little tricked-up – I probably wouldn’t want to repeat the reading experience too frequently but for Pissants, it was clever.
We are introduced to the Pissants in the opening chapter, knowing them only by their nicknames and how they earned those names. It immediately sets the tone for the rest of the book – a laugh is quickly replaced by an uncomfortable feeling when some of the nicknames cross the line from mates ribbing each other to being downright cruel.
What unfolds is a story told from multiple perspectives, and it’s dominated by locker room banter; pranks played on teammates; and an extraordinary amount of alcohol and drug use (and all the behaviour that goes with that). There are a couple of narrative threads that carry through to a resolution, however, the book does suffer a bit from shifting between too many perspectives.
For most of this book, I was terrified. It is fiction, however, I couldn’t help but think that a version of every single toxic thing that happened in this novel, has happened at a footy club. From the ‘Mystery Dick Stakes’ (the new recruits who won’t ‘reveal’ themselves in the showers) and the death of a teammate’s dog after a kidnapping-prank-gone-wrong, to the Pissants Open (‘pub golf’ where the scoring system is based on the number of beers consumed at each pub) and the drugs measures taken to get through club sponsor nights.
In the time between the group being kicked out of the first pub of the day and before arriving at the nightclub for the evening, they were to source a full-grown Atlantic salmon which would then be brought into the nightclub and placed in the centre of the dancefloor while all the surrounding players chanted, ‘PAUL SALMON! PAUL SALMON! PAUL SALMON!’ repeatedly.
But I had a few laughs, especially when the players are ticking off their bingo cards as the club’s psychologist gives their weekly lecture.
And there were pop culture references that also made me smile.
Woman: You came to my school the other week to talk to our students. You’re a footy player.
Me (fucking hell): Oh, yeah, that might’ve been me.
It undoubtedly was me, and that school was ill-equipped to handle two of the lesser-known players of the XXX Football Club. The Principal, some quasi-incarnation of Mr G and the manager from Flight of the Conchords, had me holed up explaining the full extent of his Uner-16s football career. ‘The Train’ he called himself, even being so kind as to show me the large green and white steam engine that he’d had inked on his lower back to mark the name.
Was I supposed to get a sense of camaraderie? That these guys were there for their teammates at all costs? What I got was a group of young men, fearful of things that they couldn’t or wouldn’t name.
Who should read this book? I have no idea. If you’re considering it, stand in a book shop and read the first few pages – that will give you a sense of what’s ahead.
4/5 (three stars for the writing and an extra star for the creativity).
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This both appeals and doesn’t appeal. I like a tricksy narrative but not sure I could take the banter in this one. It does sound clever though
The formatting is an interesting choice from a publishing perspective because it absolutely rules it out of working well as an audiobook, which might cut audience numbers. As I mentioned, I only go for these kinds of novelties occasionally.
I don’t think this is for me but I did enjoy your review!
Not sure it will even get published outside of Australia – it’s very specific in terms of the culture and the vernacular.
I was hoping you might review this one! It has received a lot of publicity, because of the author’s lived experience, and having grown up in a football mad country town and been subjected to all the misogyny that entails (it’s partly why I am not an AFL fan), I was intrigued to read it myself. And then I read a disparaging review on the Guardian and changed my mind. But your excellent review has me intrigued. I might see if I can borrow it from the library…
I just hunted down The Guardian review – I think it emphasises the negative aspects of football culture (which we all know exist, that’s not news) rather than focusing on Jack’s writing. Maybe I’m being too generous… I agree that the players in the book aren’t held accountable for their actions but again, that’s what happens in real life, and I don’t think Jack is saying that that’s okay. What he does highlight is that while all these idiotic, misogynistic and harmful things are going on, the inner voice for the majority of these young men is one of scared, uncertain boys. I think Jack has done a good job of further exposing an ugliness that we all know exists.
Sold!
Not for me, I think.
No, I expect that most of my readers will give this a wide berth!
LOL I think I know most of this already from my misspent youth, when going along to watch the Ex play thugby was proof of my devotion. The only good thing about National Service was that it enabled me to escape the weekly Harlequin games, and get a life of my own. (And LOL still be devoted.)
Thugby!! LOL 😂
With an adult son playing football, possibly not for me, LOL.
I get that!
I heard a review of this book on Radio National this morning. I would never normally read a sports focused book but the reading of a passage of this had me intrigued. The player’s psyche and the dissection of their search for meaning has drawn me to read it.
One review said that the book ‘glorified’ the poor male behaviour in sports – I thought quite the opposite while reading this! It’s not a book that you ‘enjoy’ as such, but rather it’s challenging and memorable.
I won’t like it if it glorifies sport, but I also think it may reveal some clues as to the psyche of the players and am intrigued to see if they are underneath it ordinary guys just following a skill/talent that they have and get caught in a corporatized sporting franchise.
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