The premise for George Kemp’s novel, Soft Serve, is deceptively simple – four people taking shelter in a regional McDonald’s as bushfires close in around the town. What unfolds, is a story about grief, expectations and imagined futures.
…orange embers dart over her head and flutter down the hill towards the town, flicky death-filled confetti…
Three 20-year-olds, Ethan, Fern and Jacob, gather at McDonald’s to toast their friend (with a soft-serve), Taz, on the anniversary of his death. Taz’s mother, Pat, is the manager of Macca’s, and on this particular day, she arrives early, going through the motions, nursing her grief.
Pat’s grief counsellor once said: The mindless and the manual will be your best friends. Stupid, Pat thought. Yet here she is, cleaning inside the bottom of the slippery dip.
As the day begins, news of the bushfires reach the group. The fires create an intense backdrop, compressing and giving urgency to the interactions between the characters. Thoughts about the future get put on hold when your present is precarious – this applies to Ethan, Fern and Jacob, but is also a reflection of the trajectory of Pat’s grief.
They’re just trying to do the same thing that she is – fill in a sinkhole with a trowel.
What Kemp has done very well is capture the sense of place in a mid-size regional Australian town.
Out into the sandwich-board-and-mugaccino cafes, the Vinnies, the Thai restaurant, Fine Wines, Vibe (the good dress shop), the homewares ’boutiques’ whose whitewashed frangipani sensabilities make it seem as though they took a wrong turn miles away at the ocean and ended up here, trying to cash in on the tourist dollar. What tourists?
I emphasise ‘mid-size’ because such towns put youth in a difficult position. There’s rarely enough (in terms of entertainment and employment) to keep them there, yet they’re discouraged to leave – it’s often not socially acceptable to demand ‘more’ from life, and fear around the unknown is powerful.
Themes of wanting a different future are explored through each of the 20-year-olds in various ways (Fern through financial security; Ethan through questioning his sexuality; and Jacob, who wants to do something but doesn’t know what). Significantly, Taz had followed his dream, left the town to make a life in Sydney, and was killed in an accident – a terrifying cautionary tale for his friends.
Lastly, this book has Year 12 text written all over it!
3.5/5
A slight upgrade from Macca’s soft serve…
Pingback: 20 Books of Summer (except that it’s Winter) | booksaremyfavouriteandbest
Interesting. I haven’t come across this author. Does he usually write YA?
I think this is his first novel – all of his previous works were for theatre and screen.
I’m interested to see your comment that he wrote for theatre – as I was reading your post I was thinking it sounded like it would work well as a play!
Yes, very much so (I can picture the sets now!)
I recently reviewed this book. I wouldn’t call it YA (though I agree it would work as a year 12 text) because it is as much about Pat as it is about the young people? I liked the novel very much. It would make a good play or movie, particularly the latter.