Being black'n chicken, and chips by Matt Okine

Hachette, 2019. ISBN: 9780733641688.
(Age: 14+) Recommended. Themes: Humour, Adolescence, Sexuality, Cancer, Grief, Racism. Written by Ghanaian-born, Australian stand-up comedian, Matt Okine, this book makes for a hilarious read, while at the same time dealing with serious subjects such as child death, cancer and racism. It is a coming of age story of a teenager obsessed with sex and athletics, living between separated parents, his struggling white mother and his African dentist father. Class clown Mike is always the joker hiding his feelings behind the laughs.
His curiosity about sex and girls gets him into some really embarrassing situations that play out like a comedy film, and will have you laughing out loud. At the same time, tears may not be far away as Mike comes to realise the seriousness of his mother's illness. And then there are the really scary scenes where he is menaced by a racist cop, a situation that is only too familiar to Mike's father.
Teenagers and adults alike will enjoy this book. It is easy to read; it is funny, heart-warming and serious all at the same time.
Helen Eddy