Ages ago, I interviewed Neil Montagnana-Wallace. He’s written a series of about a footballer called Megs Morrison. It’s for the young, young adult market. Neil reckons 7-13 yrs.
Recently I reviewed the final instalment in Bookseller and Publisher magazine and wanted to add my thoughts to my football fiction blog. Here’s a couple of excerpts from the review…
Engaging dialogue, action-packed plots and an imaginative take on social issues make Megs Morrison a crowd favourite.
Apart from the dream sequence in the opening, this is the writer/footballer’s best work. It’s sharp, it’s smart and importantly puts over the attractiveness of football and the power it has to affect people’s lives.
…tackles bullying in many guises. On and off the pitch, Megs must cope with the pressures of State squad, a stern coach, his Mum getting weird and the Simpfenator losing control. Forced to consider his football future, Megs also learns parental fans don’t necessarily make good spectators.
There is always an ‘issue’ in each of the Megs books, an old school YA moral lesson to be learned. Where the texts do well is dealing with it realistically. Its not always good and it doesn’t always end up the right way round. It’s for a young audience so most of the time it works out, but the issues, sometimes very difficult ones are dealt with creatively without the reader being hammered.
Defensively, the writing is a little flabby. It doesn’t always pick up its marker and smothers some sharp humour. The midfield engine room is strong, open and energetic. Solid characters like Megs, Coach Atti and the Morrisons family household move the ball and link well with squad members.
I feel a bit harsh saying this, but I have to be honest too. The wordiness sometimes gets in the way of the humour. And a disciplined edit on the writing would have tightened things up a bit. Fortunately everything else is working really well, so most of the minor problems are forgiven.
…underlin[es] the game’s development in Australia, particularly Women’s football, lightning-paced match exploits and intricate ball tricks are woven through a history of Rights protests from the Eureka Stockade to the UK Miners’ Strikes. This informative and entertaining series ends fittingly with its best book.
The reader learns beyond their own culture and history. Its an idea I really like. That its done through football is even better. Montagnana-Wallace and Schwarzer work hard to bring a lot to the subtextual discussion. Its something else that works well. The books are a lot of fun and are very very readable. A must for the age group, young ‘uns interested in sports or those reluctant to read at all.
Megs Morrison has booked a worthy berth on the football fiction shelf.
