Our Beautiful Boys

A profound meditation on class, privilege and masculinity Observer

An insightful, nuanced story ... I couldn’t put it down Charles Yu

Timely and timeless ... A book about the lies we knowingly or unwittingly tell ourselves New York Times

I know my son. I know what he is and what he’s not capable of.

Revelling in the triumph of a high school football win, MJ, Vikram and Diego find themselves at an ill-fated party, on a night that ends with the school bully in hospital. When no one comes forward with the truth of what actually happened, all three teenage “all stars” are suspended for the rest of the season, their futures suddenly uncertain.

In the aftermath, the families gather to assess the damage to their children’s prospects, their reputations and their own relationships. As other secrets begin to bubble to the surface, each parent attempts to navigate the crisis at hand, confronted with their own inner turmoil and the question none of them want to face: how well can you ever truly know your own child?

Our Beautiful Boys is a page-turning and incisive novel about masculinity, race, education and privilege, and the conflict that arises when all these collide.