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Reviewed by Jennifer Senick for Readers' Favorite
Slax by Robert E. Kearns is set in a secondary school in north Dublin during the mid-1980s. The story unfolds among a group of students who find their Wednesday half-days filled with both spirited minor rebelling and companionship, especially after starting an informal film club. Slax, the narrator's friend, is famous for always being in trouble but is never portrayed as outright malicious. While this institution is notorious for its stern educators, like McDuff, and strict discipline, Slax stands out as the kid everyone expects to be up to no good. As the years go by, the narrator comes to see there’s more to Slax than meets the eye, and maybe there was a reason for his previous behavior. Friendships, judgments, and shifting loyalties shape the boys’ teenage years amid schoolyard drama, detention hierarchies, and teachers’ heavy-handed discipline, culminating in a pivotal moment that forever changes those who knew Slax.
I was immediately drawn into Slax by Robert E. Kearns. The school setting felt so real—every awkward silence, every inside joke, every tense run-in with authority. It was almost like a combination of The Breakfast Club and possibly The Lost Boys. The writing style is down-to-earth but packs an emotional punch, painting Slax not as some cartoon troublemaker but as an adolescent shaped by his circumstances, just like anyone else. I appreciate how the story takes its time in letting us get to know him, showing both his rough edges and his vulnerabilities. Sometimes it’s funny, such as how he got his nickname, and other times it's tense or serious, like with Kenny. While it is a short read, the story doesn’t rush; instead, it invites you to rethink first impressions and see past the labels people have had to live with, whether they like them or not. It left me wishing for a different outcome, yet thankful for the journey it took me on.
