'Can two broken boys find their perfect home? By turns heartbreaking and heartwarming, this is a gorgeously told, powerful story.
'Sam is only fifteen but he and his autistic older brother, Avery, have been abandoned by every relative he’s ever known. Now Sam’s trying to build a new life for them. He survives by breaking into empty houses when their owners are away, until one day he’s caught out when a family returns home. To his amazement this large, chaotic family takes him under their wing -- each teenager assuming Sam is a friend of another sibling. Sam finds himself inextricably caught up in their life, and falling for the beautiful Moxie.
'But Sam has a secret, and his past is about to catch up with him.'
Source: Publisher's blurb.
Drews released two self-published sequels to The Boy Who Steals Houses. The first sequel - The Kings of Nowhere - was released in serialised form via Patreon in 2022. The third novel - The House for Lost Things - was released in serialised form via Patreon in 2023.
Writing Disability in Australia
| Type of disability | Autism. |
| Type of character | Secondary. |
| Point of view | Third person. |
The Girl Who Steals Christmas
Melbourne
:
C. G. Drews
,
2019
21426899
2019
single work
novella
young adult
'A prequel short story about the De Lainey family from The Boy Who Steals Houses. It's set a week before Moxie meets Sam. Available for free on author's blog.
'Last year Christmas didn’t happen because their mother had just died...
'It's a hot miserable December and the De Lainey family are actively ignoring the festive season, but when Moxie finds her little sister's screwed up letter to Santa in the bin, she decides to bully Christmas to life. Includes various sibling dramas, a too-small tent, and confusion between Santa and a potato.'
Source: Publisher's blurb.
Exploring Digital Media Ecologies of Young Adult Fiction: Teen Readers and Online Participatory Culture
Kelvin Grove
:
2024
28229332
2024
single work
thesis
This thesis examined digital media ecologies of young adult fiction in contemporary book culture. It explores how young people engage with reading and books via digital platforms through case studies of Australian fiction (Illuminae, The Boy Who Steals Houses and House of Hollow), and through drawing on survey responses and focus group discussions with Australian teen readers. The project explores how teen reading intersects with popular social media platforms such as TikTok, Instagram and YouTube and other digital forms such as blogs and review sites. The research demonstrates the importance of understanding and fostering digital media engagement to encourage recreational reading among teens.
Social Reading Cultures on BookTube, Bookstagram and BookTok
Abingdon
:
Routledge
,
2024
28229225
2024
single work
criticism
'This book examines the reading cultures developed by communities of readers and book lovers on BookTube, Bookstagram, and BookTok as an increasingly important influence on contemporary book and literary culture. It explores how the affordances of social media platforms invite readers to participate in social reading communities and engage in creative and curatorial practices that express their identity as readers and book lovers.
'The interdisciplinary team of authors argue that by creating new opportunities for readers to engage in social reading practices, bookish social media has elevated the agency and visibility of readers and book consumers within literary culture. It has also reshaped the cultural and economic dynamics of book recommendations by creating a space in which different actors are able to form an identity as mediators of reading culture.
'Concise and accessible, this introduction to an increasingly central set of literary practices is essential reading for students and scholars of literature, sociology, media, and cultural studies, as well as teachers and professionals in the book and library industries.'
Source: Publisher's blurb.
Social Reading Cultures on BookTube, Bookstagram and BookTok
Abingdon
:
Routledge
,
2024
28229225
2024
single work
criticism
'This book examines the reading cultures developed by communities of readers and book lovers on BookTube, Bookstagram, and BookTok as an increasingly important influence on contemporary book and literary culture. It explores how the affordances of social media platforms invite readers to participate in social reading communities and engage in creative and curatorial practices that express their identity as readers and book lovers.
'The interdisciplinary team of authors argue that by creating new opportunities for readers to engage in social reading practices, bookish social media has elevated the agency and visibility of readers and book consumers within literary culture. It has also reshaped the cultural and economic dynamics of book recommendations by creating a space in which different actors are able to form an identity as mediators of reading culture.
'Concise and accessible, this introduction to an increasingly central set of literary practices is essential reading for students and scholars of literature, sociology, media, and cultural studies, as well as teachers and professionals in the book and library industries.'
Source: Publisher's blurb.
Exploring Digital Media Ecologies of Young Adult Fiction: Teen Readers and Online Participatory Culture
Kelvin Grove
:
2024
28229332
2024
single work
thesis
This thesis examined digital media ecologies of young adult fiction in contemporary book culture. It explores how young people engage with reading and books via digital platforms through case studies of Australian fiction (Illuminae, The Boy Who Steals Houses and House of Hollow), and through drawing on survey responses and focus group discussions with Australian teen readers. The project explores how teen reading intersects with popular social media platforms such as TikTok, Instagram and YouTube and other digital forms such as blogs and review sites. The research demonstrates the importance of understanding and fostering digital media engagement to encourage recreational reading among teens.
