Fiona Lloyd, Being Jimmy Baxter, Puffin, July 2023, 231 pp., RRP $16.99 (pbk), ISBN 9781760654207
It’s not eggsactly easy being Jimmy Baxter ‘cause:
The real Jimmy’s hiding inside
Ned Kelly’s giving him the evil eye
Mum’s stopped going to work and stays in bed
There’s no eggs in the fridge – or anything else.
AND there’s new jobs, bad-at-school brains and a whole lot of trouble called Duke. But then…there’s Mac.
The story opens with Jimmy Braithwaite and his mum escaping a violent Mr Braithwaite with a helpful Mrs Jessop at the wheel. The reader’s introduced to some heavy themes up front but these are delivered with layers of good humour. This is the essence of the book – Jimmy has a funny, unique view of the world and his voice is strong throughout the story.
Once Jimmy and Mum settle into their digs, they change their names and so begins the new life of Jimmy ‘Baxter’. New life also means a new school which isn’t something exciting for a kid who gets his words and spelling all jumbled up. Despite top dog Duke’s classroom bullying, Jimmy makes a new friend and a creative Ned Kelly model. But his low confidence eats away at him, and the Ned Kelly reveal is a disaster. So, that’s the last day of school for Jimmy Baxter as far as he’s concerned. On his escape through nearby fields, Jimmy is caught in a rabbit trap, rescued by old loner Mac. So begins a sensitive friendship with a gentle male in his world that loves the music of Elvis and talks of the loss of his partner Lizzy, something new for Jimmy to hear from a man.
But back at home, Mum is too sick to go to work and won’t get out of bed, trapped in her darkened room as depression swallows her up. The fridge is bare and so Jimmy takes to stealing. Guilt consumes him and he replaces the stolen bread while also getting a job so he can put food on the table. But then he tries to steal the Jesus Cup from the local church to help Mum find her ‘shiny’. But that doesn’t work out as planned. As Jimmy masters cooking eggs and life starts to get a little better, Jimmy sees a crashed ute on the news. And he knows who it belongs to. How will he tell Mum that Dad is dead?
What is there not to love about Jimmy Baxter? All his flaws are laid out bare as he does his best to be the new man of the house. There is so much ‘shiny’ stuff in Jimmy and in this story. Some lovely takeaway messages are gently woven into the story – that kindness and friendship go a long way. That music can warm broken souls. That depression is all around us.
In creating Jimmy Baxter’s story, debut author Fiona Lloyd drew on her own experiences with depression. The appendix also has fun ‘translations’ of Australian slang.
A touching yet humourous story for fans of Morris Gleitzman books for ages 10+ with themes of depression, grief, domestic violence and learning disabilities.
Reviewed by Stef Gemmill
