I
turned my bike around, fixed my full-face helmet under my chin, and took a long
breath as I stared at the thin trail heading to the stunt. I didn’t consider
any negatives – the what-ifs of doing this – or the fact that this gap drop was
something I’d never intended to do. I wasn’t going to hang around for their
imminent arrival either.
I
began pedalling.
Yes,
things were going to change…
LEADING
writer Barbara Else has hailed Aaron Topp’s second novel, Hucking Cody,
as a ‘fast-paced’ and ‘gritty’ read.
“He
knows young men and sport, no question,” she said. “And the mountain-bike
scenes – OMG! Pure adrenalin.”
The
obstacle course of Cody Harrington’s life is just as grinding, complicated and
thrilling as the free-riding he loves so well, but can he rise above the
huckster tag his big brother has saddled him with?
Being
a teen isn’t easy; there’s his job at the bike shop, where he is getting the
rap for not locking the door and inviting a burglary; his wild brother Zane who
is NOT back on the rails as his parents believe.
As
for girls? Beyond fantasy, they don’t exist, and his days are more focussed on
getting to school without being egged by a carload of rugby bullies.
Cody’s
Shangri-la is flying down bush-lined tracks and hitting stunts on his bike …
here at least, life is sweet.
About the author:
Topp,
distinguished himself with literary gold stars when his book, Single Fin
(2007), based on the true story of a boy obsessed with surfing, won the NZ Post
Book Young Adult Fiction Honour Award and attracted a Storylines Young Adult
Fiction Book accolade.
The
former Hawke’s Bay teacher has also released Creating Waves, a gripping
series of mini-biographies about famous creative Kiwis who surf.
Topp’s
latest fiction taps into New Zealand’s new obsession with mountain biking –
with over 1.3 million cyclists nationwide … and counting.
Over
a thousand new sanctioned mountain bike trails have opened here, and more Kiwis
than ever are experiencing the thrill of riding their bikes in the most
beautiful backyard on the planet.
This
boom is now showing on the world stage, with NZ professional riders
consistently among the best, while our national tourism is riding the trail of
success with the country enjoying a reputation as the perfect destination for
foreign mountain bikers.
Revenue
from Hucking Cody will be donated to 1% for Trails, supporting trail
development projects around the New Zealand.
Released
by Mary Egan Publishing on September 15, Hucking Cody is available from
good bookshops, RRP $25.
YA fiction at its best.
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