The greenies came to town today. They reckon they’re going to stop the logging. It’s real weird, but part of me wants them to win. I mean, I want the forest to live. But if the logging stops, my home town will die. Dad will lose his job, and I’ll never get one. What am I going to do? (Yeah — whose side are you on, Col?)

Seventeen-year-old Colum leads a double life. In public he hangs out with the town gang, but in private he escapes to his secret place in the forest. When conservationists come to his area, Col is torn between opposing forces, and soon ends up at the centre of a dramatic confrontation.

This tough novel for mature young adults reveals something of the struggle we all face when life challenges us to discover who we are.

A recommended text for the VCE for many years, The Blooding is as relevant today as it was when it was first published.