The Deep Enders
Upon opening Dave Reardon’s book, I was skeptical, since as a tenth-grade English teacher, I select novels that expand representation. However, this author deftly names his hero at the start of the novel, and it is not his white protagonist, Murph Turner.
While sixteen-year-old Murph is a compelling character, his best friend Banjo Hero brings the book to life. The pair meet on Murph’s first day in his new home. Murph’s mother sent him to live with his father in Broome, Australia, after their neighborhood was destroyed during the attack on Pearl Harbor. She stays behind to care for the wounded. Her son makes the 6,000-mile trip alone with the hundreds of other World War II refugees who fled from Hawaii to Australia. Banjo befriends this new kid, and when Japanese planes appear a second time in Murph’s life, it is Banjo Hero, a fourteen-year-old Aboriginal boy, who saves the day.
Banjo’s story is the story of Broome, a wild and lawless pearl-diving town. He navigates the beauty and peril of his home nimbly. His sense of humor, love of M-80 firecrackers, and endless energy allow him to conceal a dangerous secret. When Murph discovers that secret, he quickly learns how ubiquitous and often deadly racism can be in the context of war.
Reardon humanizes the people of Broome during their worst moments. He focuses on the residents impacted by the brutality of war and the brutality of a town rooted in slavery. I highly recommend this book for ages 12 and up.
