Their friendship grows and strengthens and Sam’s life changes drastically. But Camilla sees all the good things in Sam and slowly helps him to see them too. That Camilla prefers his group’s company to that of the A-group is a mystery to him. Sam’s first impression is that Camilla is ‘another minion for the army of suck’ led by Justin Zigoni that has made his and his friends’ lives a misery during school hours.īut Camilla’s encompassing smile and ability to remain unfazed by the politics of another new school environment, impresses Sam. Her blue tattoo, 1950s-look yellow dress and English accent appear too much. When Camilla Carter walks into Sam’s English class his world shifts. Each can quote almost every line word-for-word. His favourite pastime is repeatedly watching his stash of Star Wars and horror movies with his mum or small group of downtrodden friends. Sam uses all life outside his own as ‘fodder for future screenplays’, and as practice for his chosen career as screenwriter which he works towards with consuming passion. His friend Mike, who is struggling with his sexuality, describes him as being ‘dead inside’. Sam is a nerdy geek a self-deprecating loner that hates his life. It’s a delicious read humorous, well written, with strong and interesting characters and a fantastic storyline set in Melbourne. This is the first published novel from the Ampersand Project of Hardie Grant Egmont. Life in Outer Space by Melissa Keil (Hardie Grant Egmont)

Life in outer space by melissa keil