34 pages 1 hour read

Black Swan Green

Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 2006

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Summary and Study Guide

Overview

Black Swan Green (2006) is a semiautobiographical novel by David Mitchell. Set in Worcestershire, England, beginning in January 1982, the book follows 12-year-old protagonist Jason Taylor. The book functions as a bildungsroman, or a coming-of-age story, that covers a crucial period of Jason’s adolescence; each of the 13 chapters represents one month in a year of his life. The novel takes its name from Jason’s small village, but the name is ironic, since the nearby lake is noticeably lacking in swans.

Plot Summary

Jason is a sensitive 12-year-old boy. He struggles with bullies at school, who tease him for his stammer. He loves poetry but writes under a penname, knowing the teasing would get worse if his classmates found out. Though they bully him mercilessly, Jason wants nothing more than their acceptance, as he feels incredibly isolated and alone.

The novel opens with the phone ringing in Jason’s father’s home office. Though Jason is forbidden from entering the office, he answers the phone anyway. He hears breathing and a baby crying before the call disconnects. Jason then goes to the frozen lake to play with the other boys. Struck by the urge to pee, he enters the woods, where he meets blurred text
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