Eileen Merriman is one of Aotearoa New Zealand’s literary shining stars, with a prolific output of novels for young adults and books for adults . I’ve read most of her YA books and particularly love the contemporary stories which feature very real characters in recognisable situations.

Seen regularly in the finalists of the New Zealand Book Awards for Children and Young Adults and Storylines Notable Books lists, Merriman has a talent for writing books which move along at a good pace whilst reflecting real lives and issues. They must be such a great find for young readers who can see themselves and their peers in the pages of her books.

That said, there are a good few trigger warnings to be aware of with suicide, self-harm and sexual assault all present and hopefully presenting opportunities for conversations and openness. But there is also friendship, young love, parental concern and lots of passion for music.

Catch a Falling Star is the prequel to 2018’s Catch Me When You Fall, which featured Alex, who discovers her leukaemia has returned, on the same day that she meets the main character in Catch a Falling Star, the wonderfully named Jamie Orange. This is the story of Jamie before their meeting takes place.

Fifteen-year-old Jamie is a huge musical theatre nut. If you follow Eileen on social media, you’ll know that her own kids are very involved with this and it will be a popular interest for many of her readers. No doubt, they will be familiar with Phantom of the Opera, which features throughout the story, or might be intrigued enough to seek out the sound track or film to find out more. Other classical music is also mentioned as Jamie is an accomplished piano player.

Jamie and his friends are in the school production of Shrek, where he’s gained an important role – Donkey, while his secret crush Frankie is Princess Fiona. Secret, because Frankie’s boyfriend is his best mate Ari. Shrek should be familiar to all readers and was a great choice for the musical to feature here and Donkey an excellent alter-ego for Jamie.

The crush becomes real when Jamie and Frankie are alone and end up kissing. They meet in secret, which causes major guilt but is irresistible for them both. Being caught out by Jamie’s mum returning home to find them topless causes ructions and lectures, and Jamie is sent off to Auckland to visit his gay dad and partner Guy, for further serious chats about what’s going on in his life.

Jamie is a high achiever but it’s obvious from the start that his mental health is not the best, with his racing thoughts, diving from one topic to the next and increasing inability to sleep more than a few hours. His creativity is in overdrive, writing first a vampire musical, then adding a novel, 1984 and Zombies, after a flippant remark to his teacher where 1984 is the class novel.

A disturbing encounter after drinking at a party freaks Jamie out, returning to his thoughts regularly; thinking about death is also a recurring theme. It will be clear to any reader that this is leading to a crisis point. Jamie’s mother, father and sister all express concern as his behaviour becomes increasingly unreasonable.

His eventual diagnosis and treatment for bipolar disorder is written about in a realistic but hopeful way. As a medical expert, Merriman is particularly good at including information about health issues and is able to convey the emotions and experience in a realistic way. There’s no pretending that Jamie’s diagnosis is simple, or easily fixed, but managed and openly discussed by him, his family and his good friends.

Another thought-provoking, real-world read for young adults by this very able writer.

Reviewed by Crissi Blair