Being Black 'n Chicken, & Chips

A heartbreaking and often hilarious story about trying to grow up when everything is falling apart from one of Australia's leading comic talents.

Mike Amon is a regular teenager. All he wants is to fit in. He wants to sit at the cool bench. He wants to be a star athlete. He wants his first kiss.

He also wants his mum to survive.

When his mum is suddenly diagnosed with advanced breast and brain cancer, Mike knows it's a long shot, but if he manages to achieve his dreams, maybe it'll give his mum enough strength to beat an incurable disease.

In the meantime, he has to live with his African dad whom he doesn't really know, a man who has strange foreign ways - and who Mike doesn't really feel comfortable sharing his teenage desires and deepest fears with. He doesn't even want to think about what it might mean if his mum never comes home from the hospital.

Based on his award-winning stand-up show, and the loss of his own mother when he was 12, Matt Okine's coming-of-age novel, Being Black n Chicken and Chips, is a funny, heart-warming, and sometimes surreal look at how young people deal with grief, the loss of loved ones, and becoming an adult - all whilst desperately trying to fit in with the other kids.

About the Author

The multi-talented comedian, actor and presenter Matt Okine is one of Australia's favourite award-winning comedians. Okine performs sell out national tours of his live shows year in, year out, and has gained much popularity on the festival circuit.

Matt spent 3 years co-hosting Triple J's hugely successful Breakfast Show before hanging up his headphones to go into production on his television adaptation of his award-winning semi-autobiographical stand up show The Other Guy for Stan. He co-wrote and starred in the show which earned him a 2017 AACTA nomination for the Subscription TV Award for Best New Talent, and is currently streaming on STAN in Australia, Hulu in the U.S., and Superchannel in Canada. The second season of The Other Guy is currently in production. Being Black N Chicken, and Chips is his first novel.