Joe Gibson – författare

*A gripping and powerful memoir reminiscent of Notes on a Scandal, An Education and My Dark Vanessa*'Engaging and engrossing, frank and frankly troubling, Seventeen is a book not easily forgotten' - Karen Joy Fowler'​I can’t remember the last time, if ever, a memoir affected me as deeply as Seventeen' - John Boyne'A powerful tale of lost youth' - Guardian'Disturbing, powerful and important' - The TimesIt’s 1992. Like every other seventeen-year-old boy, Joe has one eye on his studies, the other on his social life – smoking, Britpop, girls. He’s looking ahead to a gap year full of travel and adventure before university when his teacher – attractive, mid-thirties – takes an interest in him. It seems like a fantasy come true.   For his final two years at school, he is bound to her, a woman twice his age, in an increasingly tangled web of coercion, sex and lies. Their affair, a product of complex grooming and a shocking abuse of authority, is played out in the corridors of one of Britain’s major private schools, under the noses of people who suspected, even knew, but said nothing.  Thirty years on, this is Joe’s gripping record of the illicit relationship that dominated his adolescence and dictated the course of his life. With a heady dose of nineties nostalgia and the perfectly captured mood of those final months at school, Joe charts the enduring legacy of deceit and the indelibility of decisions made at seventeen.  'So compelling and shocking that to read it is to have it seared on to you. I felt like I was there. As gripping a memoir as you’ll find' - David Whitehouse‘A truly impressive and important book’ - Ali Millar'A vivid and moving story, grippingly told' - Alex Renton 'I was addicted to this book' - Lily Dunn'Gripping [...] a powerful read' - Lucy Nichol

It''s 1992. Like every other seventeen-year-old boy, Joe has one eye on his studies, the other on his social life smoking, Britpop, girls. He''s looking ahead to a gap year full of travel and adventure before university when his teacher attractive, mid-thirties takes an interest in him. It seems likea fantasy come true. For his final two years at school, he is bound to her, a woman twice his age, in an increasingly tangled web of coercion, sex and lies. Their affair, a product of complex grooming and a shocking abuse of authority, is played out in the corridors of one of Britain''s major private schools, under the noses of people who suspected, even knew, but said nothing. Thirty years on, this is Joe''s gripping record of the illicit relationship that dominated his adolescence and dictated the course of his life for seventeen years. With a heady dose of nineties nostalgia and the perfectly captured mood of those final months at school, Joe charts the enduring legacy of deceit and the indelibility of decisions made at seventeen.

The plot of this tale provides readers with a thought-provoking look into futuristic technology and its impact on humans. The narrative recounts the experiences of Dr. Benjamin Hartman, a bright scientist, in a world where advanced technology has led to the design and building of a machine capable of levitating and defying gravity. Dr. Hartman's innovation, the "Floatatron," is a ground-breaking achievement that has the potential to transform transportation and customize how people interact with the world around them. Dr. Hartman is dealing with the unwanted effects of his revolutionary device as the Floatatron gains popularity and begins to displace traditional ways of transportation. As he watches the enormous cultural upheavals and environmental issues brought about by widespread adoption of the technology, he is compelled to confront moral and ethical quandaries. "The Machine That Floats" delves at topics such as technological innovation, the human cost of growth, and inventors' ethical duties. Joe Gibson's narrative successfully blends aspects of science fiction with astute social criticism, providing readers with a glimpse into a world where the boundaries of possibility are constantly growing.