Out of it

This book is written by Maureen Steward. Maureen Steward was a teacher for 20 years in Australia but also abroad. She has written over 100 books, short stories and articles.

Persons

Clay Webster: is the main character in the story. At the beginning he is very shy and a real loner. He is strict against drugs and alcohol because his parents especially his mother is addicted to alcohol. He goes to a private school where rich Carrie Brown sits next to him in biology. He loves her very much but he is to shy to show his feelings to her.

Carrie Brown: Everybody likes her. She is very good looking, friendly and extroverted. But she has got one problem: drugs. She likes the feeling to be high and so she often smokes a joint swallows pills. She also sells drugs to people, but she doesn´t sell drugs to kids who haven´t experienced drugs yet.

Kirsty: is the best friend of Carrie. She is a heavy drug user and you can say she is really addicted to drugs. She takes them everywhere, also at school.

Sivesh: is Clay´s best friend. He is a very intelligent guy and advises Clay how to master his life. But Clay is in love with Carrie so he doesn´t recognise what happens to him. Sivesh is very worried about Clay. He is the only person who knows about Carrie and their drug-consumption.

Reta: is Sivesh´s sister. She sometimes smokes pot to relax.

Connie Webster: is Clay´s mother. She is an alcoholic but she tries to do everything for her son. She is a very curious person and asks a lot. She likes Carrie very much.

Clive Webster: is Clay´s father. He is also a alcoholic baut he works a lot to offer Clay a better education, that´s why Clay has got the opportunity to go to a private school. But the negative aspect is that is hasn´t got enough time for Clay.

Greg Watkins: is the biggest drug dealer on school. He sells heavy drugs to everybody, even to little 10-year-olds. He is a very greedy person and he doesn´t care about people´s health.

Clay Webster is 16, and in love. To him, Carrie is perfect - pretty, clever, popular and confident. She sits next to him in biology. He likes her green eyes and her red curly hair. On day he asks her to the Formal and she said "sure". He can´t believe his luck. From that day Clay and Carrie often meet after school. Clay realises that Carrie does drugs. He is in love and so he tries a joint which is offered to him by Carrie. He likes the feeling of being high. They are invited to a party before the formal. Those parties where kids got really smashed. His friend Sivesh warns Clay but he loves Carrie. At this party there are many drugs. Clay smokes a joint, takes speed, sniffs a few lines, He tries everything he can get and he feels great. Later at the formal Carrie and Clay dance the whole time. Then they drive to the next party. Carrie has sold all the drugs she had. So she asked a bad dealer to give her to tickets. But this wasn´t good stuff. When Clay drives home everything was okay, but the next morning Siv tells him that Carrie is in hospital. She has had an collapse because of the high drug consumption. Clay can hardly believe that but then his mother is already yelling at him. She is very frustrated and depressed of Clays and Carries drug abuse. Clay wishes that all these things had never happened. But now it´s too late.

He wants to visit Carrie in hospital but his mother doesn´t let him go because Carrie has got a bad influence on Clay.

When Clay goes to school the next morning everybody is whispering about him and Carrie. He drives to the hospital to visit Carrie. Then he realises that Carrie isn´t his dream girl. She only looks forward to her next joint.

He promises to his parents that he´ll never get in touch with drugs again and his mother promises to stop drinking.