"I got this eyebrow pencil and locked myself in the bathroom and reckoned I could just sketch a moustache and beard on my reflection in the mirror to see if I could grow them real fast."

“Sketcher” is a very interesting book that got me off guard. I wanted to be surprised so I did not research the book before. I know the author from my childhood days so my first reason to read it was because I knew the author, how cool is that!

I then assumed it was going to be about a boy living in Jamaica but after being lost for a while I soon realized that the plot took place in Louisiana in the United States.

Skid Beaumont is the main character in Sketcher, so the stories are told from his angle. We see how Skid navigates the challenges of growing up in the Louisiana, dealing with family dynamics, and coming to terms with his brother Frico's mysterious and transformative drawing abilities.

I was immersed in the rich atmosphere of the setting and the complexities of the Beaumont family's life.

Skid's experiences and observations forms the core narration. The language of the book was new to me for a while at least. I soon realized that Skid’s brother Frico change the course of reality with his drawings or sketches and hence the title of the book. Sketched items would manifest into real-life objects and scenarios. However, such a gift is not without its problems which was ironic. Frico's ability was both a potential escape from poverty for the family of Skid and Frico and at the same time a source of problems.

Reading Sketchers made my mind reflection quantum physics and the multiverse theory as I saw how reality and Frico’s drawings were blurred like two worlds and realities colliding or overlapping.

Watson-Grant uses a lot of symbolism so warning here if you are a lazy reader, you will not survive, don’t worry it will also be entertaining but your mind will do some work.

"Sketcher" dealt with themes of identity, family, and the duality of gifts, how they can be both a blessing and a curse. I also noticed references of societal struggles of the 80s American South. For example, poverty, racism, and desire of a better life or as it would be said in America, the American dream. Throughout the novel we could see Skid and his brother’s motivations from their desires of a better life.

Through Skid's eyes, I could see the challenges of adolescence: the quest for self-identity navigating peer pressure, the tension of family expectations, and the unknown. Frico's sketching gift highlights the transformative power of belief and imagination.

I also noticed how the relationship between Skid and his brother Frico was a mixture of admiration, envy, and deep-seated love which in my mind plays a major part of the entire novel. This may be the experience in every sibling relationship the ironies and conflicts yet there is love.

In closing Roland Watson-Grant's "Sketcher" is an amazing blend of the real and the unreal yet being real. I reflected on my own family, friends and acquaintances and double nature of relationship even situations where a relationship in your mind is totally different from what the other experiences, sort of like Frico’s unreal world getting blurred with reality. I believe this novel's themes resonate with timeless relevance, making it a must-read for anyone looking to lose themselves in a richly woven tapestry of magic as I did when I first started reading.