Breakaway: 1977 takes place in 1970s Saskatchewan and concerns three teenagers in the throes of identity formation who form a close bond due to their shared social obstacles and love of science, science fiction, philosophy, and heavy rock music. Their fascination with the British TV series Space: 1999 is strongly evident.
Breakaway: 1977 traces the downward trajectory of teenager Lionel O'Neill, an intelligent and sensitive youth from a troubled home. When his much-loved older brother Jerry disappears, Lionel suspects his own secrets might have played a role. Thus begins his descent into madness and murder.
Celina Cuadro (BookIdeas.com) describes Breakaway: 1977 as concerning "8th graders Roger Kay, Samantha Renfield, and Lionel O'Neill - all very intelligent and marginalized for that, all with vibrant and intense mental worlds - and in the case of one of them, too vibrant and intense for them to handle. The reality of their lives was the small city of Yorkton at the southeastern part of Saskatchewan, and St. Joseph's Junior High School. For Roger Kay reality was the humdrum life of an only child in a middle class family, whose slight physique and intelligence made him the target of bullies. For Samantha Renfield it was her parent's strict, conservative, religious upbringing - so oppressive to a young girl intelligent enough to understand women were becoming more and more empowered and wanting to be part of that change. Lionel O'Neill had the most uphill battle: with his family beset by financial woes, his father turning to drink and victimizing his mother, his sisters fleeing their home and only his brother Jerry to care for him, Lionel (or "Neil" as Roger preferred to call him) also had two very dark secrets hidden away in his subconscious that attack him unawares. Despite all this these three friends tried to craft better lives together than what was handed them by focusing on the beacon that informed their minds and raised their hopes: the TV science fiction series Space: 1999."
From the back cover:
"AN AMBITIOUS QUEST TO EXPLORE THE POSSIBILITIES OF THE HUMAN CONDITION ... RECOMMENDED" -Bookideas.com
"PROFOUNDLY TRUTHFUL" -Robert E. Wood, author of Destination: Moonbase Alpha
What would happen if you were suddenly cut off from the one lifeline that kept you sane in an unbearable situation? Lionel O'Neill is forced to wander hostile environments and alien situations as his life deteriorates and a cold, menacing existential void craves his bones. This century-spanning epistolary tale of devotion and madness reveals the teenagers of 1977 to be just as media and music obsessed as modern youth. In Breakaway: 1977, middle-school diaries and audio transcripts document teenage angst and delusion, the adolescent conflict between free will and destiny, and ultimately, outline a subtly satiric murder mystery amid a context of science fiction fandom. Included are detailed analyses of Space: 1999 episodes, a previously unreleased interview with Barry Morse, plus the secrets of potatoes.