There's something fun and exciting about starting a book without any prior knowledge. 
 A coworker recommended this book to me, as she'd just finished reading it and was a fan of Christos Tsiolkas. I'd never read any of his work before, but I had seen the film Dead Europe, which was based on one of his books and really enjoyed it, so I figured I'd give it a shot. 
 I wasn't entirely surprised that Danny the protagonist was attracted to men, as the main character in Dead Europe was too, but it's funny that after deliberately seeking out several books with gay protagonists I happen to stumble across one by accident. 
 The story switches from time periods fairly regularly, between Danny's youth and his goals of becoming a world famous swimmer and the present where a now adult Dan deals with his life and the events that led him there. It's an interesting way of feeding the reader information, while keeping them wondering about certain elements. There were times where I got somewhat confused about which time period I was in now, but that's more on me not paying enough attention I suspect. 
 This books reminds me of "I'll Give You The Sun". The two narratives, the younger protagonist alternating with his older self. It's interesting that the younger version is written in the third person, whereas the adult is in the first. Is it because Danny sees that earlier part of his life through the eyes of someone who no longer recognises the person he was? 
 Possibly not, as at some point the first person and third person narratives swap. It becomes first person in one of the 'flashback' sections where Danny's dad stands up for him. And a lot of this book is about Dan's relationship with his Dad, and his struggle to please him, to make him proud. 
 Dan was an interesting protagonist because at times I feel for him. It sucks that his Dad is like "you're really lucky to be here" and his rich teammate implying he doesn't belong there without even realising how much he struggled to get there. On the other hand he has a tendency to act fairly selfishly, only caring about swimming, about his own future but not considering how it affects his family and friends. 
 I like that the book kept me alternating between feeling sorry for Dan and getting frustrated at him, it helped me see him as a more fleshed out character that isn't easily slotted in to a pre-defined template.