Yeah the Boys is a bold, propulsive novel about male friendship and masculinity, set in the world of Holden Sheppard’s bestselling debut Invisible Boys.
Seven years after escaping their rural hometown, the boys – Charlie, Zeke and Hammer – are back, though not as we left them.
Charlie’s fighting spirit has faded as he’s struggled to make it as a punk musician in Perth.
The opening of a new gay bar by Curtis and Ahmed, an older gay couple who have become Charlie’s mentors, offers him a different way to make his mark – but the bar’s opponents have other ideas.
Zeke is lost. He knows what he stands against – the closeted life and conventional success his strict Italian parents demanded of him – but doesn’t know what he stands for.
He surprises himself by joining a gay footy team: is it the mistake his friends think it is, or will playing footy finally give him what he’s always wanted?
Hammer has it all – fame and fortune as a star football player – or so he thinks. He’s still closeted, and can’t stand the AFL stuffing diversity initiatives like Pride Round down everyone’s throats, especially his. But when he opens his mouth, he ignites a furore that throws all the boys’ lives into chaos.
Unapologetic and unforgettable, this is the story of three boys finding their way back to each other, and finding their own ways to become men.
Holden Sheppard is a West Australian author whose debut novel Invisible Boys won multiple awards, including the 2019 WA Premier’s Prize for an Emerging Writer. Invisible Boys has now been adapted as a ten-episode television series with Stan Australia which premiered in 2025.
Holden’s second book The Brink won several accolades, including the 2024 Ena Noël Award. His new 2025 release King of Dirt is his third novel, and his first book for adults. Holden’s writing has been widely published in books, journals and the media. A country boy from Geraldton, Holden now lives in Perth’s far north with his husband and his V8 ute.
Yeah the Boys is published by Pantera Press (Hardie Grant Publishing) and is available from all great book sellers including QBD Books.
Image: Yeah the Boys – courtesy of Pantera Press