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• Boys Don’t Cry was written by Malorie Blackman – the author who also wrote Noughts and Crosses.

• It was published in 2011 and is set in modern-day Britain.

• This novel is a chronological story about the Bridgeman family and how their lives change after the arrival of an unexpected baby.

• Boys Don’t Cry is narrated by two brothers, Dante and Adam. It has a dual narrative which means that the story is told in the first-person by both characters.

Follow the timeline to revise 10 key moments from the play.

Dante is waiting for his A-level results when his ex-girlfriend, Melanie, arrives with baby Emma. Dante is judgemental towards Melanie for becoming a teenage parent. This creates dramatic irony because the reader already guesses that the baby is Dante’s long before he realises it himself.

When Melanie leaves Emma with Dante to go to the shops, his immaturity is clearly shown through his lack of parenting skills. For example, Dante doesn’t know how to change a nappy and he refers to Emma with the pronoun "it" rather than "her". Melanie doesn’t return.

Adam, Dante's brother, has been having headaches after a sporting injury and is at the doctor’s with his father, Tyler. Dante is worrying about how to explain Emma to his family when his A-level results arrive. He achieved the four A*s that will secure his place at university.

Melanie rings Dante to inform him she is not coming back. She tells him that "Emma deserves to be with someone who can look after her properly". Dante is overwhelmed and leaves Emma crying in her pram as he sits in his bedroom. He rings his current girlfriend, Collette, to try and get more contact details for Melanie.

Tyler and Adam return home. Adam’s visit to the doctor has brought back memories of their mother dying when he was younger.

Tyler is dismissive of Dante’s excellent A-level grades. He responds harshly to the news with, "So you managed to pass, did you?". When Tyler discovers Emma, he is angry but realistic. He tells Dante to hold his "daughter" properly and says that he must give up on university and take responsibility for her.

Adam immediately bonds with Emma saying, "I’m your uncle Adam and I love you". This makes Dante realise his own lack of feelings for her. Dante researches how to give Emma up for adoption and orders a paternity DNA test.

Adam tries to discuss his sexuality with Dante, who shows his �Բ�ï���� and judgemental side by telling Adam that homosexuality is a "phase" he’ll "grow out of".

We see a more supportive, loving side to Tyler when he buys essential items for Emma and puts a cot together for her, with Adam’s help. He can see that Dante is panicking and is unable to provide for Emma.

There are many symbolic moments in chapters 11 – 15.

Read the quotations, then explore why that moment is symbolic.

Dante struggles to adapt to life with Emma and continues to argue with his father. Adam is more emotionally aware and tries to persuade Dante to be more accepting and grateful.

However, Dante remains in denial about being a father and accepts his place at university. He also takes Emma to a party in a bar because he doesn’t want to miss celebrating his A-level results.

At the party, Dante’s friends, Josh and Logan, are rude to Adam and tell him to "Get lost". Josh tells Dante that "your brother gives me the creeps". Dante does not challenge this or defend Adam.

Initially, Dante does not tell his friends that Emma is his, until Logan calls her "ugly". We see a new side to Dante’s character when he becomes defensive of Emma, announcing that she is his daughter, before taking her home.

After Dante and Emma have left the party, there is a shift in Josh’s character and he buys Adam a drink.

The next day, Adam has a swollen lip and is secretive about what has happened. Josh punched Adam when he refused to kiss him, however Adam does not reveal this until Chapter 44.

When Emma starts crying a lot because she is teething, Dante really starts to appreciate his father’s advice.

Collette arrives and invites Dante for a walk to talk ‘in private’. Collette makes it clear that she will go to university and that she is not interested in Emma or waiting for Dante. Dante decides that the DNA test is his only hope to keep the future he had planned on track.

When Dante and Colette are at the shops with Emma, a woman he doesn’t know calls him "waster" and assumes he is "living off benefits" because he is a young father.

When they get home, Emma nearly falls down the stairs whilst Dante is distracted taking swabs for the DNA test. He apologises to Emma and hugs her, surprised by the strength of his own feelings. Dante then posts off his DNA swabs, even though he feels guilty.

Auntie Jackie arrives and, initially, is critical of Dante becoming a young father. However, she also reassures and encourages him: "Do your best, love. That’s all any of us can do". She tells Dante that she couldn’t have children which is why her husband left her.

Emma takes her first steps towards Dante, showing the growing love and bond between them.

Tyler discovers the letter with Dante’s DNA results and is angry that Dante is trying to escape his responsibilities. Dante reassures his dad by revealing that he has already cancelled his university place. The DNA results reveal that Emma is Dante’s daughter.

Meanwhile, Adam is having a secret relationship and has been spending more time out of the house in the evenings. He tells Dante that his boyfriend is "sharp, he’s smart and he makes us laugh so much" but doesn’t share his name. It is inferred that the boyfriend is Josh, although this is not revealed until Chapter 44.

Collette has asked her sister, Veronica, who is a social worker, to visit Dante. He worries that Emma will be taken off him and put into care. Dante breaks up with Collette for using her sister to interfere with his relationship with Emma, again showing his growing commitment to his daughter.

Adam breaks off his secret relationship because the mystery boyfriend refuses to be open about his sexuality. The boyfriend doesn’t take it well and repeatedly messages Adam to the point where he’s "afraid to even turn on" his phone.

It is Dante’s 18th birthday and he is out with Adam, while Tyler babysits Emma. However, at the bar, Josh, Logan and Paul are there too, and join them. Josh calls Adam homophobic names, leading to the group being thrown out of the bar.

On the way home, Josh, Paul and Logan attack Dante and Adam. Josh subjects Adam to more homophobic abuse. When Adam tries to kiss Josh, to make him stop talking and remember their feelings towards each other, Josh gets angry and severely beats him. Paul and Logan hold Dante down so he cannot rescue his brother.

At the hospital, Dante overhears Jackie and Tyler talking. He learns that his mum and dad married when they were young because she was unexpectedly pregnant with him. Jackie criticises Tyler for not showing Dante he loves him or acknowledging that Adam is gay. Her advice acts as a catalyst and Tyler and Dante admit that they love each other.

Although the attack saves Adam's life as the doctors discover an undiagnosed tumour, he is left with extensive scarring. Dante goes after Josh, Logan and Paul in revenge.

Dante attacks Josh, who confesses he is gay. He makes Dante question his own attitudes and prejudices by kissing him. Dante’s sense of responsibility for Emma prevents him from continuing his attack.

Adam is depressed and withdrawn. His injuries will leave him with lifelong scars on his face. He isolates himself in his bedroom, but Emma still wants to play with him. She kisses his face, unaware of his injuries. Veronica visits again and this time responds positively as she can see how loved Emma is.

Adam receives an apology letter from Josh, but this makes him feel even more isolated and troubled and he takes an overdose.

Dante feels overwhelmed with emotion due to recent events and shouts at Emma when she won’t stop crying. He has to ask Aunt Jackie for help and confesses he was afraid he was going to hit Emma. Jackie reassures him again, telling him "I’m so proud of you".

When Adam is discharged from hospital, he and Dante talk properly about their fears. Adam leaves his bedroom to be a family with Emma, Dante, Tyler and Aunt Jackie.

Check your knowledge of the plot of Malorie Blackman's Boys Don't Cry by taking this multiple-choice quiz.