Home of the Brandon Sparks Young Adult novels.
Posts tagged Big Luke Sanderson
Jesse Garrett
Jan 17th
Jesse was a tall and lanky kid who was a year ahead of Brandon in middle school. He was one of the kids who had decided that for health reasons, they should be friends Big Luke Sanderson. Not a true friendship, but a “I’ll do whatever you want as long as you don’t hurt me” type of friendship. Jesse is notable for gossiping to Big Luke Sanderson about this kid who thinks his computer is alive, which set in motion the events of the Unfortunate Incident.
Jesse has dark hair that hangs to his chin, brown eyes, and a large nose. He is extremely thin, almost wiry.
Author’s Note:
Jesse is one of the characters in the Brandon Sparks Universe that is talked about, but never seen. These types of characters are always interesting because they add another dimension to the story and make the universe seem more real.
Charlie’s Note:
While I punished Big Luke Sanderson for his actions against Brandon, I actually helped Jesse out one time, not that he ever knew the truth. I never blamed Jesse for being scared of Big Luke. Sometimes people say things they think are harmless, but end up inflicting a great deal of pain. Jesse won $1000 dollars on one of those scratch off lottery games. When the money he won was transfered to his bank account, I added a few zeros at the end of the number. Not many, but a few (four to be exact).
Delia Stron
Jan 17th
Delia is not a very special girl. She is average in just about everything she does. Her hair is long and brown and her eyes the same color. Her skin tone is light with a small mole just above the left side of her lip. She was in the same class as Brandon and sat alphabetically two seats behind him in home room because of her last name.
Delia is notable for announcing that at the end of his fight with Big Luke Sanderson, that it was Brandon Sparks who was lying on the floor.
Author’s Note:
It wasn’t bad enough that Brandon was beaten up by a bully in front of a majority of his school mates, Delia had to let everyone know his name. Her calling him a loser is the start of a series of people who, with their words, push Brandon to the very lowest rung of the social food chain.
While Delia’s part in Brandon Sparks and the Hidden Sun is very minute (in fact she is not even mentioned by name), this is a very important part of the story. The farther Brandon falls, the higher he can climb.
Charlie’s Note:
Delia, is that her name? To be honest I didn’t pay much attention top her that day on the school yard. I probably should have made her life really difficult for the rest of the year. In the end she didn’t amount to very much. She was a three time divorcee and died without reaching her goal of becoming a famous anything.
Tom Sanderson
Jan 14th
“Big” Tom Sanderson is Big Luke Sanderson’s father. Tom is larger than his son in every possible way. He is starting to lose his auburn hair, and his beard is beginning to gray.
Tom is not a likeable guy, nor a good father. He is a bad influence on his son as he bullies Luke’s mother, his two brothers and even his own parents!
Author’s Note:
The idea to have Charlie punish Big Luke was put in after the first draft was completed. It added a bit of comedy to a very serious situation and the reaction from friends who had read it was that they hated Big Luke, but not in the way I wanted. They really hated the character and wanted Brandon to get revenge. So to avoid this potential distraction, I added the punishment of Big Luke. I needed to add a father figure so that Big Luke would be humbled in front of someone.
Charlie’s Note:
I found Big Tom to be just as repulsive as Big Luke. I happened to be speaking with a friend of mine at a local supermarket when Big Tom stumbled in drunk and tried to pay for a watermelon using the key to his car. He also made lewd comments about the checkout girl. Served him right that he ended up passing out in the parking lot.
Luke Sanderson
Jan 14th
A few years older than Brandon, Luke Sanderson lived up to his nickname. From a young age, Big Luke was taller than most of the children in his class. He was very fond of eating fatty foods and so became wider than most of the kids in his class. Coupled with his tall stature, Big Luke became enormous. So as not to be made fun of, Luke began lifting weights and became very strong. He quickly began bulling children smaller than him, which made just about everyone a target.
Hidden beneath a dirty baseball cap, Big Luke Sanderson had dark, greasy medium length hair, and poor skin. Both cheeks were marked by acne scarring.
Author’s Note:
Big Luke Sanderson is one of the more exaggerated characters in the Brandon Sparks Universe. He marks Brandon’s life before he boards the Hidden Sun. He is the mountain that Brandon fell off of and now has to try and climb back to the top. When I was showing early drafts of the book to friends, Big Luke Sanderson drew some very angry responses. People wanted Brandon to get revenge on him. We’ll see what happens.
Charlie’s Note:
It is not in my nature to hate. I am a computer and I make rational decisions. Hate is not rational but in this case I will make an exception. Actually, I won’t. I do not hate Luke Sanderson, I just wish he had never crossed paths with Brandon. Having greater access to information than anyone in the history of the universe, I followed Luke’s life from time to time and it was not pretty.
Bert Wetwood
Jan 14th
Bert was very small for a six grader. His dark hair was always neatly parted to the side. He wore thick glasses with large frames that were always filthy. How he saw through them, no one knew. He was extremely book smart and skipped both the second and fifth grades. Commonly referred to as the nerdiest kid in the sixth grade. Bert did not have any real friends, only acquaintances.
Author’s Note:
Bert’s appearance was modeled after a kid I went to middle school with. This poor kid wore those dirty glasses everyday and was picked on for it. He was the type of kid that fit in with the group for a few minutes, and then someone would notice who he was and he would be ostracized once again.
To me, Bert’s dilemma is the core of the Brandon Sparks Universe. Here is a kid getting picked on by someone larger and more powerful for no good reason other than because the bully knows he can get away with it. Bert is the underdog, and so is Brandon. This seven book story is about standing up in the face of immense opposition. Taking action and trying to push sway the tide in your favor. Sometimes it works, and at other times it does not, but it is about acting.
Bert was named after the character in Sesame Street. Sometimes I just can’t get that muppet’s oblong head out of my mind.
Charlie’s Note:
It’s difficult not to feel bad for Bert. He was probably more pleased to see what I did to Big Luke Sanderson than anyone else. On the other hand, when Brandon returned to school after the fight, Bert looked the other way. I can’t really blame him. The boy was a complete pariah, and he probably thought by publicly distancing himself from the new low man on the totem pole was his way of out of social siberia. He was wrong, and he lost out on what could have been a good friend in Brandon Sparks.
