Skink—No Surrender

As with many coming-of-age stories, Skink—No Surrender deals with young people developing their own identities through growing independence. Malley explains that she ran away from home because “no way am I going to school at the Twirp Academy […] A New Hampshire winter is not on this girl’s wish list” (203). Her parents pressure her into changing aspects of her identity, and Malley pushes back by running away with Terwin.

Terwin, however, represents a more imminent threat to Malley’s independence. This happens both literally and figuratively. Malley explains that after she broke Terwin’s nose for kissing her without consent, “he brought out the handcuffs” (202) that he uses to constrain her. The “manila file titled ‘Malley Spence’” (236) represents this control. He keeps her identity—her physical appearance and notes on her life—locked up in his suitcase. When Malley “ripped up the photo, crumpled the shreds and threw into the water” (237) and does the same to his notes, she takes back her autonomy over her identity.

Richard also struggles with his identity. Many of his interests came from his deceased father, for example. He “inherited [his father’s] fourteen-foot skiff […] Now a week didn’t go by when I wasn’t out on the river” (42). His love of fishing ties directly to his father, and it provides him with the tools to defeat Terwin later. Likewise, Richard stole the skateboard, “Because it was exactly like the one my father had” (127). Richard defines much of his own identity in terms of his father’s life.

While Richard gets along with Trent, “He treats me like a kid brother, and I treat him the same way” (9). This signifies that Trent does not fill the void left by his father. Skink, however, does in several ways. Richard adopts several of Skink’s personality traits, just as he did with his father’s. As Richard and Malley turn back to find Skink, “Skink’s driving mix was playing” (228). When they take Dime’s boat upriver, “[Richard] fitted on [Skink]’s shower cap” (233). The shower cap is a significant part of Skink’s uniqueness, and Richard adopts it the same way he adopted his love of fishing and skateboarding from his father.

Eventually, Richard combines these two influences to develop a distinct personality. After paying back the store owner, he “pulled the Birdhouse from my hiding spot [and] put on my helmet and rode the board” (276). However, he also maintains Skink’s proclivity for environmental protection by returning to his beach hikes and “Looking for a soda straw sticking out of the sand” (281).

Skink and Terwin both use false identities, another play on this theme. Skink’s real name is Clinton Tyree, and Tile reports to the media, “Clint passed away last year in the Big Cypress Swamp” (17). Once the governor of Florida, Skink abandoned his old identity to develop one that suited him better. Most of what people know about him are rumors, making his identity as Skink ethereal.

Terwin goes by two aliases, first Talbo Chock and then Tommy Chalmers. The fake names hide his identity as a criminal with a “rap sheet list[ing] convictions for armed burglary, forgery and aggravated stalking” (270). The false identities keep him camouflaged, but they also steal from the true identities of others. Richard learns that Talbo Chock “died […] at a military hospital in Germany” (23), and Tommy Chalmers was a name “stolen from a shrimper […] who’d been killed by a lightning strike” (270). Terwin gives up his identity just as Skink did, though their motives define their morals in the context of the story.

The novel’s characters use deception to further their journeys. However, Hiaasen does not negatively judge them for it. Skink—No Surrender presents deception as a useful tool—if it is employed for the right reasons.

Before he leaves on his adventure with Skink, Richard notes, “They say everybody keeps at least one secret, and maybe that’s true. Mine was an ugly one” (24). From the get-go, Richard isn’t a completely honest character. He admits that he “occasionally take[s] advantage of my stepfather’s […] intellectual limitations” (59) before lying to Trent about his Ocala camping trip, and he also ropes Beth into it, who “pretend[s] to be Blake’s mother” (60).

Without this lie—and many that follow—Richard would be unsuccessful in his quest. Skink also encourages Richard’s dishonesty when it’s useful. He asks Richard to pose as his “devoted grandson for a little while” (55) to get to his car. Skink models the same behavior when he tells the older couple with the canoe that he and Richard “were on a camping trip but that some jerk stole our kayak” (111). Without either of these lies, Richard could not complete his hero’s journey.

Malley’s deception directly incites the journey. She tells her parents that she “flew up early for orientation” (12) so she could run away with Terwin. This lie includes a fake letter to Talbo that she keeps “inside her desk on purpose, for her parents to find” (15). When she realizes that Terwin is a dangerous man, she turns her deception toward him. On a phone call with Richard, she speaks to him in code to give away her location without alerting Terwin. She plays along with Richard’s plan after he falsely identifies himself as “Carson” (150). The same skill that drove her into trouble becomes useful when she tries to extricate herself from the kidnapping.

Malley gives up her deceit before the others. After Skink arrives on the houseboat, she tells Terwin that Richard is “the cousin I told you about […] He came to save me from you” (192). This admission—a break from her usual deception—pushes Terwin toward drastic action and the climax of the novel. Whereas deception drives the plot, honesty brings it closer to its conclusion.

The plot does not always reward lies. Richard and Skink use deception to further their journey and rescue Malley. Malley’s deception gets her into trouble, but she learns how to use it properly to escape. Terwin, on the other hand, uses his deception to hurt others. Malley admits that Terwin “was calling himself ‘Talbo’ online” (185) when they first met, a name that was stolen from a soldier who “completed almost one full tour with the U.S. Marine Corps in Afghanistan” (23) before dying. When Richard suggests that the move makes Terwin “a total lowlife,” Skink agrees: “Odds are he is” (24).

Even when he’s called out on the lie, Terwin states that “Talbo Chock […] was a friend of mine got killed” (186). Terwin surrounds himself with lies to hide his identity and prey on young women like Malley. According to Richard, Terwin’s deception is “a streak of pure evil” (183). Richard, Skink, and Malley use deceit in the service of others; punishment befalls Terwin, however, because he utilizes his lies for harm.