Shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize 2011 Shortlisted for the Guardian First Book Award 2011 Deeply funny, moving, idiosyncratic and unforgettable, Pigeon English introduces a major new literary talent
Stephen Kelman was born in Luton in 1976. After finishing his degree he worked variously as a warehouse operative, a careworker, and in marketing and local government administration. He decided to pursue his writing seriously in 2005, and has completed several feature screenplays since then. Pigeon English is his first novel; he is currently working on his second.
‘Simultaneously accurate and fantastical, this boy's love letter to
the world made me laugh and tremble all the way through. Pigeon
English is a triumph'
*Emma Donoghue, author of Room*
'Pigeon English is a book to fall in love with: a funny book, a
true book, a shattering book'
*Erica Wagner, The Times*
'Stephen Kelman's [first novel] has a powerful story, a pacy plot
and engaging characters. It paints a vivid portrait with honesty,
sympathy and wit, of a much neglected milieu, and it addresses
urgent social questions. It is horrifying, tender and funny ...
Brilliant'
*Daily Telegraph*
'The humour, the resilience, the sheer ebullience of its narrator -
a hero for our times - should ensure the book becomes, deservedly,
a classic'
*Daily Mail*
'Simultaneously accurate and fantastical, this boy's love letter to
the world made me laugh and tremble all the way through. Pigeon
English is a triumph' * Emma Donoghue, author of Room *
'Pigeon English is a book to fall in love with: a funny book, a
true book, a shattering book' * Erica Wagner, The Times *
'Stephen Kelman's [first novel] has a powerful story, a pacy plot
and engaging characters. It paints a vivid portrait with honesty,
sympathy and wit, of a much neglected milieu, and it addresses
urgent social questions. It is horrifying, tender and funny ...
Brilliant' * Daily Telegraph *
'The humour, the resilience, the sheer ebullience of its narrator -
a hero for our times - should ensure the book becomes, deservedly,
a classic' * Daily Mail *
Kelman's debut novel is a well-tuned if simplistic portrait of a kid's life in the housing projects of London. After 11-year-old Harri, whose family has immigrated from Ghana, sees a classmate lying dead on the sidewalk one night, Harri and his buddy, Dean Griffin, set out to solve the murder, looking for the murder weapon, interviewing suspects, and gathering evidence. But the strength of this novel is not its murder mystery; rather, it's in hearing all Harri's thoughts as he falls in love, talks to his baby sister, or expresses himself in his own idiosyncratic language. The street-talk slang that Harri uses-boring things take "donkey hours" and Nike Air trainers are "bo-styles"-is crisp and mirthful, the perfect match to his at once naive and revealing views on things like religion and race. The main flaw is also a feature: Harri's a very well-drawn 11-year-old, and no matter how cute he and his worldview are, it's sometimes tempting to want to pat him on the head and send him along his way. (July) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
 |
Ask a Question About this Product More... |
|
