Description

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Fourteen-year-old Calum Brooks has big dreams. One day, he'll escape this boring life and write movies, proper ones, with massive budgets and A-list stars. For now though, he's stuck coping alone while his dad works away, writing scripts in his head and trying to stay "in" with his gang of mates at school, who don't like new kids, especially foreign ones. But when his father's new Polish girlfriend and her son, Sergei, move in, Calum's is actually sharing a room with "the enemy!" How's he going to explain that? Yet when Calum is knocked down in a hit and run and breaks both legs, everything changes. Trapped at home, Calum and Sergei slowly start to understand each other, and even work together to investigate a series of local break-ins. But Calum can't help feeling like Sergei's hiding something. Is he really trying to help, or cover up his own involvement in the crime?

About the Author

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Kim Slater's debut novel, Smart, was shortlisted for over 20 awards, including the Waterstones Children's Book Prize and the Federation of Children's Book Groups Prize.

Praise For…

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"Powerful and thought provoking . . . Kim Slater's message on diversity is loud and clear." —Reading Zone

Shortlisted for the The Little Rebels Children’s Book Award, a prize for radical fiction aimed at children aged 0-12. The award is given by the Alliance of Radical Booksellers, who call it "a gripping novel which deftly navigates timely issues of class and prejudice."