LoveReading4Kids Says
LoveReading4Kids Says
February 2017 Debut of the Month Award-winning broadcaster Christian O’Connell’s hugely entertaining debut novel is power charged! Shocked when he is sacked from his dream job as presenter of hospital radio, eleven year old Spike is determined to find some other way to broadcast. Helped by Holly and Artie, his friends from the school AV club, Spike creates his very own radio station. Reinventing himself as ‘Radio Boy’, Spike uses his broadcasting skills to make himself the super hero he longs to be. Soon he is leading his school in revolt against its head teacher. But maybe even a super hero can go too far? ~ Julia Eccleshare
A Piece of Passion from the Publisher:
Dear Reader,
We pride ourselves, at HarperCollins Children’s Books, on being the house of home grown talent, but we also have unparalleled experience in taking creative people from other fields and making them the children’s books stars of the future. These people must be brilliant writers and storytellers at heart – and as someone who effectively writes his own breakfast show on the hoof every morning of every week, Christian O’Connell is perfectly placed to be our next big star.
Christian hosts the biggest breakfast radio show in the country, with over three million listeners, but now he has taken every minute of his spare time (some of it in a room at the Dorking Travelodge*) to write Radio Boy – the story of an ordinary boy from a rubbish town with an extraordinary secret radio show… which he broadcasts from his dad’s shed.
I have rarely laughed out loud at a manuscript as much as I have with Radio Boy. Christian is an astonishing talent at voice: this book is breathlessly hilarious and it never lets up pace, all the way to the surprising and touching ending. Spike’s your average awkward 11-year-old, funny and cheeky and with a mum to reckon with. When he becomes the first presenter ever to be sacked from hospital radio, he decides to carry on from a makeshift studio in the garden shed, with the help of his best friends Artie and Holly, disguising his voice and going by the moniker Radio Boy.
Week by week, word gets around and soon Spike is a star… if only people knew it was actually him. When Spike begins to believe his own hype, and goes too far with his mocking of the school headmaster, a hunt is launched for the mysterious Radio Boy. Can Spike remain anonymous? Will he get to marry the girl of his dreams, Katherine Hamilton? Will he become famous and popular? The answer to most of these questions is... no.
Radio Boy is one of our most-anticipated debuts of 2017 and I hope you enjoy reading it and being an early part of Christian O’Connell’s literary journey. Will Spike Hughes ever hit the big time? Unlikely. But I think Radio Boy will...
Yours,
Nick Lake
Publishing Director, HarperCollins Children’s Fiction
LoveReading4Kids
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About
Radio Boy Synopsis
Meet Spike, aka Radio Boy: a new Adrian Mole on the radio for the internet generation. Spike's your average awkward 11 year old, funny and cheeky and with a mum to reckon with. When he becomes the first presenter ever to be sacked from hospital radio, he decides to carry on from a makeshift studio in the garden shed, with the help of his best friends Artie and Holly, disguising his voice and going by the moniker Radio Boy. Week by week, word gets around and soon Spike is a star...if only people knew it was actually him.
When Spike begins to believe his own hype, and goes too far with his mocking of the school headmaster, a hunt is launched for the mysterious Radio Boy. Can Spike remain anonymous? Will he get to marry the girl of his dreams, Katherine Hamilton? Will he become famous and popular? The answer to most of these questions is no...
On writing his debut, Radio Boy, Christian says: "I spent eight months writing this book in every spare moment. At one sad point, my wife and kids all went off for a week skiing, while I booked a room at my local Travelodge. I actually requested the room with the worst view, for fewer distractions. (It’s room 9 by the way, if you ever want to check it out, at the Dorking Travelodge: it overlooks half the car park.) I would get there at nine in the morning, write till four, then leave, never staying the night. I had post it notes all over the walls. They must have thought I was some kind of serial killer!"
Radio Boy has also been reviewed by The Krib. See the video below and click on the video for more information.
About This Edition
| ISBN: |
9780008183325 |
| Publication date: |
26th January 2017 |
| Author: |
Christian O'Connell |
| Publisher: |
HarperCollins Children's Books an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers |
| Format: |
Paperback |
| Pagination: |
363 pages |
| Series: |
Radio Boy |
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Author
About Christian O'Connell
Christian O'Connell is a multi-award winning broadcaster who hosts commercial radio's biggest breakfast show, on Absolute Radio. He is also a touring stand up comedian with several sold out National tours and three critically acclaimed Edinburgh Festival shows. He has presented TV shows on Sky1, ITV and C5. He is married and a self-proclaimed 'shabby dad' to two daughters and lives in Surrey with two dogs.
On writing his debut, Radio Boy, Christian says: "I spent eight months writing this book in every spare moment. At one sad point, my wife and kids all went off for a week skiing, while I booked a room at my local Travelodge. I actually requested the room with the worst view, for fewer distractions. (It’s room 9 by the way, if you ever want to check it out, at the Dorking Travelodge: it overlooks half the car park.) I would get there at nine in the morning, write till four, then leave, never staying the night. I had post it notes all over the walls. They must have thought I was some kind of serial killer!"
More About Christian O'Connell
