Longlisted for the UKLA Book Award 2022 ages 11-14
This is a gritty yet touching story of one teenager's struggles with bullying and isolation, written by Carnegie Medal Winning author Anthony McGowan, and is perfect for less-confident readers.
Matthew is 14 and is struggling to fit in - something that's extra hard when you're taking care of your mum, being bullied at school, and have earned the nickname Stinky Mog because of your poor personal hygiene. On top of all that, he wants to catch the attention of one of the coolest girls in school, Ari.
Ari doesn't walk: she floats, like mist on the water. And she's as sporty as she is cool.
When Ari's brand new bike is stolen, Matthew spots his chance to make a good impression by getting it back for her... But will he just end up in even more trouble or is Matthew is about to learn that friendship and heroes can be found in unlikely places?
The Carnegie medal winner McGowan is superb at stories about children who do not have all the advantages. In this succinct and poignant rite-of-passage story he gets inside the head of Matthew, a school outcast whose mother is not always up to the job of mothering. It carries you irresistably with him from first to last. - The Sunday Times
Author
About Anthony McGowan
Anthony McGowan is the author of many critically acclaimed YA novels and won the 2006 BookTrust Teenage Prize, the 2007 Catalyst Award and has been shortlisted for a raft of other major children’s literature prizes, including the Carnegie Medal for Rook in 2018. McGowan was born in Manchester, attended school in Leeds and now lives in London.
