About this item
Highlights
- "Intelligent, observant.
- About the Author: STEPHEN KELMAN grew up in the housing estates of Luton.
- 288 Pages
- Fiction + Literature Genres, Literary
Description
About the Book
This hilarious and heartwrenching novel follows eleven-year-old Harri Opuku, recently emigrated from Ghana to the rough housing projects of London, as he tries to navigate inner-city life. See what makes our good-hearted protagonist dope-fine, become acquainted with his bo-styles, and find yourself wanting this touching debut to last donkey hours.
Book Synopsis
"Intelligent, observant." --The New Yorker
"If your patrons liked Roddy Doyle's Paddy Clarke Ha Ha Ha and if they rooted for Jamal Malik in Slumdog Millionaire, they will love Harri Opoku." --Library Journal, starred review
"In turns funny and tragic . . . Its message is universal." -Huffington Post
Advise yourself! Jump into Pigeon English and experience the jubilant, infectious voice of Harrison Opoku--a boy awed by the city, obsessed with gummy candy, a friend to everyone he meets. See why he is bo-styles. How being the fastest runner in Year 7 makes him dope-fine. And how crazy things get when Harri and his best friend launch their own investigation into the murder of a classmate and one of the Dell Farm Crew's hutious criminals feels them closing in on him. You'll want this book to last donkey hours, and you'll see why Harri is truly a "hero for our times."*
"Like Room . . . and The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time . . . Pigeon English is a novel for adults told in the remarkable voice of a child. In this fine company, Kelman's novel stands out." --Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
"Since Nancy Drew and the Hardy Boys, there have been certain rules observed when children play detective. Stephen Kelman throws them all out." --Christian Science Monitor
From the Back Cover
"Intelligent, observant." "The New Yorker"
"If your patrons liked Roddy Doyle s "Paddy Clarke Ha Ha Ha" and if they rooted for Jamal Malik in "Slumdog Millionaire," they will love Harri Opuku." "Library Journal," starred review
"In turns funny and tragic . . . Its message is universal." "Huffington Post"
Advise yourself! Jump into "Pigeon English" and experience the jubilant, infectious voice of Harrison Opuku a boy awed by the city, obsessed with gummy candy, a friend to everyone he meets. See why he is "bo-styles." How being the fastest runner in Year 7 makes him "dope-fine." And how crazy things get when Harri and his best friend launch their own investigation into the murder of a classmate and one of the Dell Farm Crew s "hutious "criminals feels them closing in on him. You ll want this book to last "donkey hours," and you ll see why Harri is truly a hero for our times. *
"Like "Room ." . . and "The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time" . . . "Pigeon English" is a novel for adults told in the remarkable voice of a child. In this fine company, Kelman's novel stands out." "Milwaukee Journal Sentinel"
"Since Nancy Drew and the Hardy Boys, there have been certain rules observed when children play detective. Stephen Kelman throws them all out." "Christian Science Monitor"
Stephen Kelman grew up in the housing projects of Luton, England. Shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize, "Pigeon English "has been published in twenty countries; it is his first novel.
*" Mail on Sunday" (UK)
Look for the Reader s Guide at www.marinerreadersguides.com
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Review Quotes
Shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize "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 "Remarkable . . . Kelman's creation is plausible, convincing and often enchanting." --Milwaukee Journal Sentinel "Pigeon English in a category beyond genre . . . This [is a] work of deep sympathy and imagination."--Boston Globe "Continually surprising and endearing . . . There's a sweetnees here that's irresistible." -- Washington Post "Ingenious . . . Pigeon English packs a wallop." -- Cleveland Plain Dealer "The mystery is secondary to the pleasures of listening to Harri as he prattles on winningly in a mix of street slang and Ghanaian expressions." --Christian Science Monitor "Pigeon English is a fascinating look at a culture pushed to the margins by a nation's economic and empathic indifference." --Time Out Chicago "A startlingly assured piece of work . . .With a very light touch, Kelman makes us view from a new perspective the kind of story we're used to reading about in the newspapers . . . Kelman is a writer to watch." --Mystery Scene "The humour, the resilience, the sheer ebullience of its narrator--a hero for our times--should ensure the book becomes, deservedly, a classic." --Mail on Sunday (UK) "Pigeon English is a book to fall in love with: a funny book, a true book, a shattering book . . . If you loved Mark Haddon's The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time or Emma Donoghue's Man Booker-shortlisted Room, you'll love this book too." --The Times (UK) "Fantastic . . . it seems hard to believe this is the author's first book." --Guardian (UK) "Like Harper Lee's Scout Finch and Miriam Toews' Thebes Troutman, Stephen Kelman's Harri is an original who seems to breathe real oxygen" --Winnipeg Free Press (Canada) "Rich with lingo, energy, and occasional terror, Pigeon English is a stark and funny look at life in London's rough housing projects. A compelling anatomy of our inner cities, Stephen Kelman's debut novel navigates the hectic, modern world while coping with its most violent accompaniments." --Tony D'Souza, author of Whiteman and Mule "Utterly convincing and deeply moving, this is a book that we should all read if we want to understand the ugly world that we have somehow managed to create on the edges of society." --Clare Morrall, author of the Booker-shortlisted Astonishing Splashes of Colour and The Man Who Disappeared --
About the Author
STEPHEN KELMAN grew up in the housing estates of Luton. He's worked variously as a careworker, a warehouse operative, and in marketing and local government administration. Pigeon English is his first novel.