Skywalking by Jemma Kennedy

Skywalking

Jemma Kennedy

I was hooked after the first few pages - all the characters in this book are compelling and attractive, even the less likeable ones. Kiddie lies at the heart of the story. He's a slightly odd 7 year old obsessed with Star Wars, who follows a girl home thinking she's Princess Leia. Each chapter is told through the voice of a different character, and flows without pause into the next character and next chapter. Quirky, funny and tender with a few thought-provoking moments.

Extract
Kiddie started muttering under his breath in Yoda talk. I caught, faintly, 'Second one the best, it is,' and glanced over at him. He was hunched over his seat, picking at the stitching on his tracksuit bottoms with a little brown paw. I'd just brought Kid back to mine for a few days because Lisa was under the weather again, and after so many days on the trot we'd tuned right into each other. I could always read Kiddie like a book, and right now, we were on the sensitive page. I'd taken him away from Lisa and Croydon to give her an extra break, and even though he was skiving school, which he hated, he knew damn well that he'd be chanting his tables right now if his mum wasn't in such a bad way. Kids really need their routines and shit to keep them going, because as soon as the familiar patterns stop, they know for sure something's up.
Parallels
  • Man and Boy by Tony Parsons
  • About a Boy by Nick Hornby