Age 13+
This young-adult novel won a National Book award in America last year, and has been hugely popular there. An ingeniously constructed, noir-ish tale, set in 1947 and steeped in period detail and language, it is the narrative of 15-year-old Evie Spooner, who adores her stepfather Joe, and, believing herself to be plain, is daunted by her beautiful mother. When Joe impulsively takes Evie and her mother on a jaunt to Florida, a rite of passage begins for Evie, involving the revelation of her stepfather’s secrets, a crush on a handsome 23-year-old stranger, and an untimely death. Her experiences change her perception of herself, present her with a shattering choice, and shift the balance of power in her relationship to her parents. Blundell’s gift for dialogue and tension and for balancing what we are told with what we infer, gives her novel, written in wonderfully spare, clean prose, the crossover appeal of Jennifer Donnelly’s A Gathering Light and a similar intensity. Memorable and compelling, it is a book to grow up with.

What I Saw and How I Lied by Judy Blundell
Scholastic £6.99, Age 13

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