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Kit de Waal was born in Birmingham to an Irish mother, who was a foster carer and a Caribbean father. She worked for fifteen years in criminal and family law, was a magistrate for several years and sits on adoption panels. She used to advise Social Services on the care of foster children, and has written training manuals on adoption and foster care. Her writing has received numerous awards including the Bridport Flash Fiction Prize 2014 and 2015 and the SI Leeds Literary Reader's Choice Prize 2014. My Name is Leon is her first novel. She has two children.
Author photo © Justine Stoddart
One of Our Books of the Year 2017 | Shortlisted for the Desmond Elliott Prize 2017. This is such a gorgeously expressive novel, it just sings with intensity, and is impossible to put down. Nine year old Leon loves his little brother Jake and his mum, he looks after them both as best he can, when Leon and Jake have to go and live with Maureen, Leon hatches a plan. Kit de Waal writes with a beautiful, sincere energy, the simplicity of the tale told from Leon's point of view allows a complicated backdrop of emotions to shine through. At times my heart absolutely ached, yet there are also proper laughter blurting moments, and I just wanted to gather everybody up into a huge, squashy hug. The 80’s, with it’s curly wurlys, royal celebrations, and riots is the perfect setting. A gloriously motley collection of characters come to life, each and every one of them is indispensable, and each affected me in some way. ‘My Name is Leon’ is a stunning, eloquent, stinging paper-cut of a read, I fell in love with it, and in turn, it left me full of hope. ~ Liz Robinson Shortlisted for the Costa First Novel Award 2016
A heart-wrenching love story from the internationally bestselling author of My Name Is Leon Mona is a young Irish girl in the big city, with the thrill of a new job and a room of her own in a busy boarding house. On her first night out in 1970s Birmingham, she meets William, a charming Irish boy with an easy smile and an open face. They embark upon a passionate affair, a whirlwind marriage - before a sudden tragedy tears them apart. Decades later, Mona pieces together the memories of the years that separate them. But can she ever learn to love again? The Trick to Time is an unforgettable tale of grief, longing, and a love that lasts a lifetime.
It's an exciting day for Timothy Flowers. It's the third of November, and it's Friday, and it's his twenty-first birthday. When Timothy walks to his usual street corner to see his favourite special bus, he meets Charlie. Charlie is a builder who is desperate for Timothy's help because Timothy is very tall, six feet six inches. Timothy has never had a job before - or no work that he's kept for more than a day. But when Timothy and Charlie have to collect money from a local thug, things don't exactly go according to plan... Over the course of one day, Timothy's life will change for ever.
One of Our Books of the Year 2017 | Shortlisted for the Desmond Elliott Prize 2017. This is such a gorgeously expressive novel, it just sings with intensity, and is impossible to put down. Nine year old Leon loves his little brother Jake and his mum, he looks after them both as best he can, when Leon and Jake have to go and live with Maureen, Leon hatches a plan. Kit de Waal writes with a beautiful, sincere energy, the simplicity of the tale told from Leon's point of view allows a complicated backdrop of emotions to shine through. At times my heart absolutely ached, yet there are also proper laughter blurting moments, and I just wanted to gather everybody up into a huge, squashy hug. The 80’s, with it’s curly wurlys, royal celebrations, and riots is the perfect setting. A gloriously motley collection of characters come to life, each and every one of them is indispensable, and each affected me in some way. ‘My Name is Leon’ is a stunning, eloquent, stinging paper-cut of a read, I fell in love with it, and in turn, it left me full of hope. ~ Liz Robinson Shortlisted for the Costa First Novel Award 2016
Leon ist neun und ziemlich dunkelhautig, sein Halbbruder Jake dagegen ganz blond und erst sechs Monate alt. Als ihre Mutter Sandra mal wieder richtig Pech mit einem Kerl hat, bleibt sie einfach im Bett liegen. Und Leon muss sich um Jake kummern, ihn wickeln, etwas zu Essen besorgen. Das fliegt natrlich irgendwann auf, das Sozialamt schaltet sich ein. Es bringt die beiden Jungs erst einmal bei Pflegemutter Maureen unter: bergewichtig, rothaarig, etwas nah am Wasser gebaut - man muss sie schon ein bisschen kennenlernen, um zu merken, was fr ein riesengroes Herz Maureen hat. Bald findet sich auch eine richtige Adoptivfamilie. Allerdings nur fr Jake, denn der ist ja klein und blond. Leon wei nicht mehr ein und aus vor Schmerz. Und er fasst einen Plan. Einen gefhrlichen Plan, in diesem heien Londoner Sommer 1981