May 2013 Debut of the Month.
This atmospheric, uplifting and deeply moving debut, set in the 1980s in an impoverished area of Louisiana, is a novel about the beauty of life no matter how broken it is.
His publisher, who discovered him at a creative writing awards ceremony said ‘his writing reminds me of Mark Twain and J D Salinger in that ability to capture the whole tone and mood of a place just through the voice of the character.' We think it is a stunning debut from an exciting new voice in literature. Read the Opening Extract and see what you think.
In addition to our Lovereading expert opinion for Sketcher a small number of Lovereading members were lucky enough to be invited to review this title - 'I found this novel entirely fascinating and enchanting' - Julie Bickerdyke. Scroll down to read more reviews.
| Primary Genre | Family Drama |
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Nine-year-old Skid Beaumont's family is stuck in the mud. Following his father's decision to relocate and build a new home, based on a drunken vision that New Orleans would rapidly expand eastwards into the wetlands as a result of the Seventies' oil boom, Skid and his brothers grow up in a swampy area of Louisiana.
But the constructions stop short, the dream fizzles out, and the Beaumonts find themselves sinking in a soggy corner of 1980s Cold War America. As things on the home front get more complicated, Skid learns of his mother's alleged magic powers and vaguely remembers some eerie stories surrounding his elder brother Frico. These, as well as early events that Skid saw with his own eyes, convince him that Frico has a gift to fix things by simply sketching them. For the next few years, Skid's self-appointed mission to convince his brother to join him in his lofty plan to change their family's luck and the world they live in will lead to even more mystery and high drama in the swamp.
Sketcher features in the following genres: Family Drama, Debut Books of the Month, Modern and Contemporary Fiction, Books with reviews by our Reader Review Panel, Book Club Recommendations, eBooks of the Month, Fiction, Recommendations, General Fiction
Sketcher is available in Paperback
Sketcher was written by Roland Watson Grant and published by Alma Books Ltd
