About the Author: This is a debut novel from Stephen Kelman was shor listed for the Mann Booker prize in 2011. he was brought up on Marsh Estate Luton similar to the one that is portrayed in this story. He attended University of Luton where he studied marketing and worked in a factory until he started writing.
Pigeon English is inspired by the death and the circumstances under which Damilola Taylor lived. The book is written in a Patwa style of Pigeon English. It portrays the life and innocence of Harri Okapu. He is the son of an immigrant family from Ghana, an absent father and a mother who is doing her best to raise Harri in a hostile environment of a Peckham Estate. Everyday Harri observes the activities of gangs and knife crime. His innocence is overwhelming and at times painful. He witnesses the murder of his friend and turns detective. This places him at risk. He is murdered in the stairwell of the block of his flat, an uncomfortable similarity to Damilola Taylor.
One member of the book considered strange that it was written in the first person who was dead! Most of the group thought the book covered some difficult and real issues facing young people today. The book was written in 'street style' dialect which some of the group had difficulty understanding and interpreting the language used. One member of the group particularly felt that this was an issue book and did not enjoy the read. The story presented the challenges of young people being brought up in an environment where gangs were prevalent. In particular the young age at which both girls and boys were groomed, especially the pressure they were under to conform in order to stay safe. They then sank further and further into their control. The story offered no answers but hi- lighted the issues and the hopelessness of trying to resist. There was much discussion as to who was the perpetrator with a couple of suspects.
Generally the book was well received, although considered to not that well written it covered real issues, whether some of the group believed it or not.
The next book is Julian Barnes Flaubert's Parrot
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