Closed Doors

A powerful tale of love, the loss of innocence and the importance of family in difficult times by the acclaimed author of The Death of Bees, winner of the Commonwealth Book Prize 2013 ** 'There are no strangers in Rothesay, Michael. Everyone knows who you are and always will. It's a blessing but it's also a curse.' Eleven-year-old Michael Murray is the best at two things: keepy-uppies and keeping secrets. His family think he's too young to hear grown-up stuff, but he listens at doors; it's the only way to find out anything. And Michael's heard a secret, one that might explain the bruises on his mother's face. When the whispers at home and on the street become too loud to ignore, Michael begins to wonder if there is an even bigger secret he doesn't know about. Scared of what might happen if anyone finds out, and desperate for life to return to normal, Michael sets out to piece together the truth. But he also has to prepare for the upcoming talent show, keep an eye out for Dirty Alice, his arch-nemesis from down the street, and avoid eating Granny's watery stew. Closed Doors is the startling new novel from the acclaimed author of The Death of Bees . It is a vivid evocation of the fears and freedoms of childhood in the 1980s and a powerful tale of love, the loss of innocence and the importance of family in difficult times. "[A] young boy on a small Scottish island, where everyone knows everything about everyone else, discovers that a secret can be a dangerous thing. Eleven-year-old Michael Murray is the best at two things: hacky sack and keeping secrets. His family thinks he's too young to hear grown-up stuff, but he listens at doors--it's the only way to find out anything. And Michael's heard a secret, one that may explain the bruises on his mother's face. When the whispers at home and on the street become too loud to ignore, Michael begins to wonder if there is an even bigger secret he doesn't know about. Scared of what might happen if anyone finds out, and desperate for life to return to normal, Michael sets out to piece together the truth. But he also has to prepare for the upcoming talent show, keep an eye out for Dirty Alice--his archnemesis from down the street--and avoid eating Granny's watery stew"-- 11-year-old Michael Murray is getting ready to wow everyone at the upcoming talent show with kis keepy-uppies, as well as trying to fend off his arch-nemesis, Dirty Alice, who lives down the road. When his Ma comes home one evening with lots of bruises, Michael begins to ask questions. He is told that a man flashed her in the woods and that he must keep it a secret. Soon, Michael begins to realise that things are not what they seem A skilfully told story of a boy's struggle to come to terms with family secrets and their potentially terrible consequences. A sharp, witty and heartbreaking second novel from a dynamic new talent. [4e de couverture]