Sal by Mick Kitson review – deft, witty portrait of runaway sisters

This skilled debut follows two children as they escape from abuse and disappear into the Scottish wilderness

Sal is the debut novel of Mick Kitson, a journalist turned teacher who was frustrated with the books that appeared on the curriculum and set out to write something he would want to teach. In 13-year-old Sal it has a strong and distinctive first-person narrator. Sal is on the run with her 10-year-old sister, the witty and compelling Peppa. After a year of watching YouTube videos and learning about survival, they run away into the Scottish wilderness in search of safety and redemption.

Early on we find out that Sal has killed her alcoholic mother’s boyfriend, Robert, who has been sexually abusing her for five years. She had kept this a secret, placing a lock on her younger sister’s door to protect her, but when Peppa turns 10, Sal realises the lock will no longer be enough. After an act of ultimate self-defence, she grabs Peppa and they flee.

Sal would not be capable of such fierce and selfless affection had she not an understanding of morality and love

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from Children | The Guardian http://ift.tt/2FHuoc0