Title: 15 Days Without a Head
Author: Dave
Cousins
Publisher: Flux
Books
Publication Date: May
8, 2013
Genre: YA
Reviewed by: Books4Tomorrow
Source: Received
from publisher via NetGalley
My star rating: 5/5
SUMMARY
Fifteen-year-old Laurence Roach just wants a
normal life, but it’s not easy when your mum is a depressed alcoholic, and your
six-year-old brother thinks he’s a dog. When Mum fails to come home one night,
Laurence tells nobody, terrified he and his brother will be taken into care if
anyone finds out. Instead, he attempts to keep up the pretence that Mum is
still around: dressing up in her clothes to trick the neighbours and spinning
an increasingly complicated tangle of lies. After two weeks on their own, running
out of food and money, and with suspicious adults closing in, Laurence finally
discovers what happened to his mother. And that’s when the trouble really
starts . . .
REVIEW
I think
what I expected was a book that would make me laugh. Something lighthearted
about two boys having the run of the house while their mother has left for a
few days. Instead, I got a touching and heart wrenching story about two brothers
fighting to survive and not being taken from their home by social services,
while they try to find their mother who disappeared without a trace.
Reading
it from a parent’s point of view, 15 Days
without a Head is quite a disturbing read. I also have to boys slightly younger than the
two in this story which I would never dream of abandoning - ever. I understand
there are mothers out there who finds it difficult to deal with the challenges
of raising two children on their own, but abandoning them without food or
money? Unthinkable! Seeing as I would never do such a thing to my children,
this novel touched me on so many levels. I couldn’t relate to their mother at
all and I felt her reasons for abandoning her kids weren’t good reasons at all,
since most things in life – especially parenthood – boils down to the choices
we make. But still, reading about a fifteen-year-old boy in the role of a
parent was completely new to me as this is not part of my reality.
Needless
to say, I didn’t like Jay and Laurence’s mom, but I adored Laurence, Jay and
Mina. These are such inspiring and extraordinary characters, especially with
the strengths they showed in dealing with the circumstances they were forced
into. Laurence taking on the role of his mother and doing the best he can with
no money to try and keep his little brother fed and safe while their alcoholic mother
is who-knows-where, is simply admirable. He is, of course, the hero of this
story as he had to deal with the responsibilities of an adult and at the same
time he didn’t resent his mother for leaving them behind, even when he
discovers why she gave up on them. It didn’t take long for Laurence and Jay to
find a spot in my heart. Mina was just amazing. She brings a positive tone and
hope to this story, and like Laurence she shows maturity and understanding
beyond her years. I enjoyed the parts where Laurence were phoning in for the
competition to win a holiday for his mother, himself and Jay, and every scene
where he had to answer three questions to go through to the next round of the
competition, added suspense to the story. Will he or won’t he make it through
to the next round to win the grand prize? Nailbiting stuff, I tell you.
The
writing is spot-on with the characters’ emotions and the dialogue keeps the plot
moving at an easy pace. I’d recommend this terrific novel to parents who, like
me, can’t imagine ever leaving their children to their own peril, and to anyone
who’d like to read a story about courage, hope and determination. I’m looking forward to reading more of this
author’s books!
EXCERPT
Jay
wants me to push him on the swing. I tell him five minutes, then we have to go.
I want to get back inside, it feels like everyone is watching us out here.
‘Are we
going to the phone box tonight?’ asks Jay, as we pass the store.
‘Not
tonight.’ I almost tell him that Baz only does his show during the week, then
remember that Jay still thinks I’m phoning a friend from school. I wish I could
tell him the truth. A secret is like a bag you have to lug around all the
time-each day you add another lie, and it just gets heavier and harder to carry
on your own.
‘When
will Mum be home?’ says Jay, as we climb the steps up to the Heights.
‘I don’t
know. Soon.’
‘I wish
she was here now.’ His hand snakes into mine, all greasy and hot.
‘Yeah,
me too.’
It
strikes me that real life isn’t like Scooby-Doo.
There are no conveniently placed clues, no trails of glow-in-the-dark
footprints to follow. I think even Velma would struggle to solve this one.
READ more REVIEWS
15 Days without a Head has 55 reviews on
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PURCHASE LINK
ABOUT the AUTHOR
Dave Cousins completed his first novel in the
back of a van, while touring with his band (who were almost famous!)
He went on to be a winner of the SCBWI Undiscovered Voices Anthology 2010 and his debut novel for teens, 15 Days Without a Head, was published by Oxford University Press in January 2012.
Originally from Birmingham, Dave now lives in Hertfordshire with his wife and family, in a house full of books and records, and writes in a corner of the attic with an anarchic ginger cat for company.
He went on to be a winner of the SCBWI Undiscovered Voices Anthology 2010 and his debut novel for teens, 15 Days Without a Head, was published by Oxford University Press in January 2012.
Originally from Birmingham, Dave now lives in Hertfordshire with his wife and family, in a house full of books and records, and writes in a corner of the attic with an anarchic ginger cat for company.
AUTHOR LINKS
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