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Teenage books round-up: voyages of discovery and hope

Coming-of-age stories from the historical to the fantastical are among the pick of this month’s YA fiction

Candy Gourlay’s historical novel Bone Talk (David Fickling, £10.99) is a coming-of-age story dealing with themes of imperialism and masculinity that resonate strongly today. It is 1899 and Samkad’s life with his Filipino mountain tribe is about to change when the first white man arrives in their remote village. The culture and landscape are vividly drawn, a mesmerising world of soulful ritual and community, rendering the impact of the American invasion all the more devastating.

From the past to the near future with Nicky Singer’s The Survival Game (Hodder, £7.99), a dystopian thriller set in a world ravaged by climate change and overpopulation. Fourteen-year-old Mhairi is making the difficult journey home from Sudan to Scotland when she meets a young African boy and risks everything to get him to safety. Recent news about the treatment of refugee children makes this a particularly pertinent read. Singer’s gripping and provocative book poses big ethical questions, and has an ending likely to polarise readers.

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from Culture | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2vfNr9q
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