STREET SONG
Ink Road Books, 2017
SHORTLISTED, GUARDIAN NOT THE BOOKER PRIZE
SHORTLISTED, WIRRAL BOOK AWARD
When life goes off-key, change your tune.
RyLee’s career is over. After winning a national TV talent show and becoming a teen pop sensation, his fame and success has quickly been followed by addiction, media scrutiny, and career suicide. After a brief spell in rehab, 18-year-old Ryan has some rethinking to do.
His stepdad – music promoter and self-appointed creator of ‘RyLee’ – wants him at home and in school, and under his thumb. But after an argument descends into violence, Ryan decides to run away from his old life, his failed career, and his dysfunctional family.
Before long, he has arrived in a new city and reinvented himself as Cal. For the first time in his life Ryan has real friends, he’s playing the music he’s always wanted to play, and – despite living in a hostel, busking for his wages, and living under a false identity – he’s finally happy.
But just when Ryan feels like he has truly started over, his past begins to catch up with him.
‘This story rings with truth. A book to fall in love with.’ Keren David, author
‘Played on my heartstrings. Rich and moving. A must-read .’ L. A. Weatherly, author
‘Engaging and heartfelt.’ Kirkus reviews
‘Sheena Wilkinson at her best. A story that is sure to please true music-lovers.’ Children’s Books Ireland