Moon Pie

Description

Moon Pie is a funny, sad, bittersweet novel about family, love, and pies. Eleven-year-old Martha is used to being the one who has to keep her head. Tug, her little brother, is too small. Dad is too strange. And Mum's not here any more. So when Dad falls off the roof, it's Martha who ices his knee and takes him to the doctor. And when Dad doesn't come home, it's Martha who cooks Tug's favourite pie and reads him his bedtime story. And when Dad passes out, it's Martha who cleans him up and keeps his secret. But eventually Dad's problems become too big for even Martha to solve. There is only one person who can sort things out now. Dad.

Simon Mason is an author of children's and adult books. His first adult novel, a black comedy entitled The Great English Nude, won the Betty Trask first novel award and Moon Pie was shortlisted for the Guardian Children's Fiction prize. Running Girl is his first story starring Garvie Smith. Simon lives in Oxford with his wife and their two children.

A spiked children's classic, and an utter delight . . . A beautifully written, exquisitely touching but gently humorous novel. -- Dinah Hall * The Sunday Telegraph * Zany, thought-provoking, and humorous, Moon Pie is a high impact novel. Vivid characterisation and an assured, lively and sometimes lyrical tone create a wholly convincing backdrop for Martha who is struggling to keep her family on track through her father's alcoholism. Incisive observations combined with perfectly timed comedic movements make this a sure winner. -- Jake Hope * The Bookseller * A subtle book that is very moving at but also full of wit, life and, above all, love. -- Marcus Sedgwick * The Guardian * Outstanding . . . This is a book that addresses painful events with a wonderfully ebullient comic touch . . . It's Mason's gift for the way that people, especially children, speak and think that makes the book gripping and absorbing . . . [It] addresses a difficult subject with a vigour and charm that will beguile any child interested in real life. The opposite of grim, its originality, tone and ebullience deserves prizes as well as praise. -- Amanda Craig * The Times * This is a beautifully told story that is long on affection and short on preaching. -- Julia Eccleshare * The Guardian.co.uk *