Sal

By: Mick Kitson

Narrated by: Sharon Rooney

This is a story of something like survival. Sal planned it for almost a year before they ran. She nicked an Ordnance Survey map from the school library. She bought a compass, a Bear Grylls knife, waterproofs and a first aid kit from Amazon using credit cards she'd robbed. She read the SAS Survival Handbook and watched loads of YouTube videos.

And now Sal knows a lot of stuff. Like how to build a shelter and start a fire. How to estimate distances, snare rabbits and shoot an airgun. And how to protect her sister, Peppa. Because Peppa is ten, which is how old Sal was when Robert started on her.

Told in Sal's distinctive voice, and filled with the silent, dizzying beauty of rural Scotland, Sal is a disturbing, uplifting story of survival, the kindness of strangers and the irrepressible power of sisterly love - a love that can lead us to do extraordinary and unimaginable things.

©2018 Mick Kitson (P)2018 Canongate Books Ltd

Critic reviews

"Kitson writes clearly and concisely...The girls’ capability, humanity and humour are inspiring and wonderful. Sal is an ambitious and skilled novel. Literature needs more stories like this." (Jenni Fagan, Guardian)

"Atmospheric...Distinctive...A vivid, moving tale about the strength of sisterhood and the struggle to survive." (Anita Sethi, Observer)

"Kitson inhabits the girls' voices with credible authenticity...This short, impressive debut is an uplifting tale of survival, shot through with humour, compassion and humanity." (Mail on Sunday)

I fell in love with these girls

Listening to this gorgeous book, I felt both heartbroken and full of admiration for Sal, the young protagonist. Her grit and planning are fantastic and she and her little sister felt like real children despite their unlikely circumstances. Not being from Scotland, I found the narration difficult to follow at times but that did not detract from either the story or the narrator's ability to capture the longing, fear, and incredible strength of Sal. It's a beautifully written, beautifully narrated book. I'm glad to have met Sal and her sister, and wish I could meet them again in a few years as young women to see how life has worked out.