Wild East

A soaring debut YA verse-novel by novelist, poet, and former secondary school teacher Ashley Hickson-Lovence. A perfect next read for fans of Dean Atta and Manjeet Mann.

When fourteen-year-old Ronny's life is struck by tragedy, his mum decides it's finally time they move out of East London.

In his new city, as a Black teenager in a mostly white school, Ronny feels like a complete outsider and struggles to balance keeping his head down with his ambition of becoming a rapper.

But when a local poet comes into class, Ronny discovers a world he's never considered before. Rap is like spoken word, bars equal poetry - and maybe the combination of both could be the key to achieving his dreams?