Hold On

by Alan Gibbons

After a chance meeting with John on holiday in Florida, Annie realises that he sees her as a lifeline against the relentless bullying he suffers at school. When he commits suicide on his return, she vows to pursue those who persecuted him, only to discover that John was fighting those far closer to him than she had imagined, and that the past, although it should inform the future, must never dominate it.

Among a growing resource of novels addressing bullying, Gibbons stands out for his insight into the loneliness and despair suffered by its victims, and for the realisation that it is a complex issue which can spring from a combination of several problems.

Publisher: Orion

Alan Gibbons

Alan Gibbons has been writing children's books for 17 years. He is the winner of the Blue Peter Book Award 2000 'The book I couldn't put down' for his best-selling book Shadow of the Minotaur. He has also been shortlisted twice for the Carnegie Medal and twice for the Booktrust Teenage Prize. He has won the Catalyst Award, the Leicester Book of the Year, the Angus Book of the Year, the Stockport Book Award and the Salford Librarians' Special Award. His books have been published in languages including Japanese, German, Italian, French, Thai, Spanish, Danish, Dutch, Swedish.

Alan was a teacher for 16 years. He is now is a full-time writer and independent educational consultant and a campaigner for library services. He lives in Liverpool.

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http://www.alangibbons.com/

Alan Gibbons Photo: Barrington Stoke