The Salt-Stained Book

Granny has always fiercely protected Donny and his profoundly deaf, dyslexic mum, Skye.  But when Granny dies, Social Services close in - their only lifeline is a long-lost Great Aunt, Ellen. Their journey to find her leaves Skye institutionalised and Donny in a bleak foster home.

Finding friends – and enemies – in unexpected places, Donny discovers an instinctive love for sailing and painful family secrets, whilst doggedly heading towards his rendezvous with the mysterious Ellen.

Twining through this novel are two other narratives  - the salt-stained journal of the drowned captain of a WWII Arctic convoy and Donny’s copy of Swallows and Amazons - but it retains a bright clear identity of its own, blending good old-fashioned sailing adventure and a sensitive, moving account of a family under stress.