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Ostrich Boys

by Keith Gray

Interest age: 11+
Reading age: 11+

Published by Random House, 2008

  • Coming-of-age
  • Funny

About this book

When teenager Ross Fell is killed, his closest friends are horrified by the sham and hypocrisy of his funeral.

Overcoming their first instinct - to get 'revenge' on those people who made Ross' last few days of life a misery - they decide instead to give him a proper funeral by stealing his ashes and taking them several hundred miles to a hamlet in Scotland, appropriately named 'Ross'.

On a difficult, and at times comic journey, the boys discover more about Ross, themselves, their friendship and the nature of grief and bereavement than they ever expected or wanted to know.

Keith Gray writes with insight, sensitivity and brutal honesty about a challenging subject. A thought provoking and deeply satisfying read.

About the author

Keith Gray was born in Grimsby. As a child, Keith found reading a chore, but later found a talent in reading and writing. At 24, he had his first book published, Creepers, which was shortlisted for the Guardian Fiction Award. Since then, he has written many books. Keith is perhaps best-known for Ostrich Boys,which won great acclaim and was shortlisted for the Carnegie Medal, Guardian Fiction Prize and the BookTrust Teen Prize. It was also adapted into a stage play. Keith has lectured in creative writing and now livesin Vienna with his partner and daughter. He spends much of his time visiting schools to pass on his love of books and writing, as well as reviewing teenage fiction.

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