Sal by Mick Kitson

Sal is 13 years old; her sister Peppa is just 10. Sal’s young life has been torn apart by the actions of her mother’s predatory, drunken boyfriend and she cannot allow Peppa to befall the same fate. Armed with knowledge gleaned from YouTube videos and Wikipedia, Sal is forced to stretch her resourcefulness to the limit, fleeing with her sister into the depths of the Galloway forest to escape her pursuers.

I’ve had this book on my shelves for ages and I’ve always fancied reading it. It was so good. This is a story about Sal and Peppa, sisters who run away from home. Their home life isn’t great, from their mothers alcoholism, leaving the girls to fend for themselves, to the men she brings home. Sal has enough and takes matters into her own hands.

I thought the book would be quite hard to read, we get to know exactly what Sal has went through at the hands of her mothers boyfriend, but even though it was filled with a lot of the bad stuff, it was also a beautiful story about sisters. I loved living vicariously through the girls, living in the forest, building a tent and a fire. Sal knows a lot about survival, and looks after her sister so well. It’s like an adventure for them. And they love each other so dearly.

If you haven’t read this one I’d suggest you give it a go, it’s a short book at around 250 pages I think, but leaves a lasting impression.