The Boy Next Door Book

Lindiwe Bishop, a teenage girl in post colonial Zimbawe has a lighthearted friendship with Ian, the boy next door. After a night of extreme violence in his home, Ian is convicted of the murder of his step-mother. Despite being aware of her parents disaproval, Lindiwe maintains the friendship with the young man Ian, during and following his release from prison, until he suddenly leaves Bulawayo in Zimbawbe and travels to neighbouring South Africa.Lindiwe and Ian's paths cross again several years later but in the interveening years Lindiwe has learned to survive in a political landscape where racial tensions, economic hardship, violence and a break down of law and order have disrupted a country that had such promising prospects prior to the Mugabwe era. Essentially a love story, Sabbatini's debut novel has created deep and riveting characters whilst remaining sensitive to the historical and cultural elements following Zimbabwe's shift to Independance. 'The Boy Next Door' by Irene Sabatini is this years Orange Award for new writers.Read More