Publisher: Serpent's Tail
Source: Borrowed From Library [ Goodreads ]
Blurb:
The mean streets of south London offer little hope for young black guys. Selling drugs, on the other hand, offers quick money and respect.
Dennis Huggins finds himself drawn into the spiral in this powerful portrayal of gang life.
Following a similar setting as Liccle Bit, we meet our characters in Brixton living in poor conditions but doing everything they can to keep their head above water. Dennis our main character is full of life, always having fun with his friends, caring for his family and trying to make money to support them and himself. He and his friend turn to dealing as a way to get a bit of money and from there, the story ramps up as more and more trouble begins to circle them.
I thought there was a lot of interesting aspects of the novel that would leave the reader thinking such as the effect of drug pushing / dealing on communtiy and families, the misogynistic nature of these men and how they treat their women and also an interesting addition to the novel was the discussion of religion being used as a way to oppress women or hide your abhorent views behind. It would be interesting to see Alex Wheatle write a more up to date modern instalment where the incel / manopshere communtiy could be touched upon.
I enjoyed the story of Dennis and his girlfriend who was from a middle / upper class family and the divide in how they behaved or the knowledge gap they each had for the others communtiy. How they overcame this and dealt with conflict was another part of the book I enjoyed.
Although I felt this book wasn't as enjoyable or gripping as Liccle Bit, I did still really enjoy it. I could definitely see this book playing out as a tv show or movie.
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