Tale worthy of a laureate

Bruised

He’s a little younger than Holden Caulfield in Catcher in the Rye but has a similar self- awareness and sassy bravado about him: “My grandmother died. I know this is not what you would call a dramatic opening. It’s what happens to grandparents. They get old (jeez, they are old to start with)”

But in fact, this is the moment when the lives of 14-year-old Jono and his eight-year-old sister Julie begin to unravel. Their grandmother was their protector — she made sure they were fed, their clothes were ironed for school; her house was where they escaped to when their mother got out of hand.