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Crocodile

Daniel Shand

Crocodile by Daniel Shand

Shortlisted for the Encore Award 2019

From the author of Fallow, winner of the Betty Trask Prize 2017

She’s remembering curtains closed against whatever might harm them and all the knick-knacks: the porcelain fairy, the chain of rubber dolphins, CDs piled a metre high. This was what home meant.

It’s the summer before high school and Chloe’s been sent to her grandparents because her mother can’t cope. At first, all Chloe wants is to go home, but when she falls in with a feral gang of local boys, life takes a darker turn. By the time summer ends, Chloe will have learned where the greater danger lies.

RRP: £8.99
Format: Paperback
ISBN: 9781912240371
Publication Date: 01/11/2018
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Daniel Shand
Daniel Shand was born in Kirkcaldy in 1989. He lives and works in Edinburgh, where he teaches at Edinburgh Napier University. His debut novel, Fallow, was published in 2016. It...

Reviews

‘With skill and precision, Shand has expressed the sad truth that coming of age is not just about discovering who you are, but also about scything down the person you used to be, happy memories and all.’

The Guardian

‘A riveting, heart-breaking, consistently unpredictable novel by an enormously gifted young writer.’

Edmund Gordon, Encore Award Judge

‘Compelling, unsettling, and at times devastating. Daniel Shand writes about the cruelty and vulnerability of children on the cusp of adolescence with redemptive insight.’

Helen Sedgwick

‘Poetically thoughtful, careful, somehow both harrowing and gentle, heartbreaking and heartwarming. His characters are so beautifully human, perfect in their imperfection.’

Emma Hooper

‘Compelling... With Crocodile Daniel Shand has cemented his position as one of Scotland’s finest and original literary voices.’

Scots Whay Hae

‘An outstanding novel.’

Whichbook

‘The more I read the more I respected - and more importantly, enjoyed - how the writing style mirrored the sometimes illogical, unreliable nature of thought, exploring the coping mechanisms used by children grappling with the loss of childhood.’

Buzz

‘A heart-breaking account of the dangerous and devastating world that vulnerable children are often thrown into... The characters are painfully and purposefully full of hidden depth and secrets, and you’ll find your heart aching for each one of them.’

CommonSpace

‘Poetic, unsettling and provoking, Shand’s writing encompasses not only Chloe’s psyche, but her coping mechanisms, her fears and her dreams.’

The Skinny

‘Carefully and intelligently, Shand uncovers the damage suffered by Angie and the effects that damage has had on Chloe despite her mother’s fierce but misguided efforts to protect her. It’s a quietly powerful novel, perceptive and compassionate.’

A Life in Books

Latest News

Daniel Shand wins the Betty Trask Award 2017

Daniel Shand has been named the winner of this year's £10,000 Betty Trask Prize for his darkly comic novel Fallow (Sandstone Press) at the Society of Authors’ annual awards. Meanwhile...

Latest News

Fallow shortlisted for the Betty Trask Award

The Society of Authors has announced the 2017 shortlist for the Betty Trask Prize and Awards. This year’s shortlist of six debut literary novels by authors under the age of...