When thirteen-year-old Joe is left behind in Peckham while his mum flies to Spain on holiday, he decides to treat it as an adventure, and a welcome break from Dean, her latest boyfriend. Joe begins to explore his neighbourhood, making a tentative friendship with Asha, a fellow fugitive hiding out at her grandfather’s flat. But when the food and money run out, his mum doesn’t come home, and the local thugs catch up with him, Joe realises time is running out too, and makes a decision that will change his life forever.
(Now a BAFTA-winning and Emmy-nominated BBC drama)
- Nominated for an International Emmy.
- Winner of the 2018 Children’s BAFTA Awards ‘Best Drama’ category (TV adaptation)
- Winner of the 2018 Royal Television Society NI Children’s Award (TV adaptation)
- Chicago International Children’s Film Festival Second Prize (TV adaptation)
- Nominated for the 2016 CILIP Carnegie Medal
- Shortlisted for the UKLA Award
- Shortlisted for the Leeds Prize
- Shortlisted for the Shropshire Teen Book of the Year
- Shortlisted for the Leicester Secondary Book Award
- Shortlisted for the Salford Book Award
- Shortlisted for the Stockport Book Award
- Shortlisted for the Tower Hamlets Book Award
- Shortlisted for the Hull Book Award
- Shortlisted for the Sheffield Prize
- Nominated for the Sakura Medal in Japan
- A Red magazine best book of 2015
‘Home Alone Peckham style… a sweet story, but full of pathos.’ (Red magazine)
‘Poignant, funny and utterly unputdownable, Joe All Alone paints a picture that is somehow life-affirming and heart-warming, even while it will break your heart.’ (Catherine Bruton, author of We Can Be Heroes and I Predict a Riot)
‘A real boy’s voice, nailed hard to a tale rich with wrong decisions, hopeless plans and stabs at redemption. I loved it.’ (Steve Cole, author of Young Bond)
‘Frightening and funny, bleak and tender, serious and surprising, Joe All Alone is a gem of a book that catches the heart and lifts the spirits.’ (Tanya Landman, author of Buffalo Soldier)
Joanna Nadin 