Carwash

The cover and blurb would lead you to believe that this is just a conventional teenage romance but that’s not likely with Howarth. Luke is the budding entrepreneur, the carwash specialist at the moment, whose conceit might be damning in a simpler book. But like the array of other teenage characters, quirks and faults bring people together rather than separating them. Luke’s development is seen in sudden reckless acts of generosity towards his apparently hapless brother (why did no one realise that he needed glasses?) and the beautiful Liv. The main characters are seen through their own voice, weaving their way though teenage complexities, without simple resolutions but with a humour and resilience which the oldies seem to have lost. A gentle and humane story, very funny in a dry and droll way, about daring to be different – and that goes for the book as much the plot. There are lovely recurring details like the adverts for the lost cats and dogs (cat-lovers can be reassured that cats are safe here). They may, like one ‘lost’ dog, be rediscovered boarding a bus as a regular commuter having found a different and probably better home. As the character nicknamed Innit would have it (and he has the last word) it’s a good read, innit?