Hite   by Kate Saksena Bloomsbury, 2005, 232 pages, ISBN 0747568995

How easy was it to get stuck into this book?
Hite is the story of Lee Highsmith and his younger brother Darren, living on a tough estate in South London with an abusive father and gangs patrolling the streets. It has the makings of a good book, but at times you feel that some parts of the story aren't developed enough and it seems to read a bit like a simplified version of things.

Who are the main characters?
The main character is 13 year old year Lee Highsmith, who lives with his parents and 8 year old brother Darren on an estate in South London. However, his Dad has started becoming violent to his family recently, and Lee just wants to get away from him and school. It is on the roof where he flees one night that he finds Ruby, a strange girl who befriends him. Other important characters in the book are Yas, Wilko and Ty, three members of a gang on the estate who seem determined to give Lee a hard time, and Della, his grandmother, who helps him when things in his family become too much.

What's the storyline?
The story follows Lee as he becomes tangled up in fights with his father, street gangs and graffiti, when in fact he just wants to get away from it all. However this is not so easy on the claustrophobic estate, and things reach a record low when Lee is falsely accused of starting two fires by the police. The story, although slightly uniform and conventional in places, is still realistic and enjoyable to read.

How's it written?
The book is probably better suited for younger readers in the cool-reads age range.

Other books by the same author that Tim knows about?
None.

The overall verdict is
Well worth a look

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