Not Thomas by Sara Gethin

Not Thomas

Sara Gethin

Through the voice of Tomos, the 5-year old narrator, a story unfolds of a boy suffering the effects of abject neglect and blighted by severe poverty. Not Thomas is often very challenging and emotionally draining, but Tomos compels you to carry on. And the reward is that by the end you'll get to know a truly memorable character.

Extract
'Why did you blurry lock it?' She's shouting it through the glass.
I'm running back upstairs to my bedroom. I'm running to get the key from the pocket in my trousers. Mammy is still knocking. Her knocking is very very loud. I'm running back to the kitchen and I'm letting her in.
'Stupid kid.' She's pushing past me. 'I've told you and told you - don' keep locking the door.'
'But what about the men? What if they come round again?'
She's going into the front room now. 'I don' like standing out in the cold, do I? I don' like waiting for you to let me in.' She's going up the stairs. 'Stop locking it.' She's going into the bathroom. She's getting all her things out of the cupboard. All the things I must NOT touch. 'Stupid kid,' she says. 'Don' do it again.' And she's banging the bathroom door.
Parallels
  • Room by Emma Donoghue
  • A Small Boy's Cry by Rosie Lewis
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Violence