The Wrong Boy

The hilarious, bittersweet novel from the playwright behind EDUCATING RITA, SHIRLEY VALENTINE and award-winning musical BLOOD BROTHERS.

'Big-hearted, wonderfully funny and engrossing' THE MIRROR

'A warm, funny, poignant story. I loved The Wrong Boy - and so will you' SUNDAY TELEGRAPH

'A comic masterpiece' BEL MOONEY, MAIL ON SUNDAY

Dear Morrissey,
I'm feeling dead depressed and down. Like a streetlamp without a bulb or a goose at the onset of Christmas time.
Anyroad, I thought I'd pen a few lines to someone who'd understand...

It's 1991. Raymond Marks is a normal boy, from a normal family, in a normal northern town. Only lately, he's been feeling dead down. His dad left home after falling in love with a five-string banjo. His fun-hating grandma believes she should have married Jean-Paul Sartre: 'I could never read his books, but y' could tell from his picture, there was nothing frivolous about John-Paul Sartre.' Felonious Uncle Jason and Appalling Aunty Paula are lusting after the satellite dish.

And so he turns to the one person who'll understand what he's going through: Morrissey. Told through a series of heartfelt letters to the frontman of The Smiths, this is a laugh-out-loud funny, incredibly poignant tale from a character you can't help but love.

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READERS LOVE THE WRONG BOY

***** 'The brilliant way this book is written has you laughing helplessly'
***** 'How the author gets deep inside the head of this young boy as he grows up is incredible'
***** 'Russell's voice is full of humour, laughter and comfort. It's heartwarming rather than heartbreaking and there is plenty to make you smile'
***** 'Raymond is a funny and poignant character and made me both laugh, and not just cry, but actually sob'

'The dialogue - as you might expect from a dramatist - is cracking stuff: a colloquial poetry reminiscent of Roddy Doyle' THE GUARDIAN

'Russell delights in his skilful depiction of a child's-eye view' THE LITERARY REVIEW