Little Gold

By: Allie Rogers

Narrated by: Eleanor Hicks

Length: 10 hrs and 34 mins

Publisher's summary

Shortlisted for the 2018 Polari Prize

"Life affirming and triumphant." (Mark A. Radcliffe, author of Gabriel's Angel)

The heat is oppressive and storms are brewing in Brighton in the summer of 1982. Little Gold, a boyish girl on the brink of adolescence, is struggling with the reality of her broken family and a home descending into chaos. Her only refuge is the tree at the end of her garden. 

Into her fractured life steps elderly neighbour, Peggy Baxter. The connection between the two is instant, but just when it seems that Little Gold has found solace, outsiders appear who seek to take advantage of her frail family in the worst way possible. In an era when so much is hard to speak aloud, can Little Gold share enough of her life to avert disaster? And can Peggy Baxter, a woman running out of time and with her own secrets to bear, recognise the danger before it's too late? 

"Such a wonderfully moving and atmospheric novel, full of very real and very touching relationships. A brilliant portrayal of the pain and wonder of leaving behind childhood, beautifully evocative of a Brighton summer in the 1980s." (Catherine Hall, author of Days of Grace) 

"A gripping and yet tender novel, and the characters of Peggy Baxter and Little Gold are brilliantly handled. I was rooting for Little Gold from the start, and fascinated and moved by Peggy's story. Brighton is so vividly depicted, too. It's a great first novel." (Bethan Roberts, author of My Policeman) 

"Opening Allie Rogers’ Little Gold I found myself engrossed in a vibrant, moving tale of one family’s struggle to get by. This is a book about survival, about the pluck and power of a singular child and the fundamental importance of friendship." (Alison Smith, author of Name All the Animals)

©2019 Allie Rogers (P)2019 Deep Zen Limited

Enjoyable characters

I was looking forward to this story and liked the characters - it was over descriptive and too dramatic for my taste - another edit would have made it better for me - a shame

Much more than you might expect !

On the one hand this is an evocatively written coming-of-age tale set in those hot, sticky early eighties summers. The setting of Brighton is so deftly painted you can smell the sea.

But on the other hand it's a much darker and complex tale about the desparate grubbiness of poverty, the banality of evil and how easy it is for humans to do damage; Counterbalancing the dark is a rich beautiful ode to friendship, youth, age and all the different ways to love.

Beautifully and compellingly written make sure you have plenty of tissues!

Having read this in print first I have to say I think I prefered having it "read" to me. At first I found the narration a wee bit too plummy but I was soon drawn in thanks to Hicks' wonderful expressiveness. The characters really come to life and Rodgers' prose just flows and soars, Just like Little Gold.