Old Barn announces Nicola Garrard title

Old Barn Books has announced the publication of ON THE EDGE, a YA/crossover novel by Nicola Garrard. Publisher Ruth Huddleston bought World English Rights from Abi Fellows, with the book due to publish in August.

ON THE EDGE follows Rhys, who lives in a coastal town in South Devon, where seasonal work dries up as winter storms hit, housing is hard to come by and livelihoods are threatened by distant bureaucrats. He finds solace in the beauty around him when surfing, but when that solace is taken he is determined to defend his family from a life blighted by social meglect and poverty. Drawn to Dodo, a radical political activist inspired by the Welsh protest group Meibion Glyndwr, his actions start to spiral out of control.

The novel draws on Garrard’s own childhood, exploring how young people’s futures are built - and defended - on shifting and uneven ground, where the tides of tourism, gentrification and second-home ownership erode traditional ways of life and the financial stability of local inhabitants.

Huddleston said: “This manuscript grabbed me from the first page and hasn’t left my mind since. Nicola’s writing is lyrical, empathetic and outrsgeously funny. The story she has to tell is one that is heart-breakingly familiar to many but too often left untold.”

Garrard said: “I’m thrilled to have this very personal story published by Old Barn Books, the home of some of my favourite YA authors, including Kate Di Goldi, A. M. Dassu and Anne Fine. I hope it will spark conversations about left-behind coastal communities and the experience of working class rural young people.”

Nicola Garrard grew up in South Devon, where her family made ends meet by growing and fishing for their own food. Her critically-acclaimed debut, 29 LOCKS, was inspired by the pupils she met during her many years of teaching.