Max Porter – Shy

After a successful career as a bookseller and editor, Max Porter released his debut book Grief Is the Thing with Feathers in 2015 to critical acclaim and went on to win several awards – including The Sunday Times/Peters Fraser + Dunlop Young Writer of the Year. Grief Is The Thing With Feathers was adapted for the stage by Complicité and Wayward productions. It was directed by Enda Walsh, starred Cillian Murphy and was performed in Dublin, London and New York. His subsequent novel Lanny was long listed for the 2019 Booker Prize.

Shy, Porter’s fourth book, tells the story of a troubled teenage boy struggling to feel seen in 1990s Britain. Despite the best intentions of his middle class mother and caring stepfather, Shy just can’t seem to get a handle on his emotions and is currently residing at Last Chance – a boarding school for troubled teens – after an incident during which he lost his temper. The book follows Shy as he spends a night walking the streets listening to the voices in his head and those around him – parents, teachers and friends – as they mix with his own feelings about his future.