Christopher Fowler's endearing childhood memoir captures life in suburban London through the eyes of a lonely boy who spends his days between the library and the cinema, devouring novels, comics, cereal boxes - anything that might reveal a story. Caught between his ever-sensible, exhausted mother and a DIY-obsessed father fighting his own demons, Christopher takes refuge in words. His parents try to understand their son's peculiar obsession but they fast lose patience with him - and each other. Paperboy recalls the days when Vesta Chow Mein was considered the height of sophistication and reading was regarded as something that would just hurt your eyes.