Graffiti My Soul, by Niven Govinden

Meet Veerapen Prendrapen, "The only kosher Tamil in Surrey". He's a half-Jew, half-Tamil 15-year-old, with not much to do except happy slap and get drunk. His best friends were Jason and Moon, but then Moon died. Now his mum has a new boyfriend, and Veerapen's not coping very well with it all. He misses his paedophile running coach, Casey. However, "This is Surrey, where nothing bad ever happens."

This is the second novel from Niven Govinden, and he's certainly one to watch. The story captures perfectly the boredom and frustration felt by teenagers today, and yet it is anything but boring. The kids go to school (sometimes), get together, break up, make up, party, cycle around town, and "txt". The only really dramatic episode is where we find out how Moon dies and, actually, that's the novel's only weak spot. The story, narrated by Veerapen in the first person, cuts between life after Moon's funeral, and the time leading up to her death.

Moon's demise comes as no surprise. Clues in the flashbacks demonstrate a growing sense of inevitability. The death itself, however, is told in bullet points. Although this presents the idea that so many things could have saved Moon, it's disappointing to have it read like a shopping list of ifs:

"- Pearson shouldn't have been tooled up

- Moon shouldn't have spoken when she did

- I shouldn't have still been twisting Pearson's arm"

However, Govinden's grasp of the narrative is, everywhere else, outstanding. I can't think how he manages to hit the street slang so spot on: "Kelly Button blows out Lizzie Jennings and takes me to see Britney. Her and Lizzie had been planning this trip for months, but what with us getting together, old tatty ginger is left out in the cold. She tells us she's fine about it, 'I'm not bothered. Not bothered,' she goes at every lesson and every break, meaning she's as mad as fuck and probably suicidal." And Veerapen on his new girlfriend: "I do respect her...I buy her bus ticket, drop in a 10-pack of Benson when I can get served, spend Saturday afternoons down the mall, take her nan to the park."

You become totally immersed in Veerapen's world. You learn about the playground politics; the pressure of trying to fit in, to keep up to date with what's cool and what's not; and the total misery of being bullied. It means we can start to sympathise with Veerapen's sometimes abhorrent behaviour, including the vicious episodes of happy slapping. It's also astonishing to see Govinden present Veerapen's relationship with the paedophile without any melodrama: quite simply, the coach doesn't attempt to touch Veerapen, so Veerapen's not that worried and, as the whole thing is a rumour anyway, you begin to support Veerapen's decision not to ostracise him. Until...

Graffiti My Soul is quite an achievement, especially as you would expect, at best, a poor attempt at yoof culture and, at worst, an extended Vicki Pollard sketch. Perhaps without even meaning to, Govinden has provided us with a powerful and sobering social commentary - one that uses phrases like "Fo' shizzle, m'nizzle" and gets away with it.