CROSSING THE WHITEWASH

 ,You can leave the gang, but the gang can',t leave you...Talented 13-year-old sportsman Gary Marshall experiences the realities of living in a poor suburb when knife-wielding thugs try to rob him of his bike.Rescued by streetwise tough kid Arnie Dolan and his dog Stevo, the two strike up a close bond, forming a gang called the Boxer Boys to protect their territory.When Gary seizes a chance to improve his life by accepting trials with a professional football club, the boys go their separate ways, only to be thrown back together when Gary&rsquo,s parents split up.His world spinning out of control, Gary finds Arnie now fully immersed in gang life as chief drug supplier to their neighbourhood and on a night out together he suffers a horrific injury that destroys his career hopes.Worse is to follow, though, when the two boys are involved in a street brawl which leaves a man dead.Torn apart by circumstance it isn&rsquo,t until eight years later that Arnie seeks out his former partner-in-crime.But where is Gary? And why is he so keen to let the past stay in the past?",Evocative, original, unfailingly precise and often humorous", &ndash, Writers Digest eBook judges_,