The Kid: And, the Kid Moves On

by Kevin Lewis

Kevin Lewis never had a chance. Growing up on a poverty-stricken London council estate, beaten and starved by his parents, bullied at school and abandoned by social services, his life was never his own. Even after he was put into care, he found himself out on the streets caught up in a criminal underworld that knew him as 'The Kid'. Yet Kevin survived to make a better life for himself, and has become a bestselling novelist in his own right. "The Kid" and "The Kid Moves On", published together for the first time in this film tie-in edition, are his heartbreaking and inspiring true story...

436 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 2010

About the author

Born in 1970 in Southeast London, Kevin's childhood years were spent in the city's rough council estates. The violent and depraved conditions that Kevin lived in are documented in his autobiographical books The Kid and The Kid Moves On. Today Kevin combines his creative skill with his knowledge of the inner cities to write novels with gritty realism. Kevin currently lives in Surrey with his wife and two children.

Reviews

[Sarah Khater · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Kid is a book that can touch your heart to the core. Lewis has a remarkable ability to convey his long experienced feelings of pain, fear, overwhelming loneliness, happiness, pride and love through his organized use of deeply established words in every situation encountered. Every line is filled with emotions that just get you and stir your heart. This, though, may have caused some parts of the book to become a bit boring in their narration. The repetition of particular descriptions of feelings would eventually become dull and the reader loses interest in re-reading the same descriptions again.
Regardless, the story is quite overwhelming. This is the story of a man who has encountered a lot, and had to stand and fight on his own for years and years. A man who, in any normal situation, would have given up too quickly due to the cruel and intolerable circumstances of his life if it wasn't for his natural fighting and surviving spirit that found itself since youth. This is a story that can open your eyes to how hard life can be, how cruel things can get, and how close to success you can be when you decide to give up. It's a story that shows how running from your past would never lead to peace and serenity, but that facing your fears is the best and most assured way of finally coming to terms with your haunting past.
Great work from Lewis. And most definitely, if I happen to run into another of his productions, I will not let it go unopened.

[Gem · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a book that everyone should read, you will experience every emotion possible while reading it, full of sadness for what he suffered, full of anger at his parents and social services for not dealing with it, gratitude for the people who did try to help him, annoyance at the way there was one failure after another, if a child is being abused, get them from the abuser, don't send them back!!! You will feel happiness at the end when you find out how he has overcome this. Hopefully lessons will be learned from his life, but its sad to know that this still goes on and children are still let down.

Everyone needs to read this book.

[angela bestwick · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting

Oh my its so sad how Kevin was retarded by his parents in so many different ways, all his life he has jumped from idea to idea, never really growing up, naive in his outlook on life, judging others and becoming opinionated in the same way his mother was, judging his sister but not offering her children a home instead leaving them in care, his wife Jackie is a saint and so calm he makes her unreal....very very interesting story, my reason for reading it is I'm a foster carer and an a person who has adopted.

[Sarah Portsmouth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lost for words

A truly brilliant book. We need more people like Kevin to speak out about their experiences to raise awareness of what goes on behind closed doors. Kevin is an inspirational man and should feel so proud of all he has achieved. Highly recommend this book to anyone and everyone.

[Sue · Rating 5 out of 5]

Honest, poignant, open without being sensationalist. You get a true sense of the battle this man has fought to become a genuinely loving human being.

[Brianna Kennedy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Incredibly sad but a story with a positive ending. Challenging read.

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just finished this book.. even more gripping than a child called it series..