Moa is fourteen. The only life he has ever known is working on the Frontier sugar cane plantation for endless hot days, fearing the vicious whips of the overseers. Then one night he learns of an uprising, led by the charismatic Tacky. Moa is to be a cane warrior, and fight for the freedom of all the enslaved people in the nearby plantations. But before they can escape, Moa and his friend Keverton must face their first great task: to kill their overseer, Misser Donaldson. Time is ticking, and the day of the uprising approaches...

Irresistible, gripping and unforgettable, Cane Warriors follows the true story of Tacky’s War in Jamaica, 1760. The story begins with Moa being awoken in the middle of the night by one of the rebels who informs him that the revolt will begin on Easter Sunday. Moa’s father doesn’t like the idea of Moa joining the rebellion but his mother gives Moa her blessing.  Moa’s best friend is Keverton who is two years older than him.  They are the main protaganists of the drama and through them we see brotherhood, courage, faith and sacrifice.  We see them launch attacks on slave masters and free slaves from neighbouring plantations.

It’s an untold story that pays homage to freedom fighters all over the world.

BIO

Alex Wheatle is the author of several novels, some of them set in Brixton, where he grew up.

Born in London of Jamaican parents, his first book, Brixton Rock (1999), tells the story of a 16-year old boy of mixed race, in 1980s Brixton. Brixton Rock was adapted for the stage and performed at the Young Vic in 2010. Its sequel, Brenton Brown, was published in 2011.

His second novel, East of Acre Lane (2001), has a similar setting, and won a London Arts Board New Writers Award. A prequel, Island Songs, set in Jamaica, was published in 2005,  and a sequel, Dirty South, in 2008.

Other novels include In The Seven Sisters (2002), in which the scene moves to Surrey in 1976, where four boys escape from an abusive life in a children's home; and Checkers  (2003), written with Mark Parham, was published in 2003. His most recent novels, Liccle Bit (2015), Crongton Knights (2016) - winner of the Guardian Children's Fiction Prize - and Straight Outta Crongton (2017), are novels for young adult readers, focusing on the lives of teenagers and families on the fictional South Crongton council estate.

In 2010, he wrote and toured the one-man autobiographical performance, Uprising. His play, Shame & Scandal, had its debut at the Albany Theatre, Deptford in October 2015. 

Alex Wheatle lives in London. He was awarded an MBE for services to literature in 2008.

REVIEWS"Alex Wheatle writes from a place of honesty and passion with the full knowledge and understanding that change can only happen through words and actions." -- Steve McQueen, director of 12 Years a Slave

"...superb foray into historical fiction...this intense, affecting story of courage, bloodshed and commitment to freedom at all costs." -- The Guardian

"It’s passionate, important and Wheatle’s best novel yet." -- The Times

"Giving voice to characters seldom heard in British children’s books, this is an important, powerful novel about hope, freedom and brotherhood." -- The Observer

"I read it in one sitting. I simply could not put it down. Cane Warriors is such a powerful narrative of trauma and triumph." -- Carolyn Cooper, PhD, The Gleaner

"This is a vital part of British and Jamaican history bought vividly to life. Alex Wheatle has reclaimed our ancestors and given them have the voice they were denied" -- Catherine Johnson

[H]  Black Sheep  /  October 20, 2020

0.6" H x 8.6" L x 5.4" W (0.75 lbs) 160 pages

[P]  Black Sheep  /  October 20, 2020

0.6" H x 7.9" L x 5.2" W (0.45 lbs) 192 pages

For ages 12 to 17