Pete Kalu – författare

Marcus is a 14-year-old footballing genius who keeps getting into deep trouble at school. He is the best player by far in a tough, ethnically diverse inner-city area of London. The team gets tantalisingly close to Schools League and Cup glory. His Nigerian father is a wannabe soul singer with a day job as a postman, and his English mum cold-calls double glazing. The parents are at a loss what to do with their wayward son Marcus. Dealing with deafness, shifting friends, crazy parents and a ‘special measures’ school, Marcus will have to gather all the strength he can find – in others as well as within himself.

Meet Adele Vialli: an intelligent, funny and resourceful 14-year-old – and a born troublemaker. Bored by her privileged life in a leafy suburb, Adele prefers shoplifting and hanging out with her footballer boyfriend, Marcus (from The Silent Striker).Adele is the star of her school’s football team, and when an England scout comes on the lookout for potential new players, her future seems full of promise. But when her City banker dad suddenly starts flirting with the mother of her ‘frenemy’ and fellow footballer Mikaela, a war breaks out between the two girls which threatens to throw everything off course.Teenage rivalry, family troubles – and the beautiful game. An honest, tender and witty examination of what it means to grow up in a culturally-diverse Britain today, and the struggle every young person goes through of finding out and understanding who they really are."Kalu packs plot and compulsive characters with story lines that grip" - The Voice (on Yard Dogs)

Football-crazy Leonard sits on the substitutes’ bench of the Ducie High School XI, but is never asked to play. Then everything changes. After a game near a nuclear power plant, a weird energy passes through Leonard, and that night he is visited by zombies . . .The ghostly players from the winning 1966 England World Cup team tell him that if he follows their instructions, not only will he get off the bench – but Ducie High Xl will start to take control. Leonard obeys, and the team’s prospects surge. But what is the price of the zombies’ involvement? How high will that price be – and what pound of living flesh will they demand?Zombie Xl is a story about football, friendship, family and cross-cultural teen relationships. Its humour, drama - and occasional shivers - send this book straight to the back of the net.

Act Normal: Joy and despair in Postcolonial Britain – a memoir , presents a kaleidoscopic view of the author's life. Through fragmented memories, vivid imagery, and introspective musings, Kalu explores a range of themes, from the joys and anxieties of childhood to the complexities of adult relationships, career struggles, and the enduring search for meaning.Act Normal invites readers to delve into the author's inner world, confronting universal themes of love, loss, identity, and the search for connection. Through his unique and insightful perspective, Kalu challenges conventional narratives and encourages readers to question their own assumptions about life, love, and the world around them.