FROME author Keith Stuart has been enjoying success with his debut novel, A Boy Made Out of Bricks. It has been included as one of eight books in the Richard and Judy Book Club and is also Mumsnet book of the month for February.
In 2012 one of Keith’s two sons was diagnosed on the autism spectrum. The ramifications felt huge. But then Keith and both boys started playing videogames together – especially Minecraft.
Keith had always played games and, since 1995, has been writing about them, first for specialist magazines like Edge and PC Gamer then, for the last ten years, as games editor for The Guardian. The powerful creative sharing as a family and the blossoming of communication that followed was used in his debut novel which follows the relationship of a father and his autistic son.
Keith said, “Writing this novel has been really quite an amazing adventure, and getting into the Richard and Judy book club was incredible. I met Richard and Judy in London and they were so lovely about the book – I was too starstruck to take it in really. The great thing was, Judy has been a really enthusiastic proponent of Boy Made of Blocks, even though she doesn’t play video games.
“It was really important to get the message out that, although Minecraft is a part of the story, this is NOT a book about games for gamers. It’s a book about parenthood and about finding places where you can really talk to your children.”
A recent Amazon review on the book said, “In short, this is book full of insight, warmth, love, honesty, laughter and tears. It has lessons for us all about building relationships, about accepting ourselves and others and for being thankful for family and friends.”
Since the book was released last year, the rights have been sold in 25 countries.
