Boy A

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Boy A
Author	Jonathan Trigell
Country	United Kingdom
Language	English
Genre(s)	Novel
Publisher	Serpent's Tail
Publication date	2004
ISBN	ISBN 0-676-97376-0
Followed by	Cham (novel)

Boy A is the title of a 2004 novel by British writer Jonathan Trigell. The book is the story of a child criminal released into society as an adult, taking its title from the court practice of concealing the identity of child defendants.

Published by Serpent's Tail in English speaking countries, the novel has been translated into French under the title Jeux d'Enfants published by Gallimard and also into Russian and Spanish. It won the 2004 John Llewellyn Rhys Prize and the 2005 Waverton Good Read Award. On World Book Day (UK) 2008, Boy A was voted The Book to Talk About in the Spread The Word poll.^[1]

The story has some parallels to the fates of the murderers of James Bulger, although the crime itself differs significantly. Among others, it echoes aspects of the Sakakibara Seito case in Japan and the Mary Bell case.

[edit] Film adaptation

A BAFTA award-winning film adaptation^[2] made by Cuba Pictures premièred at the 2007 Toronto Film Festival.^[3] It is directed by John Crowley and stars Andrew Garfield (who won the 2008 Best Actor BAFTA TV Award for his performance), Peter Mullan and Katie Lyons. The film is scheduled for cinematic release in the USA by the Weinstein Company on 23 July 2008.^[4]