Books / Interviews
Acclaimed debut novel set in Easton
Moses McKenzie hopes that his debut novel, An Olive Grove in Ends, set in Easton around Stapleton Road, will propel him to become a world famous writer.
Named as one of the Observer’s ten best debut novelists of 2022, he is already writing the screenplay of the book, which has been optioned to become a television series before even being published.
An Olive Grove in Ends has been described as a “remarkable” and “daring” debut which sees his protagonist, Sayon Hughes, longing to escape the volatile Bristol neighbourhood known as Ends.
is needed now More than ever
“I don’t feel attached to Bristol,” 24-year-old Moses says on the new episode of the Bristol24/7 Behind the Headlines podcast.
“I think when people say Bristol, they think of things like white, liberal, cyclist, Green Party, marches type Bristol that I don’t feel comfortable with. I don’t feel part of that and I don’t want to be part of that.
“Whereas my Bristol is – or was – very black, very Caribbean, very Somali, and very much apart from the image of Bristol that a lot of people outside of Bristol and even inside of Bristol have.”
Listen to the full interview with Moses McKenzie on the latest episode of the Bristol24/7 Behind the Headlines podcast:
An Olive Grove in Ends will be published under the Wildfire imprint of Headline on April 28.
Main photo: Little Brown
Read more: Many young people from south Bristol have never visited Suspension Bridge
Our top newsletters emailed directly to you
