LITTLE BOXES

This is a coming-of-age story about friendship and love, loss and survival. But also a story of sacrifice, violence and growing up different, told against the heat and claustrophobia of Brighton over a few weeks one summer.

Cecilia writes beautifully, every scene is full of texture and colour, and relationships are sharply observed. She brilliantly captures the insecure, vulnerable time of being in your early twenties and questioning if you're on the right path, and fearful of not having started living yet.

‘Cecilia Knapp is a great writer. I love her.' - Kae Tempest

‘LITTLE BOXES is a powerful, vivid and enchanting debut.' - Salena Godden

‘Cecilia Knapp is a rare, rare talent. The sort of writer you get excited to have found and then look forward to devouring more of their work. This book in particular is a work of craft, heart and beauty and I envy new readers their first opportunity to meet these characters and spend time in this world.' - Kerry Hudson


After Matthew's grandfather dies suddenly, on the first day of a sweltering seaside summer, four friends struggle to face the loss. Leah and Jay, a couple since their school days, find their relationship tested, while Nathan deals with a vast and unrequited love. Matthew grapples with his sexuality and each of their families starts to fracture, facing the trauma of their pasts in the wake of this fresh tragedy. In the days that follow, Matthew starts to unearth his grandfather's past and finds a doorway to a difficult life, full of secrets, discovering he and his grandfather may have had more in common than he once thought.

Cecilia Knapp is a poet and playwright. She has read work all over the UK and internationally including residencies in Paris and Johannesburg and has been featured in Vogue as one of the UK's young writers to watch. She was shortlisted for the 2020 Outspoken poetry prize and her poems have appeared in several magazines and anthologies. Her first theatre show, Finding Home, toured U.K. theatres extensively and her latest play, Losing the Night, recently enjoyed a sold-out run in London before a UK tour. She is an ambassador for mental health charity CALM. LITTLE BOXES is her first novel.