Stone Cold

by Robert Swindells

Book Overview

One of a series offering classic and contemporary writing for schools to suit a range of ages and tastes. Suitable for study at GCSE level, this novel contains scenes which may be disturbing for... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0241134943
• ISBN13: 9780241134948
• Release Date: January 1994
• Publisher: Hamish Hamilton Ltd
• Length: 144 Pages
• Weight: 0.45 lbs.
• Dimensions: 8.5" x 0.4" x 5.3"

Customer Reviews

serial killer targets street homeless!

Carnegie Medal award-winning novel "Stone Cold" by Robert Swindells, set mainly in the present day streets of London, is on one level a gripping serial-killer story. It is also a hard-hitting, thought-provoking novel that provides a grim picture of the forgotten homeless - young people sleeping rough in shop doorways. Aimed at a reading age circa 12-14 years, "Stone Cold" can be enjoyed by adults too. The plot concerns a teenager, nickname Link who, forced to leave home by his drunken abusive stepfather, goes to London but is then chucked out of his rented room after two weeks by his landlord 'Ratface'. Link is now homeless and jobless in London - and has to sleep rough in shop doorways and beg passers-by for spare change. Even more ominously for Link, Shelter, a serial killer, is at large prowling the streets of London, preying on the homeless, on a one-man mission to clean up the city streets of "dossers", as he calls them, who make the streets look "manky". "Stone Cold" describes Link's struggle to survive on the streets of London - with the added menace of a serial-killer on the loose. In "Stone Cold", the two main characters Link, a homeless teenager and Shelter, a serial-killer take turns in alternate chapters to narrate the story. The point of view shifts chapter by chapter from Link to Shelter, each telling his own personal story in his own distinct voice. Swindells technique of using two voices to narrate the story is an effective means of building up suspense as the reader sees Link and Shelter, killer and victim, on the streets of London, in counterpoint, chapter by chapter, their lives brushing against each other - and senses that it will only be a matter of time before their paths are destined to cross. In effect, the reader sees danger looming over Link before Link does himself. Link's opening words "You can call me Link" sets an informal tone that immediately helps the reader to connect with him. The reader's sympathy also naturally flows towards Link because of his vulnerability - homeless and sleeping rough through no fault of his own. Link has a sensitive, considerate nature and thinks about other homeless people's situation and not just about his own predicament. He feels sorry for 'Doggy Bag', for instance, who eats leftovers on plates in places like Macdonalds because he refuses to beg for spare change. Link thinks about the high hopes and aspirations that Doggy Bag's parents would have had for him when he was a child. Shelter, ex-army sergeant-major, tells his story in a log-book under headings "Daily Routine Orders" perhaps suggesting he is strict, tidy, organised. Resentful at being discharged from the army after 29 years service, Shelter takes out his frustration on the homeless. His cold, hard-hearted, insensitive nature ignores the fact that many so-called "dossers", like Link, are forced into homelessness. Shelter's cunning and intelligence is revealed in the way he tries to vary his approach to potential targets t

Psychopath meets runaway: the outcome seems bleak

As any serial killer knows, the easiest targets are those who wouldn't be missed - prostitutes, the homeless, the poor and alone. As for the homeless, no matter how streetwise, who can resist a couch for a night and a bowl of tomato soup? The book alternately guides us through the minds of a psychopath and a teenage runaway. On another level, it also shows how the System can spit out two human beings, turning them into something less. This is not a fairy tale and may leave your child cowering under his duvet. And yet, it may lead him to appreciate shelter, a warm bed and food in the fridge. And yes, to remember to have good friends and never to talk with strangers.

A great depiction of life on the streets

I thought this was a fantastic novel providing an excellent unglamorised vision of life on the streets. There are certain passages that describe the main character's day-to-day life that seem so realistic that you feel uncomfortable just reading it. The naivety of Link (the main character) as he sets out to survive in a hard new world provides Swindells with an excellent tool to show just how tough an existence this can be. Swindells also deals with broader issues concerning community attitudes to the homeless. The way people react to being approached by homeless people. This is made exciting through the use of a thrilling story about an ex-soldier who is stalking and murdering homeless people. A sort of one-man mission to rid the streets of this "filth". When Link becomes his tartget the reader is swept along to a thrilling conclusion. This combination of suspense and social comment make for an entertaining and thought-provoking read.

Stone Cold by Robert Swindells

The book "Stone Cold" by Robert Swindells is about a teenager living on the street. He desribes his life in detail and the experiences of a street-life, the dangers and the feelings of a homeless. The novel wants to show us that we should be careful when judging homeless, because many of them are not guilty of their situation, like this young man, called Link, who left home because of the bad conditions there. Because Link is describng his life in his own words the text is full of slang, but you learn to understand it quickly. The structure of the novel is interesting, too. It is written from two different points of view. One is Link's, the other is Shelter's. Shelter is also one of the main characters, because he is crazy murderer killing the homeless. I think this novel is really worth reading, especially if you are between 12 and 18 years, because of the very realistic and exciting description of "street-life" by Link. If you read this book you learn to understand these poor "dossers" and their life.

It's the greatest book I've ever read in my life!

You can't compare it to books from John Grisham or something like that! It's really fantastic, John Grisham is an amateur against Robert Swindells, the theme is so great, it inspires me to kill people and hide them under the floor, I'm sure Swindells is a sexy man, you could see this on the way he writes. But I did not like the protagonist, he was too nice, I prefered the murderer.