posted on 13 Mar 2023

The Swish by Tash Bell

I was just a little bit nervous about reading and reviewing this debut YA novel because I am not renowned for my fashion sense, and it is a very long time since I was a teenage girl. But, after a just few pages, I was completely pulled in. Let me explain why this is such a compelling story with some truly stand- out characters.  

Kat is having a tough time as part of a close family that is struggling to make ends meet. Her harassed mum is barely managing on a low income, long working hours and mounting debts.  There is never much food in the house and Kat can never be sure if there will be enough Tampax in the bathroom cupboard.  These are real life problems that will be recognised by many readers.

Meanwhile, her dad is a writer and is shut away in the tiny attic trying and failing to write a second bestseller. She is often needed to help with caring for her toddler twin siblings who wreak havoc whatever they do. The curly ginger headed pair racket harem-scarem through the story providing plenty of noise and colour in the otherwise dreary house.  Despite being relentlessly upbeat, Kat senses that her parent’s relationship has become badly fractured and is at a loss as to how to help.  

Luckily, she comes from a family of seamstresses and is already skilled at using her sewing machine to cleverly upcycle second hand clothes and various scraps to create a distinctively eccentric style. Her close friends and family admire and encourage her to keep experimenting with her ‘ Swish’ style - but not everyone is impressed.  

The world of school presents different problems as Kat has to face the Tag Hags, a ghastly gang of girls who mock her obvious poverty. She knows that they are shallow, vain and generally worthless but they are the social influencers, so they matter. What matters even more is that they hang out with a similarly ‘cool’ set of boys from the neighbouring school and Kat is smitten with the long fringed, gorgeous Jonah. She spends a lot of time dreaming about how they might get together despite everything, so when he invites her to the Winter Wonderland Ball, she is determined to look fantastic wearing one of her self- made dresses. 

There is a more pressing incentive to create a stunning dress because there is a £500 prize offered by a local dental products firm for the best design. As the bills pile up at home, the Calpol runs out when the twins have bad colds and then the boiler breaks down with no hope of repair, Kat must find a way to win. She is confident but also knows that she is competing with girls who can afford to buy their clothes at the most extravagant places. She doesn’t have a Fairy Godmother but her Grandmother and Mum play their part in making the magical transformation.

I really warmed to Kat with her self- depreciation, strong sense of humour and ‘can do’ attitude reflected in the many practical lists she makes throughout the story. I also liked some of the minor characters like her Australian Textiles teacher, Miss Bloxam who she suspects might be ’on the run’ as Kat can’t think of any other reason for such an exotic and unconventional person working at the school. She often slips her various trimmings and scraps to take home and is full of praise for her sewing skills:

‘Kat, your gear is BONZA’

I liked Zack immediately, as the shy boy next door who has been Kat’s best friend and confidante for ever and has his own sad back story. He is a wannabe musician and when his older brother gives him a much needed haircut, he is transformed:

‘Making his way over to our table, his green eyes blaze. His cheekbones look sharp enough to do damage.’

I hope that I have given enough of a flavour of this unusual and uplifting story to encourage you to buy your own copy. It will definitely appeal to readers age 10 and above and although the packaging is very pink and girly, it will appeal to any sensitive teenager. It is available to order from good bookshops or direct from  www.candyjarbooks.co.uk 

Karen Argent

March 2023