Le quartier, by Héléna Sufffrin

A housing project to defend, a new path to forge: Mont-Chauvet, a suburban neighbourhood, with its dilapidated tower blocks and its legendary red sofa that lies around in the open, is set to disappear. For Aya, a sixth-form student, this is unacceptable. As the cranes draw closer to the tower blocks, she decides to put up a fight. Turning her back on a school where she no longer feels at home, she throws herself heart and soul into the work of a residents’ association and sets about organizing neighbourhood events in a bid to save her world.

A poignant battle, a fight to exist. A most unexpected array of characters. A stirring exploration of major social issues. Direct, well-paced prose

“Héléna Suffrin explores two ways of existing in a world that hasn’t reserved a cosy place for you. It’s political, and it’s gripping.” Mahaut de Butler, La bibliothèque des ados, Radio France