Lee, with his Chinese mum and wheeler-deeler dad, lives in multi-cultural Peckham, until dad runs off with Yolanda. Lee and his mum get a flat over a Chinese takeaway, and because dad rarely pays any maintenance, they are poor. Bill moves in - nice, plumber Bill - and he and mum are soon an 'item', but Lee is very mixed up about all these changes in his life. Years before, dad has given mum a ring, which he claimed was worth £5000, and when Lee is in a pique over having to share a room with Bill's awful son Grenville, he throws the ring down the toilet. This is the beginning of a series of adventures for Lee and his two chums. In trying to replace the ring, Lee becomes a thief. The book is redolent of life in inner city London, full of colour and great characterisation. Lee is torn between his feckless dad and jolly, jokey, slangy Yolanda, and his sad mum, who gives up nice Bill because the children can't get along. The happy ending comes about partly through Emanuel Church and its choir school, an evangelical group that Lee has become involved with because he enjoys music. The minister and his chaotic family are good friends, and Lee, though not 'religious', responds to the way of life and the people he meets there, particularly Barry, the West Indian organist who gives him free keyboard lessons. Lee realises that lying and thieving are not going to solve his problems, and when he is able to sort out his wayward family and his own emotions about them, he has a greater chance of real happiness. A long novel with lots to think about.