But at the same time, the Wall provides an ostensibly innocent narrative, liberated from initial preconceptions, thanks to the first person perspective of Joshua. Nor are we told that the setting is indeed the West Bank, however Sutcliffe cleverly hints at various things – the olive trees and the contrast in appearance between the two sides of the wall for instance – throughout the novel to help the reader locate themselves within the book. What I find most commendable about this work is that at no point in the story is it revealed to the reader explicitly that Joshua is Jewish and those on the other side, like Leila, a girl he befriends, are Palestinian. Compelled by a sense of adventure and intrigue, Joshua knows he may never get another chance to witness what truly lies beyond and so he crawls through it, only to enter a world miles apart from his own, yet only a few hundred metres away in reality, separated just by that large tower of concrete. Joshua discovers a tunnel whilst searching for his lost football it is a passageway to the forbidden territory: the other side of the Wall. Ever since he has lived in Amarias, Joshua has been taught that beyond this high wall, guarded by many soldiers, lies a dangerous enemy – only the Wall can keep the town safe.

Yet I think William Sutcliffe here has managed to pull it off: set against the backdrop of the Israeli occupation in the fictional town of Amarias, The Wall takes the persepective of Joshua, a thirteen year old football-mad boy, whose ball one day ends up being kicked over, near to the other side of the ominous Wall. Writing about a current conflict in the world today, from an apparently apolitical approach, and especially if you yourself are not in that situation, is a difficult task, no doubt, for any author.

The wall by william sutcliffe