The Girl Next DoorA True Story of Boyhood, Loyalty, and the Weight of a SecretBefore the stage, before the spotlight, there was a soccer ball, a compound in the Copperbelt, and a summer that changed everything. John is in his final year at Lion's School, counting down the days until the holidays - soccer with the boys, freedom, and nothing to worry about except which secondary school to choose next.
Then a new girl moves into the compound, and every boy in the neighborhood falls a little in love, including John's best friend, Steven. John becomes Steven's secret weapon - the clever one, the "love doctor" coaching him line by line on how to win her over. It works. Steven gets the girl. But nobody planned on what happens next: the girl starts falling for the boy who was writing the script all along.
What begins as a harmless favor between friends spirals into something neither of them can walk back - a friendship tested, a betrayal neither saw coming, and a choice that will follow John long after the holiday ends. Told with humor, heart, and unflinching honesty by Zambian musician and albinism advocate John M. Chiti - the real-life inspiration behind the Netflix film Can You See Us? - The Girl Next Door is a coming-of-age memoir about first love, loyalty, and the lessons boys learn the hard way.
The Girl Next DoorA True Story of Boyhood, Loyalty, and the Weight of a SecretBefore the stage, before the spotlight, there was a soccer ball, a compound in the Copperbelt, and a summer that changed everything. John is in his final year at Lion's School, counting down the days until the holidays - soccer with the boys, freedom, and nothing to worry about except which secondary school to choose next.
Then a new girl moves into the compound, and every boy in the neighborhood falls a little in love, including John's best friend, Steven. John becomes Steven's secret weapon - the clever one, the "love doctor" coaching him line by line on how to win her over. It works. Steven gets the girl. But nobody planned on what happens next: the girl starts falling for the boy who was writing the script all along.
What begins as a harmless favor between friends spirals into something neither of them can walk back - a friendship tested, a betrayal neither saw coming, and a choice that will follow John long after the holiday ends. Told with humor, heart, and unflinching honesty by Zambian musician and albinism advocate John M. Chiti - the real-life inspiration behind the Netflix film Can You See Us? - The Girl Next Door is a coming-of-age memoir about first love, loyalty, and the lessons boys learn the hard way.
