Must read: All Grown Up by Sophie Parkin

ALL GROWN UP by Sophie Parkin (Headline Review, pounds 9.99)

You know where you are in Sophie Parkin's first novel when a piperade is described as "egg car crash ... more blood, pass the ketchup".

As stories of chaotic childhoods go, this one is particularly startling: a stomach- churning blend of Sixties sex, druggy parties and ordinary foodie trivia (it could be retitled The Miss Whiplash Cookbook), seen through the eyes of a small girl. Parkin, daughter of the more famous Molly - though perhaps one shouldn't read too much into this - recounts with sophisticated charm the story of Coco's journey from turbulent youth to the calmer waters of motherhood.