The Fox of Kensal Green

Synopsis

The Best New Fiction —The Mail on Sunday

Dazzling Debuts to kickstart 2026 —Daily Mail

A quiet neighbourhood of London is about to be shattered.

This is a story about people coming together and looking out for each other. No person is an island, including Wilf Kelly, its hero. Many neighbours help him out on the quiet. Also on the quiet, Wilf tames a wild fox and goes on a voyage of self-discovery.

Normally, little happens in these mixed streets of families, retirees, podcasters and gossips. A little group create a community garden. An ageing journalist writes nature columns. A left-wing Scotsman longs for the glory days when he interviewed Castro. A disabled professor plans a book clearance. Supine Mario takes far too many drugs. And Wilf Kelly decides to get a fox as a pet.

When Wilf is accused of an awful crime, he becomes the target of a police and media firestorm. It’s a drama that galvanises not just the local community but people from all around London.

A superbly written debut novel with a big heart, that will make you laugh, cry and remind you of the power of community spirit.

Reviews of This Book

‘Dazzling Debuts to kickstart 2026 People who know Wilf are kind but teenagers taunt him. Kensal Green is normally a quiet area – that is, until a violent assault takes place and suspicion takes over. Original and compelling.’ —Sara Lawrence, Daily Mail

‘The Best New Fiction: Wilf is a solitary man with learning disabilities, who is on a mission to tame an urban fox. He's loved, tolerated and abused by his north-west London neighbours, but when he is accused of a crime he did not commit, they rally unanimously behind him … it's warm-hearted and observant, wonderfully capturing the thought processes of its unlikely hero.’ —Simon Humphreys, The Mail on Sunday

‘Books to Curl Up With This Month Couched in gentleness, this is the story of Will Kelly as he navigates his small world and dodges the unkind remarks about his supposed strangeness. Supported in his small London community by his friend Felicia, he decides to acquire a fox, tame it and keep it as a pet. But all comfort is destroyed when Will is accused of a violent crime.’ —Kerry Fowler, Sainsbury’s Magazine

‘The Fox of Kensal Green — Wonderful!!’ —William Walsh, author ‘Haircuts for the Dead’

‘Enter the World of Wilf Kelly – moving, heartbreaking and full of love – highly recommended.’ —Stephen the Bookworm, Waterstones

‘Beautifully written and utterly memorable, The Fox of Kensal Green will stay with me for a long time.’ —Jaffareadstoo