| Selected as an Observer Best Debut for 2026, Wimmy Road Boyz is one of this year’s most fanfared novels, also appearing on books to look out for lists from the BBC, Bricks Magazine, Dua Lipa’s Service95 and Shortlist, amongst others.
The novel recounts a seminal night in the lives of three young British Pakistani men on Manchester’s Curry Mile. Told in a truly ingenious, unfettered, pulsating style all of its own, you will not have experienced much writing that comes close to the linguistic energy and thought-provoking force of Sufiyaan’s work. As publisher, Penguin imprint, #Merky Books puts it: ‘Wimmy Road Boyz is a blistering story of masculinity, violence and love set over the course of a single, surreal night from a wholly original new British talent.’
We expect tickets to fly out for this. Don’t leave it too long before nabbing one for yourself!
—
‘Compulsive, raw and searingly honest.’ Nussaibah Younis
‘An energetic-livewire masterpiece’ Nikesh Shukla
‘Wimmy Road Boyz has a rhythm and style all its own, pushing the boundaries of language, full of storytelling energy and voices that feel true to the lives Salam has expertly created.’ Derek Owusu
‘The energy of Salam’s work was beyond . . . dazzling in its daring and reach’ Jacqueline Crooks, author of Fire Rush
‘Freewheeling, risk-taking and ceaselessly fun, this intense, multi-voiced novel is immense in its ambition and singular in its achievement. It really is one hell of a ride ’ Gurnaik Johal
‘Riotous. . .raucous, wildly inventive’ The Observer
‘Inventive and highly enjoyable’ BBC Books of the Year
—
Sufiyaan Salam is a writer and former animator from Blackburn. He’s working on several TV & feature projects, and co-wrote the short film MAGID / ZAFAR, which won the BIFA award in 2025 and was shortlisted for a BAFTA for Best Short Film. Wimmy Road Boyz, winner of the #Merky Books New Writers’ prize, is his first novel.
Multi-award-winning, Nikesh Shukla, is the author of seven novels for adults and children. He is also the editor of the bestselling and highly influential essay collection, The Good Immigrant, and co-editor of The Good Immigrant USA. He wrote the 2023 Spider-Man India miniseries, ‘Seva’ for Marvel, has won several awards for writing the short film, Two Dosas, and worked in multiple writer’s rooms including on projects for Apple TV, Amazon Prime, HBO and Sky.
Sufiyaan Salam photo credit: Alina Akbar
PLEASE NOTE THE START TIME IS 7.30PM |
