No Small Thing never lapses into sentimentality, earning every bit of its considerable pathos ... an accomplished novel that, in its very attention to the ordinary, is among the most unusual and refreshing debuts I have read this year -- Kieran Goddard - Guardian

A spare, haunting tale - Observer

McDonald is skilled at investing her characters with complicated vitality ... This highly promising debut invests the small things that are so easily taken for granted with quietly shattering significance - Daily Mail

Impressively, McDonald never attempts special pleading or excusing, instead painting a bleak but toughly empathetic picture - Financial Times

Exquisite... This novel acknowledges the possibility of breaking the generational cycles of harm. The narrative hums with longing, addressing the harm that comes from feeling un-loved and unseen. But McDonald offers such hope for change in the face of the powers that be. This beautiful book will stay with you. Hold it tightly. - The Big Issue

From the powerful opening scene full of tragedy, this poignant debut about mothers and daughters really gets under your skin. The story is told over a year on a South London estate and it follows three generations of women who have all lost their way and are counting on each other to get back on track - Good Housekeeping

A crackling fire of a story ... No Small Thing is a poetic, emotional and gripping insight into race, parenthood and class in modern Britain. Compelling and unforgettable, this is a marvellous debut - Irish News

An astute debut and an invigorating read -- Lucy Popescu - Observer

A taut generational story set on a south London estate -- Martin Chilton - The Independent, July Books of the Month

A poetic , emotional and gripping insight into race , parenthood and class in modern Britain. Compelling and unforgettable, this is a marvellous debut. - Herald

A gem of a book about mothers and daughters, about being Black and working class in today's London. Beautiful writing, taut with emotion, poetry and insight. -- Priscilla Morris, Women's Prize shortlisted author of Black Butterflies

A crackling fire of a story ... this is a poetic, emotional and gripping insight into parenthood, race and class in modern Britain - Sunday Express

I loved the depiction of the joy and pain of Black working-class life in Britain, in which three generations of women reckon with inequalities and inherited trauma over a year. McDonald drew on her experience of working with children for this novel. -- Madeleine Feeny - The Bookseller fiction previews, Editor's Choice

This follows the story of three generations of women living on a South London estate, set over one year. All are lost and hurting and trying to find their way. I felt their angst and pain through the pages. Gritty and palpable - Prima

A strong debut ... McDonald demonstrates skill - Buzz Magazine

A poetic, emotional and gripping insight into parenthood, race and class in modern Britain - Daily Record

A lovely debut, full of truth, tenderness and steely grace: a highly promising first novel -- Tom Benn, author of Oxblood

Raw and beautiful: the joys and the torme