Described by his publisher as Porthmadog’s eccentric author, Mike Leaver is set to release a coming-of-age tale that’ll warm hearts and provoke thought.

In Nork from Nowhere, upper class teen Sara flees her parents’ middle-England mansion after a disastrous party.

She happens upon Nork, a mysterious young orphan boy. Together they go on the run. Evading the authorities and becoming ever more inter-dependent during their long journey, they find themselves in a small town, but will they become the victims of the ruthless, hotel owner McTavish – or can they discover a new life and purpose there?

This is a coming-of-age story described as both amusing and thought-provoking.

Mike Leaver is a semi-retired, handyman aged 68. He lives in a converted, static 10-ton truck on a small-town business park in Snowdonia and writes books for pleasure. Mike’s immobile home has no electricity, mains water or central heating.

As well as writing his first two novels, he is penning his life story. Like Alan Bennett’s eccentric The Lady in The Van, Mike has become a well-known character around his adopted home of Porthmadog.

Mike said: “I have a lot of experience in running away from boarding school, so the fictional version of Nork’s adventure largely told itself!

“Many aspects of my personal experiences are featured in this tale and my larger-than-life characters bring them to the fore. Truth or exaggeration? We’ll let the reader decide...”

Nork from Nowhere, published by The Book Guild Publishing is available from next Tuesday, 28 September - ISBN 9781913913342, price, £8.99

From 5.30pm this Saturday (25 September), Mike will be signing copies of Nork from Nowhere at Browsers Book Shop in Porthmadog, the exclusive local outlet for the book.