Tag: #Honesty

Norah’s Ark by Victoria Williamson

On By @f33lthesunIn Upper Key Stage 2+3 Comments

Due for publication on 29th August 2023.

I recently read and loved The Pawnshop of Stolen Dreams (reviewed here) by Victoria Williamson, so I was keen to read her new book.

The two books could not be more different but they are both superb in their own way.

Blurb

Two very different lives. One shared hope for a brighter future. No time to waste. The flood is coming…

Eleven-year-old Norah Day lives in temporary accommodation, relies on foodbanks for dinner, and doesn’t have a mum. But she’s happy enough, as she has a dad, a pet mouse, a pet spider, and a whole zoo of rescued local wildlife to care for. Eleven-year-old Adam Sinclair lives with his parents in a nice house with a big garden, a private tutor, and everything he could ever want. But his life isn’t perfect – far from it. He’s recovering from leukaemia and is questioning his dream of becoming a champion swimmer. When a nest of baby birds brings them together, Norah and Adam discover they’re not so different after all. Can Norah help Adam find his confidence again? Can Adam help Norah solve the mystery of her missing mother? And can their teamwork save their zoo of rescued animals from the rising flood? Offering powerful lessons in empathy, Norah’s Ark is a hopeful and uplifting middle-grade tale for our times about friendship and finding a sense of home in the face of adversity.

Review

Norah and Adam live totally different lives…but neither is perfect.

Neither of them want the other to know their own realities, they do not want each other’s pity, just friendship. They also do not want their parents finding out about their friendship. This leads to a lot of wrong assumptions and unknowingly saying the wrong thing. However, their common interest in each wanting a friend, wishing for a pet and trying to look after random wild or feral animals brings them together.

The alternating chapters from Norah and Adam’s points of view are really effective in telling this story.

Norah’s Ark covers a lot of themes; bullying, poverty, homelessness, child illness, climate change. Separately they are all huge, heavy themes in themselves, but the author brings them together in this story with a deft hand, making it accessible for children to read and build awareness.

She adds in a measure of how each character perceives themselves and others, their lack of awareness of how keeping things to themselves makes it worse for everyone and how piling those secrets and lies up is bound to come crashing down around them at some point.

Williamson has written a beautiful story about awful situations that opens up space for discussions about the different themes in an accessible way.

Books are a window or a mirror for the reader. Or, in the case of this book, with so many different elements, it can be both. Whichever this is for you, use it to be more understanding of the situation of others or know that you not alone.

Thank you to @NeemTreePress and @The_WriteReads for an advance copy of the book in order to provide this review.

Medusa by Jessie Burton Illustrated by Olivia Lomenech Gill

On By @f33lthesunIn Young Adult1 Comment

Exiled, with her sisters, to a far-flung island by the whims of the gods, Medusa has little company except the snakes that adorn her head instead of hair. But when a charming boy called Perseus arrives on the island, lost as he sails the seas on a quest to save his mother, her lonely existence is disrupted with the force of a supernova, unleashing desire, love and betrayal…

The stunning illustrations throughout the book, by Olivia Lomenech Gill really being the island world of Medusa alive.

Jessie Burton has retold this myth superbly, bring it bang up to date with the feminist slant it very much needed. It is told from the view point of Medusa and because of this, the themes come across much more emotionally and with impact.

As Medusa and Perseus gradually tell each other their reasons for being on this far-flung island, we can see that perception of themselves and others is a very personal thing. Perseus holds Poseidon in high regard, Medusa hates him with a vengeance. Similarly, their views on Athena differ too.

There are strong themes of self worth, perception of how you are viewed by others and how this affects your behaviours and attitudes, how the opinions (real or perceived) of others impact on you and ultimately change you.

There are strong themes of consent and respect. Medusa’s feelings of how Poseidon should have behaved towards her (as opposed to abusing his power) and how she was not to blame are deeply felt. Her sisters’ allyship is strong but not all other women are her ally. Athena’s use of privilege and power are selectively abusive.

The promises we make…do we actually know what we are promising at the time? Open ended promises are not always good ones.

Throughout the retelling, Medusa’s view of herself, others in her life and her awareness of how the rest of the world perceives her opens up opportunities for conversations to be had. Important conversations.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bloomsbury for the eARC review copy.

Mystery of the Night Watchers by A.M. Howell

On By @f33lthesunIn Children KS2Leave a comment

MAY, 1910. As the blazing Halley’s comet draws close to the earth, Nancy is uprooted to start a new life in Suffolk with a grandfather she has never met. With every curtain drawn shut, Nancy is forbidden from leaving her grandfather’s house: no one must know that her or her mother are there.

Yet, when Nancy discovers the house’s secret observatory, she watches her mother and grandfather creep out every night… Where are they going? And why mustn’t any of them be seen? Why does the Mayor hate her grandfather? As the mysteries pile up, Nancy has to bring dark secrets from the past to light – even if doing so will put her own life at risk.

A.M. Howell has done it again. A very enjoyable, mysterious, quick-paced adventure with many secrets being revealed to Nancy about her family as she investigates what her mother and grandfather are up to. Some of the secrets she is happy to discover, a couple not so much. The story is about family, the secrets they keep (and the reasons why), trust, power (how not to use it) and standing up for what you know to be the right thing, no matter how difficult it is or who it is you are standing up against. Sometimes you can be surprised by who else will stand with you once you start.

Anyone who knows me, knows I love a map in the front of a book. A.M. Howell doesn’t disappoint, featuring a map of 1910 Bury St. Edmunds as brought to life by Nancy and friends.

I was provided with an eARC of this book by NetGalley and Usborne Publishing. It is published on 8th July 2021.