The Crackledawn Dragon - Abi Elphinstone

In the final book of The Unmapped Chronicles series, Morg is hiding out in The Faraway, in New York to be specific, where she meets Zebedee (Zeb) who has run away (again) from his foster home.  Disillusioned by the foster system and determined to find his own way (without having one of his outbursts), he finds himself taking shelter in an abandoned theatre where he finds a piano sat under a rather magnificent chandelier.  Unbeknown to anyone, Zeb has taught himself to play the piano and is very good at it, so much so, it draws the attention of one of the locals ... who just happens to be Fox Petty-Squabble! She heads to the theatre to investigate and finds Zeb.  Using her skills as a social worker, she manages to talk to him and promises to help once she has run home for her purse.  However, in the time that she is away, Morg puts in an appearance and manages to persuade Zeb that Fox is lying to him, and that she can give him all the riches he desires, if he will help her by getting the last of the phoenix tears that have been hidden in the chandelier above his head.  He does so but, as you may expect, things don't go quite as he expected and he finds himself dragged into Crackledawn, one of the Unmapped kingdoms, where he does the only thing he knows how to: he runs away.  With no idea where he is, he finds himself stumbling into Oonie and Mr Fickletint, the talking chameleon, aboard their boat, The Kerfuffle.  Despite vowing to never trust anyone again, he realises that he may have to trust Oonie, in order to save himself and defeat Morg once and for all. 

I have loved this entire series and am a big fan of Abi's work; Jungledrop got my class through the first lockdown last year the entire series is incredibly popular in school, so much so that there were squeals of excitement from my book group when I told them what I was reading! (quickly followed by loud moans of despair when they discovered it was an electronic copy so they wouldn't be able to borrow it from me!).  Knowing that once I'd picked it up I wouldn't be able to put it down, I decided not to begin reading it until the weekend.  The suspense was unbearable but the wait was worth every second of anticipation! 

The first chapter was reminiscent of Rumblestar and felt like coming home.  With a blend of warmth and humorous touches, Abi's writing is welcoming and draws you in from the first page.  Throughout the book she is both wise and poetic in her writing ...

'Every sunrise and every sunset you see in your world is, in fact a symphony,' Mrs Fickletint explained. 'A unique piece of music made up of a thousand sounds hauled up from the bottom of the sea by Sunraiders here in Crackledawn.'

... and has a brain that comes up with THE best character names I have ever come across - Perpetual Faff and her bag that swallows her belongings is a particular favourite, but I'm also rather partial to the idea of a hurtle turtle to keep everything tidy!

Zeb has had a difficult life and struggles to trust people.  He hasn't spent much time with one family and chooses to hide himself away instead of risking getting to know people and getting hurt - his past has clearly effected him.  Then when he meets Oonie, he is taken aback by her and her independence.  She is quite the character and her fierce sense of self and determination, despite the challenges she faces, will be an inspiration to every reader.  I was incredibly pleased to see Fox again; in fact the links to the previous books are all wonderful to see. 

Abi builds yet another wonderful world through her descriptions, scene setting and clever use of vocabulary, which results in an marvellously immersive book.  I found myself transported to Crackledawn, travelling alongside Zeb and Oonie, quite forgetting that I was actually curled up on my sofa!

I have to admit that I stayed up way past my bedtime reading The Crackledawn Dragon as I couldn't put the book down; however, I was also completely torn as I was desperate to eek it out as much as possible as I wasn't ready to say goodbye to this world! 

Finally, I'm going to be honest and say that, bizarrely, I found it difficult to write this review as I don't think that anything I'm saying is actually doing justice to the book!  In short, The Crackledawn Dragon is a masterclass in writing; a feast for the senses and an absolute joy to read.... I highly recommend pre-ordering it and then finding the time to hide yourself away so you can read it one go!

Release date: 10th June 2021.

Bank Holiday Reading

This bank holiday weekend, I've headed into crumbling homes perched on precarious cliffs; I've ventured to drama club in a bid to find out how to be myself, and now I'm sailing the high seas having travelled through a suitcase.

The House on the Edge - Alex Cotter

Faith lives on the edge of the town, on a cliff top that is crumbling, meaning that their house is in danger of being pulled off the edge in the not too distant future.  Her dad has gone missing, which has resulted in her mum retreating to her bedroom, leaving Faith to look after herself, her younger brother Noah, their home as well as her mum.  Juggling all of this is difficult enough but Noah insists that there are sea ghosts in the basement of their home.  Faith also has to cope with her Uncle, who firmly believes that their family home should come to him now their father is missing, believing that long lost pirate treasure is hidden there.  It falls to Faith to keep everything together but then how will she cope when Noah goes missing?  Can she find him, save their house, bring her dad home and work out where the treasure is hidden?

I'd heard good things about this book so I was looking forward to it and I wasn't disappointed.  There's a mysterious feel to the plot that builds from the beginning: the old house, with strange noises during the night; Noah's talk about ghosts and their mum's behaviour all contribute to the atmosphere.

Faith is a strong character who is obviously managing a lot for anyone, least of all somebody her age.  She is terrified to ask for help, for fear of the police coming to take them away from the house of which she is incredibly protective.  I feel there is a metaphor there: she is clinging to the house like she is clinging to her family as it used to be.  She is terrified of change.  

The setting is also rather spectacular, with a rugged coast-line, an ancient house full of history and the lure of the sea just itching to lay claim to the house; you will find yourself transported there, feeling the tug of the wind on your hair.

With pirates, smugglers tunnels and ghosts, this book tingles with mystery and adventure that will have you gripped throughout.

Due for release on 1st July, I know that my Year 6 Book Group will be clamouring over themselves to get to read this book first!

How To Be Me - Cath Howe

Lucas has an entire summer ahead of him with nothing to do, and since his mum died three years ago, his father has been too busy at work, and more recently with his new fiancée.  Lucas has an au pair to look after him and his two cats to keep him company, but his father likes him to be productive - piano and French lessons; summer clubs when they go abroad and now, drama club. The thought of drama club fills Lucas with fear and he is determined to find a way to get out of it.  That is until he meets Keely during the first session.  A force to be reckoned with, she worms her way into his life and won't leave him alone.  The question is, can he use his new-found friendship to help him become the person he wants to be instead of the boy his father feels he should be?

I had this on my to be read pile thanks to Nosy Crow and I was looking forward to it as I've loved Cath's previous books; however, it jumped to the top of the pile on Sunday as it's May's book of the month for the Primary School Book Club, and I'm so very pleased I promoted it!  I gobbled it up in an afternoon, utterly gripped by Lucas and his story.

Lucas is a truly wonderful character but someone I constantly wanted to reach into the book to hug him.  It is so clear that he is in pain: still mourning the death of his mother, his father is in denial about the whole thing, choosing to bury himself in his work and his new relationship instead of facing up to his fatherly duties.  He chooses to communicate with his son via texts or quick calls rather than ever really sitting talking or listening to him, and I was forever frustrated to the point of wanting to reach into the pages and give him a good shake!  Lucas is torn between not disappointing his father and being himself, and this is clearly taking its toll on him.  He longs to play the piano freely but is constantly reminded that he should simply be practising for his grade 7 exam.  His dad reminds him that he should be out kicking a ball and doing other things boys are doing, when Lucas clearly enjoys and wants to embrace  other things.  My heart ached for him at times and I definitely shed tears!

Keely; however, is a breath of fresh air!  The opposite to Lucas, with her free-spirit, her messy ways and her slightly chaotic but warm and welcoming family to support her, she is exactly what Lucas needs, if he allows her in.

Cath has a way of writing stories that tackle some difficult issues in a way that children will be able to relate to and this book is no exception: grief, loneliness, family dynamics and being yourself are all tackled superbly in this joyous book.

A word of warning though: this book may very well make you cry; it will almost certainly make you want to hug the book at the end, and it will most definitely make you want to visit Bakewell's to have cake and lemonade!

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Having devoured both of these books and adored them both, I had to choose my next books carefully!  I'm now thoroughly engrossed in The Strangeworlds Travel Agency The Edge of The Ocean and, as soon as I've posted this blog, I'm heading back to the high seas to be with Flick, Jonathan and Avery.

 

Recent Reading

In the past two weeks, I've read 3 books, talked about books A LOT in school, held Year 6 Book Group (amongst much excitement) and managed to get the April edition of the school book newsletter out to children, staff and parents just in the nick of time last night!  

The highlight of the week was coming in to school on Friday morning (after Book Group on Thursday after school), to discover that one of the group had devoured 3/4 of When The Sky Falls by Phil Earle in an evening!  The child in question isn't the biggest reader but he was loving the book so much that his reading record said he'd read for 4 hours on Thursday evening!  I love it when books have that effect on children (and adults!).

So what have I read?

The Beast of Harwood Forest - Dan Smith

It's no secret that I'm a big fan of Dan's books so it's always an exciting time when a new one arrives in the post.  The Beast of Harwood Forest follows on from The Invasion of Crooked Oak, with the children on a school residential to Heathland Camp.  As they approach the camp, Pete noticed some derelict buildings on the edge of the forest that turned out to be the abandoned Harwood Institute, which is out of bounds.  However, screams from the forest lure Pete, Nancy and Krish to investigate so, armed with Krish's torch, they head into the forest in the middle of the night ... only what they discover isn't at all what they expected...

I love the suspense and mystery in this book.  It grabbed me from the very beginning and had me suitably spooked until the end (I read the book during the day as I wasn't quite brave enough to read it once it got dark!).  With short chapters and accessible language, but aimed at Y6, this is a book that I know is already in demand in school (I already have one girl asking for it on a daily basis!). And with brilliant illustrations from Chris King, this is another big hit from Dan and Barrington Stoke. I had planned to visit Harwood Forest; however, now I've read the book, I'm not certain I'm brave enough!

Otherland - Louie Stowell

I'm a big fan of The Dragon in the Library series so I was hugely excited when Otherland dropped through the letterbox... in fact, it jumped to the top of the TBR pile, and I wasn't disappointed!

Myra and Rohan have known each other since the day they were born, and spend every birthday together.  However, they appear to be complete opposites so their celebrations end in disaster every time, and this year is no exception as Myra manages to set fire to the shed!  It is this event that leads to Rohan's sister being stolen and taken to Otherland, where the Fairy Queen is going to turn her into a changeling unless Myra and Rohan can complete 3 tasks. 

This is a brilliant read!  Portals, fairies, quests to conquer and dresses with pockets!  What's not to love about this book?  Nothing, that's what!  I absolutely adored the relationship between Myra and Rohan who seemed to bicker constantly in a very real sibling sort of way, and Mabs was an absolute joy!  With lots of twists and turns to keep you gripped, this is a guaranteed hit.  It's not often I finish a book mid-week during term time but I stayed up late one night to finish this as  I couldn't put it down.

Released 6th May.

The Three Impossibles - Susie Bower

Mim has lived her life within the walls of the castle she calls home, looked after by Foggy (Miss Fogarty) her governess, and rarely seeing her father.  The day she was born, Mim's mother died and a curse was placed over the castle, which hasn't been broken since.  When Mim's father decides she should become a princess and behave in a more ladylike manner, Mim finds it difficult to forego her usual inquisitive ways and she becomes utterly determined to understand exactly what is happening.  Setting out on the adventure of her life, she finds that she will need to solve The Three Impossibles if she wishes to save her new-found friends and bring life back to the castle.

This is a captivating adventure with the most determined main character.  Her refusal to conform is a joy to read and will be an inspiration to many readers.  With mers, wings, magic and friendship, this book will go down very well with my class in school.

Due for release 3rd June.