Author(s): David Almond

Young Adult Fiction

This is a moving, funny and inspirational novel from the bestselling author of Skellig.

"The day is long, the world is wide, you're young and free."

One hot summer morning, Davie steps boldly out of his front door. The world he enters is very familiar - the little Tyneside town that has always been his home - but as the day passes, it becomes ever more mysterious. A boy has been killed, and Davie thinks he might know who is responsible. He turns away from the gossip and excitement and sets off roaming towards the sunlit hills above the town. As the day goes on, the real and the imaginary start to merge, and Davie knows that neither he nor his world will ever be the same again.

This an outstanding novel full of warmth and light, from a multi-award-winning author. David Almond says: 'I guess it embodies my constant astonishment at being alive in this beautiful, weird, extraordinary world.'

Sasha's Review:

It's summer in Tyneside and a teenage boy has been found murdered. Worse still, the dead boy is a Killen and his killer is thought to be a Craig, each members of families on the verge of warfare at the best of times. Young Davie is one of the first on the scene, and he is no stranger to the pain and rage of grief, having lost his Father to illness only a few weeks ago.

But there's something unreal in the atmosphere, like a spell cast over the whole town. It's the kind of day when almost anything can happen, where perhaps the dead are not so much gone as they are distant, and perhaps miracles can occur. A place where childhood ends and innocence is lost, but something glorious is born.

Ages 14+