Middle Grade
Here's what readers have to say about this book....
This novel is masterfully written, pulling the reader into a world that feels at once familiar and quietly enchanted. The dialogue is so strikingly authentic that it carries you directly into the lives of its characters—children whose voices ring with conviction, humour, and vulnerability. Around them, a shimmer of magic lingers, never blatant, but sensed just beyond the edges of the everyday. The story follows two groups of somewhat solitary children who find their spiritual home on a remote island. When its future is threatened by the intrusion of a new hotel to be built there, they are compelled to defend it. Their intuitive imagination and relentless curiosity open doors into secret realms hidden from the pragmatic adults. Along the way, they encounter strange figures, surreal twists, and otherworldly happenings. Help comes from unexpected allies, yet the real heart of the tale lies in the children themselves—facing adversity with natural strength, naïve resilience, and good humour, even as darkening forces of greed and alienation close in. At once whimsical and profound, the novel is a subtle meditation on innocence, imagination, and the fragile spaces—both real and spiritual—that need protecting. It lingers with you, like the aftertaste of a dream you’re not quite sure you’ve left.
My grandma recommended this book to me and I really love it. The mystery it leaves after every chapter makes you want to read on and find out more. Because of this it really brings the story to life in your head almost as if you are one of the characters in it. I can imagine myself climbing through a dark dingy tunnel or a prickly thorn bush which makes the story very captivising. At first I thought this book was going to be a non-fiction story about someones life story, but I was to quickly to judge as I instantly fell in love with its constant questions. I ask myself like "What could be there?" or "Who is it?" Storys that leave you questioning whats going to happen next one of my favorites!
This is a mystery adventure for the modern age. The rich prose draws the reader into a thoroughly engaging story of a group of children fighting the timeless battle of good against evil. A tale to stimulate the imagination, both young and old.
A totally engrossing tale of 4 children and a myriad of unusual characters they meet while trying to save an island that they love, from development. The author weaves a tale, through lovely descriptive writing as well as drawn sketches throughout the book that are quite endearing. I rambled through this adventure in one sitting, and frankly, it took me a while to withdraw myself from the world that the book created. I loved this story and would highly recommend it to anyone who wishes to read a tale that is wrapped in sensitivity, humor, mystery and fantasy. Hoping that there is a sequel!!
A group of children, a philosopher and a merman fight to save a bewitched island.
Finding their spiritual home on a remote island threatened by a new hotel, two groups of somewhat misanthropic children have no choice but to fight to save it. Intuitive imagination and dogged curiosity unlock ‘marginal lands’ which lie beyond the reach of mere adults.
In worrying adversity, they face and meet strange individuals and get caught up in surreal and bizarre happenings. Help comes from a laid-back American philosopher/painter who lives in an unearthly shack in the woods, and a merman who seems to have emerged from the deep.
Increasingly alienated by darkening forces and adult greed, will the children manage to retain enough natural strength, naivety and good humour to see them through their adventures?
Illustrated throughout by the author.
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