David Almond introduces his new picture book, A Way to the Stars, a story about perseverance and finding a way to make dreams come true. Chosen by our Guest Editor for May 2023, Jacqueline Wilson,as one of her must-reads- " This story about a fierce lonely boy and his bond with a huge gorilla called Adonis is exceptionally moving." A boy and a gorilla create an unbelievable bond in this powerful WWII tale for young readers, for fans of Alan Gratz and Michael Morpugo.

An emotional story about young Joseph, a child with dyslexia growing up whilst the war is raging who travels to London to stay with gruff and mysterious Mrs F. This story was beautifully written and There were many things I loved about it. When the Sky Falls is inspired by a true story. I would suggest that you prepare yourself for an emotional rollercoaster. I would also point out there are themes of a dark nature broached within the book that some might find a little unsettling. By the time the ending inevitably imperils the zoo, I hadn't been given enough for the danger to the animals to resonate, or the threat they represent, the love Mrs. F has for it... The author of the Anastasia books as well as more serious fiction ( Rabble Starkey, 1987) offers her first historical fiction—a story about the escape of the Jews from Denmark in 1943. When the Sky Falls is currently shortlisted for the To Carnegie Medal 2022 and, my oh my, I hope it wins. This book has everything that makes a children's book so deliciously enjoyable.First sentence: The platform was a battlefield: seventy yards of carnage transplated straight from the coasts of northern France. Smoke billowed; people clung to each other. Brilliantly written and fast-paced, this is a superb book. Suitable for upper key stage two and key stage three. The end note shares the true story that inspired the book, which would make for a great classroom study or project. Highly recommended.

I've been a fan of Phil Earle's work for a long while now, and ten years after "Being Billy" marked him out as a top author in the YA field, "When The Sky Falls" should catapult him into a whole new league. It's a book that's going to win awards and reach a huge audience, and the world at large is going to discover what those of us already in the know have been aware of for the past decade -- that Phil Earle is a must-read author. My favourite part of the book was Joseph’s relationship with Adonis because it was a demonstration of how he began to trust others and care for them. However, I also liked how he and Mrs F ‘finally found’ a bit of solace in each other. Joseph has anger issues, and that is evident from the very onset. But then again, so does Adonis, but for very different reasons. Joseph's situation is particularly poignant, and the author has got it nailed to a tee. Joseph is like a beast trapped in a cage, restricted in his movements, rejected by those around him and ridiculed by his peers. Feeling unloved, unwanted and useless.

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I really liked this book because of the characters and how they changed over time. Joseph, a young dyslexic with anger issues, overcomes his difficulties with sharing emotions and letting people in whilst Mrs F opens up about her family.

This masterful study in loss and redemption is a book strongly influenced by "Kes" and "The Machine Gunners" (I love the little knowing nod to the latter), but the style is all Earle's own, and it ends up sitting proudly by those two fore-runners, as an equal. It will make you weep more than once, and you're going to be biting your nails as it draws towards the climax, but ultimately it's a work that will make your heart sing. He struggles to deal with the fact his Mum left when he was small and now feels even more alone as his Dad is sent to fight in WW2. He skips school frustrated with a learning difficulty he hides, has anger issues, fights and does mostly as he pleases until his Gran can take no more and he is sent to London, the result of a closely guarded kept promise.The story opens in a train station where children are being evacuated to the countryside, except Joseph who is being sent to the city by his grandmother. An unlikely friendship develops out of need for teamwork between Joseph and his guardian Mrs F, who is in charge of the city zoo. Joseph is an unhappy lad who is missing his father fighting in the war and unable to comprehend why his mother left him. This story completely consumed me. The author was brilliant as the narrator and he told the story so well on audio. However I am glad I went in quite blind to the book but because wow, I never saw that ending coming. I finished the story completely choked, nodding my head in disbelief with mixed emotions, still thinking through the subjects raised. So many twists it left me in awe and the authors explanation of it been a true story at the end astounded me further.