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Overall, I think this book is a great read with accurate and interesting facts relevant to the time period. This is a very exciting story, discussing Alzheimer's and bullying and other subjects along the way. Tom Palmer celebrates the unsung athletic heroes of the Armistice in a powerful tale of the fell-running messengers on the front-line of war, publishing for the centenary anniversary of the end of WWI. You can change your choices at any time by visiting Cookie preferences, as described in the Cookie notice. I found the characters Earnest, Lily, and gran quite interesting because there is a hidden story in all of the characters.Tom Palmer focuses in on one soldier, Ernest, originally a fell runner from the Lake District, and lets him tell his story of running messages between British army positions in the lead up to the signing of the Armistice in the Great War. By linking the historical aspect of the story to a modern day character in a familiar setting and emphasising the relatable, human aspects of one soldier's experiences, Tom has skilfully crafted a way for young readers to connect with an event that could too easily seem a world away from them. Pacing is strong as the two narratives unfold and the sensitivity with which grandma's Alzheimer's is handled is frankly superb.

During an emotional visit to her gran’s house, Lily manages to connect with her gran over her interest in running and is pleasantly surprised to receive a box of running logs that once beloved to her great-great-grandfather, Ernest. Tom's scrapbooks are always fascinating, full of photographs, notes and snippets of history that inspire his books, and this one is no different! Lily reads his diaries and through them discovers a hidden family history which helps her connect with her grandmother. Knowing that many cross-country and fell runners went to fight in the First World War, the story started there.They are interesting in the fact that they all have the same hobbies and personalities, as a result of this they all express their feelings in the same type of way.

I disliked Lilly’s younger brother Tim because he was extremely rude to Lilly when she raced and insulted her. I devoured it in no time at all, with the pages seeming to fly past as I was drawn in to Lily's life and her great-great-grandfather, Ernest's as he goes to war.

Today’s grandparents are often portrayed in books as retired, cosy and very much hands-on with their grandchildren. I’m not sure that there was anyone I didn’t particularly like but in the way the author has written the book I feel like a shadow has been cast over Abbie’s Dad (Abbie is a rival fell runner to Lily), he is made to be a bad person, therefore meaning that he is the ‘villain’ of the story. I hadn`t expected there to be extracts from this journal throughout, but I really liked that there was and the way that it portrayed life on the front line. I liked all the characters because they all behave differently towards each other but always support each other, whether they are rival enemies or best friends.