Published By: Wyre Owl Books
Pages: 352
Released On: 20/10/2023
Reading Age: 8-12 Years
Poppy the golden retriever returns with her younger sister, Devon, in another crazy cream adventure.
When a family of rabbits are driven from their home, Poppy and Devon make it their mission to help.
Their quest takes them to Childer’s Forest, the site of ancient and mysterious events. When the safety of their human brother, Jack, is also threatened, Poppy and Devon call on the famous Legend of Childer’s Forest for help.
*****
Thanks to Literally PR for the gifted proof of this title in return for an honest review and spot on the book tour.
I have read one of Gillian’s “Poppy” books so far – Poppy Loves Devon – and I really enjoyed it. Yes they’re aimed at children, 8-12 year olds, and at 30 I’m definitely out of that age range. And yet I loved it. It was really comforting. And this one sounded good too and I was glad to be part of the book tour.
This one struck a different feeling than the last one I read. That one felt very…what’s the word…it was quite light and fun and concerned the direct family. This one felt a little stronger, more wide reaching, more historical, more…placed in history, which wasn’t what I was expecting.
My historical knowledge is quite lacking to be honest, and so I didn’t know how much of the background was true or not, and how much Gillian had imagined, and so that send me down an interesting rabbit hole. But you can teel Gillian has done research to ensure it all fits perfectly.
It did feel like I was reading two different books at first. The opening chapter sets the scene in the 1600’s and then it goes into the story we expect, and then it ends back in the 1600’s. This took me a little getting used to as once I’d finished the first chapter, my brain was in historical mode. Perhaps if there had been some other chapters set in the past littered throughout it might have worked a bit better for me in terms of integrating the two time periods, but that’s just a personal opinion.
Considering what I got out of the last book – fun and friendship and love, I was surprised to find this one had more of a mystical, supernatural feel to it, which wasn’t unpleasant. It gave it more of an edge, which as an adult I enjoyed – although I completely accept that I am not the intended target audience, but it would be interesting to see how 8-12 year olds find this shift.
I’m not sure if Gillian illustrated it herself or not, but either way they’re lovely, simple images that really help bring the story to life.
Like I said, it is aimed at children, and it is obviously a book aimed at children. I have children in my family in the 8-12 age range and I can definitely see it appealing to them. It’s fun and cosy and friendly and heartwarming, but it is also thought provoking and at times, a little bit sad. I think it would make readers think about how the past and the present are interconnected, which wasn’t what I was expecting when I said I’d read the latest book in the series about a Labrador.
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