Published By: Two Hoots
Pages: 128
Released On: 19/09/2024
The hungry Forest is moving forward like an army, a green and constant threat to the humans living in and on an increasingly crumbling Wall. Feather, accompanied only by her scaled ferret, Sleek, must avoid the Forest’s tentacles, and the many dangerous creatures it shelters, to return the community’s precious spyglass to its rightful place. Along the way, she develops her resilience, and meets other people living on the Wall, whose stories and experiences open her mind, and those of her community, to new horizons.
*****
Thanks to NetGalley and Two Hoots for the advanced copy of this title in return for an honest review.
I know she writes for children, but I really enjoy Frances’ books. They’re fun and full of imagination which is what you want from a children’s book, but they’ve got so much heart and substance to them that they are completely enough for this 31-year-old to fully invest in and enjoy.
It is full of beautiful illustrations. I will always be an advocate for more illustrations in adult books; why do ids get all the beautiful images! But it really helped expand on Frances’ story.
It is simultaneously a love letter to nature, but also a warning against it, the power of nature and the respect it deserves. Instead of it being humans encroaching upon and destroying nature, it’s nature that is swallowing up humanity and we’re forced into hiding.
I find Frances writes such important stories with such important messages, but she doesn’t ram them down your throat, she covers them within a beautiful story.
She manages to worm real problems and real people into such whimsical and magical lands, which makes them more relatable in this magical context. And for all the fantasy elements, the characters – such as our main character Feathers – are very real which I think is important in children’s books, because it means the young readers can see themselves in them and realise they too can achieve great things.
I find with all her books, for me anyway, that the plot and characters don’t really matter to me, it’s all about the world she creates and this sense of family and community within this world. She’s done it time and time and time again and impresses me every single time.
At less than 200 pages – with a lot of those pages taken up by illustrations – it is a very quick read for any age, but it sure does pack a punch.
Books By Your Bedside 