Simon & Schuster (12+) 9781471169816 (Paperback) Download activities and reading resources pack
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Content advice: strong language, drinking, some violence, racism, child refugee experience, authoritarianism, xenophobia, dementia, police brutality, death, terrorism, extremism.
A multi-layered story that keeps you guessing until the end. Clem celebrates her sixteenth birthday with a picnic, a day that marks a turning point as civil unrest grows due to the political shift of a totalitarian regime. Clem tells of her flight to Scotland with her sister to start a new life, but memories of the past begins to close in on her.
The book encourages empathy with refugees and helps readers to understand the dangers of an authoritarian regime without ever feeling didactic. Stories nestle within stories, highlighting the importance of telling and recording our own narratives. There’s a near-dystopian feel in this heightened state of reality that is both relatable and horribly plausible. It highlights the consequences of extremism and xenophobia. Emotion, action and foreboding threat combine to create an outstanding read.
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Clare Furniss grew up in London and moved to Birmingham in her teens. After brief stints as a waitress, shop assistant and working at the Shakespeare Centre Library, she studied at Cambridge University and worked for several years in political media relations. She now lives in Bath and has completed an MA in Writing for Young People at Bath Spa University. Clare’s novels have been shortlisted for numerous awards including the Branford Boase, CILIP Carnegie and The Bookseller YA Bookprize. You can follow her on Twitter @clarefurniss and find out more information on her website www.clarefurniss.com.