This book was delightfully uncanny at times, and pretty terrifying at others. But it is also full of friendship and the freedom of childhood summers, and families both loving and damaged. Luxuriantly illustrated by the fabulous Levi Pinfold. This exceptional book about friendship and paths not taken should rake in awards.' Observer Clay Sandford is Amanda’s husband, a media studies professor who’s comfortable being the easygoing counterpart to his more strong-willed wife. But when the power goes out, Clay is completely helpless, struggling to problem-solve through a crisis. Hex (Hector), doesn't know why he does the stupid things he does. They just happen - without thought or planning. Sure he ends up in the principal's office more than he should and he makes other children cry, but he doesn't really mean to.

The Worlds We Leave Behind: This is an incredible book about friendship, family, and memory. The main character, Hex, or Hector, is blamed for causing an accident, whilst playing in the woods, and runs away. He discovers a clearing in the woods, and just as in any fairy tale, a strange cottage, inhabited by a mysterious old lady. She offers him a deal to remove those who wronged him from the world and Hex can continue to live his life as before. The Primary School Library Alliance is calling on the government to match-fund the private investment it has brought into helping primary schools c...

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I received an ARC of this book courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review. The quotations are taken from an unfinished copy and are subject to change. Decisions are made, both good and bad, friendships blend and blur, and a little girl in the centre of it all smiles throughout. Special thanks to NetGalley and Harper Collins Publishers/Ecco for sharing this ARC with me in exchange my honest review. Professor Stephen Martin, Honorary Professor University of Worcester and Visiting Professor in Learning for Sustainability, University of the West of England, UK

These are the lingering questions that challenge the young boys of this story - Hex, 'ill-fated and ill-stared', and Tommo, Tommo and Jayce - 'they'd been a pair since day one', inseparable since always - 'after ten years or so, they were still best mates' - until one fateful incident forever tampers the very balance of these friendships. 😔 When Hex - 'short for Hector' - wanders into the forest, determined and set on revenge for the pains of shame and humiliation he felt at the hands of others, for 'there is no Band-Aid for that, no salve or bandage or cold compress that can soothe a stunned ego' - makes a deal with a witch to change the past - only for Tommo and Jayce to wake up the next morning - without any recollection of Hex, whatsoever. What follows is this gripping and tragic tale of how far Tommo will go to fix the errors of one's mistakes, and at what cost, we are willing to change our own lives, for the sake of others.❤️‍🩹❤️‍🩹 This is a lucid collection of short chapters on some of the world’s most intractable issues like globalisation, climate change, human population and migration. It is a unique and prescient contribution that helps make sense of an increasingly unpredictable and unsustainable world." When he and Tommo return to the swing, Sascha's older sister is ready for them. Hex comes off second best, bruised and sore. He runs again, only to find himself in an unfamiliar clearing. A small cottage sits in the centre and an old woman welcomes him inside. She cleans up his cuts and then offers something strange. She believes revenge is called for. An eye for an eye. A tooth for a tooth. She can arrange it. All Hex has to do is crush an acorn she offers him, and the bully will vanish! Over the course of the next few days, tensions surface between the two families and fear is the overriding emotion. There is no cellphone, radio, or tv reception, leaving them totally cut off from the world with no idea what is happening beyond their four walls. The characters that the book had, for me felt relatable and also were likeable. I liked that the character's had some flaws and that they weren't perfect. I liked that one of the characters within the book stood up, with some help and shared their knowledge on what they know that was happening in the world. They took a type of responsibility and didn't just stay quiet on the matter. I also liked that we got to meet some new characters as the book went on.Archie, long limbs and acute angles, barely convex chest sprouting brown twists at the pink nipples; Rose, curvy and jiggling, downy with baby h I began writing poetry seriously (and awfully) as a teenager, but I’d had a typewriter as a kid and banged away on it, though I’ve no idea and no memory of what I was writing. The narrative stance is like a third-person stream of consciousness, jumping in and out of people's heads and full of observations that are both unnecessary and articulated in try-hard style ('the phones worked on them like those bulbous flutes did on cobras', 'Rose was particularly susceptible to the tart charms of vinegar potato chips'). An extraordinary story about friendship and betrayal. Of revenge and retribution but also redemption. Perfect for 11+ readers who enjoy Stranger Things. Shortlisted for the Carnegie Medal for Illustration in 2023. The Worlds We Leave Behind is a story about friendship, retribution, and finding the strength to face down monsters, aimed at younger readers who enjoyed Stranger Things.

Bestselling author Alexandra Christo, author of TikTok sensation To Kill a Kingdom, introduces her new book, The Night Hunt (Hot Key Books), a dark... Content warnings: depiction of racism, vomit, loss of teeth, disease on unknown origin, alcohol abuse, spiders For now is the best we can ever do. There’s always another threat round the corner, but we face it, deal with it, and then we face the one after that . . Do you remember how we were all made to read those "moral stories" as kids? Well, as a mom, a story teller and a book lady to the children of my city for several years now, I personally dislike those. They are preachy, they are oversimplified—a child did not listen and so they were taught a tough lesson—and they make reading boring. I read this book in two sittings, and when I wasn’t reading it, I was thinking about it. In fact, I finished it last week and I’m still thinking about it. The ending is not tied up in a neat bow, which will bother some readers, but I thought it was perfect and fitting. This won’t be for everyone, but it was certainly for me.

The story terribly reminded me Jordan Peele’s “Us’: Family with two kids renting a vacation home and but another family appears at the door. Thankfully they are not their evil twins to come for replacing them like Us’ plot-line. This story is mostly psychology suspense, it is not a horror story! This is my favourite kind of story where magic is rolled into the fabric of everyday life. Best friends Tommo and Hex are hanging out when a small girl is injured, but worse things are yet to come. Both boys are caught up in a world which can swallow people and erase everything they have ever done or affected in their lives. From acclaimed author and illustrator pair A.F. Harrold and Levi Pinfold comes another powerful and poignant story about friendship, betrayal, and redemption. Hector is the class clown and sometimes, just sometimes, the class bully. One day he causes an accident and suddenly his one true friend and life are no longer the same. Full of anger and a sense of injustice, Hector is offered an unusual deal by a strange old lady and her dog. Offering to make everything better by simply removing the person who has done him wrong, Hector struggles to do what’s right. Before long, life has changed and the world is not as it was. Will it ever be the same again?