The Tale of Truthwater Lake: 'Absolutely gorgeous.' Hilary McKay

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This is the first book of @emmac2603 that I've read, although I've heard all good things and have a few on my wishlist. It gripped me from beginning to end, with key messages about climate change, responsibility and friendship threaded throughout. A stunning read. Probably that rationing was still in force, and that some homes, especially in the countryside, didn't have electricity or inside toilets. Polly and her brother leave blistering Brighton which is battling another heatwave. The government declares everyone has to be inside when the temperature passes 40 degrees. Polly and her brother gain some respite from the heat by staying with their aunt who has a garden that leads to a lake. Polly has just started to learn to swim so the idea of escaping her flat sounds like heave. Once told by poet Ted Hughes her writing was ‘dangerous’, it took Emma Carroll twenty years of English teaching and a life-changing cancer diagnosis to feel brave enough to give her dream of being an author a try.

Night Mayor Franklefink has vanished from the Transylvanian Express - and it's up to you to solve the case! Part of the Solve Your Own Mystery seri... Carroll has created believable characters and text that draws you in. Each chapter ending, leaving the reader wanting more.Due to the excessive heat, Truthwater Lake is drying up, revealing the remains of the old village of Syndercombe which was flooded in the early 1950s to make a reservoir to supply water. Drawn to the sight of the old church under the water, Polly swims towards it, her feet touching the roof tiles … and finds herself in a past time where she is Nellie Foster. Why did you decide to write this as a timeslip novel, bringing the past together with a near future?

LoveReading4Kids exists because books change lives, and buying books through LoveReading4Kids means you get to change the lives of future generations, with 25% of the cover price donated to schools in need. Join our community to get personalised book suggestions, extracts straight to your inbox, 10% off RRPs, and to change children’s lives.The past in the book is the 1950s, which is a fairly recent period. What stood out for you about this time and when you were researching it? Why did you decide to explore the effects of climate change by glimpsing into a near future in this story? It’s the near-future and Britain is baking in the middle of yet another heatwave. Once again, the government has put curfews in place and the shops have been forced to shut. Author Guy Bass introduces SCRAP, about one robot who tried to protect the humans on his planet against an army of robots. Now the humans need his... The section of the novel dealing with the Channel swim is beautifully written and very exciting, and the author concludes the story in a masterful fashion, letting us know what happens to each character so that the reader feels totally satisfied. Friendship is a strong theme of this book, particularly that of Nellie and Lena, and the bringing together of these two characters later in the novel is a masterstroke, and is very moving.

Modern fears about climate change and the influence of social media are framed by dives into the past. 1952 is a very different world, but has its own threats, including the risk to Nellie’s beloved village of being flooded for a proposed reservoir. There’s a lovely message about being true to yourself, even when it takes exceptional bravery. Also the enduring power of a cold-water swim! Armistice Day: A Collection of Remembrance - Spark Interest and Educate Children about Historical Moments It's during an illicit swim in the lake that Poilly finds a door handle that transports her to another time period - the 1930s where she becomes Nellie - who dreams of swimming the English Channel. It's through Nellie's eyes that we learn about her friends Nate and Lena and just what happened to the village that Nellie calls home. Polly can understand Nellie's worries, but she has some of her own in 2032. Her own best friend has ignored her for weeks after an argument, and her big brother Joel is acting strangely. Surprising news comes from home and Joel finally tells her what's wrong. The heat makes everything harder and Polly is always keen to return under the water to 1952's Nellie. At least they're not her own problems. Nowadays, she’s a bestselling author and the ‘Queen of Historical Fiction’ ( BookTrust). She has been nominated for and the winner of numerous national, regional and schools awards – including the Books Are My Bag Readers’ Award, Branford Boase, CILIP Carnegie Medal, Young Quills, Teach Primary and the Waterstones Book Prize. Emma is one of very few authors to have been Waterstones Book of the Month twice.Buy from our bookstore and 25% of the cover price will be given to a school of your choice to buy more books. *15% of eBooks. Home >