Mrs F is also the keeper of the local zoo, which has been in her family for years. There she attends daily to care for the animals that are left behind, including Adonis the Gorilla who is as moody as Joseph is. There have been quite a few books dealing with children during the blitz. The horrors and hardships they faced are ones I find truly unimaginable. With such stories, we are stripped of these great heroes and villains we come to expect. What we are left with tends to be more about survival. That living through these events is enough for anyone to go through. In coming to Joseph we see a slightly different view on this. He is someone whose anger we can see boiling up inside him. He feels betrayed and abandoned by all those who are supposed to care for him. And being sent hundreds of miles away only adds to this feeling of isolation. In this case, Joseph never feels overplayed. His feelings and emotions come across as valid to the reader. I think too often writers try and simply their younger characters. They want to show them to be childish and invalidate the experiences they go through. But here I was not only allowed to experience them for what they were but given the reasons behind them.

There are many many books about the war, specifically children's experiences but I think this one is truly unique in its own way, and provides an original story that is very engaging. Unlike other stories, Joseph moves into London instead of away from it which provides a tense atmosphere, action and a generally more exciting and original concept. This book is inspired by a true story, and I think Earle has perfected the vision and made it a truly gripping concept. Chosen by our Guest Editor for May 2023, Jacqueline Wilson,as one of her must-reads- " This story about a fierce lonely boy and his bond with a huge gorilla called Adonis is exceptionally moving." Mrs F is using all her energy to look after her animals, in times of rationing and daily bombings, in the city. She has no time to nurture this unhappy lad that has arrived. As the sirens alert the people to take shelter, Mrs F and Jospeh dash to the zoo but Mrs F's strange ritual every night has Joseph confused. First impressions: I knew going into this one that it had the potential for sadness. Not necessarily *only* because it had an animal on the cover. That in and of itself wouldn't mean it has to be sad (on principle). Once I knew that this was historical fiction set in England during the Second World War, I knew this one might be a heart-breaker. Again, war books don't always, always have to be sad tearjerkers. But the potential is almost always there. I wanted with all my heart for this NOT to be a sad book. I was okay with the potential for sadness, holding onto hope that even in wartime good things can happen... Author Anna Kemp introduces The Hollow Hills, the sequel to her dark magical tale, Into Goblyn Wood.The Nottinghill Carnival takes central stage in this story about families, memories and the power of dance and festivals. Author Yaba Badoe tells... I liked the issues and themes dealt with in this book. Especially for a children's book, the issues were not sugar coated but presented for all age groups to understand which I liked. These issues could be easily understood through the character development and readability. The dyslexia representation was very good - it was interesting to see it through a child's perspective during the war and especially easy to feel Joseph's frustration as we know what he's talking about, but of course in the 1940's they didn’t. This further strengthened the emotion and understanding of themes in this book. The representation of war time was also great. Earle does a great job of bringing the past to light and keeping it accurate. But as well as revolving around the past this story also develops around the question ‘will they pull the trigger to kill Adonis?’. This question not only keeps a tense and exciting atmosphere but also reaches out to readers - I found myself questioning if I would do it - making it a more immersive experience.

Mrs F, Grans associate is the lady now in charge of him. She is short, strict and makes it clear his behaviour will not be tolerated and sets about making him conform by going to school, doing chores and working. And this is where the story takes a different direction. Mrs F runs the family Zoo at a time in the Blitz when food is rationed and people think animals should be put down. But Mrs F has Adonis the gorilla and as Joseph works at the Zoo with the help of his new friend Syd he begins to warm to her, him and vice versa. But Joseph is not the only one with difficulties and a past and will that be the end of the loss in his short life?. Can they help heal each other?. When the Sky Falls is inspired by a true story. I would suggest that you prepare yourself for an emotional rollercoaster. I would also point out there are themes of a dark nature broached within the book that some might find a little unsettling. The characterisation in this book was really good. Each character has an easily recognisable strong personality and together they all contrast very well. This strong characterisation will definitely speak out to younger audiences and make this book popular. I especially like the pairing of Mrs F and Joseph - they are both stubborn yet vulnerable characters yet as the plot develops the unlikely pairing find a home in each other. Joseph was a very dislikable character to begin with, which made the book hard to get into as I couldn’t empathise with him. However, as Layers of his personality are peeled away throughout the book you begin to like him. And for Earle that is a great part of this story, he wishes to tell us. He shows us that be it human or animal. we all have to deal with pain and sorrow. It is some of our most basic instincts and too often it course us to lash out at those around us. We think they cannot possibly understand this raw and unbridled pain we are going through. And to some extent, this took me by surprise in a book aimed at a younger audience. Earle doesn't try and sugarcoat what is happening here. But allows the reader to experience that journey Joseph goes through. And maybe that is part of what makes this book so well, there is no dumbing down. He treats us all equally and trusts readers of any age to something that feels very real. The author of the Anastasia books as well as more serious fiction ( Rabble Starkey, 1987) offers her first historical fiction—a story about the escape of the Jews from Denmark in 1943.

I really liked this book because of the characters and how they changed over time. Joseph, a young dyslexic with anger issues, overcomes his difficulties with sharing emotions and letting people in whilst Mrs F opens up about her family. The plot is certainly different. Whilst you have our two main characters, the zoo also felt like a main character as did the war which felt eerie and ever-present in your mind. Sandy Saito loves baseball, and the Vancouver Asahi ballplayers are his heroes. But when they lose in the 1941 semifinals, Sandy’s dad calls it a bad omen. Sure enough, in December 1941, Japan bombs Pearl Harbor in the U.S. The Canadian government begins to ban Japanese people from certain areas, moving them to “dormitories” and setting a curfew. Sandy wants to spend time with his father, but as a doctor, his dad is busy, often sneaking out past curfew to work. One night Papa is taken to “where he [is] needed most,” and the family is forced into an internment camp. Life at the camp isn’t easy, and even with some of the Asahi players playing ball there, it just isn’t the same. Trying to understand and find joy again, Sandy struggles with his new reality and relationship with his father. Based on the true experiences of Japanese Canadians and the Vancouver Asahi team, this graphic novel is a glimpse of how their lives were affected by WWII. The end is a bit abrupt, but it’s still an inspiring and sweet look at how baseball helped them through hardship. The illustrations are all in a sepia tone, giving it an antique look and conveying the emotions and struggles. None of the illustrations of their experiences are overly graphic, making it a good introduction to this upsetting topic for middle-grade readers. Twelve-year-old Joseph has had it tough, not only is there a world war raging, his mum has died, his dad has been enlisted to fight, and now his Grandmother has sent him to London to stay with an old friend of hers after she struggled to cope with him, whilst other children were being evacuated out of the city. His grandmother, who is his caretaker, reaches a point where she can no longer handle Joseph's behavior. His new caretaker then is Mrs F. The direct and grumpy character of Mrs F. causes Joseph to strongly resist against her.

A deftly told story that dramatizes how Danes appointed themselves bodyguards—not only for their king, who was in the habit of riding alone in Copenhagen, but for their Jews. He struggles to deal with the fact his Mum left when he was small and now feels even more alone as his Dad is sent to fight in WW2. He skips school frustrated with a learning difficulty he hides, has anger issues, fights and does mostly as he pleases until his Gran can take no more and he is sent to London, the result of a closely guarded kept promise.We know from the start that Joseph is a troubled boy, but his full story unweaves slowly over the course of the book, as do the stories of Mrs F, the owner of a zoo who takes charge of him and sets him to work trying to find food for its starving animals (including a majestic but sad gorilla), a girl called Syd who befriends him despite all his efforts to push her away, and Adonis, that sad gorilla who is at the heart of the unfolding narratives and heart-wrenching finale. A wonderful story of hurt, kindness, and what it means to be human in an inhumane world.” - The Times of London, Children's Book of the Year

Joseph has anger issues, and that is evident from the very onset. But then again, so does Adonis, but for very different reasons. Joseph's situation is particularly poignant, and the author has got it nailed to a tee. Joseph is like a beast trapped in a cage, restricted in his movements, rejected by those around him and ridiculed by his peers. Feeling unloved, unwanted and useless. The ending of the book was suitably sad and fitted the story well; the way Joseph and Mrs F were united in the face of their mutual loss was inspiring yet devastating for the reader. Mrs F (Farrelly) is the woman who is to look after Joseph. She is a stern woman who takes no nonsense from the young lad and makes him earn his keep, much to Joseph’s disappointment. He hasn’t even been there a day when he smashes his bedroom window. Most children during the war were evacuated from cities, to safer places in the countryside. Joseph was not one of these children. He was 'evacuated' from his home in a place (which I think remains nameless) to a city (that as far as I know also remains nameless). Joseph is rude, abnoxious, and downright selfish. And he doesn't exactly get on with his host Mrs Farrelly. And when he's put to work on what remains of her zoo, it seems that even Adonis, the resident ape, takes a dislike to him. Soon, though, they seem to form a kind of friendship. But when the bombs start to fall, he has to make a choice - let the ape free or shoot him on the spot? And this decision may well cost him his life. A scrumptious plot that was fabulously delivered.

A vlog from Phil Earle all about When the Sky Falls

I am a particularly hard judge of the handling of dyslexia in novels and I found this outing a little frustrating. A heartwarming story about the value of friendship and trust. In which love plays an important role.