Letters from the Lighthouse: ‘THE QUEEN OF HISTORICAL FICTION’ Guardian: 1

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Bombing and subsequent hospitalisation feature in the first few chapters. These paint a grim picture of the war, but remain suitable for younger children and should not cause any problems for your class.

February, 1941. After months of bombing raids in London, twelve-year-old Olive Bradshaw and her little brother Cliff are evacuated to the Devon coast. The only person with two spare beds is Mr Ephraim, the local lighthouse keeper. But he's not used to company and he certainly doesn't want any evacuees. Desperate to be helpful, Olive becomes his post-girl, carrying secret messages (as she likes to think of the letters) to the villagers. But Olive has a secret of her own. Her older sister Sukie went missing in an air raid, and she's desperate to discover what happened to her. And then she finds a strange coded note which seems to link Sukie to Devon, and to something dark and impossibly dangerous. About This Edition ISBN: If your middle grade kids (ages 8-12) haven't discovered Emma Carroll yet, then they're missing out., Irish Times Letters from the Lighthouse starts off with relatively few characters, but the number increases steadily as the book progresses, resulting in quite a few by the end. Each character feels necessary, and it’s clear that Emma Carroll has put a lot of thought into what each one can bring to the story. This asymmetric character structure gives the story room to delve into the deep-rooted prejudices often faced by refugees, as seen through the eyes of open-minded children. By shining a spotlight on supplementary characters’ preconceptions and showing their progression towards change and acceptance, my class were able to connect with the injustices faced by refugees, both in the past and the present, on a far deeper level. Emma really described the characters, their personalities and brought them to life. I extremely liked Olive because she reminded me of a friend from Cornwall (caring). I can really imagine living in the war from reading this book as the description can draw a picture in my mind.Emma Carroll is brilliant. Everything she writes is brilliant. This is a fact. Yet, somehow, she has managed to top her previous works with the stunning Letters From The Lighthouse. There are some true heart-in-your-mouth moments and heavily moving parts that make it so difficult to put it down. You simply need this book if you're a Year 5 or 6 teacher., The Teaching Booth After Suki's disappearance, Olive's mother fears for her children's safety and evacuates them to Devon where they stay in a lighthouse. Even though Olive is in Devon, she is determined to find out what really happened to her sister. Olive is still convinced that she is still alive somewhere. With a rich cast of village characters and a theme of prejudice and acceptance, it brings history close to us, Sunday Times Summer Reading The book does not feature heavy setting descriptions. Instead, Emma Carroll increases her use of descriptive language at key points, heightening the impact on the reader. An example of this comes early in the book, when an air raid hits London. Her sudden escalation of setting at that particular moment, paints a vivid, gritty picture of life in London during WWII, making the overall scene resonate in a much deeper, more meaningful way.

Carroll has always had a passion for writing and loves researching historical settings for her books. She is inspired by the beauty of nature and often writes stories with a strong environmental message. Her work also often features strong female characters who show resilience in tough situations. I felt transported into World War II: the rushing when there was an air-raid siren, why some children wanted to be evacuated and why some children did not, living with rationing and experiencing different lifestyles once evacuated.Ask a small child to draw a lighthouse from memory, and its impressive how many can do it, even if they live miles from the sea. There’s something iconic about a lighthouse: a romanticized notion of safekeeping from the storm. The first documented lighthouse was built at the mouth of the Nile in at Alexandria in 300BC. I think this was a good book for me to write a review on as I really enjoy reading war books; I have about 10 of them. I will definitely be looking out for more of Emma Carroll's books. The main protagonists are Olive and Cliff, a brother and sister evacuated from London to a small fishing village in Devon during WW II. Their father has been killed, their mother appears to be sinking under her grief and their older sister has gone missing after a bombing raid. The author conveys the relationship between these two younger siblings beautifully; Olive's love and care for her little brother is palpable. Emma Carroll pulls on the reader’s heartstrings. She made me feel bad for Olive, but not only for her, for all people and families that suffered throughout WWII. The author used such powerful vocabulary, it felt like I was there. Not only is this a great book, it spreads a message. It shows you that just because you have a different religion, or you think differently, doesn’t mean you’re good or bad.’ Desperate to be helpful, Olive becomes his post-girl, carrying secret messages (as she likes to think of the letters) to the villagers. But Olive has a secret of her own. Her older sister Sukie went missing in an air raid, and she's desperate to discover what happened to her. And then she finds a strange coded note which seems to link Sukie to Devon, and to something dark and impossibly dangerous.