Letters from the Lighthouse: 'THE QUEEN OF HISTORICAL FICTION' Guardian

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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 The lighthouse is vital to the story and I learnt a great deal about the way the Germans used lighthouses for navigation into Plymouth. In fact, one of the wonderful elements of this gripping story is the history. There’s so much I didn’t know (and I am about to show my ignorance here) about the “Kindertransport” or that those children arrived and settled into the UK without knowing if their parents were alive or dead. I also had no idea that Jewish refugees were smuggled out of France to the UK. The book seemed to resonate with overtones of the current political state of the world, as one particular idea that runs through the story is that of humanity and what makes us human. 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. Letters from the Lighthouse will appeal to readers of all dispositions, as Carroll ensures the historical elements never overwhelm the story, which is as accessible as anything set in modern times. That said, Letters From the Lighthouse will also sit nicely with other classic second World War tales, like Nina Bawden's Carrie's War and, more recently, Shirley Hughes's Whistling in the Dark., Irish Times Set during WWII, we follow Olive and Cliff as they’re evacuated to the coast of Devon after months of heavy air raids across London. A coded note links the disappearance of their sister Sukie to Devon, and Olive is determined to unravel the mystery. My Comments

The book is based on a family whose father a pilot was losted in the fighting. We meet three siblings during an air raid in London and follow Olive and her brother Cliff on the hunt for the truth to their sister going missing. Emma Carroll clearly put a lot of research into writing Letters from the Lighthouse. It lends itself very well to teaching a WWII topic to a class, as the prolific use of wartime terminology and speech does a fantastic job of educating the reader on specific aspects of the war. I read through the book beforehand and then timed my teaching to coincide with the book so that my children were able to better visualise what I was teaching them. Class Comments The crisp prose and pacey plot make this novel a joy to read. The setting of Budmouth, a coastal Devon village dominated by a lighthouse, lends atmosphere and plenty of scope for exciting adventures.February, 1941. After months of air raid bombings in London, Olive and Cliff are evacuated to the Devon coast for their safety. Before they leave, their sister, Sukie, goes missing during an air raid, and Olive is determined to figure out what happened to her. While in Devon, Olive begins to unravel the mystery and finds out that her sister is more connected to Devon than she realized. I really understand Olive's feelings when she's on the train and Esther takes Cliff's BEANO. I think she is a kind, considerate person who adores her brother Cliff. My favourite character is Esther because she stands up to the most fierce, and even if she was a bully, that's changed now! I think she is now Olive's best friend and is willing to fight for those who can't. She has made a huge difference to herself since the beginning of the story. She shows why people bully and why they stop, my answer is, they need love and for them to be kind. Esther's story shows no matter what you look like, it's what's on the inside that counts. Well what can I say Emma Carroll has brought an enlightened and heart wrenching version of events during WW2 with the poignancy of Good Night Mr Tom and the sad reality of the plight of Jewish refugees trying to flee to the UK. 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. Along the way she meets a variety of both friendly and unpleasant characters and not all of them are what they seem.

Strong, loving and resourceful, Olive is driven to extraordinary acts of courage by her sense of responsibility to her family, like the way she fiercely protects her little brother. This is modern classic which should be read and loved by generations to come. -- Alison Kerridge, Waterstones, Bury St Edmunds The book had a happy ending, despite the difficult experiences the characters had endured and if I could, I would give this book a five star review. It is really well written. I loved how Emma Carroll told true events in history but made them fictional.

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: Emma Carroll is said to be the queen of middle grade historical fiction. One book down and a handful more to go, and I��m already agreeing with this statement! Queenie, who runs the post office in Budmouth Point, and Ephraim, the lighthouse keeper are hiding a secret. Are more people in on the secret, or not?

It's really good and definitely should be recommended for school book corners. Really interesting for people who like history and mystery. Once you get into it you can't stop reading. My favourite part was when she helped the boat in from France. And finding out more about how Cliff and Olive's father had died peacefully in the chair it was very interesting to know what had led up to that… he'd had a headache and then he'd died.A beautifully written story about bravery, compassion, understanding, and having the strength to fight for what you believe in. ~ Shelley Fallows The book revolves around Olive’s persistent efforts to solve the mystery of why her sister has disappeared and piece together the clues to find her. Why is it a good book to study in KS2? I enjoyed this book very much. I particularly liked the character Sukie and I like the part where the bomb goes off while they are at the cinema. I thought the history was so realistic and it's made me want to find out more about the history and that time period in particular. I have read Letters from the Lighthouse by Emma Carroll which I have thoroughly enjoyed. The characters and the setting was descriptive with selective vocabulary suitable for the themes. The story was set in February 1941 at the beginning of the second World War in London and Devon, two very different cities. The characters include a mature girl named Olive, her older sister Sukie who has a strange pen pal, her younger brother Cliff and her widowed mother. There is a good variety of characters in the story as their culture, personality and behaviour.