The Wreck of the Zanzibar

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The illustrations are gorgeous, for their part, though, and really very enjoyable as an alongside. It's a small, distant story, and it does have a very significant (and, as it transpires, titular) turtle storyline so if you happen to find those traumatic, even by mention, this might cause more strife than you were expecting. Morpugo is such an atmospheric and prolific author, it feels mean to not enjoy his books, which is, perhaps, part of the problem I had with this. I always think I'll love the work, and then sometimes I simply don't. Perhaps with this it's because there really isn't much to tell in this story, and perhaps in itself, that is a good change to have. There's a lot to think about, for younger readers, and a lot of putting oneself in the central character's place - imagining a kind of desolation it's hard to conjure up in an increasingly globalised world.

Wreck of the Zanzibar by Michael Morpurgo | Waterstones The Wreck of the Zanzibar by Michael Morpurgo | Waterstones

Written as a diary entry - I like the idea of doing up the classroom like a set from the book and using maps to find out where the Scilly Isles are and what they look like. With the help of an eccentric ally, best friends Daniel and Gracie lift an island curse while saving a group of beached whales. Ages 8-12. Continue reading » Despite the title, this is no historical novel, and the eponymous 18th-century war does not enter into the fervid plot. The war here is of the type waged primarily in fiction: an all-out battle at a Continue reading » Writing. Drama or discussion task – related to the chapter/s read and covering a wide variety of genres.Laura Perryman's family has always lived on Bryher. She lives with her twin brother, Billy, and her mother and father, and her Granny May. They have four milking cows, which is enough to keep the entire population of the island supplied with milk. Of course, almost evey family keeps a fishing boat. The sea feeds the people of Bryher. But can you imagine how it must feel to grow up in such a tiny community, working so hard and having so little? Billy, fourteen years old and bored with the unending milking routine, is feeling the strain. suspenseful, ultimately tragic novel opens as 18-year-old Tommo Peaceful stays up all night "to try to remember Continue reading » In trouble at school and at home, Harry can do little to please his demanding stepfather; Harry's mother, preoccupied with her new baby, has no time to spare for her eldest son. Harry's world is Continue reading » The hardship on the island deepens when a storm rips off roofs, smashes houses and drowns the few cows on which the islanders are dependent for their milk. Hope disappears. Even Laura's parents are estranged from each other because of Billy's departure.

Wreck of the Zanzibar – HarperCollins Publishers UK The Wreck of the Zanzibar – HarperCollins Publishers UK

So, when the General Lee bound for New York calls at St Mary's for repairs to the mizzen mast Billy secures his passage as a cabin boy. He has left the islands before his parents know anything about it. Laura has lost her twin brother. She is devastated. Her parents are also devastated. They have lost their only son. And ill fortune besets the family. They lose their cows. It's a very bad time. Everyone is hungry and families start to drift away from Bryher. When Granny May had gone up to bed this evening Father said, 'It's like the beginning of the end. In a few years' time Bryher will be like Samson and Tean, abandoned and deserted, left to the rabbits and the birds.' He cried and I knew I didn't hate him any more, I knew I loved him still. Mother won't cry. I've never seen Mother cry. She put her arms around Father and held him, and that's the first time she's done that since Billy left. Forgotten the title or the author of a book? Our BookSleuth is specially designed for you. Visit BookSleuth An opportunity presents itself and Billy takes it. He leaves Bryher without saying goodbye to his family. Mother is heartbroken and retreats into her shell. The rest of the family, devastated, find their own ways of dealing with this grief. More misfortune strikes as a storm wipes out the cattle, the hens and ruins their houses. Things go from bad to worse before they start getting better towards the end. In a disappointing effort, a distinguished British team turns out a plodding tale about a misunderstood, almost mute giant who saves the town and gets the girl. The cruel villagers call the giant Continue reading » I thought the opening was lovely and the chapters are brief with the first person narrative flitting between Michael and Laura. Elements of the story reminded me of Why the Whales Came which I thought to be far better.

What can I read next?

Like the acclaimed Number the Stars , this well-plotted novel features a young Gentile hero battling the Germans in their war against the Jews. As it opens, Jo is guarding the sheep when his dog Continue reading » The book is written in the form of a diary. The entries are shorted on days of turmoil and frustration. The entries are longer when something remarkable has happened. Former British children’s laureate Morpurgo (War Horse) offers a sweet, touching historical novel (published in the U.K. in 2008) that balances sentimentality with humor and action. The orphaned Continue reading »