School for Skylarks

This is SUCH a wonderful book! It follows the story of Lyla, in denial about being abandoned by her mother, confused and intensely lonely. She is evacuated to the cold, strange and austere fortress of her eccentric Great Aunt Ada. Then, a whole boarding school of girls to stay, and her discomfort only increases as she begins to rub shoulders with girls her own age who don’t understand her at all! It’s a book about loneliness and the power of friendship, and the whole story is filled with characters who show relentless kindness and acceptance towards Lyla as she struggles to come to terms with the truth about her mother.

As historical fiction goes, this is a different take on WW2. Boarding schools are rarely used as the setting for WW2 fiction as the strict routine of life meant that very little, on the face of things, changed – however, this story explores the inner life of one girl and the effects of the war on her heart. There are glimpses of the realities of war in the letters her father sends, first from the front and then from the prisoner of war camp where he is detained, but Lyla’s experience of Britain at war is limited to the incessant knitting and Red Cross box packing upon which Great Aunt Ada insists.

For readers interested in science and maths, there are also brilliant moments in the story where Great Aunt Ada’s scientific approach to educating the girls comes to the fore.

This is a gentle, slow burner of a read with moments of genius. I smiled again and again as I read – for the kindness, for the zaniness, and for the joyful conclusion of the story. It’s a must-read for Year 7s, and will be especially enjoyed by those who already have a history of reading school stories.