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The Light Jar

Book Synopsis

The second read-in-one-sitting mystery from the bestselling author of The Goldfish Boy, one of 2017’s biggest children’s books.

Nate and his mother are running away, hiding out in a tumbledown cottage in the middle of a forest.

When Mum heads off for provisions, and then doesn’t return, Nate is left alone and afraid, with the dark closing in all around him.

But comfort can come from the most unexpected of places – a mysterious girl trying to solve the clues of a treasure hunt and the reappearance of an old friend from his past.

Will Nate find the bravery needed to face the troubles of his present and ultimately illuminate the future?

A story of fear and hope, loneliness and friendship. A genuinely gasp-out-loud twist. A page-turning, twisty mystery with characters to root for.

Our Review Panel says...

The Light Jar is an intriguing and enjoyable story that features a boy who is compelled to find coping mechanisms for real and metaphorical darkness. What is exceptional in this text is the way in which the real and the imaginary are seamlessly merged so that its sober themes (including domestic abuse) can be processed through fairytale filters of cottages in the woods, jars of light and mystery treasure hunts. This brave and thought-provoking book brilliantly captures the feeling of finding oneself caught on thresholds that will seem familiar to readers in upper KS2, such as childhood versus adolescence, attachment versus separation and reality versus imagination…

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