5.0 out of 5 starsA brilliant continuation
ByTales of a Librarianon 17 January 2016
Format: Kindle Edition
There is an inherent charm to Minett's writing. A real sense of place and feeling without indulging in sentimentality. It's impossible not to feel for Billy and the acuity with which we see the changing world through a young boy's eyes is uncanny. The continuing distance between Billy and his aloof mother feels very authentic and as with the first book, the historical detail is richly woven in. This is an absolute treat for fans of Michelle Magorian's Goodnight Mr Tom. Utterly spell binding.
5.0 out of 5 starsA worthy successor to Intrusion.
ByPyewacketTOP 1000 REVIEWERVINE VOICEon 3 July 2015
Format: Kindle Edition|Verified Purchase
The War is starting to affect peoples lives in London so Billy and his family are evacuated back to the Country. His Mother, his Sister and his Aunt and also Kenneth are billeted at the Vicarage. Billy stays with a lovely old couple called the Pawseys. His friend Alan has also been evacuated to the same village.
This is the story of a young boy's growth during the war years. He comes across tragedy and horror but he has a picture of his Shaska hidden under his bed. He looks at it everytime he is frightened.........until the fateful day when his Uncle Frank is killed and the awful Kenneth stays the night.
The Pawseys give him a Camera for his Birthday and he starts to get more confident each time he uses it. He even loses his stutter.
This was a lovely book to read and I am looking forward to the next one.
5.0 out of 5 starsWonderfully written books. It would be difficult to be too complimentary.
ByJamesFon February 22, 2016
Format: Kindle Edition|Verified Purchase
I'm a 77 year old man, and while I think that this might be a book aimed at children, I must say that I haven't enjoyed anything this much in years. The author has an amazing ability to think as a boy would. I have read the first two books in the trilogy and can't wait for the third book.
I have just downloaded another of her titles. Great writing!
‘A boyhood rivalry mirrors the tensions in Europe during WWII’
The second book in a planned trilogy, with Intrusion being the first volume this is a story about a young boy, Billy, growing up – and surviving in more ways than one – through the years of WWII, having to face not only the war but family conflict as well.
In book one, six-year-old Billy’s bully of a cousin, Kenneth, invaded his life as much as the war itself and in this story the two boys are evacuated, Billy to a farm, Kenneth with his mother to a billet near Billy’s own mother and sister. Kenneth is as spiteful as ever, but Billy is happy at the farm with an elderly couple looking after him, although he still longs for attention from his mother. As the war progress Billy uses his talisman, a sabre, to keep strong, even through horror, tragedy and upset.
Rosalind Minett writes from the perspective of a young boy with great detail, his growing confidence and understanding of life and other people. Billy’s emerging enthusiasm for photography and helping to care for the farm animals is a delight to read.
An enjoyable – and amusing in places – story there is a ‘but’. The narrative is third person and written through the eyes of Billy’s own perspective of the world at war, but the boy often seems totally oblivious to it – perhaps young children were? Do youngsters living in their own little worlds with their own large problems understand the horror of these other things going on around them? However, I wonder if the story would be enhanced a little if more of the outside events were narrated instead of being glossed over?
Even so, a delightful read
