King of the Sky

Product Information

It is a wonderful book, with a very imaginative, poignant story, One that transports you into the life of a little boy, and his mixed emotions. You guys were so fab and Dawn was such a lovely presence in the schools - I will absolutely be in touch next time I'm in your neck of the woods.

I sat beside y friend’s bed, and told him that perhaps the sunlight and the fountains and the vanilla smell of ice cream from a thousand gelaterie had made our pigeon want to stay. The child becomes attached to a pigeon in which they seem to journey together to finally feel at home together.But a friendship with an elderly neighbour who races pigeons may just be what the boy needs to find his new home. I think it is an important book and very current; immigration and alienation are all very present themes in our modern day society and children should be educated about this.

Being far away from the only place he knew, he felt incredibly lonely, he felt that he didn’t belong in the UK. In fact, his ensuing hope and salvation come not from new friends at school, but from a friendship with an elderly man and his hobby of pigeon racing. Dislocated and desolate, magnetized by nostalgia, he finds solace in the improbable friendship of his elderly neighbor — a retired coal miner who spends his days caring for and training racing pigeons. Just one thing reminded me of home — of sunlight, fountains, and the vanilla smell of ice cream in my nonna’s gelateria. Your words, like your reviews, bring books to life and give them a voice before the front cover is even turned.This could be explored further in PSHE lessons, as could themes surrounding War, the elderly, and geography. That he somehow finds comfort in the fact that the pigeons find home from 1200 miles away and he can't is a little odd for me. Flown until he saw the shape of humpbacked hills, the lines of little houses and the chimneys, heard the clanking towers, smelled the soup and coal dust.

But the illustrations bring out so much more, not just the contrast between the landscapes, but the change to the landscape as the boy settles; the intimacy between the man and boy that extrapolates the teaching and wisdom being imparted; the industrious town in which the boy has settled and all the different characters who populate it, from the farmer on his wagon to the mother hanging her washing; the memories of fighting in the war; the different modes of transport and communication depicted; and finally the flight of the pigeons and the warmth that they exude. Throughout the story, we see the boy’s family — his mother, his infant sister — only as a ghostly and fragmentary presence, further contouring his all-consuming sense of isolation. It could be a useful book to have in a reading corner, especially for those kids who struggle to potentially feel like they fit in, in a new country with unknown cultures. It expands children's knowledge of the world - use it to explore immigration, maps, bird migration, mining, WW1. Powerfully affecting, eloquent and ultimately elevating, her compelling text has, as with The Promise, its perfect illustrator in Laura Carlin.Nicola Davies is an award-winning author whose many books for children include A First Book of Nature, Ice Bear, Big Blue Whale, Dolphin Baby, Bat Loves the Night and the Silver Street Farm series.

Nicola Davies s beautiful story an immigrant s tale with powerful resonance in our troubled times is illustrated by an artist who makes the world anew with every picture. Read more about the condition New: A new, unread, unused book in perfect condition with no missing or damaged pages. Most of the world doesn’t have to think twice when asked where they’re from or where home is; some children have to think harder about the answer. Biography: Nicola Davies is an award-winning author whose many books for children include A First Book of Nature, Ice Bear, Big Blue Whale, Dolphin Baby, Bat Loves the Night and the Silver Street Farm series.It was such a pleasure to meet you both, and I really appreciated how smoothly and professionally you ran everything. Mr Evans had told him he was a good bird for distance flying and they filled out the form for him to go on the train to Rome and fly a thousand miles home. The story is about a young boy who moves to a different country and cannot speak the language and feels like he doesn't belong.