Harklights

Product Information

The story is a captivating contrast between the two environments and author Tim Tilley's knowledge of the intricacies of nature and his attention to the smallest details of forest life are fascinating. Harklights is the name of a match factory, the kind that supplied the product that Hans Christian Anderson’s little matchgirl sold.

The themes of nature, conservation and family weave effortlessly through the novel, with stunning illustrations to bring this organic adventure to life. Therefore, when he’s offered an unexpected chance to escape, thanks to his kindness, Wick is compelled to consent. What a mighty message from so many delicately made moments in our amazing Children's Book of the month for May. Magical and with an ongoing theme of awareness and care of the world around you of wildlife, like The Borrowers meets The Animals of farthing wood, mixed with a book I recently read By Ash, Oak and Thorn. She has an office full of strange things, mechanical beetles, a miniature man in a bell jar and butterflies stuck to a board next to a pair of octagonal green glasses.Wick’s standoff with Old Ma Bogey in the finale was very tense and nail-biting, especially when he gets shot! However, Wick soon discovers that not all of the Hobs are as friendly towards him and don't like the idea of humans living with them as they think they destroy things. He escapes the tyranny and back breaking work of Old Ma Bogey's factory, and begins a new life in the forest with the Hobs (small creatures who protect nature and the forest). Like so many I've read (The Silver Arrow, The Lost Wild, The Wild Robot, to name a few), Harklights comes sumptuously packaged with golden trim.

Yesterday a parent came over to tell me how impressed she was by the book fair and that you did a fabulous job of selling the books to the children first. In fact, as I had a proof copy, my one regret is that I did not see all the illustrations, as they are beautifully rendered in black and white.It was such a pleasure to meet you both, and I really appreciated how smoothly and professionally you ran everything. We see Wick learning the responsibilities of a Forest Keeper and how important it is to protect the environment. The author really did a great job in building this story :) This is a little book of gem that will bring your mind and heart back to the nature, it makes you want to walk in the forest and hope to find some Hobs, for me some Norwegian Hobs maybe? Run by the cruel and wicked Old Ma Bogey it is a terrible place of suffering for all the children who live there.

I haven't charted out my visits for the summer term, but I'm sure there are several in the south) and thanks so much for being so fantastic! Appreciated that not everything was black and white (though some things were) and that not every character had a fairy tale ending (though some did). The tensions that arise from leaving his friends behind, conquering his fears, overcoming the suspicions of certain hobs and learning the extent of Harklights’ destructive plans are what drives the story forward until the explosive climax. Vonk is een boek dat zich typeert door een flink moraaltje maar is vooral een spannend en zeer sfeervol geïllustreerd verhaal over Wiek die keihard moet werken om te overleven in het weeshuis Vonk en verlangt naar een huis zoals hij die kan bouwen met verdwaalde luciferstokjes. Thank you to the author and his publisher for allowing me to read a proof of this novel in advance of publication.It’s a fantastic independent book seller that will actually be responsive and select appropriate books for you.

Grateful for the kindness shown to their stolen child, they offer Wick the chance of a lifetime – escape from Harklights and begin a new life with them in the wild… Winner of the Joan Aiken Future Classics Prize, Harklights is a magical story celebrating family, friendship and the natural world, filled with a message of hope for our times. I really liked the chase scene between Wick and the machine and then when he is triumphant in destroying it. I highly recommend getting this book for young children; not only will they enjoy it but they will remember the message and carry it with them. One day Wick is convinced he’ll be thrown down the bottomless well never to be seen again, when Old Ma Bogey finds his matchstick model houses. It is all he has ever dreamt of and he jumps at the chance, even though it means he must leave the other orphans behind.Unfortunately for Harklights, I read it at the end of a long selection of eco-adventures for young children and I was, perhaps, a little jaded with the genre. Wick, the orphan, were forced to make matches in Harklights, the orphanage, run by the horrible, greedy lady, Old Ma Bogey. It’s all here in Harklights, a debut novel from the first ever winner of the Joan Aiken Future Classics Prize, set in a vaguely Victorian world with elements of fantasy and steampunk. There was just the right amount of choice to suit everyone without being overwhelming and I received comments from parents and staff about the quality of books offered compared to previous sales which have always been based around current crazes and well known celebrity authors. When Wick finds himself unexpectedly freed from Harklights, he must find his way in a strange and yet somehow comforting world, a world of nature and living things, so different from anything he has known.