I’ve been keen to tell you all about Sophie Kirtley’s The Wild Way Home ever since I finished it. What a fabulous adventure! And. There’s a book map! Now you know you’re definitely on to a winner…
Charlie loves a great adventure. He loves to play games in Mandel forest with his friends, the forest from which he can still make out the roof of his house. The home where everything is safe and calm and lovely… until it isn’t.
At home they’ve been waiting for the arrival of Charlie’s new brother, it’s super exciting. But, when he arrives, Dad gives him the news that Dara has a heart defect. Charlie doesn’t know how to react. He’s scared. He runs. And runs. And runs. Straight to the forest.
Charlie gets a shock when he finds a body laying face down in the water, shock mixed with relief when he discovers the boy is still alive, then a huge shock when he realises that in the meantime the forest, as he knows it, has changed. He can no longer see his house, the landscape is different, and well… his new friend has a spear and is dressed in animal skins.
Both Charlie and his new friend have something they’ve lost, something they need to find. And together they set out on the most heart warming, and at times heart-thumping, adventure.
Gorgeously written with evocative descriptions and brilliantly managed tension, The Wild Way Home is a glorious adventure story.
Here’s a sneak peek to whet your appetite…