Frankie is an intelligent, artistic 12-year-old boy who has a warm, loving family, but he is anxious – and his anxieties are defining and confining his life. Then along comes Sydney, a girl so alive and bold that he is at once invigorated and more fearful. Everything that he has attempted to keep organised and unquestioned suddenly appears to be fragile and exposed.

The 10pm Question sparkles with Frankie’s worried wit, the antics of his adored aunts, the silence of his Mum and of course Sydney. If you liked Millions by Frank Cottrell Boyce and/or Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli, then the characters in this book will delight you. I loved them all. For ages nine and up.