Oh, how your heart aches for young Jamie. He has lost a sister to a bombing, his mother has abandoned her living children and his father is lost in alcoholic grief. His remaining sister has developed a rebellious disdain for the adults in her life, as she has been the one most affected; it is her twin who died. Ultimately she is the strong, understanding one when the adults fail Jamie. Jamie’s cat is the only other being that offers solace and stability as they move to a village where everything is new, but the family has just relocated their sadness; there is no escaping a daughter’s/sister’s ashes on the mantelpiece.

Jamie was five when his sister died and cannot grasp the grief his family is immersed in – he just wants his mother back and for his father to stop drinking. Eventually he experiences first-hand a loss that sends him reeling. This heart wrenching young adult novel champions a young boy with a very funny take on life. There’s no doubt you will laugh and cry. For ages 15 and up.

Alexa Dretzke is a Children’s Book Specialist at Readings Hawthorn.