There May Be a Castle

There May Be a Castle

by PiersTorday (Author)

Synopsis

A remarkable story about love and death from the winner of the Guardian Children's Fiction Prize

Eleven-year-old Mouse is travelling to see his grandparents on Christmas Eve with his mother and two sisters. But it's snowing, and visibility is bad, and the car goes off the road, and crashes.

Mouse is thrown from the car.

When he wakes, he's not in his world any more. He meets a sheep named Bar, who can only say Baaa, and a sarcastic horse named Nonky, who is a surprising mix of his beloved toy horse and his older sister.
So begins a quest to find a castle in a world of wonder - a world of monsters, minstrels, dangerous knights and mysterious wizards; a world of terrifying danger but also more excitement than Mouse has ever known.

But why are they looking for a castle? As the cold grows, we realise it might just have something to do with the family he's left behind; and that Mouse's quest is more important than ever.

This is a novel about love and death. It's about the power of stories to change the way we view the world - and it's about the power of a child to change their own world. Emotionally arresting but ultimately uplifting, this is a remarkable novel for our times.

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Quantity

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More Information

Format: Hardcover
Pages: 320
Edition: First Edition
Publisher: Quercus Children's Books
Published: 06 Oct 2016

ISBN 10: 1848668627
ISBN 13: 9781848668621
Children’s book age: 9-11 Years

Media Reviews
Piers Torday is the new master of books for children who like magic and modernity with their lust for adventure ... Torday understands the lot of the younger sibling, the power of the imagination to heal and the strong, irregular rhythms of grief * The Times *
Heartbreaking, surprising, uplifting - Mouse's snowbound journey is one you'll remember for a long, long time. There May Be a Castle proves that stories matter. They really do * The Bookbag *
Piers Torday continues to demonstrate that he is one of the best writers for children working today * The Guardian *
Original, ingenious and bold ... I am still reeling. * The Sunday Times *
Brimming with humour and excitement ... beautifully described and the tension never breaks -- Philip Womack * Scoop *
Heart-warming and heart-wrenching ... another fantastic tale from Piers Torday and one not to miss. * Carousel *
An outstanding book and a future classic -- School Librarian
Mesmerising and overwhelming with emotion. * Booktrust *
Full marks ... for a story not afraid to take on some of the fundamentals of life while still managing to preserve the lightest of touches * Books For Keeps *
If you were to dislike this book, I would not be your friend! -- Omer (aged 11)
Not many books change readers' views of the world, this might be one of them. * LoveReading4Kids *
The narrative is skillfully strung together and the ending deeply surprising, challenging the norms of what might be expected in a children's novel, which is all to the good. -- Philip Womack * Literary Review *
A magical new adventure from the winner of the Guardian Children's Fiction prize. * WRD About Books *
A gripping, memorable adventure which celebrates the power and scope of our imagination * The School Run *
A remarkable story of about love and loss from the winner of the Guardian Children's Fiction Prize * Hexham Courant *
Original in its accurate representation of the actual experience of children and its satirical approach to the fantastical ... this novel works emotional truth and tension into its adventure and comedy * The Sunday Times *
Piers Torday...is the new master of books for children who like magic and modernity with their lust for adventure. * The Times *
There May be a Castle beats its own path i nsome clever unpredictable ways... This book is not afraid to that an unknown corner and see what lurks there. * Primary Matters *
Heart-warming, heart-wrenching, this is another fantastical tale from Piers Torday, and not one to miss. * The Carousel *
Author Bio

Piers Torday began his career in theatre and then television as a producer and writer. His bestselling first book for children, The Last Wild, was shortlisted for the Waterstones Children's Book Award and nominated for the CILIP Carnegie Medal as well as numerous other awards. His second book, The Dark Wild, won the Guardian Children's Fiction Prize. The third book in the trilogy, The Wild Beyond, was published in 2015 to critical acclaim. His next book for children, There May Be A Castle, will be published in October 2016.

The son of the late Paul Torday (author of Salmon Fishing in the Yemen) Piers recently completed his father's final unfinished novel, The Death of an Owl.

In regular demand as a speaker at schools and festivals, Piers is also a reading helper with Beanstalk, a former judge on the Guardian Children's Fiction Prize, a Patron of Reading at Heathmere School and a trustee of the Pleasance Theatre.

Born in Northumberland, Piers now lives in London with his husband and hopefully a cat.