Armistice Runner
by Tom Palmer, illustrated by Tom Clohosy Cole
Interest age: 10 to 12
Reading age: 8+
Published by Barrington Stoke, 2018
About this book
Lily loves fell running. She’s good, but never quite good enough: she gets anxious and loses her focus and then that’s it. Out. Plus she’s worried about her grandmother, who has Alzheimer’s and is growing distant and confused. But whilst staying with her grandparents just before her first big race of the season, Lily discovers her great-grandfather was a runner too. Not only was he a fell running champion, but he was also a message runner during World War One.
Lily reads his diaries and through them discovers a hidden family history which helps her connect with her grandmother. And perhaps the diaries can give her the inspiration she needs to win the upcoming race?
This is an emotive book that follows a serious, dedicated young girl who’s keen to be the very best at her sport, and parallels it with a soldier’s experience of war. Lily’s single-minded focus on her sport makes her a refreshingly original female character to follow on her emotional journey, and the sub-plots in both strands of the story add depth. In a dyslexia-friendly format, it’s a super readable story perfect for anyone who loves books that make you think and that reflect real life.
Read an extract from Armistice Runner
About the author
More books like this
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The Fear
by Tom Palmer, illustrated by Robin Boyden
7 to 14 years
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Angel of Grasmere
by Tom Palmer
9 to 14 years
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D-Day Dog
by Tom Palmer, illustrated by Tom Clohosy Cole
9 to 14 years
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Over the Line
by Tom Palmer
9 to 14 years
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