Clean Break

Name: William Joseph
Price range: $

by Jacqueline Wilson, illustrated by Nick Sharratt

Interest age: 10+
Reading age: 10+

Published by Random House, 2008

About this book

Everyone adores Dad, with his glamorous ponytail and his wonderful storytelling gifts. Even Em, though he is not her real dad. His Christmas presents, which include a real (well, probably) emerald ring for Em, are the best ever too.

But Dad has another surprise: he is leaving. As the family struggles to accept the new situation, Em bravely tries to rally them all, while seeking secret consolation in comfort eating. Will Dad ever return or is he about to make a clean break from the whole family?

Em is a complex and likeable heroine at the centre of a sometimes comic and often moving family drama.

Jacqueline Wilson proves once again why, as one of the most highly-gifted and most resonant voices in contemporary children's literature, she is also deservedly one of the best-loved.

About the author

Jacqueline Wilson was born in Bath in 1945, and spent her childhood in Kingston-on-Thames, Surrey, where she still lives today. She started her writing career as a teenage journalist with D.C. Thompson, writing for the teenage magazine Jackie which was named after her. Today her popular books for children have sold millions of copies and have been translated into more than thirty languages.

Jacqueline's books include The Story of Tracy Beaker, which has become a hugely successful BBC TV series; Girls in Love, which together with its two sequels was filmed for ITV television; and Double Act, which she adapted for Channel 4 and which won the Royal TV Society's Best Children's Fiction Award. As the fourth Children's Laureate (2005-2007) she promoted the importance of sharing books, and reading aloud together.

About the illustrator

Nick Sharratt has created illustrations for over two hundred and fifty books during his illustrious career. He has produced over sixty of his own titles, including much-loved favourites Ketchup on Your Cornflakes and Shark in the Park. He has worked with celebrated writers including Julia Donaldson, Kes Gray and Michael Rosen and is well known for his collaboration with Jacqueline Wilson, for whom he’s illustrated more than fifty novels.

He has been the official illustrator for World Book Day and together with Katrina Charman, was awarded the 2021 BookTrust Storytime Prize, he was also the BookTrust Writer-Illustrator in Residence for 2022-23.

What to read next

We know that children can get hooked on a favourite book series or author and struggle to find something they love as much, but we’re here to help.

Jacqueline Wilson: what to read next

We know it's so easy to get attached to a favourite author, and when their books are as good as Jacqueline Wilson's, it's no surprise that some children feel like they'll never find anything they love as much. But we've got some recommendations about great stories they can try next - and we want to hear your ideas too!

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