We Were A Two

About this book

Eoin lives with his Nana, and, in the summer, they go to Nana’s caravan on the coast of Ireland. Eoin has a marvellous time playing with all the other children, getting up to all kinds of mischief which Nana doesn’t seem to mind at all – as long as he doesn’t play with the caravan’s gas canister. 

Sometimes, Eoin feels self-conscious that his family is just him and Nana, but most of the time he doesn’t notice, as the two of them are very happy – and can make more noise than a family of twelve! 

Sometimes, Eoin calls his mum on the phone, which is bittersweet. We don’t find out why she’s away, but when she comes back at the end to take him to a new home, he’s sad to leave Nana. However, the family still enjoys summers at the caravan – and, when they were once two, now they’re three, eight, and sometimes even twenty-seven people strong. 

This beautiful story inspired by Eoin McLaughlin’s childhood is full of nostalgia, acknowledging that families don’t always look how you’d expect, but that love is forever. It’s a bit of a tear-jerker – in a marvellous way, and Emma Chichester Clark’s illustrations are spellbindingly emotional. 

About the illustrator