Map of the Sky - Claire Wong

Pulled out of school a week before the end of term, and abruptly arriving at the remote B&B Askfeld with his highly stressed mother Catherine and his sister Juliet who is five years Kit’s elder, Kit struggles to settle into his new surroundings.  A fan of superheroes and adventures, he sets out to find a quest to follow and discovers it in the map being created by B&B owner Beth for her unborn child.  

Beth is co-owner of the B&B, chronically ill, and Kit is confused by her illness and worried by snatches of overheard conversation.  Often finding himself told to stay put while his mother works he also befriends elderly ornithologist Bert, and meets the mysterious and unpredictably angry Maddie.  With his mother and sister keeping secrets about the move and why his dad had stayed behind, Kit has lots of time to draw his own conclusions…

 

This is a wonderful story, suitable for readers from ‘youth’ readers upwards.  The comments or questions at the start of each chapter work really well, and Claire’s writing is beautiful.  As Kit finds a lookout spot over the sea, she writes: ‘He turned his back on the sea, pivoting on the ball of one foot in a perfect spin. But the ground between the grasses was softer than it looked, and betrayed him.’

Kit’s thoughts and emotions are very well outlined, the ‘supporting cast’ are all wonderfully written in their own right and the story is engrossing from cover to cover.  It wraps up with a very satisfying (and surprisingly emotional, for this reader at least) ending.  This is another fabulous novel from Claire, whose debut novel The Runaway I've also reviewed, and I look forward to more books from her.