There are 2 things I love to buy when I'm having a particularly crappy day: pyjamas and books. There is something comforting about a new pair of Peter Alexander pi's or the smell of a new book when you are having a bad day and just want to curl up in bed. It was one Thursday afternoon, when I was feeling particularly sorry for myself, when I found this little gem in a small local bookshop. My students had been reading several David Walliams books and I had loved the ones I had read so when I saw that he had released a new book, my Thursday begun to turn around (that...and the fact that I had also purchased a small tub of my favourite mint chic-chip ice-cream!).
The Midnight Gang follows the story of a young boy named Tom when he is admitted into Lord Funt Hospital after receiving a rather nasty bump on his head during a cricket match. Tom is a student at boarding school and we can quickly infer that his parents had shipped him off there as they were too busy for a son. As quickly as we are introduced to our protagonist, so too are we to the other characters in the children's ward of the hospital, the porter and the head nurse (who is rather 'Trunchbull-esque'). Each child in the ward has a particular short term illness or injury, apart from Sally who we can infer, based on the character description, has cancer. As the plot unravels we come to love each of these characters and their quirks, growing particularly fond of Sally and the Porter. The Midnight Gang tells the story of a group of kids in the children's ward of a hospital, setting out to make their dreams come true at midnight each night. As the story continues, we come to understand the origins of 'The Midnight Gang' and the troubles they have in ensuring each child get's their last wish whilst in the hospital. From being the first girl on the North Pole to being able to fly, these characters dreams are nothing short of bold...however through creativity, a storeroom freezer and a couple of hundred balloons, these children along with the Porter get up to some serious fun! This book is nothing short of a laugh and a must read for children who love warm and fuzzy adventure stories. Don't let the size of this book dishearten kids, it is a definite page turner and will have you entertained from beginning to end. xx
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AuthorBook lover, tea drinker and Primary School teacher. Archives
April 2017
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