After Nate spent a night alone. He started seeing an old friend. An imaginary friend Sam. More mystery to come when a strange girl asked for his help to find a hidden treasure by the old gardener William for a girl who died long ago. The magic aspect. Sam mostly, but also that he could show videos, and then that part with Nate's birthday. It just didn't fit for me. It just felt off. I get that they are imaginary, but it felt like it was much more than that, given they could do all sorts of things. The Primary School Library Alliance is calling on the government to match-fund the private investment it has brought into helping primary schools c...

At the same time, Nate meets the mysterious Kitty. She lives nearby and is determined to solve a decades old treasure hunt. Together they set about solving the mystery. This intriguing mystery is the perfect counter-balance to Nate’s history. Thompson keeps a rapid pace which keeps the reader guessing and wanting to find out more. If Goldfish Boy was Thompson’s breakthrough, The Light Jar cements her place as one of the most innovative writers currently around. Once again, deep issues are dealt with sensitively, while the main plot keeps the reader hooked. Ultimately, it is a book about hope, about succeeding against the odds and about never giving up. A great start to my 2018 reading! This story brought tears of sadness to my eyes. Nate is on his own in a small cottage. His mum has disappeared and his dad is somewhere far away. Will Nate help mystery girl Kitty? Will he find the answer to the mystery - and will he find his mum? The Freaky book thing. I just didn't care about those, if anything they also interrupted at times when it was just getting good.Welp, this was so promising, and this was one of the book I looked forward SO MUCH. I loved the author's first book, adored it even, and I was hoping to find the same magic in this one. Sadly, no. There were good parts and a lot of bad parts. De elfjarige Nathan maakt nogal wat mee in zijn jonge leven. Een vader die hij niet meer ziet, oma en vriendjes die hij mist, maar als er psychische mishandeling plaatsvindt en het gevolg eenzaamheid en onbegrip is, is het moeilijk om nog een onbezorgd kind te zijn. Toch is dit ook een verhaal van hoop, sterker worden, loslaten en vriendschap. The Goldfish Boy was Lisa Thompson’s bestselling debut that hit shelves early last year. It has since been nominated for a number of children’s book awards, including The CILIP Carnegie Medal 2018 and The Waterstones Children’s Book Prize. January saw the publication of her second novel, The Light Jar.

It’s always a mixture of feelings when an author whom you love their previous work brings out a new book - there’s excitement, anticipation and apprehension as to whether it’ll stand up to their other books and I can honestly say that Lisa Thompson’s done it! Fans of ‘The Goldfish Boy’ won’t be disappointed and new readers are in for a wonderful encounter with one of the best children’s authors around. The worldbuilding, even though it takes place only at the cottage/grounds (and in the past parts also at Nate's school/home) I could just see everything. I could see the overgrown maze, I could see the cottage, about to fall apart, when those kids wandered I wandered with them. Coffee house Caffè Nero has announced the 16-strong shortlist for the inaugural Nero Book Awards, recognising the outstanding books of the past 12... Nate knows something is wrong with his mum. It’s late at night, she’s driving too fast and who goes on holiday in the early hours of the morning anyway? After a scare with another vehicle, she tells him the truth. They’re not going on holiday, they’re running away from her boyfriend, Gary. Soon Nate rediscovers his childhood imaginary friend, Sam. Together they reminisce about the good (and bad) times from the past. Slowly but surely, Nate’s troubled past is revealed to the reader. This is where Lisa Thompson’s skill shines through. There’s a divorce, family feuds and a controlling step-father. In each case, Thompson presents these in an accessible way which will strike a chord with children.As time goes on he is reunited with happy and wise Sam - his long lost imaginary friend and Kitty - a determined, funny, treasure hunting girl from the woods who’s on a mission to uncover her families past. Together mysteries are solved, lessons are learnt and friendships are forged (with plenty of twists and turns along the way to keep you on your toes!) De Nachtlantaarn is een met zorg vormgegeven boek. Een aansprekende en opvallende omslag, een mooie binnenkant van de omslag en boven ieder hoofdstuk een bijpassende illustratie. In een prettig lezend lettertype, fijn papier, niet te lange hoofdstukken en voldoende dialoog, leest dit boek vlot weg door de prettige schrijfstijl. Leuk detail: in het verhaal staan diverse ‘waanzinnige weetjes’.

Forward a bit, and his mother goes to the nearest grocery store they saw on their way. This seems fine and dandy at first, I mean, it may be a little scary for Nate, but what could go wrong? A few hours pass and his mother hasn’t come home. After frantically running around the cabin and trying to find some way to survive, he meets an odd girl name kitty who is trying to find a secret treasure. The story was very touching. It made me think about Nate and children like him, who are put in a scary situation where they feel no one can help them. The author makes you feel like you are Nate in the way she describes the cottage and its surroundings. It is winter, the snow is falling heavily and the cottage is in the middle of nowhere. Nate needs to keep himself alive. It made me wonder what I would do with no parents to help me, to tell me what to do or to give me food and shelter. Yet all is not lost. Nate manages to find friends both new and old, and finds himself swept along in a mystery that keeps the reader hooked until the very end. The winners of the Diverse Book Awards 2023 have been announced, with one winner from each of the four categories announced: Picture book, Children...Lisa Thompson’s The Goldfish Boy, about a troubled 12-year-old with OCD investigating the disappearance of a toddler, was one of 2017’s bestselling children’s debuts. Her follow-up, The Light Jar, is another mystery/thriller wrapped around psychological themes. Nate’s dad ran off with a colleague when he was six. Now 11, Nate and his mum are bedding down in an abandoned cottage, on the run from Gary, her emotionally abusive boyfriend. When his mother fails to return from a shopping trip, Nate must fend for himself – and convince Kitty, a girl who lives in the neighbouring stately home, that he has not been abandoned.