One of our Books of the Year 2015 - Julia Eccleshare's Pick of the Month, October 2015 Bestselling John Boyne returns to the Second World War for The Boy at the Top of the Mountain, the story of the transformation of Pierrot. Pierrot lives in France. His mother is French and his father is German; he can speak both languages but French is the language he prefers. He has a dog and a best-friend, Anshel. When Pierrot is left an orphan he is claimed by his only relative: his father’s aunt Beatrix. Beatrix lives in an isolated house high up in the mountains. It is the Berghof, the mountain retreat of Hitler. Pierrot’s life is now dominated by Hitler himself and everything from his name onwards is about to change. In a story which echoes the form and voice of The Boy in the Stripped Pyjamas John Boyne tells a sad and moving story about how gradually and stealthily a young child is changed by his contact with power and a false narrative. ~ Julia Eccleshare
When Pierrot becomes an orphan, he must leave his home in Paris for a new life with his Aunt Beatrix, a servant in a wealthy household at the top of the German mountains. But this is no ordinary time, for it is 1935 and the Second World War is fast approaching; and this is no ordinary house, for this is the Berghof, the home of Adolf Hitler. Quickly, Pierrot is taken under Hitler's wing, and is thrown into an increasingly dangerous new world: a world of terror, secrets and betrayal, from which he may never be able to escape.
'Disturbingly vivid, utterly readable and appealing to audiences of all ages' The Bookbag
'It's impossible to put down: devastating and devastatingly good, one of my top three children's novels of the year so far ... A difficult story to pull off, but with his perfect pacing, lack of sentimentality and refusal to submit to a neat end, Boyne has won me over - all over again' The Times
'A remarkable feat ... Compelling' Guardian
ISBN: 9780552573504
Publication date: 02/06/2016
Publisher: Corgi Childrens an imprint of Random House Children's Publishers UK
Format: Paperback
ISBN: 9780857534521
Publication date: 01/10/2015
Publisher: Doubleday Children's Books an imprint of Random House Children's Publishers UK
Format: Hardback
| ISBN: | 9780857534521 |
| Publication date: | 1st October 2015 |
| Author: | John Boyne |
| Publisher: | Doubleday Children's Books an imprint of Random House Children's Publishers UK |
| Format: | Hardback |
| Suitable for: | 11+ readers, 9+ readers |
| Recommendations: | Julia Eccleshare's Picks, eBooks |
John Boyne was born in Dublin, Ireland, in 1971, and studied English Literature at Trinity College, Dublin, and creative writing at the University of East Anglia, Norwich, where he was awarded the Curtis Brown prize.He has written a number of short stories; his first story, The Entertainments Jar, was shortlisted for the Hennessy Literary Award in Ireland. His 2006 novel, The Boy in Striped Pyjamas, was made into an award-winning Miramax film. The novel itself won 2 Irish Book Awards, the Bisto Book of the Year, and was shortlisted or won a host of international awards. Amongst other accolades, it spent more ...
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