"A time-slip novel giving us a fascinating look at our impact on the earth"
Polly and her brother Joel live in Brighton in 2032 – when it is too hot to go out for vast parts of the day, and the government has to issue alarms to keep people indoors and out of danger. After a swim at midnight – that goes very wrong – the two are sent away to stay with Aunt Jessie – who lives on the shores of Truthwater Lake – a vast reservoir that has been dried up by the lack of rain, and the heat.
Whilst at the lake Polly accidentally ends up in 1952 – before the village under the lake was flooded to make the reservoir. She experiences the very different life of a village that no longer exists, the social mores of the time and the privations that existed in 1952 (being so close to WWII). Whilst she can’t talk to Joel about it, she learns a great deal about determination, friendship, and channel swimming!
This is a change of style for Carroll, as she is known as the Queen of Historical Fiction – but here we have a look to the future through the lens of the past. The story is full of friendship as well as the vitally important message that we should tread lightly on the earth to preserve it for the future.
Fans of Emma Carroll will lap this up – and, by taking a slightly different tack, I hope it will bring lots of new readers to her books. A thought provoking read.
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