No Refuge

LoveReading4Kids Says

Civil war rages across the UK as the Free Kingdom party battles with the government for control. When Hannah’s dad is declared a traitor and disappears, she knows she must get her younger siblings to safety. With helicopters above and violence at every turn, it feels like their chances of escape the destruction grow smaller all the time.

This is a timely story, expertly brought to life in a graphic novel format. The story of children escaping war may be familiar, but the use of the UK as a setting powerfully highlights that anybody can find themselves displaced and at the mercy of others. This sense of ‘it happening here’ is amplified by hints of a bitterly divided country, the rise of the far right and growing resentment in the years before war broke out; all eerily evocative of the UK’s current political climate. Scenes of Hannah and her siblings stepping into an inflatable dinghy in the hope of reaching safer shores, will be powerful empathy builders and encourage better understanding of the plight of real-life refugees.

No Refuge reads perfectly well as a standalone novel, but there is also a sequel, No Country, available that portrays the road to the civil war Hannah now attempts to escape.

The graphic novel format increases the sense of urgency surrounding their plight and adds layers of details to the destruction surrounding them. A must read for young readers interested in current affairs and making the world a kinder place.

Amy McKay

Find This Book In