Best-selling illustrator Shirley Hughes writes beautifully in this gripping story set during World War Two. Living in Italy during the occupation by the Germans, Paolo and his sister Constanza long to do something for the fight to keep Italy free. They are only children and their only asset is one ancient bicycle but their spirits are indomitable! Shirley Hughes captures the thrill of this very important adventure. This beautifully jacketed edition has a linked website with historical details about the Second World War in Italy, including period photographs, videos and music, as well as interviews with the author, extra illustrations and much more. This is a wonderful first novel from the internationally revered writer Shirley Hughes; a modern classic in the making.
This is a gripping and moving first novel by one of the world's best-loved writers for children. In extraordinary circumstances, people are capable of extraordinary things...It is 1944 and Florence is occupied by Nazi German forces. The Italian resistance movement has not given up hope, though - and neither have Paolo and his sister, Constanza. Both are desperate to fight the occupation, but what can two siblings do against a whole army with only a bicycle to help them?
Shirley Hughes talks about what it was like to write her first novel in this video:
'A thrilling and moving tale, set in a wonderfully tendered background of war-torn Italy. Danger abounds, but so do love and courage. I enjoyed it enormously.' - Philip Pullman
'A very exciting wartime story.' - Judith Kerr
'An exciting story, well told, by someone with a strong feeling for the time and place.' - Mary Hoffman in The Guardian
'Shirley Hughes is one of the all time greats.' - Today
'She will be remembered for the warmth and humour with which she has captured the fast changes in the family through the second half of the twentieth century.' - The Guardian on Shirley Hughes
Author
About Shirley Hughes
Winner of the Book Trust Lifetime Achievement Award 2015.
Shirley Hughes (1927 – 2022) was born and grew up in West Kirby, near Liverpool. She studied at Liverpool Art School and at the Ruskin School of Art in Oxford, before embarking on a career as a freelance illustrator. At first she worked as an interpretive illustrator, but she began to write and design her own picture books when her children were very young. Her first book, Lucy and Tom's Day, was published in 1960.
Shirley Hughes illustrated over two hundred children's books and is renowned as a champion of children's literature. She has been the recipient of the Other Award, the Kate Greenaway Medal and the prestigious Eleanor Farjeon Award. She was nominated for the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award in2010, which rewards the best in contemporary children's and young adult literature from all over the world.
