A deeply touching story, Loose Connections gently explores how a young boy deals with his granny’s increasing confusion. Jake’s mum’s resting in hospital before the new baby comes and his dad is abroad so staying with Gran seems to be a sensible option. But Gran is not what she was. Jake’s packed lunch gets increasingly bizarre and being driven by Gran is nothing short of terrifying. Jake doesn’t want to worry his parents but can’t cope alone. And then Verity appears. Jake knows nothing about her but she and Gran have an immediate connection. Who is Verity and why does Gran remember her? How Jake sorts through the complications of his life is tenderly and thoughtfully explored.
Jakes dad is away and his pregnant mum is in hospital, so his granny is looking after Jake - or so they think. But Gran has changed. She tends to be dazed or confused, fills Jakes sandwiches with strange combinations of food, leaves the cooker on, and wanders down the road in her nightie in the middle of the night. Jake doesnt want to worry his parents, so he tries to look after Gran himself. But help comes from a mysterious quarter, in the form of a strange, ghostly girl called Verity. Birth, death, and the rites of passage in family life that connect them are beautifully portrayed through the eyes of a young teenage boy.
'This is contemporary novel writing at its most relevant' - The Independent
Author
About Rosemary Hayes
ROSEMARY HAYES lives and works in Cambridgeshire. She has written numerous books for children including historical and contemporary fiction and fantasy. Rosemary lived in Australia for six years, and her first children's novel Race Against Time, set in Australia, was runner-up for the 1987 Kathleen Fidler Award.
