A charming, time-hopping adventure story, ‘The Shed the Pup and the Hillfort’ by Graham Martin focuses on two friends, Sam and Jack, who encounter strange visitors through the multiple doors of Granddad’s Allotment shed. Saying too much more about the plot would risk spoilers but these strange visits lead the two friends on historic adventures. Told through the eyes of Jack, who struggles with dyslexia but has creative problem solving abilities that allow him to think outside the box and come up with brilliant ideas for a range of issues and situations throughout the book. I liked the emphasis in ‘The Shed the Pup and the Hillfort’ on celebrating the differences between Sam and Jack’s intelligence and how they are both equally important. I think this emphasis is highlighted even more by the activity and the nudges directly from the author to the reader to consider how they would solve a problem, or what they think might happen next. I think this makes the book a good pick to read with a young child who might be lacking in confidence about their abilities. In summary, I think ‘The Shed the Pup and the Hillfort’ is a really positive adventure, filled with lots of facts about Saxon era Salisbury and WWI aircraft, that I think all young historical fiction fans would enjoy.
Charlotte Walker, A LoveReading4Kids Ambassador
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| Primary Genre | Indie Author Books |
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