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A review by katykelly
Fire, Bed and Bone by Henrietta Branford
5.0
Another book I've discovered recently on a 'must read' children's classic list. I can see why.
It has the unusual twist of being narrated by a dog, but in a realistic historical context (which I've not seen before) - the time of Wat Tyler and the Peasants' Revolt.
What a fascinating time to set a story in, narrated by a dog who is loyal to a family charged with treason to the crown.
I liked how Branford made our protagonist aware of human speech and interactions, not to the point of too omniscient a perspective, but enough to give us context of the situation her family are in.
We see her own struggles to raise pups and help her human family, and their struggle to stay alive despite serfdom, prison and starvation.
A perfect class read for a KS2 group looking at this period in history, or just as an end-of-the-day read, with short chapters, an animal narrator will always go down well, and lots of discussion to come from this.
There are scenes of some violence (a hanging, the beating of dogs, suggestions of humans also being hit), though nothing graphic. Language-wise, it's not too involved or complex for an 8 or 9 year old independent reader to tackle alone.
It has the unusual twist of being narrated by a dog, but in a realistic historical context (which I've not seen before) - the time of Wat Tyler and the Peasants' Revolt.
What a fascinating time to set a story in, narrated by a dog who is loyal to a family charged with treason to the crown.
I liked how Branford made our protagonist aware of human speech and interactions, not to the point of too omniscient a perspective, but enough to give us context of the situation her family are in.
We see her own struggles to raise pups and help her human family, and their struggle to stay alive despite serfdom, prison and starvation.
A perfect class read for a KS2 group looking at this period in history, or just as an end-of-the-day read, with short chapters, an animal narrator will always go down well, and lots of discussion to come from this.
There are scenes of some violence (a hanging, the beating of dogs, suggestions of humans also being hit), though nothing graphic. Language-wise, it's not too involved or complex for an 8 or 9 year old independent reader to tackle alone.