Floodland

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Marcus also wrote with his brother Julian, and contributed to a short story collection with fellow YA authors. I don't know why I was fascinated by these stories, but maybe simply because I find them to be more glamorous than contemporary stories.

No, that’s not a typo – Norwich has become an island as the ice caps melted and sea levels rose inundating much of Britain and the rest of the world.The belief that she will one day find her parents spurs Zoe on in her dramatic voyage, in a story full of of courage and determination. The main character was a very head strong, independent girl named Zoe who overcame many problems with mostly no adult figures to guide her. I would highly recommend this book not only to use as a stimulus but as a read because it really gets you thinking. Reading this during the coronavirus pandemic, there are a lot of parallels: fear, concern for the future and one's own survival, who you can trust or be close to. p.81) Even though it's really short, and offers no real explanation for the sea-level rise, I really liked how this drops the reader into its world.

I understand Zoe is only 10 so should only have the understanding of a 10-year-old; and the book is aimed at older children rather than adults; but I still would have liked the book to be longer to give more of a background because even young kiddies like to know why!This story delves into Zoe's adventures where she meets lots of fascinating characters along the way. The belief that she will one day find her parents spurs Zoe on to a dramatic escape in a story of courage and determination that leads to an unexpected and touching conclusion. She fetches up on the remote and sinking Eels Island where there is a barbarous community, and to find out whether she ever gets off Eels Island and whether she ever finds her parents again you will have to read the book.

The ending is quite abrupt and we would have liked it to be a bit longer but that is only because we were disappointed when it was finished. This is essential reading for it paints a vivid picture of what life may well be like in the not too distant future if we don’t do something NOW about global warming.I thought, in the end, what a brilliant little story with so much to encourage or facilitate discussion and understanding!