Charlie and Me: 421 Miles from Home

by Mark Lowery

Overview

How far would you go to say goodbye? Martin and Charlie are journeying 421 miles across England to find out, but are they prepared for what they find when they get there?

Thirteen-year-old Martin and his younger brother Charlie are on a very special journey. They're traveling 421 miles all the way from Preston in northern England to the very tip of Cornwall in the southwest. By train, bus, and taxi, they are determined to get there to catch a glimpse of the dolphin that regularly visits the harbor and made last year's family vacation so special. But is that the only reason they are going?

Mom stays in bed all day and Dad is always at work. Martin is doing his best to be a good big brother, but Martin must come to terms with why he and Charlie are making the journey to Cornwall in the first place.

Charlie and Me is an unforgettable novel that is funny, adventurous, and heartbreaking.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781499807561
Publisher:	little bee books
Publication date:	08/28/2018
Pages:	320
Product dimensions:	5.60(w) x 8.40(h) x 1.20(d)
Age Range:	10 - 14 Years

About the Author

Mark Lowery grew up in Preston, England, but now lives near Cambridge with his family. He has an MA in Writing for Children and his first two books, Socks Are Not Enough and Pants Are Everything, were both short-listed for the Roald Dahl Funny Prize. Mark is also the author of the Roman Garstang series (The Jam Doughnut That Ruined My Life; The Chicken Nugget Ambush; Attack of the Woolly Jumper). Follow Mark on marklowery.co.uk or on Twitter: @hellomarklowery.

Editorial Reviews

A moving adventure about love and letting go

Booklist

A moving adventure about love and letting go

Booklist

2018-05-23
Two brothers travel by train from their home in the north of England to a southern coastal town to revisit a wild dolphin they saw during a family vacation a year earlier. Despite a premature birth and multiple operations, 10-year-old Charlie has grown into a funny, feisty, and creative boy, adored by his family and obsessed with dolphins. His rebellious personality, however, challenges 13-year-old Martin, and the journey is fraught with obstructions. The older brother has only just enough money for one ticket, so the younger spends much of the trip in hiding. A chance encounter with a runaway girl whom Martin at first dislikes proves to be their salvation. She helps them avoid the police and finally to reach their destination in time to fulfill his promise to Charlie. The chapters are interspersed with flashbacks to the family holiday the previous year, and each leg of the journey begins with one of Martin's poems and his meticulous records of the distance traveled. Lowery's narrative skill and Martin's funny, self-deprecating voice elevate this novel, and a plot twist at the end both is entirely unexpected and satisfyingly reveals the real reasons behind the journey. The primary characters are implied white; the stereotypical depiction of an avaricious South Asian shopkeeper at the outset strikes a sour note in this British import.A gentle paean to the intensity of brotherly love. (Fiction. 10-14)

Kirkus Reviews