Publishers Weekly
05/24/2021
Eleven-year-old Charlie, a cued white English boy living in bombed-out 1945 London, helps his mother care for his grandfather Fritz, a wounded WWI veteran prone to trauma-induced trances, and desperately awaits his older sibling Theo’s return from war. But when the reunion day arrives, Charlie hardly recognizes the mirthless soldier who returns, wounded by a grenade and with PTSD-like symptoms. Fear subsequently creeps into Charlie’s shock and disappointment as he notices huge, wolflike beasts lurking in the shadows of his city. When “Mad Mellie,” a local woman whose son died in the Blitz, lets slip that war wolves are involved in taking the hearts of returning soldiers, Charlie gains both a name for the monsters he’s been seeing and a steadfast resolve, alongside his clever cat Biscuits, to bargain his brother’s heart back from those who took it. In this poetic debut, Sandstrom tells a story that is equally tender and terrifying, balancing a family’s emotional gravity with the chilling war wolves. With moody occasional illustrations by Shin, a relaxed pace, and tender prose, this historical fantasy expertly employs anxiety and empathy to demonstrate war’s devastating effect on individuals and families. Ages 8–12. Agent: Tina Dubois, ICM Partners. (June)
From the Publisher
"I read this book breathlessly, ardently, my heart thumping in my chest. Brita Sandstrom has woven a story stitched through with hope and terror and longing. At its center is the utter audacity of love - how we hang on even when we are broken, and how we must never let go. A lovely, moving debut." — Kelly Barnhill, Newbery Medal-winning author of The Girl Who Drank the Moon
“Hollow Chest is remarkable on so many levels—its exquisite writing, its startling originality, its deep empathy. But what lingers most is its unwavering heartbeat: in the darkest of times, what will carry us through is love.” — Anne Ursu, award-winning author of The Lost Girl
“Brita Sandstrom’s debut is the rare sort of book that gives new language to old truths. Tender, sweet, painful, and brave, Hollow Chest is full of astonishing love.” — Elana K. Arnold, award-winning author of The House That Wasn't There
"The book effectively evokes post-war England and the way that war doesn’t end for everyone, and the wolves are a potent metaphor to introduce younger audiences to the realities of PTSD." — Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books
"The literal and figurative rubble of combat provides a rich setting through which to examine the fragility and incredible resilience of the human heart. It’s both a wrenching and wondrous world." — Booklist (starred review)
"Sandstrom tells a story that is equally tender and terrifying, balancing a family’s emotional gravity with the chilling war wolves. With moody occasional illustrations by Shin, a relaxed pace, and tender prose, this historical fantasy expertly employs anxiety and empathy to demonstrate war’s devastating effect on individuals and families." — Publishers Weekly
Elana K. Arnold
Brita Sandstrom’s debut is the rare sort of book that gives new language to old truths. Tender, sweet, painful, and brave, Hollow Chest is full of astonishing love.
Anne Ursu
Hollow Chest is remarkable on so many levels—its exquisite writing, its startling originality, its deep empathy. But what lingers most is its unwavering heartbeat: in the darkest of times, what will carry us through is love.”
Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books
"The book effectively evokes post-war England and the way that war doesn’t end for everyone, and the wolves are a potent metaphor to introduce younger audiences to the realities of PTSD."
Kelly Barnhill
"I read this book breathlessly, ardently, my heart thumping in my chest. Brita Sandstrom has woven a story stitched through with hope and terror and longing. At its center is the utter audacity of love - how we hang on even when we are broken, and how we must never let go. A lovely, moving debut."
Booklist (starred review)
"The literal and figurative rubble of combat provides a rich setting through which to examine the fragility and incredible resilience of the human heart. It’s both a wrenching and wondrous world."
Booklist
"The literal and figurative rubble of combat provides a rich setting through which to examine the fragility and incredible resilience of the human heart. It’s both a wrenching and wondrous world."
Booklist
"The literal and figurative rubble of combat provides a rich setting through which to examine the fragility and incredible resilience of the human heart. It’s both a wrenching and wondrous world."
School Library Journal
07/16/2021
Gr 3–8—In London after World War II, Charlie, who lives with his mother and Grandpa Fitz, is awaiting his brother's return from the war. Charlie's grandpa, who has a missing arm, warns Charlie that Theo may be different upon his return "even if you can't see it right away." Charlie is not deterred and is determined to figure out how to help Theo get back to how things were before. There is a thread of folktales woven into this historical fiction story. Charlie listens to stories told by his mother and others in the community, including a story about the "war wolves" that steal and eat a portion of a person's heart, leaving them forever frozen in their loss and grief. Charlie must find strength and bravery that he did not know he had in order to find the missing pieces of his brother's heart. Charlie, his family, and his community are all coded white. The folktales have been amended and updated by Sandstrom to be more palatable for today's culture. VERDICT An addition for libraries with readers who enjoy World War II fiction, magical realism, and stories that tug at the heartstrings about strong family bonds.—Helen Prince, Indian Land H.S., Fort Mill, SC
Kirkus Reviews
2021-04-27
A boy bargains with menacing wolves so that his soldier brother can heal from the effects of World War II.
Eleven-year-old Charlie is thrilled when his older brother, Theo, comes home to London in February 1945. Drafted when he turned 18, Theo’s only been gone 18 months, but he returns wounded in body and mind. Their father died in the Blitz, and Charlie’s been counting on Theo to lift some of his feelings of responsibility and anxiety. But Theo can’t, and Charlie begins to see mysterious wolves everywhere he goes—war wolves with names like Dishonor, Wrath, and Remorse. They tell Charlie they’ve eaten Theo’s heart—and that Theo will never recover. Charlie embarks on a quest to prove them wrong, picking up unexpected sidekicks in his battle-scarred grandfather, an eccentric neighbor woman who feeds pigeons, and another convalescent soldier. Two parts history, one part allegory, and one part fabulism, Sandstrom’s debut impresses with its sympathetic characters and smooth, evocative writing. In parts, the pacing slows under the weight of the rhetoric, but patient readers will be well satisfied with the realistic and thoughtful ending. Occasional full-page illustrations show a city damaged by war and add to the somber, haunting mood. All characters read as White.
A worthwhile exploration of the emotional costs of war. (Historical fantasy. 8-12)
