Blog tour: Norah's Ark (review)

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Welcome to the blog tour for Norah's Ark by Victoria Williamson!

More about the book…

Norah Day lives in temporary accommodation, relies on foodbanks for dinner, and doesn’t have a mum. But she’s happy enough, as she has a dad and a mini zoo of rescued wildlife to care for.

Adam Sinclair lives with his parents in a nice house with a private tutor and everything he could ever want. But his life isn’t perfect - far from it. He’s stuck at home recovering from cancer with an overprotective mum and no friends.

When a nest of baby birds brings them together as an animal rescue team, Adam and Norah discover they’re not so different after all.

Can they solve the mystery of Norah’s missing mother together? And can their teamwork save their zoo of rescued animals from the rising flood?

More about the author…

Victoria Williamson is an award-winning children’s author and primary school teacher from Scotland.

After studying Physics at the University of Glasgow, she set out on her own real-life adventures and taught children and trained teachers in Malawi, Cameroon, and China and worked with children with additional support needs in the UK.

She previously volunteered as a reading tutor with The Book Bus charity in Zambia and is now a Patron of Reading with CharChar Literacy to promote early years phonics teaching in Malawi.

Victoria is passionate about creating inclusive worlds in her novels where all children can see themselves reflected.

Her books have won the Bolton Children’s Fiction Award in 2020/2021, have been shortlisted for the James Reckitt Hull Children’s Book Award in 2021, the Trinity Schools Book Award in 2021, the Yaldi Glasgow School Libraries’ Book Award in 2023, and have also been longlisted for the Branford Boase Prize and Waterstones Children’s Prize.

My impressions…

Heart-warming and heart-breaking at the same time, Norah’s Ark is a beautiful story of family and friendship. The story of two children who, despite being polar opposites on the surface, share the same resilience in the face of hardship, and the same love of animals that will cement their relationship. Beautifully told through their own voices, this is a novel that will captivate adults and young readers alike. The author doesn’t shy away from issues such as poverty, homelessness and illness, but she deals with them in a sensitive way that is appropriate for the intended audience.

Three words to describe it. Heart-warming. Hopeful. Moving.

Do I like the cover? I love it!

Have I read any other books by the same author? Not yet, and I’m sure it’s entirely my loss!

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