The illustrations in this fantasy book are simply beautiful, so it's a shame I couldn't connect with the story more. Old ma bogey and her father end up penniless and she swears to get revenge by destroying their homes and enslaving them once again. For me, a big kid, this was just a really lovely read, we follow Wick, who is a boy in an Orphanage, who day in day out is made to box up matches and only gets fed 3 meals of porridge each day. Therefore, when Wick is offered a chance by a tiny group of grateful Hobs, after he saves their baby, he is quick to take it. Upravo glavna tema ove knjige je upoznavanje sa funkcionisanjem jednog šumskog ekosistema, ali i šta se dešava kada se on naruši uticajem nekog faktora od spolja (u ovom slučaju, upravo ljudskog faktora).

Harklights is an orphanage and factory run by Old Ma Bogey and the children pack matchboxes in the factory. Speaking as an adult I’m not totally convinced of the story’s pacing and of the relationships Wick has not only built but will also build up; but then I’m not the target readership, for whom life may feel like a continuous present and relationships are often mysteries that continue to puzzle. Tim Tilley grew up on the outskirts of Leicester, and studied Illustration at Anglia Ruskin University and Central Saint Martins.When the story started nearing it's end, I still didn't feel connected to the Hobs because we'd been there for so little time, yet Wick acted as if he'd been there for months. But instead something magical happens, a magpie drops a tiny acorn cradle at his feet with a real miniature baby inside it! Winner of the Joan Aiken Future Classics Prize, Harklights is a magical story celebrating family, friendship and the natural world, filled with a message of hope for our times. The opening chapter paints this as a dark and depressing place in which your mind is filled with the images of wretched Dickensian workhouses. Follow his adventures as he overcomes his fear of heights and grows in confidence thanks to Papa Herne’s encouragement.

Harklights is an utterly enchanting adventure that sends out a pure and powerful message that no matter how small you are in this world , you have a power, responsibility and influence over protecting the natural world around you. Guided by the Hobs, Wick discovers that he has a special role to play in saving the environment and all who live in it from the forces of evil.He works as a freelance illustrator for editorial and design clients and teaches children's book illustration at City Lit in London. When Wick escapes to the dangerous ‘outside’ he is adopted by the Hobs, tiny people who live a green life and devote themselves to looking after the forest and everything that lives in it. For example, all the hobs have magical abilities which helps them to keep the forest smoothly running. When Wick finds himself unexpectedly freed from Harklights, he must find his way in a strange and yet somehow comforting world, a world of nature and living things, so different from anything he has known. The author has cleverly made use of familiar tropes to not only drive through an ecological message but to acknowledge the anxieties that youngsters often feel regarding family, friends, self-worth and potential.

Bronnie is so lovely with the boys and we also felt that having a man enthusing about the books set a great example. Tilley, an avid nature-lover himself, provides an accessible story for younger readers to delve into, with rich opportunities to open up discussions about how we can look after our natural world.Reading this book made me realise even more just how lucky I am to live near a forest, in a town with plenty of fields and country lanes. In some ways it's the refinement of this wave of admirable novels tackling environmental themes over the past decade. Harklights, the debut novel by author and illustrator Tim Tilley, tells the story of the power of nature and our role in maintaining and preserving the natural spaces around us. Mooie discussies over familie en de betekenis van een huis versus een thuis en daarom een passend tipje voor de aankomende Kinderboekenweek maar eigenlijk ook gewoon een tipje voor elke week. But one day he encounters the Hobs, little people who have big hearts and they go on an adventure together, helping one another along the way.

Wick is too heroic, too quickly, defeating impossible odds with barely a whimper from the massive, tree gnashing machines or the evil, shotgun wielding matron.

Wick’s standoff with Old Ma Bogey in the finale was very tense and nail-biting, especially when he gets shot! It seems there is no life or future beyond the walls of the matchstick factory; certainly nobody every escaped. It was such a pleasure to meet you both, and I really appreciated how smoothly and professionally you ran everything. It would have been a good way to tie-in an origin story of Old Ma Bogey and why she kidnapped the creatures.