I really like this story because it’s got a nice adventure to it but it’s also really heart-warming. I learned a lot how the Stone Age survived and the difficulties in life then. How they hunt, scare animals and live. I don’t really have a least favourite character because they all play a very important part on the story. I didn’t trust Hartboy's dad (the Knifeman) because we didn’t know he was actually Hartboys dad and because he was following them. Kirtley tells a bold tale. For the majority of the book, the story focuses on only two characters- Charlie and Harby- and yet the narrative remains engaging through fast-paced twists and electrifying descriptions of the forest itself (the language used in the storm scene is incredible.) Although certain aspects of the story did come to feel slightly repetitive (there was a lot of running and tripping and falling) these moments were broken up by chapters filled with high tension. The climatic knife scene with the mysterious shadow man and the baby was particularly eye-watering but was in keeping with the dynamic plot. Did you enjoy the book? Explain your answer if it is yes or no.Yes. It was very exciting and interesting.

Writing about a friendship between two children who, on the surface, have so little in common made me think about the things Charlie and Harby do share, the things everyone shares; our shared humanity. No matter who we are on this planet (or when we were on this planet) there really are some universals that transcend all the surface details: the BIG things – birth, death, family, love, but also the SMALL things – like the pure joy of a good giggle or a yummy meal. I loved this book. Harby and Charlie were my favourite characters because they’re the main characters and they take risks. I didn’t much like Harby’s parents, but that’s because they only appear at the end of the book so I didn’t really get to know them. I found Charlie the most interesting because he had to go on a cool, but dangerous adventure to find a cure for his baby brother. I did not like Charlie also because he was annoying and he hated his baby brother at first. I liked it that I started off not liking him, but then changed my mind. What follows is a wild, big-hearted adventure as Charlie and the Stone Age boy set out together to find what they have lost - their courage, their hope, their family and their way home. I would recommend the book to other people and especially people who like dramas, a bit of silliness and a lot of adventure!The Wild Way Home is a stunning debut children's novel which I cannot recommend highly enough - Sophie Kirtley is definitely an author to watch. The Wild Way Home’ focusses on two characters: Charlie and Harby who meet when Charlie finds themselves lost in the Stone Age. To begin with their interactions were a bit turbulent, Harby was concussed (conk cushion!) and the difference in language made things hard for them. Both of these characters overcame these though developing a really nice friendship. It was great to see these characters looking out for each other as they navigated the forrest facing wolves, bears and other dangers and ultimately helping each other find home. Charlie was written really interestingly, throughout the book they are not given a gender which really allows you to immerse yourself into the story and experience what Charlie is going through. Anyone can be Charlie. The only downside to the amazing development of Charlie and Harby is that other characters feel a little less memorable with the exception of Lamont who I just found to be unlikeable. I'm in the stone age, aren't I?" Wie fantaseerde als kind nooit over hoe het zou zijn om te leven in een andere tijd? Wel, laat dit boek je meenemen op de wilde avonturen van twee jongens in de steentijd.

The Wild Way Home is an emotional adventure about courage, inner strength, hope and facing the harder parts of life together. Charlie has always wanted a sibling and was eagerly anticipating their arrival. His brother is born near midnight on the day before Charlie's twelfth birthday but the excitement is tinged with dread as his baby brother is born with a heart defect that needs immediate surgery. That news has Charlie literally running off to the nearby forest where he usually plays with his friends. This time, however, he finds a boy, lying in the river and discovers that he may be on familiar ground but he's no longer in his own time! Thus starts a moving adventure set in the stone age in which he discovers the meaning of family and how important it is to 'make safe'. Oh I utterly feel everything Charlie feels when I’m writing those scenes in the book, it’s hard not to. I kind of lose myself when I’m writing – it’s a bit like living a double life: when Charlie’s happy, I’m happy; when Charlie’s distraught, I’m distraught.And one of the things I love most about Northern Ireland is that it’s a place just steeped in stories: everybody has a story and nobody’s shy to tell you theirs. I grew up with stories in my blood – my dad is a born storyteller, turning every household happening or minor misadventure into a great yarn. My mum loves stories too, but more as a reader - she always encouraged me to read and through her I first discovered some of the books by Northern Irish children’s authors that are still amongst my favourites today. I did not really learn anything about the past.It was set in a time period that I liked and it reminded me of our class novel (Wolf Brother). Deze passage illustreert het thema perfect: 'I think about how things aren't always what they seem; how bad things can sometimes just happen and there's nothing you can do about it, no matter how hard you try to forget … or how far you run.' De twee jongens vinden troost en inspiratie bij elkaar om te verwerken wat er is gebeurd en terug te vinden wat ze zijn kwijtgeraakt. I found it funny when Harby, the stone-aged boy, and Charlie talked to each other, trying to make sense of each other’s language, whispering and speaking words and sentences that weren’t in the stone-age dictionary! A perfect story to show how, when bad things happen, it’s OK to be scared but that most storms can be weathered with support from those who care about you.