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Children's books

July children's bookclub choice: Salvage - apply for a free copy

15 replies

NataliaMumsnet · 01/07/2014 16:56

When a family is torn apart, everything is fractured: memories, identities, relationships. What can be salvaged? Keren David explores issues of class, race and adoption through her narrative which tells the story of the separation and reunion of half brother and sister Aidan and Cass.

A great YA read, this is an intricately woven story told from alternating perspectives. If you’d like to get your hands on a copy for yourself or your DCs, you can now apply here. Don’t forget to return to this thread to share your thoughts or alternatively you can post a review of the book here.

July children's bookclub choice: Salvage - apply for a free copy
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frazzledbutcalm · 01/07/2014 22:39

Have applied, thank you x

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NataliaMumsnet · 08/07/2014 13:55

This giveaway is now closed and the winners will be notified soon. Please remember to return to this thread to share your thoughts on the book and you can leave a review here.

Happy reading!

OP posts:
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ktmd · 28/07/2014 10:08

Just received this book. My daughter is delighed. She read the blurb and is gripped already. Thank you.

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bettybooboo1 · 28/07/2014 11:33

Just received the book and have started to read it myself and have been drawn in - I do like a bit of YA fiction. It's a bit old for my DD but will be giving it to my nephew to read on our holiday this week as it is right up his street. Thank you

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susanterblanche · 28/07/2014 20:58

Thanks, I got my copy today, think I might also read it before my daughter :-)

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mjmooseface · 29/07/2014 15:01

I received my copy yesterday and thought I'd read a few pages before I went to bed, just to get a feel of it... I ended up reading 42 pages! I was completely drawn in by the characters and can't wait to see how their stories pan out. Will be back when I'm finished!

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sc00ter · 30/07/2014 19:07

Hi,

We only received our copy of the book this morning and my teen daughter has been waiting for the post man for days.
She is really excited about the book.
She had already heard of the book and cant wait to read it.

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mjmooseface · 04/08/2014 17:47

Has anyone read the book themselves? I like reading a bit of YA fiction. It's labelled as 'Teenage' in my local library so I always feel a bit naughty having a look through those shelves as I am no longer a teen! But being 22, some of the stories still resonate with me through the themes and issues explored and the language and messages.

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dark128 · 05/08/2014 13:20

Received my copy a few days ago. Already a few pages in and loving it.

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cavylover · 06/08/2014 14:46

Very enjoyable book, well constructed and thought out primarily about the twists and turns of the lives of a separated brother and sister and how they meet again after many years apart. It shows how what has happened to the characters in the past still affects the decisions they make in the present and that despite their different upbringings they both have to deal with similar problems. Very intelligent writing.

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katb1973 · 07/08/2014 14:56

Thanks Mumsnet, found this little beauty waiting for me when I got back from holiday. It was a really interestingly crafted story with two siblings, separated at birth and brought up in 2 completely different environments. When they meet up their different upbringings result in them having to adjust and they both have this inner yearning to find themselves...perhaps by finding each other. Interesting social commentary and written in such a way that the reader is constantly challenged. I found this book to be quite emotionally charged and would recommend it for more mature teenagers as it touches on many serious issues.

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missorinoco · 09/08/2014 10:20

Thankyou MN. This was a very interesting read. I particularly liked the way you were able to get into the mindset of Aidan, it offered a perspective one wouldn't otherwise appreciate.

Bits of it I felt could have been developed further, but the depth is ideal for the target audience. I would recommend this, and will remember the author for when my children are a little older.

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mineymo · 17/08/2014 19:01

I didn't particularly enjoy this book. I thought it was okay, and read it in a few days, but I wasn't gripped by the story nor did I have much interest in any of the characters. Something about it just fell flat with me.

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peanutmum111 · 18/08/2014 00:08

Yes thank you for the book, been away and it was waiting for us ............. dd now in the covers, a sure sign its good

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mjmooseface · 18/08/2014 19:57

Possible Spoiler Alert

For me, it all came down to nearly the last words of the book...

"Sometimes I think we all get too worked up about families. I mean, we're all related somehow, aren't we? What is a family, anyway? Is it Cass and Ben and her split-up parents? Is it Rich and Brendan, happy-ever-after in Walthamstow? Is it Cass and me? Holly and Finn?
I always wanted a perfect family, but I'll settle for a normal one."

I grew up in a family that was all about the public image... 12 kids, religious, happy happy, perfect. It's only since leaving home that I've realised all the cracks that have always been there. We were never perfect. We're not now. There is no such thing as a perfect family. To me, anyway. What I have now is my own family I've created myself - my husband and my son - and bits and pieces of my birth family. And the friends along the way who have become my family.

A very touching read. I read it so fast because so much of it resonated with me. I loved the way it was written. Believable. Like the conversations really happened.

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