The Falling Boy by David Almond

"There were battered faded signs. KEEP OUT. NO ENTRY. 

BEWARE DANGER OF DEATH. One had a silhouette of a falling boy on it."

"Beyond it was the wasteland - shrubs and scrawny trees and brambles and rubble and dusty ground. And old tombstones, lopsided, broken, lots of them topped to the earth. Then the chapel itself. Ancient, crumbling. The roof was shattered and the spire was nearly gone. Most of the windows were bricked up, the huge front door had bars and boards across it."

It is the summer holidays. Obviously these warning signs mean nothing to the local kids. In fact they have meant nothing for several generations as the graffiti inside attests. The kids call this place the Chapel of Doom. There had been plans to use it for a restaurant or a club or a community centre or a museum or even restore it as a church but nothing had happened for decades.

Joff does have a lot going on in his life - high school starts soon and worse dad is very ill. 

"I wanted this stupid rotten time to be over. I wanted to feel happy and strong like I used to feel. I wanted to be the proper Joff Johnson again."

David Almond explains he was going through his own cancer journey when he wrote this book which is dedicated to a hospital where he lives in Newcastle-on-Tyne. 

I did keep thinking something dreadful was going to happen (you need to read this book to see if I was right). David Almond gave me some serious story hints such as crows flapping out through the shattered roof as Joff enters the building. Then we read that his dad told him there used to be a golden angel on the spire but it had flown away years ago. And then these words which gave me a jolt:

"There were painted scenes high on the walls from when the church was in use. ... You could just about see the saints with bits of their halos, and angels with bits of their wings, and fragments of Heaven though God disappeared long ago."

There is also the mystery of Dawn's deceased brother. 

David Almond writes books that, while not too difficult to read, contain very deep themes that are sure to give readers plenty to think about long after the book is finished. No wonder he won the prestigious Hans Christian Andersen Medal. I was left with some unanswered questions in this book - but that is a good thing - readers do not need to have all the answers. I also felt a lot of internal tension reading this book - expecting a dreadful outcome - maybe I was wrong to feel this?

I wanted to compare The Falling Boy with Skellig.

I read Skellig decades ago. It was published in 1998 and so I am sure my memories are fragmented and incomplete but I did keep thinking there are links between this newest book by David Almond - The Falling Boy and Skellig (winner of the Carnegie Medal and the Whitbread Children’s Book of the Year Award). 

• Both stories feature a lonely boy - Michael in Skellig and Joff in The Falling Boy
• A loved family member has a serious illness - Michael's sister in Skellig and Dad in The Falling Boy
• The boy makes friends with a girl - Mina in Skellig, Dawn in The Falling Boy
• The girl has a role in healing the boy or helping him navigate difficult times
• There are issues of bullying
• The setting in both books include an old disused building - in the Falling Boy it is an old church
• The ending of both books leave readers with a sense of hope and renewal

The Falling Boy blurb from the author page: Nothing is the same for Joff this summer. His dad is ill, his mam is working, there’s a new kid in town. He can’t wait to escape each day and explore with his dog Jet. But there’s one place he’s not allowed to explore. Above the town sits the Chapel of Doom, ancient and crumbling, with its warning signs and the legend of the Falling Boy. And when Joff’s adventures take him beyond the boundaries he discovers something unexpected, something truly magical …

There are at least two falling boys in this new novel from David Almond. The first appears in silhouette on the danger sign as Joff approaches the ruined Chapel of Doom above his village. The second is Joff himself, on the verge of secondary school, tumbling and flailing into a pit of confusion and despair as his beloved dad (perhaps a third falling boy?) undergoes treatment for cancer. If you have read any of Almond’s novels before, you might know how this might work out. Books for Keeps

The Falling Boy is about Joff, a boy in the north-east whose Dad is undergoing chemotherapy for cancer of the colon. Joff has friends, he has an enemy, and he meets a girl who doesn’t quite fit in. It is the start of the summer holidays, and Joff spends time visiting an abandoned chapel – the Chapel of Doom – the one he went to with his Dad before he fell ill, and plays there. This is where the title of the book comes from, as the chapel is rumored to have been the site of a boy falling to his death, and is now an angel. A myth? A legend? Just Imagine

Here are some books I previously mentioned for readers to explore after Skellig:

The Amazing Mind of Alice Makin

Angel Creek

Meet the Canadian illustrator Carmen Mok

Image Source: Vancouver Guardian

Image source: Foliojr

Carmen Mok studied studio art at the University of Waterloo and craft design at Sheridan College. While working as a magazine graphic designer she had the opportunity to explore editorial illustration, which inspired her to change her creative path and become an illustrator. Carmen’s illustrations have been published in magazines across Canada and the U.S., as well as on greeting cards, stationery and children’s home accessories. She now dedicates herself to children’s book illustration. She has received several illustration awards, including the SCBWI Canada East People’s Choice Award for Illustration in 2017 and the Exceptional Portfolio Award and the Storyteller Award in 2018. Carmen lives in St. Catharine's, Ontario. Kids Can Press

You can see the covers of her books here. And here is her website. You can see Carmen Mok at work in this video where she talks about Tough Like Mum. (15 minutes). Take a look at these gorgeous alphabet drawings by Carmen. I do hope Carmen Mok is able to attend the 2026 IBBY Congress in Ottawa. 

Awards & Accomplishments: 

• Violet Shrink, TD Grade One Book Giveaway 2024
• Tough Like Mum, written by Lana Button, Crystal Kite Award 2022, SCBWI
• Grandmother’s Visit, written by Betty Quan, picture book honor title of the Asian/Pacific American Award 2018-2019, and short list for the IODE Ontario Jean Throop Book Award 2019
• The Exceptional Portfolio Award 2018 by the Peers, SCBWI Canada East
• The Storyteller Award 2018 by the Faculty, SCBWI Canada East
• The People's Choice Award for Illustration 2017, SCBWI Canada East

Orris and Timble

Due for publication early in 2025

Publisher blurb: Through the window, the child can hear the trees breathe and watches them sway back and forth as they begin to dance. Then bears join in, accompanied by the child on their drum, making so much noise they wake up a dragon! The dragon’s smoky breath fills the sky, and the wind forms a knight on a steed that gallops through the stars. The child’s adventure continues, as one wonderful flight of fancy leads to the next, from pirates to mermaids to whales, until they find themselves sitting silent once again among the trees. 

Kirkus Star review

This is the companion volume to Cone Cat

Mok’s illustrations are in subdued hues, with a predominantly purple, green, and gray palette that pairs well with the dark purple print. Careful lines add detail and depth while giving the perception 

of a tactile, orderly calm. Kirkus

Here is a new book from Carmen Mok due out early in 2025. Alfred Blooms:

I like the sound of Luna's Green Pet.  Here is the publisher blurb: Luna longs for a pet but the apartment building where she and her family live has a very strict NO PETS! policy. Not even goldfish are allowed. While her friends try to help with alternate pet suggestions, none interest Luna. Almost ready to give up, Luna spies in the trash something small, something green, something someone has discarded—a wilted plant. Perfect! Luna names her new pet Stephanie, confident she can nurse the plant back to health. When others question Stephanie’s suitability as a pet, Luna’s devotion is unwavering. She knows Stephanie is perfect just as she is. But will Luna’s love and care be enough to bring Stephanie to full health? And what are those strange bumps growing on her?

You could pair this with My Amazing Poo Plant from the Aussie Nibbles series. 

Escape to the River Sea by Emma Carroll

Bookseller blurb: In 1946, Rosa Sweetman, a young Kindertransport girl, is longing for her family to claim her. The war in Europe is over and she is the only child left at Westwood, a rambling country estate in the north of England, where she'd taken refuge seven years earlier. The arrival of a friend of the family, Yara Fielding, starts an adventure that will take Rosa deep into the lush beauty of the Amazon rainforest in search of jaguars, ancient giant sloths and somewhere to belong. What she finds is Yara's lively, welcoming family on the banks of the river and, together, they face a danger greater than she could ever have imagined. Featuring places and characters known and loved by fans of Journey to the River Sea (including, among others, Maia, Finn, Miss Minton and Clovis) this spectacular new chapter in the story tells of the next generation and the growing threats to the Amazon rainforest that continue to this day.

In order to really enjoy this book (2022) which continues the famous story Journey to the River Sea by Eva Ibbotson you do need to read the original and if possible read the two books close together. I first read Journey to the River Sea in 2001 when it was first published. Then I re-read it in 2012.

There has a been a trend over recent years for 'famous' modern authors to continue classic stories. I have talked about this previously.

I have had Escape to the River Sea on my 'to read' list for several years so I was delighted to find a mint condition copy in a charity bookshop for just AUS$4. I did hold my interest and there were some good twists and turns especially towards the end but I do need to say it didn't quite give me the delight of the original story. Having said that there is a strong sense of place - the Amazon River and I did enjoy the team work of the young characters who are determined to discover the elusive giant sloth along with the truth about the shady men who seem to be also on this hunt. 

I do agree with these review comments:

Plants, animals, intense heat, rushing rivers, risks and true danger are around every corner, giving readers a vivid picture of this very special part of the world. Scope for Imagination

A shoutout must also be made to the stunning cover artwork by Katie Hickey which in my opinion will make the hardback version of this book a hugely desirable addition to bookshelves everywhere. V's View from the Bookshelves

I would highly recommend returning to Eva Ibbotson’ s book (and her others) and also encourage classes to read other titles that have had sequels (or indeed prequels) published by different authors to see how they compare and contrast to the original. Just Imagine

Meet the Canadian Illustrator Julie Morstad

"The best illustrations usually add something else that's not in the text," Morstad says. "It should create a nice tension between what's said and what's shown — a new thing that exists neither without the words or without the pictures. Maurice Sendak was a big proponent of that concept, and I'm a believer! 

It's something that I strive for." Emily Carr News

Canada Post stamp designed by Julie Morstad in 2018

Julie Morstad graduated from the Alberta College of Art and Design in 2004 with a BFA. Morstad lives and works in Vancouver where she divides her time between drawing, illustration, animation, and design. The Vancouver-based creator won the 2022 Marilyn Baillie Picture Book Award for her solo project Time Is a Flower, which was also a finalist for the 2022 Governor General’s Literary Award for Young People’s Literature. You can see more of her work here - and she has prints for sale.

See inside this book her at Seven Impossible Things before Breakfast

Read the Kirkus Star review

Kirkus Star Review: This combination of poetry and art in praise of the familiar, 

natural world is sweetly, successfully dazzling.

I was a single mother with this little kid, and I was going to art school, so our biggest entertainment was going to the library. We would often get books from the discard pile, and there were always so many good mid-century works, like books by Margaret Wise Brown and Maurice Sendak. That introduced me to a lot of illustrators and writers that I probably saw as a kid but didn’t remember. I got really interested in the history of illustration and children’s books, and, of course, just enjoying them with my son informed a lot of what I did at art school. Even though I wasn’t necessarily making books, a lot of my art was sort of fairy-tale inspired.  Quill and Quire

Here is a detailed review by Betsy Bird for SLJ

For all those parents desperate to introduce their toddlers to poetry, or just folks 

who want to read their kids something beautiful for once, here is the answer to your prayers.

Vancouver artist Julie Morstad is so steeped in children’s literature that she named her daughter, Ida, after a character who rescues her sister from goblins in Maurice Sendak’s book, Outside Over There. (Galleries West) Here is an interview with Julie Morstad. 

I have always been inspired by the illustrations in children’s books. Some of my favorites are Mary Blair, Gyo Fujikawa, Alice and Martin Provensen, Barbara Cooney, Tove Jannson, Bruno Munari, and of course, Maurice Sendak. 

Here is a list of books illustrated by Julie Morstad. When you click on each book cover on her webpage you can see inside:

• When You Were Small (2006) – Illustrator, written by Sara O'Leary
• Milk Teeth (2007) – Illustrator
• Where You Came From (2008) – Illustrator, written by Sara O'Leary
• When I Was Small (2011) – Illustrator, written by Sara O'Leary
• The Wayside (2012) – Illustrator
• The Swing (2012) – Illustrator, written by Robert Louis Stevenson
• How To (2013) – Writer and illustrator
• Julia, Child (2014) – Illustrator, written by Kyo Maclear
• This Is Sadie, (2015) – Illustrator, written by Sara O'Leary
• Swan: The Life and Dance of Anna Pavlova (2015) – Illustrator, written by Laurel Snyder
• Sometimes We Think You Are a Monkey (2015) – Illustrator, written by Johanna Skibsrud and Sarah Blacker
• Today (2016) – Writer and illustrator
• When Green Becomes Tomatoes: Poems for All Seasons (2016) – Illustrator, written by Julie Fogliano
• Singing Away the Dark (2017) – Illustrator, written by Caroline Woodward
• Bloom: A Story of Fashion Designer Elsa Schiaparelli (2018) – Illustrator, written by Kyo Maclear
• The Dress and the Girl (2018) – Illustrator, written by Camille Andros
• House of Dreams: The Life of L. M. Montgomery (2018) – Illustrator, written by Liz Rosenberg
• It Began with a Page: How Gyo Fujikawa Drew the Way (2019) – Illustrator, written by Kyo Maclear
• Show Me A Sign (2020) – Illustrator, written by Ann Clare LeZotte
• Girl on a Motorcycle (2020) – Illustrator, written by Amy Novesky
• Time is a Flower (2022) – Writer and illustrator

See inside this book here.

The Puppets of Spelhorst

Here is the Kirkus Star review

Here is her newest book from 2024:

Bookseller blurb: A girl declares all the things she’ll do for her mother when she is all grown up—from climbing mountains and swimming across oceans, to picking the pinkest rose, to building the biggest bridge and a castle for her mother to live in, to taming a wild black horse for her mother to ride—ending with the friend she will bring her mother to keep her company while she travels the world. Originally published in 1964, A Rose, a Bridge, and a Wild Black Horse is a beloved picture book by renowned children’s book author Charlotte Zolotow, reenvisioned by her daughter, celebrated author Crescent Dragonwagon, and illustrated by award-winning artist Julie Morstad. The book includes an afterword by Crescent Dragonwagon about her mother and this special edition of their book.

I am working on a series of posts featuring Canadian children's book illustrators partly because these are people I hope will be at the 2026 IBBY Congress in Ottawa and partly because, if they are there, I will be way better informed about their works.

So far I have explored Sydney Smith; Marie-Louise Gay; Isabelle Arsenault; Stéphane Jorisch; Barbara Reid; The Fan Brothers; and Qin Leng.

USBBY Outstanding International Books 2025

 

The annual Outstanding International Books list highlights exceptional books 

for children and young adults 

published or distributed in the United States that originated or 

were first published in a country other than the U.S. 

This year’s list includes 40 titles originating from 23 different countries that represent the best of 

children’s literature from around the world. USBBY’s goal is that these titles will help young 

people in the U.S. to see the world from diverse perspectives, introduce readers in the U.S. to 

outstanding artists and writers from other countries, help counteract stereotypes, bridge cultural 

gaps, build connections, and engage and prove accessible to young readers in the U.S.

Selection criteria include:

Books that represent the best of children’s literature from other countries 

Books that introduce readers in the United States to outstanding authors and illustrators from other countries 

Books that help children in the United States see the world from other points of view 

Books that provide a perspective or address a topic otherwise missing from children’s literature in the United States 

Books that exhibit a distinct cultural flavor 

Books that are accessible to readers in the United States 

​

Criteria for content and presentation include:

Artistic and literary merit 

Originality or creativity of approach 

Distinctiveness of topic 

Uniqueness of origin 

Qualities that engage and appeal to children 

We have one Australian book on the list this year but in the US it has a different title. Here is my blog post about The Letterbox Tree:

The Kirkus review said: This genre-blending book will appeal to many, including readers who love grappling with real-world problems, those who appreciate speculative fiction, and anyone seeking a thoughtful, character-driven coming-of-age story. ... A vividly rendered, evocative story about the power of connection and maintaining hope through despair.

If you want to share this with a group USBBY have created a PowerPoint. You can see all the titles here. 

The Bridge to Understanding Award formally acknowledges the work of adults who create programs that use children's books to explore cultures around the world in order to 

promote international understanding among children.

Here is my post about the list from 2023 which links to my earlier post about the 2022 list. You can see the 2024 list here. Sadly there were no Australian titles listed for 2024 but I did spy this fabulous book:

The Bear and the Wildcat

American Library Assocation’s 2025 Youth Media Awards Winners

You can see a list of all the awards and winners here. I am just focusing on books that might be of interest to children here in Australia or books that hopefully we will find in our libraries or bookstores in the coming months. Sadly some of these book will be very expensive here in Australia. I do recommend you check out all of the other winners - many are Young Adult titles perfect for High School libraries. 

In our Australian context it would be good to explore the Asian/Pacific American Award for Literature. Lola, written by Karla Arenas Valenti, is the 2025 Pura Belpré Children’s Author Award winner. I previously talked about Loteria by Karla Arenas Valenti illustrated by Dana Sanmar. 

I am always keen to see the Mildred L. Batchelder Award for an outstanding children’s book originally published in a language other than English, in a country other than the United States, and subsequently translated into English for publication in the United States. One of the honor titles is Mr. Lepron’s Mystery Soup, written by Giovanna Zoboli, illustrated by Mariachiara Di Giorgio. I have this on order from a bookseller so I will be talking about it here on this blog soon. I was able to preview Mr Lepron's Mystery Soup at the IBBY Congress in Trieste last year. The Mildren L Batchelder winner John the Skeleton is already available here from Gleebooks. Here is the Kirkus Star review. 

John Newbery Medal

Kirkus review

Erin Entrada Kelly has won numerous awards, including the 2018 Newbery Medal for 

Hello, Universe a 2021 Newbery Honor for We Dream of Space.

Newbery Honor Books

• Across So Many Seas by Ruth Behar 
• Magnolia Wu Unfolds It All written and illustrated by Chanel Miller 
• One Big Open Sky by Lesa Cline-Ransome 
• The Wrong Way Home by Kate O’Shaughnessy (I am excited to read this one)

Randolph Caldecott Medal

Kirkus Star review

Caldecott Honor Books

Kirkus review

• Home in a Lunchbox illustrated and written by Cherry Mo 
• My Daddy Is a Cowboy illustrated by C.G. Esperanza, written by Stephanie Seals 
• Noodles on a Bicycle illustrated by Gracey Zhang, written by Kyo Maclear
• Up, Up, Ever Up! Junko Tabei: A Life in the Mountains illustrated by Yuko Shimizu, written by Anita Yasuda 

The Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Award

Read my blog post.

Thanks to my friend at Kinderbookswitheverything 

for adding this splendid book to her library.

Theodor Seuss Geisel Award for the most distinguished beginning reader book

Kirkus Review

Publisher page - Simon and Schuster

Vacation by Ame Dyckman, illustrated by Mark Teague

Geisel Honor Books

Kirkus Review

Here is my post about other books in this series

• Fox versus Fox, written and illustrated by Corey R. Tabor 
• Towed by Toad, written and illustrated by Jashar Awan 

Kirkus Review

I was also very pleased to see Louder than Hunger by John Schu received an honor in the Schneider Family Book Awards for books that embody an artistic expression of the disability experience. I read this book on my Kindle last year - please note it is a Young Adult title.

Kirkus Review

Here is a blog post about the winners from Literacious which links with Amazon if you would like to explore the award-winning books further.