Giant by Nicola Skinner illustrate by Flavia Sorrentino

Dear Child,

Having a giant as your servant is an honor.

But it is also a big responsibility.

You will be paired with your giant until you turn twelve, when you will kiss them, 

turning them into stone to rebuild our island.

Sadness is not permitted at the Goodbye ceremony.

Remember: they are not your family.

You may feel fondness for your giant, but you must not mistake that for love.

FROM YOUR FRIENDS AT THE

GIANT MANAGEMENT COMPANY

Minnie is different. She lives in a very structured and controlled society. Children are given giants as servants when they are very young and then after years of time spent together, at age 12, the children have to relinquish their giant in a strange and very cruel ceremony. This town is located on an island which is regularly wracked with earthquakes. Humans live on this island, but giants live there too. In the past there have been years of dreadful wars. The humans have now taken over the island and enslaved the giants who are assigned to the children. Other 'bad' giants are forced to live in an inhospitable place on the other side of a high mountain range. Children are warned to never go there because these giants are extremely dangerous. The servant giants are assigned to the children because the Giant Management Company, who control everything, make use of a surprising discovery that if a giant is kissed by a child it turns to stone. Stone is a valuable commodity in this place because it is used to rebuild the town after the regular earthquake events.

Children learn the rules from a young age:

• Giants are your servants not your friends
• You must not love your giant
• Giants must never ask children to keep secrets
• Everyone should be happy at the Goodbye Ceremony. 
• Giants and children cannot stay together forever.
• Never go to the No-Go Mountains

Back to Minnie. She is not pretty. Her parents are poor. In fact she looks quite neglected. She is also very small and in constant pain. Twice each day she has to inject pain medications. Her father is working on ways to predict and stop the earthquakes but the authorities keep rejecting his plans. Oh, and you need to know Minnie has broken several of the rules - especially the one about loving your giant. Her giant is called Speck because she is unusually small for a giant (she is still quite enormous). As the story opens there has been one of the largest earthquakes ever. Minnie is not due to say goodbye to Speck for many months but the town rulers, have ordered all ceremonies to be brought forward to tomorrow. Minnie cannot bear the idea of turning her beloved friend into a stone statue. While playing a game, Speck has shown Minnie a route to safety. Minnie thinks if she runs away, she can delay or even stop the ceremony. Along the way Minnie makes two important new friends - a jackal she names Twist and a young rubbler named Robin. Rubblers are the lowest eschalon of this society. They dig through the rubble and assist with all the town rebuilding. It is back breaking work which even children are forced to do and their lungs are filled with dust and they live in poverty. 

Here are a few text quotes:

"Would future children of the island shudder a little too, when they passed Speck's statue. Would they look up into her stone face and know, or care, that she had looked after Minnie Wadlow, and swum in a lagoon for forty-five glorious stolen minutes. Or would they not even see her, would she just fade into the background, as many of the statues did after a while? How would they know that Speck liked watermelon slices, and broke a plate every day, and had a specially soft voice if Minnie ever cried?"

"Then she gently, put her hand on the top of his head. It was the first time she had ever touched a jackal. She let her hand stay there, and he allowed it. She took in the solidity of his skull, the warmth of his flesh, and the softness of his fur, all at one - all this strength and fragility under her fingers, and she was humbled by what he had done for her, after she had rejected him."

"There's a possibility of survival if you keep going. If you stay, you're going to get crushed. Dad always said, once things start falling, don't wait around hoping things will get better. They won't. Get out when you can."

The journey undertaken by these three is so dangerous and the final showdown and battle with the hunters intent on their capture will leave you reeling. I just raced through the final chapters - 41-53 desperate for that all important happy ending.

Publisher blurb: There’s absolutely nothing wrong with Minnie’s island. Nothing, that is, apart from the earthquakes, which pull buildings and schools and houses down on a regular basis. Luckily, the island’s inhabitants have found a way to fix their crumbling walls: giants. Giants look after human children, like eleven-year-old Minnie. When Minnie turns twelve, she’ll kiss her giant, turning her into a stone statue forever. The stone will be used to repair buildings. And there’s nothing wrong with that either . . . or so Minnie thinks. But when a dreadful earthquake strikes, Minnie realises she’s not quite ready to say goodbye to her giant – not forever – not yet. So Minnie goes on the run, betraying her parents and everyone she knows. The secrets she uncovers on her journey threaten to pull everything down: and so begins a desperate race against time in which she will confront the truth about her island, her giant . . . and ultimately herself.

Despite the playful language and imaginative setting, this book packs some serious punches as Skinner tackles unnerving concepts head on. Providing an undercurrent throughout the plot are the ongoing implications of colonisation and totalitarianism, where in this unequal society giants are forced to live either as servants or are cast out to the No-Go Mountains. ... This may sound rather heavy for a book perfect for the end of Year 4 upwards, but in the big-hearted and wildly inventive hands of Skinner such themes are skilfully and subtly explored. It is love, however, that is the real driving force behind this story – particularly the love story between Minnie and her giant Speck. A mesmerising triumph, this book would enrapture a class as a read-aloud and has enough meaty themes to make a great whole class text. Just Imagine UK

This is a long book with over 390 pages but I almost read the whole story in one day!  YES it is that good. In fact this is going onto my list of top favourites. I expect to see this book on lots of award lists. The paperback is a really good price so I highly recommend you add this book to your library shelves today! Reading this book adults might think of the movie The Help. 

Take a look at all these book covers by Flavia Sorrentino. I am now very keen to read other books by Nicola Skinner.

Starboard Kirkus Star Review; Storm Kirkus Star Review