I thoroughly enjoyed reading this quirky children's book. The book focuses heavily upon the Chaudhury family and their numerous stories and adventures. Life has already changed considerably for Al since his the arrival of his stepfather Steve and his annoying daughter Carly. But will time travel to the 1980s make things better or worse for Al? Meddling with time is never easy and Grandpa Byron, his wise grandfather who knows of his fathers meddling and definitely doesn’t approve. With a twelve year old trying to save his father, what could possibly go wrong? It’s sort of inevitable that everything isn’t exactly going to go smoothly or exactly to plan. There’s one thing for sure, it’s an incredible adventure! Welford was born in Cullercoats, a small seaside town in the north-east of England. He attended Marden High School and studied English at Leeds University before becoming a magazine journalist and then a television producer. [1] [2] Career [ edit ] The Costa Judges said: “A highly accomplished debut, genuinely enjoyable for both a child reading independently and an adult reading with a child.” About This Edition ISBN: Lambert, Andrew (7 February 2018). "Children's author Ross Welford says too few books set in the North East". NEWSMAKER PR AND VIDEO PRODUCTION LTD . Retrieved 21 September 2022.

My dad died twice. Once when he was thirty-nine, and again four years later when he was twelve. (He's going to die a third time as well, which seems a bit rough on him, but I can't help that.) Non-Brits often have trouble understanding Geordie. It’s said that the singer Cheryl Cole was dropped from the US edition of The X-Factor because audiences had trouble with her accent.I’m not sure I’m any less baffled by time travel after reading this, but what a fun adventure of a story. The whole story is centered around the boy and his grandfather's relationship through good times and bad times. They both had a strong bond of friendship and trust and is arrested by the author with lots of deep, heart-felt emotions. After university, I moved to London and became a journalist and then, after a few years, a television producer. Looking at the title and the cover copy though, I was expecting a light, entertaining romp with a kid and his pet hamster. Of the pet hamster, Alan Shearer, there is very little, his presence is inconsequential, almost an after-thought. And even though there are moments of light and fun (hey, time traveling shenanigans are always fun), this book turned out to be darker and more thoughtful than I was expecting. This is not a bad thing per se but the problem with this is that the narrative voice doesn’t quite decide if it wants to sound very young or much older. The glorious start to a middle-grade trilogy about a brilliant boy, his loyal friends, and some amazingly intelligent beetles that brings together adventure, humor, and real science!

I AM. IN. LOVE. This is officially the best cover buy I ever made, I saw this book in my local bookstore, never heard of it before, the cover was so catchy and I looked up and saw this: The must-have new Victorian novel from bestselling, much-loved children's author, Jacqueline Wilson.Jenna Welch, age 11- 'This book really creates a life-like gripping atmosphere whilst you read it. Welford spins a truly good yarn with brilliant characterisation throughout the book. Great for pet lovers.' The front of the envelope says, in his dad's handwriting, "IMPORTANT: Do Not Open This Envelope Until Sixteen Hours After Receiving It. To Be Delivered on His Twelfth Birthday." Actually, what he said was that he thought it was 'stupendously unlikely'. That's what he used to say about things that he thought weren't real, but couldn't prove. Stupendously unlikely. It's a cool phrase.” The concept of time-traveling has been explained very well and easily for the readers and the logics used by the author to make time-traveling possible are apt. Even young readers will find the story to be enlightening for their minds. The author has vividly captured the feel of a person who is traveling through time, and along with Al's feelings, the readers are bound to feel the same way.