posted on 30 May 2021

Featherlight by Peter Bunzl

Young Deryn and her mom and dad are the only residents of the remote Featherstone Island and that’s because Deryn’s dad is the lighthouse keeper, keeping the light alive that helps ships and boats avoid the razor-sharp rocks that would sink them.

Deryn’s life is about to change dramatically as we join Peter Bunzl’s magical story because her pregnant mother and her dad have to make an emergency dash to the mainland as problems develop with the pregnancy. Deryn’s left alone to keep the lighthouse working – a daunting job but one she’s capable of after helping her dad for so long.

She hopes her mom and dad will be back within a day or two at the most and Deryn seems to have things in hand. However, there’s an intriguing new arrival at the lighthouse – a bird that flies into the light and injures itself. Although she doesn’t recognise the species, Deryn takes the bird in and keeps it warm and looked after – although she can’t seem to get it to eat.

The arrival on the island of Deryn’s grandmother is a sign that her mom and dad are going to be away longer than she expected but now at least she has her grandmother and her new pet bird, Tan, to keep her company.

All seems to be going well until a sudden storm brews up and the lighthouse’s lamp goes out because the fuel has run so low. What can Deryn and her grandmother do to stop ships running onto the rocks? It looks like a miracle is needed.

And, yes, that’s exactly what they get with more than a little help from Tan – who turns out to be a very special bird indeed.

You wouldn’t expect me to tell you just what it is that Tan can do because you’ll want to read that for yourself but what I can say is that you’ll have plenty of thrills and excitement finding out as Deryn and Gran desperately search for a solution to their problem.

The book features illustrations from Anneli Bray on the inside and a really delightful piece of cover art from Evan Hollingdale. It’s another winning release from the Barrington Stoke ‘super readable’ series of books which are designed specifically for reluctant readers of all kinds.

Highly recommended.

 

Terry Potter

May 2021