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The Memory Cage by Ruth Eastham
The Blurb On The Back:
Granddad is getting worse. I try to cover up for him. But last night, he could have killed us all …
Alex’s grandfather keeps forgetting things. Desperate to help him remember, Alex starts collecting old photographs. But as Alex digs into his grandfather’s past, he stumbles across secrets that have been buried since World War II.
Uncovering the truth could save Granddad … but it might also tear Alex apart.
Alex is originally from Bosnia, but his family were killed in the war and he was adopted by the Smith family and brought to England. Out of all his new family, he’s closest to his granddad, a retired photographer who still keeps a small studio in the back garden. Recently, Granddad has become more forgetful and Alex’s parents are beginning to notice.
Terrified that they’ll put Granddad in a home, Alex covers up his mistakes but one night Granddad forgets to extinguish his pipe before going to bed and almost burns down the house. Worse, Alex’s bullying older brother Leonard knows about it. He taunts Alex about telling their dad and having both Alex and Granddad sent away.
Desperate to keep his Granddad with them, Alex starts collecting old photographs in to help Granddad remember his past. Doing so uncovers secrets from World War II, secrets that his Granddad doesn’t want uncovered and the more Alex digs, the more he’s forced to confront his own, terrifying past ...
Ruth Eastham’s debut children’s novel is a touching, thought-provoking look at secrets and hidden trauma, sent against the background of a much-loved grandparent’s slide into Alzheimer’s. What could easily be depressing material is handled deftly and combines a lightness of touch with great sensitivity.
Alex unable and unwilling to confront his horrific experiences during the Bosnian conflict. In this way he’s very similar to his granddad, who lived through the horror of the Dunkirk evacuation and who’s kept a secret since that day that still haunts him. I really enjoyed the scenes between the two characters who share a love of photography and who each see something of themselves in the other. Granddad’s Alzheimer’s is also well portrayed and having had a grandparent with the condition, I recognised a lot of truth in both Granddad’s distress and realisation that he’s losing himself and in Alex’s desperation to save him.
The main off note in the story, for me, was the relationship between Leonard and Alex, mainly because I never really bought the reason for Leonard’s jealousy or why it would make him so unpleasant and self-destructive. I also didn’t quite buy into the cutesy younger sister, Sophie, who serves as a catalyst for the book’s final events.
That said, I thought this was a good, solid book that’s well written with tender themes and I look forward to reading Eastham’s next book.
The Verdict:
Ruth Eastham’s debut middle grade novel is a tender, touching and thought-provoking book that links secrets and the personal trauma caused by war. Although I didn’t quite buy Alex’s relationship with his brother, Leonard, that didn’t really detract from a powerful story that’s well told and I’m hugely looking forward to reading Ruth Eastham’s next book.
THE MEMORY CAGE was released in the UK on 3rd January 2011. Thanks to Scholastic for the ARC of this book.
Alex’s grandfather keeps forgetting things. Desperate to help him remember, Alex starts collecting old photographs. But as Alex digs into his grandfather’s past, he stumbles across secrets that have been buried since World War II.
Uncovering the truth could save Granddad … but it might also tear Alex apart.
Alex is originally from Bosnia, but his family were killed in the war and he was adopted by the Smith family and brought to England. Out of all his new family, he’s closest to his granddad, a retired photographer who still keeps a small studio in the back garden. Recently, Granddad has become more forgetful and Alex’s parents are beginning to notice.
Terrified that they’ll put Granddad in a home, Alex covers up his mistakes but one night Granddad forgets to extinguish his pipe before going to bed and almost burns down the house. Worse, Alex’s bullying older brother Leonard knows about it. He taunts Alex about telling their dad and having both Alex and Granddad sent away.
Desperate to keep his Granddad with them, Alex starts collecting old photographs in to help Granddad remember his past. Doing so uncovers secrets from World War II, secrets that his Granddad doesn’t want uncovered and the more Alex digs, the more he’s forced to confront his own, terrifying past ...
Ruth Eastham’s debut children’s novel is a touching, thought-provoking look at secrets and hidden trauma, sent against the background of a much-loved grandparent’s slide into Alzheimer’s. What could easily be depressing material is handled deftly and combines a lightness of touch with great sensitivity.
Alex unable and unwilling to confront his horrific experiences during the Bosnian conflict. In this way he’s very similar to his granddad, who lived through the horror of the Dunkirk evacuation and who’s kept a secret since that day that still haunts him. I really enjoyed the scenes between the two characters who share a love of photography and who each see something of themselves in the other. Granddad’s Alzheimer’s is also well portrayed and having had a grandparent with the condition, I recognised a lot of truth in both Granddad’s distress and realisation that he’s losing himself and in Alex’s desperation to save him.
The main off note in the story, for me, was the relationship between Leonard and Alex, mainly because I never really bought the reason for Leonard’s jealousy or why it would make him so unpleasant and self-destructive. I also didn’t quite buy into the cutesy younger sister, Sophie, who serves as a catalyst for the book’s final events.
That said, I thought this was a good, solid book that’s well written with tender themes and I look forward to reading Eastham’s next book.
The Verdict:
Ruth Eastham’s debut middle grade novel is a tender, touching and thought-provoking book that links secrets and the personal trauma caused by war. Although I didn’t quite buy Alex’s relationship with his brother, Leonard, that didn’t really detract from a powerful story that’s well told and I’m hugely looking forward to reading Ruth Eastham’s next book.
THE MEMORY CAGE was released in the UK on 3rd January 2011. Thanks to Scholastic for the ARC of this book.