Michael Morpurgo, Kensukes Kingdom Review

“Kensukes Kingdom is one of Morpurgo's best novels for...”

Written on: 25/05/2007 by nickisparkle

Good Points
Exciting story, great authorial voice which hooks you in from page 1, wonderful use of language, sensitive and tender subplot.

Bad Points
None. This is possibly the best children's book I have ever worked with.

General Comments
Kensukes Kingdom is one of Morpurgo's best novels for children. While it is, on the surface, an exciting modern-day Robinson Crusoe which will appeal particularly to unwilling boy readers, the story of a boy and his dog washed up upon an apparently uninhabited tropical island, it is also a beautiful and sensitive portrait of friendship, loss and loyalty. I defy anybody to read the final chapter and epilogue without weeping from genuine heartache! The language used is wonderful without being too difficult to access for 10-11 year old readers, and virtually any page could be used as a Literacy lesson.