Soonchild

By Russell Hoban

Illustrated by Alexis Deacon

"Hoban is the best sort of genius." Patrick Ness, The Guardian

Somewhere in the Arctic Circle, Sixteen-Face John, a shaman, learns that his first child, a soonchild, cannot hear the World Songs from her mother's womb. The World Songs are what inspire all newborns to come out into the world, and John must find them for her. But how? The answer takes him through many lifetimes and many shape-shifts, as well as encounters with beasts, demons and a mysterious benevolent owl spirit, Ukpika, who is linked to John's past...

Categories: Fiction

For readers aged: 14+

Publication details:
Format: Paperback
ISBN: 9781406344189
Published: 01 Jan 2015
Price: £6.99

Size: 229 x 152 mm
Pages: 144

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Customer reviews

Reviews

'This magical tale from a master storyteller is highly readable and full of imagination…The stunning illustrations by Alexis Deacon are as important to the telling of the story as the text, and this book will truly delight both children and adult alike.' We Love This Book

'Every adolescent should have a copy of this one. Trust me, nobody will be writing stories quite like this any more.' The Guardian

'A simpler, sparer cold-climate tale of the shaman Sixteen-Face John and his Big-Dream Trip “putting himself where the animals in him could reach him”. This will send you outside to look at the stars and wish for snow, then back indoors to draw the curtains against the Long White Alone.' Observer

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Paperback
£6.99

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