BOOK OF THE WEEK – MY SISTER LIVES ON THE MANTELPIECE

My Sister Lives on the Mantelpiece has been shortlisted for both the Galaxy and Red House children’s book awards. It’s a quick read, but not an easy one.

From the blurb –

Ten-year-old Jamie hasn’t cried since it happened. He knows he should have – Jasmine cried, Mum cried, Dad still cries. Roger didn’t, but then he is just a cat and didn’t know Rose that well, really.

Everyone kept saying it would get better with time, but that’s just one of those lies that grown-ups tell in awkward situations. Five years on, it’s worse than ever: Dad drinks, Mum’s gone and Jamie’s left with questions that he must answer for himself.

This is his story, an unflinchingly real yet heart-warming account of a young boy’s struggle to make sense of the loss that tore his family apart.