I am in charge of our Senior School library and now during this time of lockdown, I am looking for a diverse array of new books to furnish their shelves with and inspire our young people to read a wider and more diverse range of books as they move through the senior school. It is hard sometimes to find books that will grab the attention of young people as their time is short and we are competing against technology and online entertainments.
This was a thought-provoking and well-written read that will appeal to readers across the board. It had a really strong voice and a compelling narrative that I think would capture their attention and draw them in. It kept me engrossed and I think that it's so important that the books that we purchase for both our young people and our staff are appealing to as broad a range of readers as possible - as well as providing them with something a little 'different' that they might not have come across in school libraries before.
This was a really enjoyable read and I will definitely be purchasing a copy for school so that our young people can enjoy it for themselves. A satisfying and well-crafted read that I keep thinking about long after closing its final page - and that definitely makes it a must-buy for me!

Unfortunately I didn't finish this book, as I couldn't get into it - nothing against the author or book, just not to my personal taste. Thank you for the opportunity to read it.

The ending makes the book worth the read, through overall it could have used a more directed and direct plot that actually made the reader feel as if the author knew where it was going. But its a nice story about siblings and with -as already mentioned- a spectacular ending.

A moving and ultimately hopeful story of two brothers dealing with the tragic death of their parents – the twist worked very well.

Heartbreaking and honest and painful. Such realistic stories about grief are so important.

I was super excited for THE NEAREST FARAWAY PLACE because it features two brothers on a journey to recover from grief and support each other, which is absolutely something I love to read about. However the book ultimately fell flat for me due to the writing just feeling really bland and telling (instead of showing). I couldn't connect or feel really invested. I longed to SEE the brothers handling their grief, but instead it felt very detached.

I also found the actual storyline to be so slow. It nearly felt like it had no solid direction, with the boys just travelling around trying to find someone to stay with after the tragic accident. Nothing happens. They listen to music and think about poetry and Dylan cracks his knuckles so many fREAKING TIMES it got beyond tedious to read about. They pet a dog. Meet a weird old lady. Eat muffins. There's just no plot. I get that they were dealing with grief and loneliness and the horror of having no one left -- but I wanted to feel this. Instead I felt I was distanced from the story by the emotionless narration.

I found it hard to connect or become invested with the brothers. Dylan had the personality of a vaguely moveable plastic fork. And this was before his parents crash too, so it wasn't so much grief as he just was not interesting to read about.

Dylan's constant backflashes were a little tedious. Mostly because I didn't care about his ornery relationship with Matilda. Like they spent the whole time with their little noses out of joint because they "liked each other". It was so frustrating. And Dylan was so petulant in the past that it was hard to reconcile that with the quiet/sweet he is in the present.

Also it never explained how their parents had enough money to just travel the world?

HOWEVER...in all my disgruntled feelings throughout the book, I admit the ending was pretty spectacular. It was surprising, which is something that doesn't often happen to me, because I read so many books I usually see plot twists in advance. And I actually was really impressed at the direction it turned!

Ultimately THE NEAREST FARAWAY PLACE plummeted for me because of the lack of plot and bland (in my opinion) writing. I didn't really care about the boys and I wanted to. So an astounding ending couldn't really save me from a story I wasn't invested in.

I loved this book. It is the first I have read by this author. It did take me a little time to pick up the clues but I did eventually!

This was a very emotional read dealing with loss, grief, change and renewal but it was done very sensitively. It was lovely to see a book written from a male perspective - understated but credible.

Griff and Dylan—Thomas, like the poet—are almost back from vacation with their parents when the unthinkable happens: a horrible car wreck kills their parents and injures Griff. Now the two boys are alone in the world and struggling with grief and tragedy. Dylan is just worried about Griff, who’s not dealing well with their reality, and Dylan must make sure his brother gets through this in one piece.

When an aunt and uncle they’ve never met offer them a home in Wales, the boys end up in a world they’re not used to, still reeling from the loss of their parents. Griff bravely starts to adjust to their new reality, but he’s not the only who needs to be brave: Dylan has to face up to something if he’s ever going to embrace his own reality.

So. This book. This book. It’s sad, I’m not going to lie. I expected that, but I did not expect the wrenching sadness of both boys, and the Griff’s horrible grief. The brothers are so different, and yet the same, and the memories threaded throughout the book—the nearest faraway places—are poignant and make the reader aware how great the boys’ parents were. The writing is strong and evocative, pulling the reader right into every single emotional moment. This is well-worth reading.

Hayley Long lives in Norwich with her husband and her rabbit. The Nearest Faraway Place, available July 13th, is her newest novel.

(Galley courtesy of Hot Key Books via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.)

Wow! This book was like nothing I've read before! Such courage and love!

This book left me speechless,I still can't put into words how beautiful this story is.

I liked this book a lot better than Sophie Someone. It was easy to read but still with a lot of playfulness surrounding the text. I liked the way that the text got smaller and larger depending on whether someone was talking quietly or loudly. There were other fun uses of format too. It made it really enjoyable to read. Different from a lot of other books around.

Dylan was an interesting character. I liked the older brother trying to look after the younger one, relationship, though for a while I thought that he should be doing more to help. It soon made sense why he wasn't though.

The background characters were brilliant as well. I loved Blessing and all the various pets with their different personalities. There were a lot of pets in this book.

It was sad, but it was an easy to read book with lots of fun elements to detract from the grief of it all. I think this is a great way to deal with grief.

On Griff's thirteenth birthday, a happy day turns to tragedy for him and his brother Dylan, as a freak hatchback car falls from a car transporter and kills their mum and dad.

Griff is in a bad condition in hospital as Dylan is by his side awaiting his brother to wake up, Griff acts traumatized until the news sinks in later on through the book about the accident and who it killed.

Griff does come round okay only to be told he'll be going to live with their principal Blossom in Brooklyn until the British state find him family in the form of his mum's cousin, Dee in Wales to go and live with whilst going to school in Aberystwyth.

It is after he has been there and settled in with the prospect of a new girl friend on the horizon that a shock comes again about Dylan, I didn't expect the twist!

It was a unique take on a very serious, saddening time in the young lives we follow through the book. From being in a secure and happy family to have it stolen away and face the unknown future makes you thankful you're not having to cope with the situations in real life. It was heartbreakingly great to read.

Many thanks to the publishers for allowing me to review this book for them!