This book made me cry but I enjoyed it all the same. It’s not a happy book really and probably not one to read if you have young children, but I still couldn’t put it down. Zach loses his brother in a terrible school shooting and this book tells the story of how he pulls his family back together and it’s quite remarkable. Thank you Netgalley for letting me read this and it will certainly be recommended

An emotional read, particularly as I was reading it during the aftermath of the latest US school shootings.

I found it quite harrowing in places, and the emotions and reactions of some of the characters are very well represented and lifelike IMHO.

The main character, Zach, is just a little boy, which made parts of it really pull at the emotions and consider how the effects of these terrible incidents affect younger children (who let's face it, have no way of avoiding seeing them on the media these days) . However there is no way (certainly from my experience) that a child of that age (7) be able to figure out the kind of psychoanalytical tools that he effectively uses to help himself and his family - so for that reason I'm giving it a lower star rating.

My thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for an ARC in return for my honest review.

Heartbreaking but ultimately joyous. A family’s journey through tragedy. I genuinely felt every single emotion while reading this book. As a teacher of young children I find it hard to read books written from the perspective of a child. It is a very difficult thing to get right. However, this author was very nearly spot on throughout. I can imagine any number or my pupils talking and acting like zach which makes it doubly poignant. I would highly recommend this book to other teachers if only to remind them about the innocence of young children and the importance of taking a step back and viewing the world (good and bad) from the eyes of a child.

Only Child is a fantastic novel. Set in America where unfortunately a gunman enters a school and shoots 15 ten year olds, including Andy Taylor, and 4 staff dead. Andy’s little brother, Zach, was in the same school and survived by hiding in the closet.

What follows is a heartbreaking story of grief, anger and healing told from Zach’s point of view. He misses his brother and tries to come to terms with what has happened whilst his mother blames the gunman’s family and believes they should be held accountable.

Beautifully written and moving. I look forward to reading more from this author.

Thank you to NetGalley, Pan Macmillan and the author for the chance to review.

A powerful and heart breaking book. Like Room by Emma Donoghue, Only Child explores a harrowing situation through the eyes of a young child.

As his family struggles in the aftermath of a horrific school shooting in which his older brother Andy was killed, six year old Zach’s innocence and confusion throw the situation into stark contrast. He tries to make sense of what has happened as his family falls apart around him. With his parents buried in grief, Zach has to deal with these events largely on his own. The book is written with sympathy and care, focusing always on the families affected rather than the events themselves. Seeing it through Zach’s eyes amplifies the senselessness and horror of such an attack. As the adults in his world start casting around for someone to blame, Zach’s innocence and determination to do the right thing lead him to try and resolve the growing conflicts himself. The characters are artfully drawn and the story, while desperately sad, also contains a vital element of hope.

I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to Net Galley and the publishers.

This book absolutely destroyed me. It is devastating and beautiful in the way it deals with this situation.

Fair warning because I've come across a negative review mentioning it, this book does not talk about gun control in any significant way, and it doesn't need to. This book is about a child dealing with the aftermath of a school shooting, how his family copes, and whether blame should be placed on the parents of the shooter. I am glad the author chose to focus on this particular avenue, I am sure there will be a book inspired by the recent Parkland shooting, and the brave young people standing up to advocate gun control, but this book was written before that shooting occured and is about a topic I have always found fascinating.

As for the events of the book, I can't say very much without spoilers. As someone who dealt with a situation quite similar to the protagonist of this book, and at the same age, I find the writing superb. There are parts of this book that almost exactly mimic my thoughts and experiences during that time. I will be reading whatever this author writes next because I cannot believe how much this book touched me.

You need to read this book. This, for me is better than the book it will be most compared to, Room by Emma Donaghue, and I loved that book so much. This book will make you experience so many emotions; fear, anger, incredible sadness, and you will come out of it having felt like you were along for the ride with this little boy. There are easter eggs, which the protagonist does not understand, but we as adults do, and it adds such a complexity to the story. I can't rave about this book enough.

This book is a very tough but important read, made even more emotional as it’s told from the point of view of a 6 year old.

It seems like there is always a school shooting in the news, so much so many have become almost immune to them. Reading this will change that. The author has done a fantastic job of describing what it would be like in a shooting for a young child who doesn’t really understand what is happening and what they are seeing in front of them. The impact of trauma and loss at such a young age is hard for them to understand and Rhiannon Navin has done a wonderful job of portraying this in the aftermath and how Zach’s family are affected.

I would highly recommend this to everyone.

Totally enthralling. I could hardly put this book down as the plight of little Zach caught my imagination! I had to know how he fared. A unique insight into the lives of a bereaved family. Each member trying to deal with their own bereavement in a different manner. I felt profound sorrow for Zach who, at times, almost seems more adult than the adults.
A very worthwhile read. I feel I have learnt so much from young Zach and may even try the feelings papers myself!!

This is such a heartbreaking yet beautiful book. I have read some comments about how i'ts a bit too close to home given the latest school shooting in America and I have to say that I completely disagree. It's the perfect time for a book like this. The way it is written from the view of a 7 year old who is experiencing some of the worst moments of his life is fascinating and you can't help but fall in love with Zach and his family. It's a real insight into the mind of a child and how we as parents can have such an effect on their well-being. I cried quite a lot reading this book. It's one of the best books I've read this year and will stay with me for some time. I am glad that someone has had the strength and courage to write a book like this given that there were 18 school shootings in the last year in the USA (from what I've seen on the news). I think this book is a great way for people who aren't in America or who haven't a clue what it's like in the US to really understand how these events affect families and communities. I hope that the events recently don't in anyway over-shadow what is an incredibly well written book with a fantastic story and great characters.

After finishing this I was reminded of the cliché ‘out of the mouths of babes’...

Part of me wishes stories about school shootings were not such high-profile at the moment but, with recent events in America, it seems to be a problem that is not going away. This will not be a book for everyone. The topic is hard to read about, and there’s an element of earnestness to the message that doesn’t sit comfortably with me.
Our story begins with seven-year-old Zach hiding with his teacher and classmates in the closet. He recounts the reactions of those around him as he listens to the repetitive pop-pop-pop sound that signals a gunman has entered the building.
From the outset we are placed in the middle of what must be a terrifying experience. For anyone. Zach’s youth and innocence mean we are seeing this through very different eyes and it’s hard to take. I sighed with relief as Zach and his classmates are escorted out of the building. This didn’t last long.
As Zach is collected by his mum we learn that his older brother, Andy, is missing. From this point onwards the pain level is hiked up.
Sadly, Andy is one of the victims. Through Zach’s eyes we watch how this event shatters and tears apart the family.
Zach has, at times, a voice just that little too adult and knowing. I can’t picture many seven year olds articulating some of their thoughts in the way he does. However, his observations of the family and those around them as they exist in the months afterwards are telling.
The child-narrator means we miss some of the details we’d like to know. Much of what Zach experiences is either directly related to him or gleaned from half-heard conversations. But what we get is enough.
By the end of the novel - perhaps because it would be simply too depressing otherwise - we are given signs that things may settle down with the family. There is hope.
Unfortunately, the question of the shooter, how he has access to the guns and how steps could be taken to prevent such events happening are never explored. They can’t feasibly be in this (probably not questions a seven year old would dwell on/even raise unless repeating things said around them), but it doesn’t mean they shouldn’t be.

Thank you NetGalley for allowing me to read this prior to my publication. I’m sure readers’ “prayers and thoughts” will be with all the characters in this fictional story - as they are every time another school shooting takes place - but, ultimately, that changes nothing.

A tenderhearted debut novel about healing and family narrated by an unforgettable six year old boy who reminds us that sometimes the littlest bodies holds the biggest hearts and the quiet pics speak the loudest.

This book is about the effect on a family in the aftermath of a school shooting. We get told the story of events fron a first grader called Zach. Zach survives but his 10 year old brother does not. This story is heartbreaking but it's also beautifully written. A poignant and heartbreaking read. Have plenty of tissues on standby. It's hard to believe that this is a debut novel. I do recommend this book.

I would like to thank NetGalley, Pan MacMillian and the author Rhiannon Navin for my ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Extremely topical and extremely moving. Some sections slowed down a little too much, but there were genuinely beautiful and moving passages. Highly recommended..

"Only Child" by Rhiannon Navin is every parents worst nightmare. It is a powerful book told from the perspective of the main character Zach who is 6 years old.
The story deals with the aftermath of a school shooting. Zach survived but his older brother was among the 19 killed. Zach then has to work through the complex feelings he is now faced with.
Zach's telling of the events he now has to face make it very ready to understand the horrors he and his family now have to live with. There is a hidden story just below the innocence that Zach thankfully is unaware of.
I loved this book and would recommend it to everyone.

Only Child Rhiannon Navin a four-star read that will change your thinking. In recent weeks school shootings have been all over the news and a friend was closely affected as she lives in the community of the latest school, so I kept putting this book off reading as I just wasn’t ready to read it. I’m glad I did as reading it sooner may have changed my views. What a well written and though provoking debut novel. Told from a child’s perspective this story will shock you to the core, it’s not politicly motivated, it’s just a story waiting to be told.

This book had me gripped from the start and I absolutely fell in love with six year old Zach who was the narrator throughout.
We meet Zach huddled in his classroom and hearing pop pop pop in the corridors he doesn't yet realise that this will change his life forever and as we follow him through the changes in his family it is his feelings of loss and abandonment that seem so raw and honest that I couldn't help but just want to give him a hug, his parents are going through their own feelings of anger and resentment of the gunmans family that they don't seem to realise how much he is hurting.
I was surprised that this is a debut novel from Rhiannon Navin and will be keeping an eye out for more as this was an amazing book and I feel everyone should read it.
Thank you NetGalley for my copy.

WARNING: make sure you are completely stocked with tissues for this book.

I don't think I ever fully stopped crying through this. The story is so raw and realistic and I was in awe of how brilliantly the author brought the story out through the point of view of a young boy. Reading him trying to fix his parents lives as well as deal with the death of his brother in his own way, doing it all alone, was heartbreaking but eye opening.

Especially in times more recently, this story needs to be read. It needs to be understood and discussed.

I would definitely recommend this and can't wait for the next book from the author.

Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC of this book.

The minute I started reading this book I knew it had me well and truly hooked. The heartbreaking story of seven year old Zach and the new life he must face after a gunman opens fire in his school truly is a powerful read. As a teacher myself the first few chapters had me completely on edge and questioning what I would do in this situation. What made it all the more poignant was the fact that I was reading this so soon after the recent school shootings in Florida.

Only Child delves right into the action and we are submersed in Zach's fight for survival as he is locked in a store cupboard with his teacher and the rest of the class when their school goes into lockdown when a gunman enters the school and tragically kills nineteen people. One of those nineteen is in fact Zach's older brother, Andy.

As we read on we see the struggle that not only Zach is facing internally but also how the grief and shock of this incident impacts his whole family life. Zach cannot fathom how his mum, who was once so much fun and attentive, is now an angry and aggressive activist who seems to take her anger out on the family. I'll admit I found some of this difficult to read and I really did want to shake Zach's mum as it was so obvious that he was suffering.

With only his secret hideaway, hidden in Andy's bedroom, does Zach start to explore the range of emotions that he is feeling after the trauma of the shooting. His childlike lack of understanding of grief is completely endearing particularly when he cannot figure out why everyone is so upset about his brother having died when he was such a difficult child. It is only over time that Zach comes to understand how grief and healing works.

I absolutely adored this book. I literally wanted to put my arms inside the Kindle and give Zach a hug. A truly fantastic read.

Your seven years old and a shooter is loose in your school... you don’t even think about your older brother until your mum finds you and asks where he is...

This book focuses on Zach who’s life is turned upside down when his brother is killed by a school shooter. Throughout the book we go through his thoughts and feelings as he struggles to understand what is happening to him and his family.

It’s a lovely touching story that makes you appreciate what you’ve got even if you haven’t lost a loved one.

I read this book in a night, sleep was put on hold until I reached the end. Rhiannon Nevin has taken a difficult subject of the grief, anger, and consequences of a school shooting in America with sensitivity and care. Told through the eyes of 7-year-old Zach, his innocence, and black and white view of the disintegrating world are heartbreaking to read. If I could have reached inside the story to hug him I would have. 

It is a book that pulls at the heartstrings and makes you appreciate every moment you have with loved ones. The devastating news from Florida makes this book topical and adds a viewpoint to the important discussions gripping America.

Absolutely brilliant. Cleverly written and deeply moving. There is much to say about the depth of the narrative but I don’t want to give it away. It was funny in places, made me angry and made me cry big ugly tears that blurred the page. I was completely immersed in the world of Zach and felt I understood every character. I can see this being made into a Hollywood film, but not being better. I hope this brilliant new author writes many more books that are this deep and profound.