Couldn't put this one down. Written from a child's point of view, the author lets us into the little girls world and deals with very sensitive issues in a simple and understanding manner. A good read.

Home is narrated by Jesika who is a 4 and a half year old living in a flat in a depraved area, I absolutely loved Home, I was thorough hooked and enjoyed every single minute of it, it was such an addictive read has I couldn't wait to find out what happens to Jesika, I would definitely recommend this book.

Home is one of those books that grabs your attention from the first page. Told in the first person by 4 year old Jesika it's a hard read. She lives with her mummy and baby brother, Toby in a flat her mum calls the dump! It's not an easy read but one you can't put down. I highly recommend it.

Home by Amanda Berriman a four-star read that won’t let you go. What a debut novel, it will break you and leave you in pieces, but it’s worth it as you be left thinking about this book for a long time after, you’ve read it. I would have loved to give it five-stars but there was something about it, that I can’t put my finger on. It was gut-wrenching and well written, the way the story is told from the point of view of a small child is new and brings you a different view to the story, the innocent outlook on the world and the simple descriptions were captivating. This story could have gone so many ways a story about a single mother with small children living on the bread line in a place that you wouldn’t want to leave your dogs in, it could be so depressing. But as its told from the way Jesika sees the world, you don’t have the harshness that adults seem to have ingrained into our souls this book won’t let you go, there are some parts of this book that you may find difficult to read but keep going as you wouldn’t be able to stop thinking of this book.

This is a wonderful but at times disturbing story told from the perspective of a child. If you loved room you will like this book although like is probably the wrong word to use as at times it is a hard read but you have to finish as you feel you owe it to jessika

The only reason that I haven't given this book a 5 star rating is because I read almost all of it with a sense of foreboding right from the very first page, which increased further once Ryan came on the scene. The author has done a very good job of writing this story from the view point of a small child. It would not have worked in the same way if it had been written from Tina's point-of-view. Both Jesika and Tina have stayed with me after each time I've put the book down and for me that means that the story is a powerful one. I just wanted to bring the whole family to my house and look after them! The subject matters are difficult ones and Amanda Berriman has done an excellent job of dealing with them in this endearing story.

Jesika lives with Tina her mum and Toby her baby brother in a squalid flat. The story is told from Jesika's four year old perspective. Tina and her partner have separated and he has gone back to his native Poland. She was very close to her mother in law who they lived with but she has died leaving them at the mercy of the draconian bedroom tax, and forcing her to rent in the private sector.
I honestly could not put this book down and devoured it in two days. I felt like I was actually there with this family seeing it all through the eyes of Jesika.
When Tina meets up with her childhood friend things take a nasty turn and at this point I really wanted to be a part of the story to warn Tina of what was going on, that's how engaged I was with the book..
Tina is a fiercely independent woman who doesn't realise just how many ordinary people around her care about her and the children but circumstances change and so does she.
The terrible thing is that the subject of this book is all too real in this country today. Anyone who has seen the film 'I Daniel Blake' and come away thinking 'How on earth can this be possible in the twenty first century in one of the richest countries in the world?' will recognise the beaurocracy encountered in just finding a decent place to bring up a family in Britain today.
It's really readable, at times, bleak, but I feel that it is a story that must be read by all of us. You will laugh and cry at Jesika's perspective on life.
It's one of those books that will live with me long, long after I've finished it.
Read it, you won't be disappointed.
Thank you to Netgalley for the opportunity to read it.

Home is a beautiful story told from the perspective of Jesika, who is four years old and lives with her little brother Toby and her mummy in a flat with a shouty money man where the boiler never works properly. It’s garnered comparisons to Room and it’s obvious why, though the plot is very different (but possibly an unfortunate title being so similar). The narrative device of telling a story from a child’s point of view means you see things very differently and events unfold at a different pace, and I’m not surprised that the author is a primary school teacher because she’s captured that childishness perfectly. There was a moment near the end with a characted called Leon which I felt was a bit unnecessarily dramatic, but otherwise I think this is a great book especially for those who want to understand children a little bit more.

The voice is incredibly string in this debut and engaging, I felt myself wanting to shout out to the little girl and her mother at points. I really enjoyed it although the end was a bit convenient and some of it a little unnecessary. It really made me think about a child's perspective on the world.

I would like to thank Random House UK and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read ‘Home’ by Amanda Berriman in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.
Jesika is four-and-a-half years old and lives with her mum Tina and baby brother Toby in a derelict flat that their landlord is going to evict them from. Jesika goes to preschool and meets Paige who’s just moved into the district, but Paige tells her a secret and when Jesika eventually tells her own mum it shatters lives and friendships.
It takes a talented author to tell a story in the words of a four-year-old child but Amanda Berryman has done just that, and very successfully too. ‘Home’ is a brilliantly written novel parts of which I found very disturbing but which I had to keep reading. She’s managed to tackle the subject of child abuse with compassion, sensitivity and empathy for the characters. I’m so pleased NetGalley has allowed me to read this book as it’s a wonderful story that I’ll remember for a long time.

This story will tug at your heartstrings and will probably be very different from what you usually read. Home is told through a child called Jesika who is four years old, which some readers may find hard to read due to the child’s dialogue but as a mother to a toddler myself I had no problem reading this story.

Home will make you open your eyes to a child’s perspective of life and your actions towards them which I am sure we can all learn and relate to especially us parents. I fell in love with little Jesika from the beginning. I found Ryan’s character very shifty from the start and then I started to really dislike him.

This can be a challenging read to many readers, but it is a lovely story overall with a perfect, happy outcome. Very cleverly written through the point of a child. I would highly recommend. It also highlights how many children do face poverty which is what Jesika had to go through and beyond. Not what our children should have to face so young. A powerful story, a well deserved four stars.

*Please note this is the review I will be using on the 12th of February as part of the blog tour*

The expression "can't put down" really comes into its own with a book like Home. I started it one evening and stayed up until 2am reading it and then got up early to finish it the next morning. Jesika is four and lives with her mum and baby brother in a terrible flat. The book is written from Jesika's POV and it has a wonderful childlike innocence with it. Events unfold during the book where you have to try and work out what the adults are saying around her and work out what her innocent interpretations of a situation are. The book is very well written and reminds me a little of Emma Donoghue's room in its style. I can easily see this being the next bestseller!

Home is a moving and hard-hitting novel about a little girl and her family. Jesika is four and lives with her mum and her baby brother Toby in a flat that her mum calls a dump. She’s not allowed to touch the broken window and the scary money man is threatening to evict them. When Toby and her mum’s coughs get worse, Jesika finds herself away from home. All she wants is to be back at home, but her new friend Paige has a secret that Jesika isn’t sure if she should tell.

Told from the point of view of Jesika, the novel immerses the reader in her world and in the stark realities of the housing crisis. It doesn’t take long to get into the book’s style and understand the quirks in the way that a four year old sees the world, including the serious issues that she can’t quite grasp. Berriman uses campaigns and support for Shelter and the NSPCC to highlight real problems, including homelessness and sexual abuse, mixing this with heart and with a memorable protagonist.

With similarities to Kit de Waal’s My Name Is Leon, Emma Donoghue’s Room, and Allie Rogers’ Little Gold, this is a heartbreaking novel that uses a distinctive style and voice to show what children do and don’t understand about their situation and to present the housing crisis in a memorable and real way.