The Super Miraculous Journey of Freddie Yates was brilliant, hitting that sweet spot between funny and sensitive.
At its heart, (and it has a lot of heart!) this is a road-trip story. It has a lot in common with that genre of comedy films where a group of buddies hit the road to an unknown destination and face a variety of increasingly ridiculous encounters along the way. The big difference is that these three are young children, travelling the length (or maybe the width) of Wales to find the biological father of Freddie Yates. Along the way they face an onion eating competition, armed robbers, an abandoned church, buses, boats and bikes.

One of the genius elements of this is how ridiculous things are allowed to get, without it actually crossing that line into total fantasy. There's a logical progression to it, you can see how one mistake leads into the next, into the next, until by the end they're a long way from where they expected to be. I'm not saying it's believable, but yeah, you can see how it makes sense, sort of.

The second genius element of this is how much heart it has. It deals with grief and loss, with difficult relationships with a father who is drinking, with the sense of loss of family and not fitting it. It deals with body issues, which can be particularly cruel when a child is deemed to be too large. It deals with the difficult relationships with a stepmother and the pressure that can put on a child. It deals with all of these things and it deals with them incredibly respectfully and sensitively. It's an out-and-out comedy, but Jenny Pearson really does know when to stop laughing at her characters,

The Super Miraculous Journey of Freddie Yates is a super miraculous combination of laughs and love.

A hilarious high-stakes adventure that kept me laughing all the way through. It also contain surprising tenderness, discussing grief, divorce and self-esteem in a perfect child friendly way. I'm excited to see where this series will go.

This books was fantastic! Funny,smart and unbelievably heart wrenching. The main characters act in a believable way, on a completely unbelievable adventure, with amazingly eccentric side characters. Highly recommended.

This is one of the most genuinely funny books I have read for children. So often, humour is puerile and just silly, whereas this book is more observational/situation humour which I found myself laughing out loud. Even in the saddest moments, the author manages to find humour. I cannot wait to share this with the pupils at my school.

Freddie's gran dies unexpectedly leaving a large hole in his life. The story reveals that his Mum has been dead for some time and Gram has been living with him and his father. On Gram's death, Freddie learns that his 'dad' is not his biological father, and decides to go on a journey with his friends to find his biological father to give him a sense of 'family'. This doesn't sound like the best of beginnings for a humorous book and may be a little upsetting for some children; however, it is dealt with in a very caring way rather than dwell on the loss of loved ones. Freddie goes to his Gram's room and is comforted by her belongings, including a handkerchief that he takes as a memento because it smells like her ... the problem is, he hasn't quite taken what he thought he had, when it is pointed out to him that he has been 'sniffing' his 'Gram's knickers.'

Freddie goes on a big adventure with two friends to find his 'real' dad. He thinks he has located his father following a Google search and the three boys take a trip to Wales. The adventures they get up to have just got to be read to be believed. They are so far-fetched, yet convincingly written that you cannot wait to turn the next page. There are onion eating competitions, arson attacks, armed robbery and superhero incidents that will have you crying out loud with laughter.

I loved this book in every way. It deals with some big issues: loss of family members and realising what really makes a family, friendship, resilience, and bravery in the face of adversity, but they are wonderfully managed with a brilliant amount of side-splitting humour.

I’m not going to leave you hanging until the last paragraph to let you know how I feel about this book. I’m just going to come out with it. Ready? Okay …


The Super Miraculous Journey of Freddie Yates is one of the best funny kids books I’ve ever read.


There. I’ve said. And now I’ll tell you why: because it’s perfect, neat, unforced and very funny with a plot that is 100% adorable. Straight up – there’s nothing not to love.


The main thrust of the story is Freddie’s determination to find his biological father who, he has just discovered, is living in Wales. With the help of his best mates, Charlie and Ben (and a few whopping lies to their parents) they set off from their home town of Andover. Only, when you’re three eleven-year-old kids with a distant destination and limited funds, things are going to get complicated. But it’s how they get complicated which is the absolutely joy of this story.


Wales is the backdrop, and anyone who lives or knows its pretty pockets and countryside communities will be aware that they are very tightknit; so-and-so knows so-and-so who knows so-and-so. And so it goes on. So, when the boys commit their first conspicuous act of entering an onion-eating competition in the town of Barry, news travels fast. Certainly faster than three boys who don’t know quite what direction they’re going in. Although there is one place they’re definitely heading for and that’s Trouble. Because, apart from telling whopping lies and losing their clothes and zig-zagging cross-country with sore bums and hungry tums, they also manage to rattle the cage of a rather nasty customer known as The Gaffer. The boys are running, the Gaffer is chasing, and running parallel to it all is another story – one that appears in newspapers and on tv: a story that will have tears running down your face.


Although the capers are hilarious – and I mean, truly hilarious – the heart of this story is family.

It’s the death of Freddie’s Grams (his mother’s mother) that triggers the quest for belonging and an understanding of what family means. But Charlie and Ben have their share of family epiphanies, too.


The relationship between the three boys is so natural; it has its flare-ups, but there’s a real tenderness, and their dialogue will have you in stitches. All the characters will have you in stitches for that matter. There’s a brilliant chorus-line of them – from Grams to Big Trev to Phyllis to PC Mike … If you’re an adult reading this, you’ll also recognise the ‘things people say’, and seeing that from a child’s perspective makes it all the more funny. But it’s not like the more caricatured of the cast are simply there for colour, either. Each plays their own lead part – because this is a playful comedy in several acts.


It’s Race Across The World meets Doc Martin meets The Incredible Journey meets Only Fools And Horses (the superhero episode) meets an oncoming funny truck… I recognise more in there too, but I have to stop somewhere. So I’ll stop at this: so rarely do you get a blend of adventures, characters, heart and hilarity in a plot that snaps so cleanly together it leaves you both fully satisfied and yet still wanting more.

Freddie is not looking forward to the summer holidays: his two best mates will be away on holiday and his dad is nursing a broken leg. Then his grandma dies suddenly from a stroke, and the letter she leaves for him gives him an idea. He has always known his much loved dad is not his biological father, but with no-one left related to him, he decides to find Alan Froggley, which Grams’ letter has revealed is the name of the father he never knew.
With his two best friends Ben and Charlie for company, Freddie embarks on an ill-planned and incident packed road trip to Wales to track down Alan, who he believes to be working for a company in Cardiff. Naturally, all does not go to plan, and the three boys stumble from one hilarious misadventure to the next, fearing they are being pursued by a robber with a gun…
Action packed, warm-hearted and so funny it made me laugh out loud, this is a hugely entertaining novel, so vividly written that the boys’ adventures leapt into life before my eyes. The relationship between the friends is totally believable, and Freddie’s first person narration adds poignancy as he comes to realise the true meaning of family and starts to grieve for his grandma. Highly recommended – I loved it!

The Super Miraculous Journey of Freddie Yates is the kind of story I would devour if I was a kid, and have devoured now as an adult.

A contemporary mystery and an adventure story, this book is pitched perfectly to middle-grade readers, without being patronising or relying on humour over substance or storyline. There is humour here, and lots of it, but done so naturally that it adds to the story, rather than detracts. Pearson also deals deftly with tricky subjects, like grief, family changes and body image - this is a subtly complex book, and that makes for a fantastic read.

Jennny Pearson has created such recognisable, dimensional characters here, and their relationships feel so real too. What is particularly nice is the relationship between the three main boys - it is both humourous and heartfelt, flawed and feeling. MG needs more of these kinds of friendships, especially between boys.

In short, it deserves a place on every child's shelf (and on grown-ups' ones, too). A really excellent book.

This was such a heartwarming read that had me laughing and crying. The journey Freddie goes on is full of disasters that have you chuckling, but the overall reason for his journey is quite heartbreaking. I couldn't put this book down either and found myself reading it in one sitting.

While some children collect pokemon cards or stickers, Freddie Yates collects facts. He has a fact on hand for any conversation topic, and loves to share his facts with his best friends, his Dad and his Grams... Until one day he can’t share them with his Grams anymore. As Freddie comes to terms with his loss, he is given a letter from Grams containing a secret which has been kept from him his whole life—the name of his biological dad. With his friends roped in and a very ill-thought-out plan, Freddie heads to Wales to track him down. Along the way, Freddie, Charlie and Ben take part in Barry’s famous onion-eating competition, perform heroic deeds and even witness a miracle or two! With such an early loss in the book, my heart went out to Freddie, and the description of his feelings and grief are real and relatable. It’s so important that readers have the opportunity to experience and practise these emotions through books.

Their enthralling escapade is a laugh a minute, but there are also touching moments of sincerity, including a poignant moment where the issue of body image and self esteem are discussed, and many moments considering the meaning of family and the stresses and strains that families can experience. Including these very relevant issues gives readers the opportunity to think about their own experiences. I’ll be whole-heatedly recommending this to my Y5 children, but could be shared with all of KS2. Perfect for fans of David Walliams, fans of funny books and fact fans! Grab your superhero costume, pack yourself a pear and potato turnover and buckle up for a summer like no other!

This lovely warmhearted tale of Freddie and his quest to find his 'real' dad will have you grinning from ear to ear all the way through. When he and his 2 best mates set off on a road trip, they find themselves in various sticky situations, all resulting in what appears to be them performing minor miracles - gaining them celebrity status across Wales. But this is a problem for the three boys when they are also known to a renowned Welsh criminal with a gun who they have stolen from. Will they make it to find Freddie's dad in time? It is a very amusing, but very poignant tale about family and friendship, but also about perspective and belief. Fans of Frank Cottrell-Boyce in particular will love it!

This was a funny book which would really appeal to confident readers in year 5 and 6. Freddie is a hilarious main character with two friends who he persuades into hunting down his biological father after the death of his grandma. Surprisingly moving and dealing with some big themes, I would recommend this to particular children who enjoy funny books (toilet humour and silly situations aplenty!) But can also deal maturely with details of grief and bereavement. Freddie is dealing with the loss of his mother and grandma, and ends up discovering that his biological father is also dead. This, along with a few offcolour jokes would make it a tricky choice as a class novel, but some kids would absolutely love it.

A lovely relatable quirky adventure story with a surprisingly emotional heart. An easy recommend for fans of Walliams...

A genuinely funny page-turner, with a lot of heart. I could imagine reading this out loud to a class of 9 year olds, or as a bed time story where you're constantly asked for just one more chapter.
I loved the ridiculous escapades of the three boys, which get progressively more and more ludicrous, but are written so well and with so much comedy that you are happy to suspend your disbelief.
I was (pleasantly) surprised but how moving this book was, tackling big subjects like grief and family breakdowns with sensitivity and honesty.
I'm quite sad to let these characters go, but I'll definitely be keeping an eye out for more from this author!

Adored this book. Packed with suspense and adventure. Absolutely hilarious but heartwarming and touching at the same time. Makes you think about the important things in life. About family, but also about friends. Those friends who would follow you anywhere, even to Wales to find your biological family.
Reminded me why I enjoy kid's literature so very much,so happy I gave it a read.

Freddie Yates is about to have a summer holiday he will never forget

Freddie Yates loves facts but when he learns a fact about his own life he sets of on a secret mission to Wales with his two best friends in tow. Of course, things don’t quite go to plan and he is soon wishing he packed more than one pair of spare underpants!

Freddie’s journey wasn’t meant to involve Big Trev and the onion-eating competition or the loo-exploding pear-and-potato turnovers. And Freddie definitely didn’t expect to end up on national television in a Supergirl costume.

The Super Miraculous Journey of Freddie Yates is the debut novel of Jenny Pearson who is regarded as the ‘Best Teacher in the World’ according to the six mugs she has received from her students. And it’s not hard to see why her class enjoyed her lessons. Freddie Yates is one of the funniest children’s books I have read in ages.
The story flows effortlessly from one mishap miracle to another yet underneath the fun there is a heart-warming message about the true nature of family and friendship. The author tackles some big emotions but with sensitivity and humour. You will giggle out loud at the trio’s escapades and shed a tear as Freddie learns what is really important in life.

Fans of David Walliams and David Solomons, both children and their parents, will love this new young accidental hero.

This was a fun adventure book for children which held my attention throughout and was really enjoyable.

I can see this being a favourite with the younger end of the 9-12 readers that this book is aimed at.

The end of Year 6 is supposed to be exciting – the start of a new adventure – but for Freddie Yates, a sudden turn of events causes him to question everything he knows. For someone who loves facts, this is very unsettling. He decides to set off on his greatest adventure to find a father he’s never known with his best friends by his side. Through a series of mishaps, best intentions and almost unbelievable miracles, Freddie finds far more than he ever expected.

This story is funny from the start. My 10-year-old son and I were giggling to ourselves as we followed Freddie, Ben and Charlie from one haphazard antic to the next. As a long-time Year 6 teacher, I recognised the fallible logic, misunderstandings and blurting out random thoughts that is so typical of these big kids – so charming in their desire to be grown-up even though they still have so much to learn. Freddie and his friends are no different. They are determined to journey all the way to Wales to find Freddie’s father with no real idea of the challenges they will face. The result is the ultimate pre-high school adventure with one hilarious mishap after another!

Amongst all the funny moments, a touching message about dealing with grief and supporting one another through tough times shines through. Freddie learns a lot about family, friendship and miracles. It is clear that the journey through life never takes us where we think it will but that is what makes it all the more special.

Jenny Pearson has truly captured the humour and sense of adventure of Year 6 children. With the help of the fantastic Rob Biddulph, this story leaps off the page for readers to devour. We journey with the boys, willing them on and watching with a smile as they discover the truth and learn a whole lot more about themselves along the way.

Thank you to Usborne Publishing and NetGalley for this fantastic book which was published in April 2020!

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with this ebook.

What a wonderful middle grade book this turned out to be! I particularly enjoy middle grade books as this was the point in my life that I fell in love with the magic of reading.

I loved the way this book handles topics of grief and family with humour. It made me laugh and cry. A brilliant adventure that addresses what miracles are are how things can seem so different depending on your perspective.

A fantastic adventure and the situations Fred and his friends find themselves in are so funny because they are so believable and well written by an author that clearly knows her audience very well (I discovered at the end of the book that she’s a primary school teacher so that explains it!).

This book is great for any young reader, funny and full of adventure it’s definitely a book that I’d recommend to customers at work.