The Midnight Guardians

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Shortlisted for the Books for Older Readers category, Children's Book Awards 2022 | Shortlisted for the Costa Children's Book Award 2021 The Midnight Guardians is torch-under-the-duvet, can't-stop-reading magic. British folklore rebooted ... in an edge-of-your-seat, heart-filled search for hope in the darkest hour." Piers Torday One of the best children's books I've read for ages." Anna James"A tale of enchantment and friendship ... all the warmth of a timeless story, told between friends round a winter fire ... funny and true in the way all good stories are." Thomas Taylor"The adventure whisks you through wartime trouble and mythical danger like riding a giant tiger through falling snow ...

British folklore rebooted ... in an edge-of-your-seat, heart-filled search for hope in the darkest hour." Piers Torday"Embark on a mythic, comic, classic adventure with the finest fellowship since Frodo set a hairy foot beyond the Shire." David Solomons"Glorious! Beautiful... A magical, big-hearted adventure full of wit and warmth. One of the best children's books I've read for ages. - Anna James Embark on a mythic, comic, classic adventure with the finest fellowship since Frodo set a hairy foot beyond the Shire." David Solomons I thought the book had a lovely balance of the mythical and magical, but with plenty of war time information thrown in that's loosely based on fact. I felt as though this would be a great way to introduce readers to some of the elements of the war and the Blitz, and potentially pique their interest enough to maybe look into things themselves and learn about this terrible part of history.Glorious! I think this is Ross Montgomery’s best book yet: an adventure across WWII wintry Britain with a Kindertransportee, a boy dressed in shorts and his three imaginary friends. A joy of a joy of a thing.” Katherine Rundell Right from the start, The Midnight Guardians truly had everything I love about Middle Grade books: it’s wondrous and full of magic, with lovable characters you find yourself rooting for from the start, quests and adventures, so much hope, and an endless amount of imagination. More than that, even: imagination—and kindness—as the one thing that makes it possible to save the people you love most. This book set in WW2. Even though it has magic in it, it didn’t take away the importance of what happened then. Which I appreciate more than anything! The Midnight Guardians is torch-under-the-duvet, can't-stop-reading magic . British folklore rebooted … in an edge-of-your-seat, heart-filled search for hope in the darkest hour." Piers Torday

A collection of lesson plans and resources for a CHRISTMAS DINNER OF SOULS English topic, each one focusing on a different chapter, and eventually leading to a “Write Your Own Tale” extension project! Beautiful. A magical, big-hearted adventure full of wit and warmth. One of the best children's books I've read for ages." Anna James When Col’s childhood imaginary friends come to life, he discovers a world where myths and legends are real. Accompanied by his guardians – a six-foot tiger, a badger in a waistcoat and a miniature knight – Col must race to Blitz-bombed London to save his sister. But there are darker forces at work, even than the Nazi bombings. Soon Col is pursued by the terrifying Midwinter King, who is determined to bring an eternal darkness down over everything. The Midnight Guardians by Ross Montgomery – eBook Details I also loved how they took creatures we thought were beautiful and pure, such as fairies, transformed into Butter-stealing disgusting flying rat monsters. I 100% recommend this book to other pupils that are fond of adventure and originality. I was impressed how much research Montgomery had done into a lot of legends - The Green Man, The Midwinter King, Giants, and many more. But personally it was all a bit much for me. The primary characters focused on throughout the story were Col's childhood imaginary friends, and I think Montgomery got a little ahead of himself when thinking about the attention span of the children reading this book. There are just so many characters! All over the place! I was struggling to keep up with who was who, especially when quite a few names are similar.

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I think that this fantasy novel will help children aged 9+ to greater value their own ‘Guardians’ and creativity, whilst also teaching them about the history and consequences of War - both factually, and emotionally. Alongside death, this story does cover quite sensitive topics, and so feels best suited to pupils in Year 5/6. I loved all of the characters so much! Col, with his stubborn determination and bravery, the Guardians and their love for Col, and Ruth: a Jewish girl from Germany, who helps Col along the way. Their friendship was one of the most heartwarming things I’ve ever read about, and their journey to save Rose—the kindness and hope they show to everyone they meet—made this book so special. I also loved learning more about Chanukah and the lesson it teaches: that a little light can sometimes be enough to defeat even the most terrifying darkness. Great resources to help link FORTUNE’S FOOLS with Shakespeare and Romeo & Juliet in class, plus book review sheets and games!

Accompanied by his guardians - a six-foot tiger, a badger in a waistcoat and a miniature knight - Col must race to Blitz-bombed London to save his sister. But there are darker forces at work, even than the Nazi bombings. Beautiful. A magical, big-hearted adventure full of wit and warmth. One of the best children's books I've read for ages.\" Anna James The Midnight Guardians was a very enjoyable book, and taught me a bit more about the average person's life in 1940, during World War 2. I found the guardians the most interesting, because you’re left to think whether they are real or not. I learnt a bit about how differently they acted in war times compared to modern day actions. The book was set in World War 2, so it made it more interesting because there was more action in those times. What stands out the most for me, is that they try to live their lives like the war wasn’t happening. I would definitely recommend this to other pupils, as it is really good and educational in a fun way. My favourite characters are Col and Ruth. They are both really confident and they don’t let the different situations that they have been in change them. They never gave up, even when it seemed impossible to save Rose from the blitz.The Midnight Guardians is timeless story-telling with a magical heart; a tale of enchantment and friendship in the cold of adversity; has all the charm of the The Box of Delights, all the magic and fellowship of The Lord of the Rings, all the warmth of a timeless story, told between friends round a winter fire. It's also brilliantly inventive - funny where it needs to be, and true in the way all good stories are. - Thomas Taylor Embark on a mythic, comic, classic adventure with the finest fellowship since Frodo set a hairy foot beyond the Shire.” David Solomons With the spirit of Narnia, but a heart of its own. The Midnight Guardians is totally enchanting. I gobbled up every word.\" Aisha Bushby Brilliant! The Midnight Guardians is the perfect blend of humour, adventure and emotion. Simply beautiful." Lisa Thompson

This is a beautiful, mystical, and magical tale that brings together family, love, and friendship. The story is inviting and imaginative and I didn’t want to put it down or for it to end. It is pure escapism in a book.A tale of enchantment and friendship … a ll the warmth of a timeless story, told between friends round a winter fire … funny and true in the way all good stories are.\" Thomas Taylor Thirdly, even if you don’t celebrate Christmas, you’d still enjoy this book still because Christmas is not the main focus. It’s rather a setting for time and more of like a culture rather than a religious matter. Funny, thrilling, moving ... everything that is brilliant about children's literature. A triumph." Sophie Anderson