Become a member by purchasing Single Teacher User Licence, Parent or Tutor, 1 Form Entry School, Small School, 2 Form Entry School, 3 Form Entry School, 4 Form Entry School or 5 Form Entry School! The Scilly Islands off the English coast provide the setting for this well-written historical novel … good readers will find this a memorable adventure, no less immediate for its setting in the past. An exciting historical adventure from War Horse author and former Children’s Laureate Michael Morpurgo. As I have said for many other Morpurgo books, his storyline is very strong and the content is very meaningful.

Why the Whales Came - Michael Morpurgo - Google Books Why the Whales Came - Michael Morpurgo - Google Books

His work will undoubtedly, like Peter Pan, stand the test of time, making him a truly worthy recipient of this award. He has an unerring moral compass – his schoolteacher past has never quite left him – and books such as War Horse and The Butterfly Lion have a strong social concience and an honesty that makes them universal. He won the 1995 Whitbread Children's Book Award for The Wreck of the Zanzibar, the 1996 Nestle Smarties Book Prize for The Butterfly Lion, and the 2000 Children's Book Award for Kensuke's Kingdom.Private Peaceful won the 2005 Red House Children's Book Award and the Blue Peter Book of the Year Award. When the islanders of Briar arrive they want to kill all of the whales and take their horns but Gracie's mother persuades them to help the stranded whale get back to the sea. I interpret his description of her as her weak side being that she is a little shy, and not so brave. It is about two friends Gracie and Daniel who develop a good relationship with a man that they have always been told to stay away from because he is 'crazy'. I will be recommending it to my junior high school library patrons and have just placed more books by Michael Morpugo on our school's wish list.

Why the Whales Came | Vocabulary Ninja Why the Whales Came | Vocabulary Ninja

He sits outside the series-driven blockbusters so beloved of publishers nowadays: he hasn't created a Harry Potter or an Alex Rider – and I admire him for resisting that. Together Birdman and the children stop them killing the narhwals, and turn the whales back out to sea. You can also read about his life in War Child to War Horse,a collaborative biography with Maggie Fergusson. With his wife Clare, he set up the charity Farms for City Children, which offers children and teachers from inner-city primary schools the chance to live and work in the countryside for a week on one of the charity’s three farms in Devon, Gloucestershire and Wales. He was awarded an OBE in 2007 and a Knighthood in the New Year’s Honours in 2018 for services to literature and charity.One of the most successful children's authors in the country, and loved by children, teachers and parents alike. My favourite characters were the harmless and lonely Birdman and the strength of Gracie’s mother character. My only complaint is I didn't like how gracie was portrayed and the superstitious child while daniel was portrayed as much older for his age. As their friendship develops he tells the children of a dreaded curse that has afflicted a nearby island.