Lauren, Jack, Ruby and Billy live by the seaside with their mum and dad. But their parents are always arguing, and then their dad moves out. Lauren and Jack decide they have to get them together again. And so begins Operation Eiffel Tower ...in which the four children try to raise money to give their mum and dad a treat in an attempt to make them happier. First they want to send their parents to Paris, but quickly realise they can never afford that, so instead they set up a dinner for two under the Eiffel Tower in the local crazy golf attraction. But will it get their parents talking again? A funny and very moving story that tackles important issues with a light touch.
This book tackles the difficult subject of family separation, a difficult subject for children to understand. This story is about a family who do separate, and the children decide to try and get their parents back together with a trip to the Eiffel tower, but with money a problem, they come up with another plan.
This is really well written. It has been nominated in a number of children's book awards and I think these nominations have been well deserved. The story is cleverly written, especially the way the children have been written. They all behave as children would, they think how children do and there are a number of occasions throughout the book where there are funny moments when the children do, what children really do do in real life and events are seen through a child's viewpoint. It is these observations that Caldecott has made which makes the book such a true to life book.
This is a book that I would recommend to children aged 9+. It is suitable for children who are going through parental separation or divorce but is also a great read for any child. I look forward to reading more from Elen Caldecott in the future. As it mentions on the front cover, I think that this is a great book for fans of Jacqueline Wilson's books.
Thank you to the publisher, Bloomsbury, for sending me the book to review.
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