The Boy Who Sailed the Ocean in an Armchair
"My name is Becket Rumsey and there are lots of important people in my life who I talk to every day. For starters: my seven-year-old bug-collecting brother, Billy, is one of them (although he talks nonsense ninety-nine per cent of the time). Dad, who delivers fish from the Codfather van, is another. Mainly he talks about haddock but I can live with that. Ibiza Nana, she’s my grandma and she always rings for a chat from Spain. And then there’s Pearl, Dad’s girlfriend, I talk to her a lot and Pearl gives great hugs. Pearl’s almost a mum to Billy and me. I say ‘almost’ because the one important person in my life who I don’t get to talk to at all is my real mum." "
‘Heartwarming, poignant at times, yet also extremely funny. Don’t be surprised if this book wins awards over the next year.’
Vivienne, Book Blogger at Serendipity Reviews
‘There are parts of the story that just make your heart jump and your throat tighten. This is an emotional read, it really is!’
Alexis, children’s Book Blogger at Book Monsters
‘A Boy Called Hope was a standout début in 2014, and this shows the same emotional depth and poignancy, though told with a very accessible lightness of touch. The relationship between Becket and his younger brother is beautifully drawn, especially the moments with their “armchair” of stories.’
The Bookseller
‘Becket follows his dreams and ends the story happier and wiser – and so will you.’
The Week Junior
‘It’s all a mystery. Why have they moved? And why didn’t they tell their almost-mum Pearl? The boys create their own detective agency to get to the bottom of it in a touching funny tale.’
S Magazine, Sunday Express
‘A brave boy with a big imagination sets out on an epic voyage of discovery, helped by a snail called Brian.’
Daily Mirror
‘This gorgeous, tear-jerking story of love, loss, dreams and finding your way has a young, troubled boy at its heart and weaves together an extraordinary blend of emotional intensity, worldly wisdom and laugh-out-loud humour.’
Lancashire Evening Post
Vivienne, Book Blogger at Serendipity Reviews
‘There are parts of the story that just make your heart jump and your throat tighten. This is an emotional read, it really is!’
Alexis, children’s Book Blogger at Book Monsters
‘A Boy Called Hope was a standout début in 2014, and this shows the same emotional depth and poignancy, though told with a very accessible lightness of touch. The relationship between Becket and his younger brother is beautifully drawn, especially the moments with their “armchair” of stories.’
The Bookseller
‘Becket follows his dreams and ends the story happier and wiser – and so will you.’
The Week Junior
‘It’s all a mystery. Why have they moved? And why didn’t they tell their almost-mum Pearl? The boys create their own detective agency to get to the bottom of it in a touching funny tale.’
S Magazine, Sunday Express
‘A brave boy with a big imagination sets out on an epic voyage of discovery, helped by a snail called Brian.’
Daily Mirror
‘This gorgeous, tear-jerking story of love, loss, dreams and finding your way has a young, troubled boy at its heart and weaves together an extraordinary blend of emotional intensity, worldly wisdom and laugh-out-loud humour.’
Lancashire Evening Post
Inspiration for writing The Boy Who Sailed the Ocean in an Armchair
I’m a firm believer in wishing on things. Sometimes in life those wishes come true and maybe that’s because of magic or maybe that’s because you make things happen with hard work or growing as a person. Either way this story is about wishes. I’ve always thrown coins into fountains and wells, or blown dandelion clocks, wished on wishbones and stars and rainbows. When I read about how making one thousand paper cranes could grant you a wish I knew that this was the perfect way to introduce an important wish into the story. Making one thousand cranes is not easy but then a wish that’s worth having shouldn’t come easy either as Becket discovers. With both my books I like to think there is humour, heartbreak and hope within the pages. Those three words sum everything up.
Copyright ©2016 Lara Williamson