When the Sky Falls

February 1, 2022
The bond between an angry 12-year-old boy and a zoo's silverback gorilla provides an unusual perspective on the Blitz. Joseph Palmer leaves Yorkshire to stay with Mrs. F in London after his father heads to war and his grandmother can no longer care for him. Joseph is angry and explosive, challenged at school by bullies and his misunderstood dyslexia. Mrs. F devotedly tends to the closed-down zoo she runs--many animals are euthanized out of necessity or sent to the country. There, Joseph encounters Adonis, a silverback gorilla who is equally irate and volatile. An unlikely relationship and trust build between the two hurting souls, helping Joseph heal and unfold. Earle conveys the stress and tension of the ever present war so that readers also feel that fear. There is a dark cloud of sadness over the decaying zoo, conveying the almost unspeakable things Mrs. F experienced and had to carry out and the life-altering losses that touched everyone. Earle has readers rooting for stubborn Joseph, charmed by his new friend, Syd, and touched by Adonis' impressive strength and depth of feeling. At times, the book feels overwhelmed by hopelessness, as violence and death come at nearly every turn, but when the proverbial dust settles, there is resilience and peace. All characters are presumed White. An unusual, moving war story with excellent writing and compelling characters. (afterword) (Historical fiction. 9-12)

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February 21, 2022
In 1941 Britain, following his father’s conscription and the effects of his own explosive anger, 12-year-old Joseph Palmer is sent from Yorkshire to bombed-out London to live with gruff Mrs. F, caretaker of her family’s deteriorating zoo. Capable Mrs. F struggles to keep the remaining animals alive, particularly “the pride of the zoo”—a silverback gorilla named Adonis, to whom, after a disastrous first meeting, Joseph takes an immediate dislike. Despite his burgeoning friendship with a classmate who assists at the zoo, school represents difficulties for Joseph, as he navigates bullies, a cruel schoolmaster, and severe dyslexia in addition to exhausting, almost nightly air raids. Solace from this unrelentingly bleak existence appears in an unlikely form, as the child slowly gains the gorilla’s trust and it becomes clear that Joseph is not the only one battling the pain of loss. Equal parts gripping and emotionally devastating, Earle’s (The Bubble Wrap Boy) detail-rich novel explores the healing power of hard-won interspecies friendship amid a harrowing depiction of wartime grief and resilience. Characters cue as white. Ages 9–11. Agent: Jodie Hodges, United Agents (U.K.).

Starred review from May 1, 2022

Gr 3-7-It's the 1940s in London and Joseph, who is cued white, has just gotten off the train headed into the city-the opposite direction from all the fleeing children and families. Troubled Joseph is 12 years old and has recently been sent to stay in the city with Mrs. F. by his grandmother during World War II. When Joseph arrives, he learns he will be helping Mrs. F. protect the zoo she runs and the troubled silverback ape, Adonis. In an unsettling time in history, Mrs. F. and Joseph share their dark pasts and learn to grow through their love of Adonis. This book is great for middle grade students and brings a lot of tough topics to the forefront for discussion: war, dyslexia in the 1940s, death, and more. In the afterword, readers learn the book is based on a true story told to Earle from a dear friend. This is an emotionally charged novel that will help readers understand life during war. Earle skillfully builds reader investment in the relationship Joseph develops with Mrs. F. and Adonis, and his growth as a young person. This is a story that will have tweens captivated by true world events from the past that are also pertinent to current times. The writing is superb: simple yet detailed enough to allow readers to travel through time and have a light understanding of what it was like to live through war and the Blitz. VERDICT As always, Earle delivers a tale that can accompany any book set during World War II yet brings something new with the addition of unique characters and an uncommon approach to the time period. Recommended for all collections.-Maeve Dodds

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Starred review from May 15, 2022
Grades 4-8 *Starred Review* With bombings a nightly occurrence over wartime London, children are transported to the countryside for safety. However, 12-year-old Joseph is taking the opposite route, sent by his grandmother to her acquaintance in the city. Mrs. F. (Farrelly) takes him home to a very different way of life, for she is the caretaker of what is left of the local zoo. As the story unfolds, readers get drawn into Joseph's anger and frustration over his mother's death, his father's being a soldier in the war, and the fact that he believes his grandmother doesn't want him. On top of these woes, school is a nightmare; through context it becomes clear that Joseph's life is complicated by dyslexia and classmates bully him. His one consolation is Adonis, the zoo's standoffish and unpredictable silverback gorilla. When he discovers that Mrs. F. stands guard over Adonis during the nightly air raids, prepared to shoot him should he escape, Joseph takes over the watch, despite being unsure that he could ever end Adonis' life. Based on a true story, Earle has created a complex set of characters and situations that will challenge readers and stir deep emotions. Written for a middle-grade audience, the narrative is layered in such a way that it will also satisfy older readers. A gripping wartime story that moves the soul.

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