This book of eight chapters makes an excellent bedtime story for children, since each chapter seems to have a cliff-hanger type ending and keeps the kids in suspense until the next instalment! My children really enjoyed this book. It is well researched in terms of historical detail and a window on the Victorian world as experienced by the poor.
The story enables children to learn about the role of the Ragged School movement in helping street children with no means of access to education. It is a good introduction to the work of Lord Shaftesbury. The story itself is well written and very suspenseful and exciting, exposing children to a varied and colourful vocabulary, which, aside from the historical angle, is education in itself, and stretches them. It makes a change from the tendency to oversimplify everything that is destined for the young! In terms of Christian content, it is presented gently but effectively as the main character learns to trust God through difficult circumstances.
I think this book would prove useful to teachers as it provides an insight into Victorian life, and could be read a chapter at a time. The book says it is aiming at children over nine years old. I am not sure that all nine and ten year olds would be ready to read this kind of book, however, because, although well illustrated, the print is fairly small and there is a lot of writing on each page. Only those comfortable with reading so much writing would cope, which is why I feel that for many junior-school age children this would be better read to them. Older ones though would have no problem, and would find it equally stimulating as an adventure tale.
Day One are to be congratulated on producing such high quality children’s material. My only real misgiving is that the price is a little high for such a paperback, and this may make it inaccessible to many youngsters who could benefit from it.

Cathy Childress, Tottenham
Grace Magazine
October 2005