The Road to the River

This is the sequel to Armstrong’s much praised debut novel, The Road to Somewhere and it brings back the main characters – Cow, Woolly Woolly Baa Lamb and of course Ratty. You are plunged into the adventure in the first pages: Bad Things have terrified the hens on the farm where the animals live and are out to get all pets. Then comes a message from the animals’ old friend Minka: she is a prisoner of the Bad Things and desperately needs help. Ratty’s first-person narrative with its short, staccato sentences creates an irresistible pace as well as a real sense of his character. The story is told in the present tense throughout and this too gives it an immediacy and distinctiveness.

The pace is maintained right to the final chapter when it is happy endings all round – even for the villain. These haven’t come easily though; there is no sentimentality in the book, just respect for the animal characters and for their wild nature. An author to watch.