Reviews of
OSWALD AND THE END OF THE WORLD
Here are some recent review taken from a variety of websites devoted to children's literature.
Irish Times review October 6th, 2007
Oswald, the boy hero of Andrew Strong's inventive debut novel, "Oswald and the End of the World" is blessed with an idiosyncratic approach to life's unpredictabilities - and finds it more than useful when he and his scallywag father find themselves cast up on the fantasy island known as Idlegreen. Presided over by the fearsome (and absurdly ridiculous) Judge Butterworth and populated by some very eccentric inhabitants, the island has had its history of dictatorship and exploitation, a state of affairs which the arrival of Oswald and his father will eventually affect.
"Like the tides, fortunes come and go," says one of the elders and Strong's witty, apocalypic restoration of insular well-being provides an entertaining, if at times rather convoluted novel, which will have a special appeal for those who eagerly search the heavens for "signs" and are never quite sure how to interpret them when they appear.
Rober Dunbar
From the'Write Away' web site:
Nobody stranded on a magical island could expect an ordinary welcome, and Oswald and his father, are no exception. Oswald's eccentric father is convinced the world is about to end and the islanders are none too happy that Oswald appears to be the one bringing all the trouble in the first place.
Oswald is an unlikely hero right from the moment he and his father are stranded on the magical island, Idlegreen. Falsely assuming the identity of a Mercurio the Marvellous, fortune-teller, Oswald's father is convinced by various omens that the world is about to end. When he is imprisoned for stealing, Oswald is taken care of by Elizabeth, once prosperous local business woman much to the disgust of her daughter Bella. Elizabeth believes Oswald to be the person from Idlegreen prophecies who will reverse the fortunes of the local people for the better. Under her care Oswald learns about more about the mysterious islanders and begins to experience nightmares which foretell imminent catastrophe. Naturally this knowledge does not endear him to the locals but in time he forges friendships with the island folk which help them all survive the end of the world as they all know it.
Strong's writing style is fresh and interesting to read. The present tense first person narrative allows young readers to share the action as it happens. The plot unfolds at a good pace combining action, dialogue and description perfectly for the intended readership. Young fans of James and The Giant Peach or the Lemony Snicket series would enjoy Oswald and the End of the World.
* * *
Booktrust:
Oswald lives a vagabond life with his wayward, portent-seeing father. Hauled from the sea the pair arrive on the island of Idlegreen, where life is lived on near-feudal lines – dominated by the powerful, buffoonish, thieving Judge Butterworth.
Oswald's arrival coincides with a comet in the sky and his father foretells the end of the world. Some think Oswald is Idlegreen's saviour, but Oswald struggles to keep such superstition at bay and rely on facts.
This is a refreshing, entertaining, original story. Several themes flit temptingly through the book, but this is a story to be enjoyed straight – for its fully realised world peopled by appealing and memorable eccentrics.
The portrayal of Oswald's amusing, tender and exasperating relationships with the islanders and his father, is also enjoyable.
* * *
Armadillo Online:
This is a fresh, highly entertaining fantasy full of sparkling imagery and told in a very original voice.
Oswald and his fortune-telling dad have been thrown off the mainland and wash up on Idlegreen Island, ruled over by the Judge. Wealth is determined by the amount of ash one owns and the Judge makes sure it's all his.
As his dad's behaviour becomes more and more eccentric, Oswald is torn between loyalty to him, and his own emerging independence and reason. Yet what is the meaning of his strange dreams and the new star which has appeared in the sky and is getting closer? Are his dad's predictions of the end of the world coming true after all?
I suspect we shall hear more about Oswald and his friend Bella from this wonderful new talent.
* * *
And Oswald was voted as one of the runners up in the Times Educational Supplement's 'Books of the Year'. "It defies definition but I thoroughly enjoyed it." says M McManus.
