Critics' Opinion:
Readers' rating:
Published Jan 2017
400 pages
Genre: Historical Fiction
Publication Information
Joyous, thrilling, and nostalgic, Emma Kennedy's Shoes For Anthony will have you wiping your eyes one moment and beaming from ear-to-ear the next. This is a small gem of a novel that readers will cherish.
This 1944 World War Two drama tells the story of Anthony, a boy living in a deprived Welsh village, anticipating the arrival of American troops. Suddenly, a German plane crashes into the village mountain. A Polish prisoner-of-war survives and is brought into the community where he builds a close relationship with Anthony. Later, the villagers discover one of the Germans on the plane has survived and is still on the mountain.
BookBrowse Review
"The high-wire act of trying to keep the names and characteristics of the young boys straight at the beginning of Shoes for Anthony is a challenge; as is trying to remain interested in the WWII-flavored proceedings leading up to the Big Important Event of the German plane crashing into Per Pych, the mountain that forms such a big part of the book's frazzled opening. There's enough action by the characters, enough descriptions of their quirks and their suspicions and their beliefs in the midst of the war, but that doesn't translate into actually caring about them, in wanting to see what happens next and find out how their Welsh village is affected." - Rory Aronsky
Other Review
"A vividly evoked, keenly detailed coming-of-age story." - Kirkus
"The setting, from the pervasive coal dust to the tatty housecoats of the Treherbert women, is adeptly crafted, doubtless because Kennedy's father grew up in Treherbert; the novel is based, in part, on him. Most affecting is the contrast this cheerfully endured (especially by children) but impoverished environment provides with the modern abundance many of us take for granted." - Booklist
"Moving debut." - Marie Claire (UK)
"A warm and funny novel." - Red (UK)
"Heart-warming, evocative, I couldn't put this down. Utterly brilliant." - Katie Fforde, #1 Sunday Times bestselling author
"Emma Kennedy's books are as funny, warm, and life-inspiring as she is." - Jenny Colgan, Sunday Times bestselling author
"Moving, memorable, and magnificent." - Clare Balding, bestselling author of My Animals and Other Family
This information about Shoes for Anthony was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Emma Kennedy is the author of several books, including bestsellers The Tent the Bucket and Me and I Left My Tent in San Francisco. She is also an actress and has appeared in many award winning comedies including Goodness Gracious Me, People Like Us, and Miranda. She is the Fun Editor at Tatler, won Celebrity Masterchef in 2012, and is a Guinness World Record holder.
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