From Hans Christian Andersen Medal-winning author David Almond comes a heartwarming story that shows anything is possible with imagination and trust.

What should a puppet master do when he’s old and alone, and all his puppets are gone? Sylvester makes one last puppet. But this one is different. When the old man speaks to him, Puppet speaks back. And then he walks…

While Sylvester shows Puppet the town, the playground and the wonders the world holds, Puppet in turn helps Sylvester to make a new friend, and share his puppet-making skills with the next generation in this wonder-filled story of creation and the circle of life.

Illustrated with sequences of wordless spreads by award-winning artist Lizzy Stewart, this is a modern-day classic.

Puppet by David Almond is a beautiful tale of an aging puppet master, Sylvester, who hasn’t made or put on any shows in many years, that is until a museum wants to showcase his work and write a book about him to be sold at the museum alongside the exhibition.

This new interest in his work makes him sad that all of his puppets are no longer in his home but joyful that he has started to feel more like his younger self and ready to create and create he does a little wooden boy who teaches Sylvester that he still has so much life left to live.

I love this book. It is like a big hug in a book. It is so heartwarming that I didn’t want to put it down. Also, the puppet is just that, he becomes so much more to Sylvester and it was so adorable to see someone’s spark for life return.

There are black and white illustrations throughout that capture the plot perfectly and help the reader envisage each chapter.

Overall, I can’t emphasise how amazing Puppet is. Hopefully it will be loved just as much by many middle-grade readers too.

David Almond is a British children’s writer who has penned several novels, each one to critical acclaim. He was born and raised in Felling and Newcastle in post-industrial North East England and educated at the University of East Anglia. When he was young, he found his love of writing when some short stories of his were published in a local magazine. He started out as an author of adult fiction before finding his niche writing literature for young adults.