Counting Stars

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David Almond

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Pages: 192 (Paperback)

ISBN: 0340784806

Pub: Hodder Children's Books

Pub date: 2001-03-15

Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 296303

Editorial Review:

David Almond's Counting Stars is a collection of short stories that are as breathtaking as his novels, and which, more importantly give Almond fans an insight into the author and his childhood.
He is a wonderful writer whose hugely popular and critically acclaimed work, in the forms of Skellig, Kit's Wilderness and Heaven Eyes, has have made him a firm favourite among young readers, teachers and parents.
From the opening story, "The Middle of the World", the reader is taken right into the heart of a small boy growing up in a world where love is plentiful when times are tough, where family means everything and where life and death merge to create something that is ultimately challenging and beautiful.
Anyone who has read Almond's novels will instantly identify the core of his ideas. In particular the brief but beautiful "The Angel of Chilside Road" conjures up the stunning images that made the award-winning Skellig so unforgettable.

In Counting Stars we learn more about the author, and are privileged to be allowed to share childhood memories that are funny, moving and, most importantly, touched with an unforgettable humanity which will strike a chord with any reader. Don't expect an easy read--some of these stories are challenging, but certainly worth the effort. (Age 11 and over) --Susan Harrison

Reader Reviews:

Mesmerizing (2/2 people found this helpful)

While I often find it difficult to warm to collections of shorts, Counting Stars proved the absolute exception. This is every bit as good as Almond's magical novels, with the remembered and created world as convincing and mesmerizing here as in, say, Heaven Eyes. To overlook this Almond title would be to miss out on a gift of a read.

Beautiful, magical...Fantastic! (6/6 people found this helpful)

This book is a must read for any David Almond fans and opened my eyes to the power of short stories. It takes you into the childhood that shaped his writing today, and reveals that reality can be just a magical as any fantasy adventure. Almond is a perfect author for anyone beginning to move between children and adult literature not that this divide means much a great book is a great book and this one is fantastic. You'll laugh, you'll cry and you'll be left marvelling at the beautiful language with which Almond draws you into his world. Don't miss out, read it!

A moving collection of stories told in his own style. (12/13 people found this helpful)

Anyone who has read any of David Almond's novels knows what to expect. Brilliant storytelling but with a deeper almost spiritual meaning. His tales of Northern folk have an almost dreamlike quality and he again brings his talent to bear in this collection of stories relating to his childhood in the town of Felling. Stories of adventure, first love and enlightenment are here, but the most moving are those concerned with the loss of his nearest and dearest. Above all this book is a paen to his formative years, bringing to the reader the sense that you are a product of the whole community not just family. His own inimitable style makes this essential to anyone who liked Skellig and Kit's Wilderness.

Ace!!!!! (0/0 people found this helpful)

I love Almond's books but when I came across "Counting Stars" (and other stories) I assumed it would be for younger readers but I bought it regardless.It is so brilliant- it explains how his three other novels came about.I thought it had all stemmed from his imagination but it had all been based on things that had happened to him in his childhood.I wish my childhood could be filled with as much magic as his was.A must for all Almond fans!

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