Young Adult

Lark

Lark

  • Downloads：6003
  • Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
  • Create Date：2021-04-19 11:56:46
  • Update Date：2025-09-06
  • Status：finish
  • Author：Anthony McGowan
  • ISBN：178112843X
  • Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Reviews

Brian ，

At the end of the book， I nearly cried when the story ended。 The story was about Nicky and Kenny going up to a mountain to find a Lark， which was a bird， but the got lost。 The weather was so cold， and snowflakes were falling from the sky。 Also when Nicky accidentally dropped his phone and tried to pick it up， he fell to a 4~5 meter cliff and broke his leg very badly。 Kenny went out to look for help， but he was also in trouble， by falling too。 But Kenny successfully called the rescue team， and th At the end of the book， I nearly cried when the story ended。 The story was about Nicky and Kenny going up to a mountain to find a Lark， which was a bird， but the got lost。 The weather was so cold， and snowflakes were falling from the sky。 Also when Nicky accidentally dropped his phone and tried to pick it up， he fell to a 4~5 meter cliff and broke his leg very badly。 Kenny went out to look for help， but he was also in trouble， by falling too。 But Kenny successfully called the rescue team， and they were able to find Nicky。 Nicky was almost frozen to death， and he was successfully rescued。 However， their dog Tina had become a soul， giving her last warmth to Nicky。 After Nicky and Kenny were cured， they went to the airport to meet their mom， but the main story ends when they were just about to se their mom's face。 On the epilogue， nearly forty years passed， and things had changed。 Nicky married with Sarah and they had kids， his dad was gone， Kenny became a gardener， and the two brothers were still in a hospital。 Kenny had a cancer， and he was running for his death。 Nicky and Kenny associated their memories， taking care of a badger and a rook， and getting lost in the middle of nowhere。 And as Kenny's last word， he asked Nicky to read him a story。 I think the book was a real masterpiece because the story was real fun and interesting （even the epilogue was sad）， there were very good metaphors， and the story never got bored even though there were four of this book。 I think Brock， Pike， Rook， and Lark will be remembered in my head for a very long time。 。。。more

Catherine Crick ，

A very simple， quick read， but because of that I'm surprised that it made me cry （and I have only cried at a handful of books in my lifetime！）。 A very simple， quick read， but because of that I'm surprised that it made me cry （and I have only cried at a handful of books in my lifetime！）。 。。。more

Adam Murphy ，

Winner of the 2020 Carnegie Medal， Lark by Anthony McGowan is a beautifully written novella of survival & brotherhood。 Nicky and Kenny set off across the Yorkshire moors on a mini-trek。 It's a good chance for them to talk， to let off steam。 Their mum is soon coming to visit them， and they haven't seen her in a long time。 But as they make a short-cut over the hill， the snow descends。 Quickly the boys are plunged into danger， and they might not even make it out alive。 The language used is sublime， Winner of the 2020 Carnegie Medal， Lark by Anthony McGowan is a beautifully written novella of survival & brotherhood。 Nicky and Kenny set off across the Yorkshire moors on a mini-trek。 It's a good chance for them to talk， to let off steam。 Their mum is soon coming to visit them， and they haven't seen her in a long time。 But as they make a short-cut over the hill， the snow descends。 Quickly the boys are plunged into danger， and they might not even make it out alive。 The language used is sublime， masterly， & lyrical。 To the point of being mythic， the writing is pitch-perfect。 I haven't read McGowan's other books before （Brock， Pike & Rook）， but I can imagine the lyrical writing would be as beautiful as this。 With just 110 pages， it's a mini-masterpiece that deserved the accolade attention。 。。。more

WeAreGiants ，

not much to say。 I loved reading it。 the crass language and beautiful story。 astounding。

Rachel Eastwood-Vauls ，

I’m not one for crying when I read books but this had me absolutely blubbing！ The story builds so skillfully that when the denouement happened it completely caught me off guard。 It’s a short book so easy to read & beautifully observed。 One of the best books I’ve read for a long time

Andy ，

beautiful short story， as two young brothers deal with a challenging winter hike - unprepared yet depending on each otherlight touch on their family situation， love for each otherdid not realise was part of a series - read as standalone but will look to read the earlier ones

BrookesEducationLibrary ，

This book is now available for loan from the SEC in the Harcourt Hill Library！

Beth ，

Oh wow。 This was a journey of a book， both literally and emotionally。 Absolutely wonderful and heartbreaking。 I felt everything the boys were feeling so deeply， often in a visceral way， as the writing and description were so brilliant。 I am not surprised at all that it won the Carnegie award， I only wish it were longer; I didn’t want it to end！ I am obsessed with the fact that it included “northern” Yorkshire language， I don’t think I’ve seen this in any other book but it felt like I was reading Oh wow。 This was a journey of a book， both literally and emotionally。 Absolutely wonderful and heartbreaking。 I felt everything the boys were feeling so deeply， often in a visceral way， as the writing and description were so brilliant。 I am not surprised at all that it won the Carnegie award， I only wish it were longer; I didn’t want it to end！ I am obsessed with the fact that it included “northern” Yorkshire language， I don’t think I’ve seen this in any other book but it felt like I was reading a little slice of home。 。。。more

Jennifer ，

I cried at the end。

Ethel Wainwright ，

McGowan is good with emotional complexity。 Nicky explains his difficulty with expressing feelings: “You keep the feelings on the inside， like the way you hide a sweet in your mouth in lessons at school。 Except the feelings aren’t sweet。” McGowan creates a marvellous sense of the world closing in on the boys， danger looming as they move further into the wild， unforgiving landscape。 He brilliantly captures the moors on a snow clad day， the greyness of the sky “like cold porridge， going on forever McGowan is good with emotional complexity。 Nicky explains his difficulty with expressing feelings: “You keep the feelings on the inside， like the way you hide a sweet in your mouth in lessons at school。 Except the feelings aren’t sweet。” McGowan creates a marvellous sense of the world closing in on the boys， danger looming as they move further into the wild， unforgiving landscape。 He brilliantly captures the moors on a snow clad day， the greyness of the sky “like cold porridge， going on forever” and the treachery of a hill that suddenly isn’t the summit when you reach it， but a ridge before the next ascent。 It is an elemental struggle。 Throughout their lives， Nicky has told Kenny stories to help him through hard times and he does this again as they trudge along。 This is actually the final book in a four part series of novellas about Nicky and Kenny， though it can be read in isolation and has just won the Carnegie Medal。 It is such a beautiful， poignant read， I recommend it to all。 。。。more

Linda Scarbrough ，

The last in the quartet of books following the teenage years of brothers Nicky and Kenny。 Sparse， beautifully written prose - not a word is wasted。 The epilogue gave a broad sweep of intervening years - I won't write a spoiler， but I did shed some tears。 The best set of YA books I have read in a good while。 Magical in their brutal， factual honesty。 The last in the quartet of books following the teenage years of brothers Nicky and Kenny。 Sparse， beautifully written prose - not a word is wasted。 The epilogue gave a broad sweep of intervening years - I won't write a spoiler， but I did shed some tears。 The best set of YA books I have read in a good while。 Magical in their brutal， factual honesty。 。。。more

Sindre ，

4。5 stars

Bart ，

Rather predictable and somewhat thin plot， thankfully brought back from a one or two star rating by a sweet flowing and accessible style of writing。 I had the feeling of reading a short story which had been padded to novella length without making use of many possibilities to give the story much more depth。

Kelly O'Brien ，

A brilliant end to this wonderful series - the relationship and love between brothers， the end comments with his father we really moving。

Graine Milner ，

Wonderful that such an accessible book has won this year's Carnegie award！ This deceptively simple book has so much in it - but should come with a warning that tissues may be required。 Wonderful that such an accessible book has won this year's Carnegie award！ This deceptively simple book has so much in it - but should come with a warning that tissues may be required。 。。。more

Zoë ，

I read this for my school book club and didn't love it。 It was a very pleasing tale but it was SO PREDICTABLE！ They go onto the moor， they get lost: big surprise！ The beginning was too fast and I wanted to find out more about the characters before going into their 'adventure'。 It seemed the kind of book a younger child would enjoy。 So how it got nominated for Carnegie I don't know。。。it was beautiful but for some reason I felt that the main character was a girl and he is a boy。 I would have prefe I read this for my school book club and didn't love it。 It was a very pleasing tale but it was SO PREDICTABLE！ They go onto the moor， they get lost: big surprise！ The beginning was too fast and I wanted to find out more about the characters before going into their 'adventure'。 It seemed the kind of book a younger child would enjoy。 So how it got nominated for Carnegie I don't know。。。it was beautiful but for some reason I felt that the main character was a girl and he is a boy。 I would have preferred it being a girl， in the things he does， I felt like a girl would have been better （ not trying to be sexist， just saying what I thought）。 Anyway a bit of a disappointment seeing as it WON the Carnegie award this year。 I preferred the other nominated Carnegie books this year。 So overall， possibly an enjoyable read for a 6，7 or 8 year old but it fell flat for me。 。。。more

Zia ，

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 A children’s book？ I understand it’s good to present reality and not so happy ever afters but there was absolutely nothing happy in this book。 As a text in the classroom it is good for cultural recognition as it is set up north and includes a lot of the regional language/recognisable locations especially if you are focusing on local area texts。 The language features and writing in general were excellent and have some great examples of metaphors。 However， like I said before there was so much deat A children’s book？ I understand it’s good to present reality and not so happy ever afters but there was absolutely nothing happy in this book。 As a text in the classroom it is good for cultural recognition as it is set up north and includes a lot of the regional language/recognisable locations especially if you are focusing on local area texts。 The language features and writing in general were excellent and have some great examples of metaphors。 However， like I said before there was so much death and what a dismal story。 Was the epilogue needed after the sad death of Tina？ It made the story sadder that it needed for be。 Again I believe it’s good to show death within texts for children but a lot of the time animal deaths can be far more upsetting for them。 Overall the book is great for the writing。 McGowan did an excelled with the structure and language of this book as it was interesting and complex， as well as having a great pace to keep children interested。 For me， however， I found the story to be incredibly glum with no teaching or morals found by the end of the story。 。。。more

Mathew ，

The final novella in the ‘Nicky and Kenny’ stories， the Carnegie-Winning ‘Lark’ sees a final chance for this family’s story to close with a sense of hope。 Nicky may no longer be with Sarah and his heart is hurting but his mother has agreed to come from Canada to meet him and Kenny。 With Jenny having moved in to the house with Dad， the boys’ lives seems to have stabilised so they greet the potential meeting with their birth mother with nervous excitement。 However， a series of errors on their way The final novella in the ‘Nicky and Kenny’ stories， the Carnegie-Winning ‘Lark’ sees a final chance for this family’s story to close with a sense of hope。 Nicky may no longer be with Sarah and his heart is hurting but his mother has agreed to come from Canada to meet him and Kenny。 With Jenny having moved in to the house with Dad， the boys’ lives seems to have stabilised so they greet the potential meeting with their birth mother with nervous excitement。 However， a series of errors on their way out of town sees the boys lost upon the Yorkshire moors and Nicky’s life put in a very real danger。 It is for Kenny to step up， become independent and save his brother or lose him to the incoming blizzard。 The ending of these four books is as beautiful and as moving as you would hope it to be。 Often at the close of long stories， elements that you hoped would be there are missing but with Lark all the pieces marry up with perfection。 。。。more

Sophia ，

Read for teacher training， but I fully embraced this novella。 Gave me a new understanding of what a middle grade/YA story can do in so little pages。

Deniiz ，

https://boooksinmywords。blogspot。com/。。。 https://boooksinmywords。blogspot。com/。。。 。。。more

David Bywater ，

A good read， read it in a day。

Andrew Johnston ，

Crikey。 This is an amazing book。 The ending is out of this world and makes the whole thing。 A worthy winner of this years Carnegie。 An true triumph for Anthony macgowan and Barrington Stoke。

Rachel Martin ，

Gripping speed read causing the reader to really invest in the characters with a heart in mouth worry until the end！

Library ，

An easy read for anyone who likes an adventure stories。 Snow， cold， brotherhood， danger， suspense。

Chris ，

It wasn't supposed to be like this。 It was meant to be a stroll， a laugh。A lark。 Going for a walk on the Yorkshire moors when you're underprepared is never a good idea。 Especially when snow is on the way，and you've set off later than you should have。 And when you're responsible for your brother who has learning difficulties。Teenager Nicky and his older brother are filling in time before their mother flies in for a visit with the boys and their father， from whom she's divorced。 As a way to distrac It wasn't supposed to be like this。 It was meant to be a stroll， a laugh。A lark。 Going for a walk on the Yorkshire moors when you're underprepared is never a good idea。 Especially when snow is on the way，and you've set off later than you should have。 And when you're responsible for your brother who has learning difficulties。Teenager Nicky and his older brother are filling in time before their mother flies in for a visit with the boys and their father， from whom she's divorced。 As a way to distract them from excitement mixed in with some anxiety， their father suggests a little expedition on a walk he used to do as a lad。But Nicky is inexperienced and underestimates the dangers involved; it's a lot of responsibility to load onto his shoulders。 It's all very well to buoy up Kenny with stories he has thought up -- until they find themselves embroiled in a real-life story which mayn't have a happy ending。This is -- as all the best stories are -- a tale about love。 Love of siblings， of parents， of surrogate parents， of animal companions， and of course the first crush。 And it's about how one reacts when that love is tested。The last of a quartet of novellas composed for readers with reading difficulties， Lark is not only perfectly relatable as a standalone but is also testament to the fact that 'simple' writing needn't be simplistic， nor does it exclude moments of beauty and emotion。 In fact this was a narrative of real skill which kept me glued to the page in virtually one sitting。The adults are very much relegated to the background because the author's focus is almost entirely on Nicky and Kenny， and to a lesser extent on their faithful terrier Tina。 The way their strong sibling bonds shine through feels absolutely authentic， as does the daring scatological badinage; while Nicky's concern for his brother's wellbeing is a joy to behold even while it's severely tested。I won't expand on the plot any more for fear of spoiling Lark for new readers， but I will add that I was extremely moved by the last few chapters。 And if they don't affect you then the epilogue surely will。And after what starts off as a joke， a lark， there eventually is a real live bird:"the mad ecstatic music of the lark [。。。] the small bird straining upwards [。。。] all effort， as if hauling itself up by sheer will -- a wanting， a yearning。" It's not hard to see how this moving novella has merited its many plaudits and its award。 。。。more

Barbara Henderson ，

I liked this。 Tight storytelling， not a word wasted。 It was raw and immediate and had high stakes。 A very limited cast。 Small canvas， vivid storytelling。

Xanthe Mainwaring ，

This moved me。

Margaret McCulloch-Keeble ，

I've heard much about this novella。 I thought it would last me a day or so but it barely lasted 2 hours， I couldn't read it quick enough。 It made me smile。 It made me laugh out loud。 It made me weep。 McGowan deserves all the praise and prizes he can be accorded for this beautiful story。 I've heard much about this novella。 I thought it would last me a day or so but it barely lasted 2 hours， I couldn't read it quick enough。 It made me smile。 It made me laugh out loud。 It made me weep。 McGowan deserves all the praise and prizes he can be accorded for this beautiful story。 。。。more

Hannah ，

I read this book following my Children's Literature module and loved it even more than the previous year's Carnegie medal winner （The Poet X - also a brilliant read）。 This book， though very short， packs in real emotion。 The narrator's voice was true to the character， and his relationship with his brother and his upbringing felt authentic。 I read this book following my Children's Literature module and loved it even more than the previous year's Carnegie medal winner （The Poet X - also a brilliant read）。 This book， though very short， packs in real emotion。 The narrator's voice was true to the character， and his relationship with his brother and his upbringing felt authentic。 。。。more

Shonna Froebel ，

https://cdnbookworm。blogspot。com/2020。。。 https://cdnbookworm。blogspot。com/2020。。。 。。。more

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Lark

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=Lark&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,Lark&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0