The Valley of Lost Secrets

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We’re in another country that feels like another world, there’s a big scary war on that no one seems to be talking about, and an hour ago I was standing under a tree holding a dead person’s head. I love reading books in this era, as they have the potential to feel so heartwarming and immersive and this was definitely one of those books. The author lovingly describes life in a small Welsh community where everyone knows everyone, and yet a huge secret lies hidden at its heart. In The Valley of Lost Secrets, Lesley Parr has given us a real l gem of a book. I can see teachers covering World War 2 using it as a class reader, and I would not be surprised to see it featuring in awards lists in the coming year. I look forward to seeing what delights this clever author offers us next! I have the Joneses …’ Mr Bevan says. Quite a few people stand up and Mr Bevan laughs but I don’t get why it’s funny. He carries on, ‘I mean Ralph and Megan … those Joneses.’ Hello Yellow - 80 Books to Help Children Nurture Good Mental Health and Support With Anxiety and Wellbeing -

The Valley Of Lost Secrets - Laburnum House Educational The Valley Of Lost Secrets - Laburnum House Educational

Described as a future classic full of adventure, mystery and heart, The Valley of Lost Secrets tells the story of two young brothers Jimmy and Ronnie, who in Sept 1939 are evacuated from London to a small village in Wales. In surroundings completely different from home, Jimmy unlike his younger brother Ronnie, instantly feels out of place. But Jimmy soon finds something that distracts him, something that makes the Valley much more frightening than the war, for hidden in a tree he finds a skull and the secrets he's determined to uncover will change Jimmy and the village forever..Lesley Parr is the author of three novels for children for which she has won the Tír na nÓg Children's Book Awards, the King’s School Chester Book Award and the North Somerset Teachers Book Awards, as well as being shortlisted for many others. I’m gripping Ronnie’s shoulder so tight I must be hurting him but he’s just watching her. Then the woman called Mrs Thomas looks at me and I get the same smile. Now that she’s close, I can smell lavender and peppermints. She lifts Ronnie’s tag and says, ‘Ronald, now that’s one of my favourite names, that is.’

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The Valley of Lost Secrets is a book I found deeply emotional but thoroughly enjoyed reading. I was drawn to the book because I had studied World War Two at school and loved reading the wartime classic with my class: “Goodnight Mister Tom” by Michelle Magorian. The Valley of Lost Secrets offered a different fictional perspective of evacuation during the war, seeing three London children move to the Welsh countryside. Lesley Parr’s story of evacuees is rich in atmosphere and a sense of place, and uses its wartime setting to explore themes of community, understanding and self-forgiveness. Along with other children at their school, Jimmy and his little brother Ronnie have been sent hundreds of miles away from London to the safety of a small mining town in South Wales, and it couldn’t be further from what they know. Jimmy is determined they won’t stay long, and that the place won’t change him, even as it’s transforming his classmates: Florence Campbell for example, who is free to become someone else, far away from her abusive family. The village has its secrets though, and the discovery of a set of bones in a tree leads Jimmy to solve a decades old mystery and, in the process, to help those living with loss and guilt. The place and its people are carefully and skilfully evoked, with the adults, particularly Jimmy and Ronnie’s new ‘family’ of Aunty Gwen and Uncle Alun the miner, likely to be as fascinating to readers as the younger protagonists. The mystery will certainly keep readers gripped but it’s the characters and the place that will stay with them. It’s so noisy. People are talking, shifting in their seats, coughing. There are a lot more villagers than evacuees. That has to be a good thing, increase our chances. If there are more of them than of us, Ronnie and me can’t be left behind. Some men bring in our cases and Mrs Bevan shows where to put them on the floor in front of us. Mr Bevan steps on to the stage and the hall goes quiet. Ronnie’s gripping my hand so tight it’s starting to hurt but I don’t care. All that matters is that someone wants us. This is also being enjoyed very much by the Y5 book club and is the last book we have to review for The Awesome Book Awards - could it end up defying expectations and being our overall winner? 💀🌳A beautiful, touching, emotional, warm and captivating story. Like a cwtch in a book. Timeless and powerful, The Valley of Lost Secrets has future classic written all over it. - Eloise Williams, Children's Laureate Wales From the start of the book, mysteries pile up and the reader starts asking questions about this countryside where everyone is strangely quiet. The main illustration in the book is found at the start of each chapter. It shows an old tree, a wych elm in a field near a stream where the protagonists spend much time in this location. The Valley of Lost Secrets is a debut novel for Lesley Parr and clearly she knows her setting. Llanbryn is a fictional village, but it could easily have been Pontycymmer, where my dad grew up. My dad was raised chapel like the Thomases and Hughes families, and I'm not sure American readers will understand the difference between church and chapel that is talked about but that is a small part of the story and probably won't cause any lost of interest in Jimmy's story. but the MYSTERY !! THE! MYSTERY! was my favorite element of this book. the plot escalated smoothly, introducing us to clues slowly but steadily, leading up to a heart-breaking finale. whatta finale it was, when all the pieces were put together...