Teen Fiction

Time Bomb

Name: Time Bomb
Author: Nigel Hinton
ISBN: 9781582462370

by Nigel Hinton

Write a review

Overview

I’ve never told this story to anyone because when I was twelve I swore an oath in blood that I would never tell it. But the friends I swore it with are dead now, so it’s time to break that oath and tell the truth…

One summer changes everything. The summer of 1949 Andy and his three best friends discover an unexploded bomb buried in the Big Brown Hill. On that hill, beside the bomb, the foursome vow to keep their discovery a secret–a sin of omission that has the gravest of consequences.

This explosive story of boyhood camaraderie, set in postwar London, follows four friends as they confront issues of racism, loyalty, morality, and mortality, that have set their country, their community, and their lives ablaze.

Synopsis

Betrayal by the adults in their lives sparks anger and solidarity in 11-year-old Andy and his three best friends. When the boys discover leftover WWII ordnance in their favorite play site, they make a life-changing decision as a result of these injustices. Set against a crisply realized backdrop of post-war Britian, Nigel Hinton's story will hook readers from page one and ignite discussion about right and wrong, prejudice and consequence, life and death.AwardsThe Outstanding International Books for 2007Project of the United States Board on Books for Young People (USBBY) and the Children's Book Council

Publishers Weekly

British novelist Hinton's thought-provoking story will envelop readers in its convincing portrait of a boy growing up in post-WWII London. Told from 11-year-old Andy's perspective, the story opens with an attention-grabbing hook: "I've never told this story to anyone because when I was twelve I swore an oath in blood that I would never tell it. But the friends I swore it with are dead now, so it's time to break that oath and tell the truth." Andy then relates his adventures with his three friends (Eddie, Manny and Bob) after they find a seemingly inoperative bomb buried at their favorite play site, "the Bomb Building" (where the Germans bombed a house in 1941), and pledge to keep its existence a secret. At first, the weapon acts as a symbol of their boyhood rage as they fantasize about using it to punish the adults who let them down (a wrenching example is Andy's father, whom the boy caught in a compromising position with his secretary). But later, when Cap-an older, peculiar and anti-Semitic guy who befriends Andy and Eddie-is killed by the bomb's explosion, the boys have more than their urge for revenge on their consciences. Hinton's multilayered and shocking story will spark conversations about prejudice, deception, truth and responsibility. Readers will sympathize with heart-on-his-sleeve Andy as he struggles to do what's right. Ages 10-13. (Oct.) Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.

About the Author, Nigel Hinton

NIGEL HINTON was born in London in 1941 in the middle of an air raid. He has written dozens of novels for kids and now lives in East Sussex, England.

Reviews

There are no reviews yet. Log in to write one.

Editorials

Publishers Weekly

Children's Literature - Leslie Wolfson

This engaging novel revolves around an unusual premise: how four friends living in post-war London deal with the fact that they have discovered an unexploded German bomb buried at a local bomb site. The four twelve year olds—Andy, Eddie, Bob, and Manny—decide to keep the bomb a secret. Each boy loses faith with one or more adults in his life. With the bomb as a catalyst, the boys' disappointment in adults causes a chain reaction of events. The strength of this book lies in the well-developed characters and the boys' friendships with each other. Young readers will get a strong sense of what it was like to be a kid in 1949 England, when people were still living by ration books and trading goods on the black market. Unfortunately, the central story ends abruptly; it then jumps forward in time more than fifty years, which gives the novel an unfinished feeling. None of the boys regain their trust in adults which is a bit sad, although perhaps more realistic than a happy-ever-after ending. A glossary at the end of the book will help readers navigate through the colorful slang of the era.

School Library Journal

Gr 5-8-Four years after World War II has ended, a group of 12-year-old Londoners come of age amid personal and political turmoil. The story is narrated by Andrew, who, as an adult, looks back at the summer he and his friends spent riding bikes around town and exploring the overgrown property at a bombed-out manor. Each boy is faced with personal concerns: Eddie's angry stepfather beats him; Manny is the target of anti-Semitic remarks; Bob tries to overcome a stutter that his athletic dad sees as a weakness; and Andrew finds out that his father is cheating on his mother. Add to these issues an unwarranted punishment that they received from a loved and respected teacher as the school year was ending and the feelings of adult betrayal are overwhelming. When the boys stumble upon a buried bomb at the abandoned site, they see it as a source of power: a way to get even with those who treat them unfairly. Readers will empathize with the characters and the decisions they face. Although the backdrop of Communist and Fascist protests may cause some confusion, Hinton has created a compelling story about the impact of secrets and the complexities of friendship. A map helps set the stage for the action, and the glossary defines most of the slang terms with which American readers may be unfamiliar.-Kim Dare, Fairfax County Public Schools, VA Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.