From the front cover to the ending, I absolutely loved this book. It only took me 2 days to read so not the longest book but just long enough for a good read! The story follows Ross, a young boy who has a rate form of eye cancer. It follows his treatment, family life, school life and friendships and really is heartbreaking at times. The author wrote Ross’ story from his own personal experience which would have been awful, but to make into such a wonderful read, that many younger readers will be able to read and understand or relate to, makes it even more wonderful!! There are many cool illustrations throughout the book and overall, lots of humour. A very amazing sense of “just getting in with life” and making you see that no matter how bad a situation is, there is always a bright side! Thank you Rob Harrell for sharing this amazing story with us all :)

Based on his own experiences of a rare and aggressive kind of cancer, Rob Harrell has written a very accessible book. Although written for children the book is perfectly suitable for the adult reader too. The text is interspersed with comic cartoon strips which gives it a fun feel. The novel tells the story of Ross a school boy with cancer and how he copes with all of the treatment, his friends and getting through school. Music plays a big part in his life and he uses it as part of his coping strategy, so the book contains quite a lot about that too. These days most people know someone with cancer so I think this book is really good for children to read, to gain an understanding of the condition in a well written and non scary way.

Wink is an insightful semi-autobiographical novel by Rob Harrell. Based on Harrell’s own experience of being diagnosed and treated for a very rare form of eye cancer. However, Harrell shares his experiences through writing it from the perspective of Ross Maloy, a pre-teen boy who is having to deal with his new diagnosis on top of all the other usual teenage dramas, including finding out that his best friend Abbey is moving away. I found this book hard to put down. The experiences of high school were brought back, as Harrell captured perfectly the social on goings of high school. The most insightful part of the book throughout is how Harrell enables the reader to understand the experience of a teenager dealing with cancer, whilst having to still cope with all the usual experiences of being a teenager. The reactions from others, from pitiful to awkward comments to bullying are captured perfectly. This is why I believe the book would be a good read for teenagers recently diagnosed with cancer, as the book is easy to relate to and would help them to feel like they are not alone. It would also be useful for other teenagers to read, in order for them to gain an empathetic understanding of others. Harrell turns an upsetting subject into a hilarious story that will appeal to teenagers and adults alike. Harrell writes in an engaging and accessible way that makes the book hard to put down. The added images and extracts from Ross’s made up comic ‘Batpig’ help to make the story more accessible to younger readers. The combination of Harrell’s semi-autobiographical perspective, with the added comic strips, supposedly written by Ross, make the book very engaging and believable. I was certainly not disappointed about this book.

I whizzed through this, I loved the story of Ross Malory and thought the author did a great job of relaying his own personal experiences as an adult through the eyes of a child. Think this was aimed at a younger audience as it deals om depth with school, social isolation Ross felt with his peers and bullying but I think it could resonate with adults too as the story itself and subject matter could affect anyone and cross boundaries. The thought of someone especially a child losing their eyesight is scary and harrowing but the character of Ross meets every challenge head on and enjoys life to the fullest and is a real inspiration. This was such a great read and the light relief comic strips throughout were a lot of fun.

The subject matter, cancer, seems to conflict with the bright engaging book cover, but after reading it is a fitting contrast. While the subject matter is not cheery, the writer has made his own real life experience with cancer relatable to a younger, as well as older, audience. It deals with the diagnosis of a teenager and how he copes with it, as well as the usual teenager angst issues in such a humorous relatable way. The book seems to be more geared towards younger readers, with the comic strip in each chapter a lighter way to enjoy the story, by showing the usual teenager issues as well as the harrowing truth of cancer sufferers. Please don't let the main topic put you off, this book is made to be read and discussed by everyone to show how be can all deal with things sympathetically.