ABOUT THIS BOOK

One silver-starry night, a shiny, wooden egg falls from a flying machine high in the air . . . down, down, down through the midnight sky . . . down to the small village of Pumbleditch, where Barkbelly is born. Where he’s the only wooden boy. And where he’s the cause of a tragic accident.

Suddenly, Barkbelly’s only choice is to flee for his life—to run. As he tries to escape his haunting past, he faces extraordinary adventures and dangers. Every wooden step leads Barkbelly toward the dark and startling truth about where he comes from and the burning question of where he really belongs. With deliciously imaginative storytelling, Cat Weatherill creates an utterly magical world—and one wooden boy who’s sure to melt readers’ hearts.


From the Hardcover edition.


REVIEWS

“This is a magical and moving debut.”—The Times (U.K.)

“A glorious book . . . beautiful and touching.”—The Observer (U.K.)

“Fresh and inventive.”—The Children’s Bookseller (U.K.)

“A startling fresh voice in children’s books! Cat Weatherill is one of our great storytellers, vivacious and inventive.” —Michael Morpurgo, Children’s Laureate (U.K.)

“A magical adventure . . . all these rich characters reflect real life but allow the reader to imagine the details for themselves.”—Carousel (U.K.)


From the Hardcover edition.


ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Cat Weatherill is a performance storyteller, appearing internationally at storytelling and literature festivals, on British radio and television, and at schools throughout the United Kingdom. Barkbelly is her first book for Knopf, and she is at work on a companion novel, Snowbone. She lives in Wales.

Peter Brown is a new talent in the field of picture books. His debut, Flight of the Dodo, was published in 2005. He lives in Brooklyn, New York.


From the Hardcover edition.