You may realise I was supposed to read/review a different book before this. I shall now be reading the missing book as book 20 and all will be explained in that review.

Boy Under Water had been sitting on my Amazon list for quite a while and was another Waterstones haul book. It just seemed like a very interesting different book.

The synopsis for this book (as it appears on the back) is as follows:

Cymbeline Igloo (yes, really!) has NEVER been swimming. Not ever. Not once. But how hard can it be? He’s Googled front crawl and he’s found his dad’s old pair of trunks. He’s totally ready.

What he’s not ready for is the accident at the pool – or how it leads his mum to a sudden breakdown.

Now, with the help of friends old an new, Cymbeline must solve the mystery of why his mum never took him near water – and it will turn his whole life upside down…

Ability to read – Boy Under Water was utterly captivating and Cymbeline Igloo was an extraordinary character of charm, wit and curiosity. I had no problem reading this book, I felt head first into the water and swam along side Cymbeline as he took on his biggest challenge yet. It was interesting to see the story topic told through the eyes of a young boy, it added whimsy and curiosity and a level of lightness that would have been absent had it been an adult story.

Characterisation – You can’t get much different that Cymbeline Igloo and with a name like that he was bound to be extraordinary. Watching Cymbeline navigate hard to deal with topics was very rewarding and his voice was very loud and strong from the beginning to the end. He was a very witty and amusing character and often had me smirking or laughing in my seat. I loved the innocence of his character and how he never backed down from a challenge. I loved how determined he was and how he was absolutely certain about the people in his life and what they would and wouldn’t do to/for him.

My heart was warmed by the end of the book and I very much wished I could wrap Cymbeline Igloo in bubble wrap and carry him home with me.

Uniqueness – Again this was different to what I’ve read before. I don’t remember many books from my own childhood other than Harry Potter, Roald Dahl, Enid Blyton and Quentin Blake. I can see my younger self enjoying this as much as my adult self has.

I liked that it touched upon something that is difficult to talk about but told it from the point of view of a young boy who was totally in control of his own voice and actions. The book pulls upon your heart strings, amuses you with witty lines and worms its way into your subconscious making a lasting impression on your mind.

It’s a wonderful story that I’d recommend to others.

Hannah xoxo