Once on board their raft they encounter many other hazards, but they are also having the adventure of their lives, far away from the dull and staid lives they normally lead. They have to take to the river to escape.

They are forced into it in any case when their fire, which they had failed to fully extinguish, catches hold and burns the whole area they were staying in. With nothing to lose they decide to build a raft to take them along the river. Very soon they find a pouch with a rudimentary map, which they hope will take them back to some sort of civilisation. Straight away the children’s survival instinct kicks in and they search for food, are vaguely aware of the dangers of certain plants and creatures, build a shelter and work out how to start a fire. Lila is fiercely protective of him, acts as a mother-figure in the absence of their own family, and has the maturity to bring the group together at times of great stress. Max is very young, vulnerable and afraid. She comes across as something of a spoiled brat, but she too is hiding a deeper insecurity. Con is a feisty and assertive girl, who is also often angry and finding herself in conflict or impatient with the others. I should add at this point that the story is set, I would guess, in the 1950s. Each of the children has their own back-story and their characters are carefully-drawn: Fred is resourceful, a natural leader who the others look to, but he is also a troubled soul, his mother is dead and he longs for the approval of his remote and uptight father. The pilot dies (this is quite gently done, it is not frightening), which means the four children, five year-old Max, his older sister Lila, both Brazilian, and Con and Fred, two Brits, aged about 11-12, find themselves alone. The novel begins with a dramatic event: four children are travelling in a light aircraft across the Amazon jungle, which then crashes. This is only her fourth novel, but she has already won two major prizes: the Waterstones Children’s Book Prize in 2014 for Rooftoppers and The Explorer won the Costa Book Award in 2017.

I want to tell you about a wonderful book I have just completed which will be perfect summer reading for 9-12 year olds long enough to last them for a holiday, but with enough pace to sustain their interest and sufficient can’t-put-it-down qualities! Katherine Rundell.

The Explorer by Katherine Rundell