But, when he is accused of attempted sabotage and disowned by the explorer community, they find out that this nightmare can get even worse.

I love the crazy stories Maudie cooks up about how Arthur lost his arm, and how the twins work together to tie knots and such so that Arthur can learn several skills. I normally don’t really love political statements, but the environmental issue is near and dear to my heart. Arthur and Maudie are twins who are suddenly left to fend for themselves and I found their journey to be such a compelling one, filled with some heartbreaking moments, but also filled with sense of finding oneself and one's place in the world. Could a random newspaper advertisement seeking a crew for a Sky-ship adventure to the South Polaris offer the twins an escape route?The journey through the skies goes smoothly, but disaster strikes when they reach the third continent. However, Maudie and Arthur Brightstorm do not believe the story heard before the Geographical Society of their father’s disappearance in the South Polaris. As members of Twins Trust (a national charity supporting parents of twins, triplets and more), we wanted to share our Brightstorm experience with other twin families in the hopes that they would find as much joy and meaning in the books as we had. Brightstorm is a wonderfully paced, absorbing read that delivers a special feeling of adventure reserved for stories that you just cannot put down. I hadn’t realised how much I was missing middle grade until now- but Brightstorm was just the book I needed to get back into it!

Twins Arthur and Maudie receive word in Lontown that their famous explorer father died in a failed attempt to reach South Polaris. Here’s one, in the newspaper that they’re all standing on: Individuals Wanted For treacherous journey to South Polaris, Small wages, certain danger, Shared reward and recognition if successful. We even learn a few lessons; the most obvious being that we can overcome any obstacle with friendship, resourcefulness, and sheer determination. At one point there was an absolute loss, including the guilt of getting at least one character killed, all evidence lost and facing the fate of the main characters father. Arthur and Maudie are the desirable narrators for a childhood adventure story; with one boy and one girl, they can tell a nice, balanced story that most young children will relate to.They went on their own “Brightstorm adventures”, imagining they were travelling to South Polaris, meeting Thought Wolves and escaping from Eurdora Vane! Arthur and Maudie are twins, their father an explorer who has died on an expedition - but they haven't been told the whole truth about what happened.

Hardy has created an original land featuring sky-ships, thought-wolves (my new favourite creature), unique continents and a great cast of characters with a couple of notable villains. SKU: Brightstorm-sch Categories: Age 9-12 Middle Grade, Bestsellers, Local Authors Tags: Bestsellers 9-12, Brightstorm, Brightstorm series, Frozen Planet, Frozen Seas, Local Author, Sky ship Adventure, Top 25 Year 5, Vashti Hardy, Vashti Hardy Event, Vashti Upper KS2, Zoom! Join our community to get personalised book suggestions, extracts straight to your inbox, 10% off RRPs, and to change children’s lives.This experience has been fantastic primarily for the children, the school and also for me (professionally).