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Review
Beautifully written and carefully conceived, The Memory Cage is an exceptional first novel and has so much to offer for children aged 10 and over. --Lancashire Evening Post
It's a thoughtful story about confronting fears and one which gives us an insight into a way of life that would be very difficult at the best of times told in a way that makes accessible to young people --Books 4 Teens
It's a thoughtful story about confronting fears and one which gives us an insight into a way of life that would be very difficult at the best of times told in a way that makes accessible to young people --Books 4 Teens
Product Description
Alex's grandfather keeps forgetting things, and Alex has overheard his adoptive parents say that they're going to put granddad in a home. His grandfather begs Alex to save him from that, and it's a promise Alex is desperate to keep. But Alex once promised his little brother that he would save him, and in the terror of the Bosnian war, he failed. As Alex struggles to protect his grandfather, he uncovers secrets that his family and the village have kept for two generations. Unravelling them will cause grief, but will they save grandfather, and perhaps help Alex come to terms with his own private war.
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
15 of 15 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I wasn't sure what to expect when I received this book but I was drawn to it initially because it was compared to Michael Morpurgo's work in its style. While it's wise on some occasions to take such comparsions with a pinch of salt in this particular case it was totally justified. The story is both beautiful and multi-faceted.
What I liked about this book is that even though it is aimed a a younger teenade audience it deals with a few issues in an accessible way. The first issue it deals with is adoption and how a child who has been introduced to a family might cope with such a situation. I can't say I've seen this done in any other title. I liked that the boy in question wasn't a nightmare tearaway nor was he perfect and I thought the portayal was realistic and heartfelt. The book hinted on issues sounding refugees and the impact of the reasonably recent atrocities in Bosnia giving the readers in insight to what happened from a personal perspective. I liked that it was highlighted as it is an event in our more modern history that is overlooked. The story also dealt with the impact of alzheimers on both the suffer and their family which was done in a sensitive way. Finally the author brought in ideas about the nature and morality of warfare and the impact participating in conflict had on the people involved, focusing in particular on the events surrounding Dunkirk.
Not only did the author address all these issues and do so in a sensitive way the story that held it all together was wonderful. I loved the relationship between Alex, the main character, and his grandfather and was totally absorbed in Alex's quest to help his grandfather with his memory and play detective and piece together his family's history. I loved how the story flowed and how the author weaved all the threads together.
An awesome read from a UK debut author and well worth a look especially if you have previously enjoyed the work of Murpurgo.
[...]
What I liked about this book is that even though it is aimed a a younger teenade audience it deals with a few issues in an accessible way. The first issue it deals with is adoption and how a child who has been introduced to a family might cope with such a situation. I can't say I've seen this done in any other title. I liked that the boy in question wasn't a nightmare tearaway nor was he perfect and I thought the portayal was realistic and heartfelt. The book hinted on issues sounding refugees and the impact of the reasonably recent atrocities in Bosnia giving the readers in insight to what happened from a personal perspective. I liked that it was highlighted as it is an event in our more modern history that is overlooked. The story also dealt with the impact of alzheimers on both the suffer and their family which was done in a sensitive way. Finally the author brought in ideas about the nature and morality of warfare and the impact participating in conflict had on the people involved, focusing in particular on the events surrounding Dunkirk.
Not only did the author address all these issues and do so in a sensitive way the story that held it all together was wonderful. I loved the relationship between Alex, the main character, and his grandfather and was totally absorbed in Alex's quest to help his grandfather with his memory and play detective and piece together his family's history. I loved how the story flowed and how the author weaved all the threads together.
An awesome read from a UK debut author and well worth a look especially if you have previously enjoyed the work of Murpurgo.
[...]
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
'The Memory Cage' is a debut novel by British author Ruth Eastham, who has been compared to Michael Morpurgo. That's high-praise indeed but it's also well-deserved. It's a powerful and emotional story, dealing with universal themes such as family and war.
Alex was adopted from Bosnia during the Yugoslav Wars. He's formed a close bond with his new Grandad, who rescued him and brought him to England. Alex loves his Grandad immensely but his grandfather's memory is failing and he's in danger of being taken away. Alex determines to stop this from happening by helping him remember the events of his life. This however, leads to a number of long-buried secrets being revealed and painful memories resurfacing of his time during the Second World War. As Alex's Grandad begins to deal with the events of his past, Alex too has to face his own history before he can begin to move forward.
This book deals with a number of difficult and serious subjects such as adoption and alzheimer's disease, in a thoughtful and sensitive manner. For the age group at which this book was aimed, I felt that this could have been done in a heavy-handed way but instead the right balance was achieved between a serious exploration of the issues and pure reader enjoyment in the story. I found myself being caught up in the lives of the characters and becoming completely engrossed in the book. I'll also admit to crying a fair bit near the end!
This is a beautiful debut novel and I look forward to future books by a talented first-time author.
Alex was adopted from Bosnia during the Yugoslav Wars. He's formed a close bond with his new Grandad, who rescued him and brought him to England. Alex loves his Grandad immensely but his grandfather's memory is failing and he's in danger of being taken away. Alex determines to stop this from happening by helping him remember the events of his life. This however, leads to a number of long-buried secrets being revealed and painful memories resurfacing of his time during the Second World War. As Alex's Grandad begins to deal with the events of his past, Alex too has to face his own history before he can begin to move forward.
This book deals with a number of difficult and serious subjects such as adoption and alzheimer's disease, in a thoughtful and sensitive manner. For the age group at which this book was aimed, I felt that this could have been done in a heavy-handed way but instead the right balance was achieved between a serious exploration of the issues and pure reader enjoyment in the story. I found myself being caught up in the lives of the characters and becoming completely engrossed in the book. I'll also admit to crying a fair bit near the end!
This is a beautiful debut novel and I look forward to future books by a talented first-time author.
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback|Amazon Vine™ Review
(What's this?)
This is the story of Alex, a Bosnian boy who was adopted into the Smith family after the conflict in former Yugoslavia. His grandad is becoming very forgetful and Alex wants to try and dig into his past to help him to remember.
This is a lovely book. Alex is a great creation, a boy who genuinely wants to do the right thing. He doesn't always get thanked for the digging around he is doing, but it pays off eventually. I really enjoyed following Alex as he found out about his grandad's past, through photographs, stories, talking to people, gravestones etc. As somebody who enjoys history and research this all really appealed to me.
The author has produced a little gem with this book. It's a young adult or children's book, but adults can definitely enjoy it too. Highly recommended, and a useful tool to help explain the effects of Alzheimer's, or to encourage discussion about family histories.
This is a lovely book. Alex is a great creation, a boy who genuinely wants to do the right thing. He doesn't always get thanked for the digging around he is doing, but it pays off eventually. I really enjoyed following Alex as he found out about his grandad's past, through photographs, stories, talking to people, gravestones etc. As somebody who enjoys history and research this all really appealed to me.
The author has produced a little gem with this book. It's a young adult or children's book, but adults can definitely enjoy it too. Highly recommended, and a useful tool to help explain the effects of Alzheimer's, or to encourage discussion about family histories.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
A heart warming book
A fab book that deals with adoption, 21st century family structure and alzheimers in a way that reduced one of my friends to tears, whilst reading it. Read more
Published 1 month ago by clare
Surprisingly Good.
This is another book that I had to read for 'Book Day' at work that's happening in March. Two of my colleagues had read it before me and they both seemed to really love it. Read more
Published 4 months ago by Barmy_Bex
What a stunningly good children's book
A remarkable story, beautifully told: telling of the pain of loss, of jealousy, of war through the eyes of a child.
A book for re-reading more than once. Read more
A book for re-reading more than once. Read more
Published 5 months ago by Julien Foster
Memories and secrets are unleashed ...
Alex is originally from Bosnia, but his family were killed in the war and he was adopted by the Smith family and brought to England. Read more
Published 6 months ago by quippe
Moving memories
Few children's authors would consider addressing such weighty matters as Alzheimer's and the Yugoslav Wars. Read more
Published 6 months ago by Jez
YA / Adult crossover book
This was such a touching book, I can quite see why it has been attracting such excellent reviews.
There is also a lot squeezed into its 240 pages. Read more
There is also a lot squeezed into its 240 pages. Read more
Published 10 months ago by DubaiReader
Conor age 13
My son Conor wrote this after reading the novel
A fantastic first novel and that I hope that there will be more to come. Read more
A fantastic first novel and that I hope that there will be more to come. Read more
Published 11 months ago by Lorcan O'Malley
Good memories of this one!
I read the memory cage on holiday and was quickly immersed in the world of Alex the young protagonist of the story - desperately seeking to find out the details of his beloved... Read more
Published 13 months ago by brownhairedgnome
Looking in the box
Sometimes things happen which are put into a mental box. And often, at least for a while, they are better hidden in the box. Read more
Published 14 months ago by A John
Good read for teens
I enjoyed reading this book and would certainly recommend this as a good read for teens.
Its a touching story of a boy with a sad past, and his love for his grandfather... Read more
Its a touching story of a boy with a sad past, and his love for his grandfather... Read more
Published 14 months ago by Babs
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