Until the Road Ends by Phil Earle

Pages: 240 

Publisher: Andersen Press 

Released: 1st of June 2023 

Until the Road Ends is the eagerly awaited new novel from the bestselling author of When the Sky The Times Children's Book of the Year, winner of a Books Are My Bag Readers Award, the British Book Award for Children’s Fiction and shortlisted for the Carnegie Medal.

When Peggy saves a stray dog from near-death, a beautiful friendship begins. Peggy and Beau are the only thing that can ever come between them is war. Peggy is evacuated to the safety of the coast, but Beau is left behind in the city, where he becomes the most extraordinary and unlikely of war heroes.

Night after night, as bombs rain down and communities are destroyed, Beau searches the streets, saving countless families. But then disaster strikes, changing Peggy’s life forever. With her parents killed, both she and Beau are left alone, hundreds of miles apart. But Beau has a plan to reunite them at long last . . .

TW: Grief, Parent Death, Animal Death, Animal Euthanasia, mentions of animal neglect and abuse 

What I Have to Say 

This book was so sad, but it had an incredibly heartwarming story at it's heart. As a Homeward Bound loving kid, this definitely hit the spot. Though the start of the war is a bit tough as there is mentions of people taking their healthy pets to be put down and there are mention of abuse in both the dog and the cat's pasts, the  overall message is one of love between humans and animals. 

At the start it was a bit slow, but once it warmed up, it was a really entertaining read. My only hesitation about it was how eager to be a soldier the pigeon was. It came off a bit pro-war and wasn't really argued against until nearer the end. It made me a bit uncomfortable. 

The emotion was done well in this book. I loved the little historical touches like the cinema owner who took in pets abandoned by the war. 

If you're buying this for a kid you know, be cautious that they won't be sensitive to the animal abuse and death, but otherwise I would very much recommend it. 

My thanks go to Netgalley and Anderson Press for providing me with this copy for review.