The Bombs That Brought Us Together

My full review is available on United by Pop.I feel this book would be a very beneficial learning tool to teach a younger audience about refugees and the devastating effects of war. It gives the reader an up-close account of the stigma immigrants face and really does justice, despite this being set in a fictional land, to those living this story in our own world. The conflict between Old Country and Little Town is disturbingly reminiscent of the wars happening in the Middle East, and the way the [...]

I didn't finish this book so I'm not going to give it a rating. This book is amazingly written but it was just too much for me emotionally. I avoided reading this book for an entire month before I just DNFed it.

I picked this up because of the themes and because I'd read a book by Brian Conaghan earlier this year and really loved it. Refugees are topical subject, our students study them in various areas and we have a community of students who are themselves, refugees. I thought this would be a good insight into their lives and that it might be something they would enjoy reading. I found it very slow. Interesting and well written, but slow. I think it will irritate some of my readers as they wade through [...]

I liked the concept of this book and I think it had A LOT of potential but I found that the way the story was delivered, through the main character (who I found to be quite annoying) was boring and bland in some parts. I don't know if i'll write a full review but for now I'm hopefully going to go and read a book!

A step outside my comfort zone, but one I definitely appreciated. Brian Conaghan's characters are bursting with voice and I loved how dialogue-driven this was. I don't often read about male friendships, and this was great because of the bond between Charlie and Pav. I'd definitely recommend if you're interested in male POVs, gangs and dystopian themes.

3.5 stars.I received an advanced readers copy for this book and finally got around to reading it. I'm not exactly sure how to classify the genre, but it's definitely young adult with a hint of dystopia.PlotThis book was mostly very slow-paced, and i had some trouble getting into the story for the first half of the book. It gets a lot better in the second half and the last third was actually pretty good with the plot twist. The whole conflict between Old Country and Little Town disturbingly remin [...]

This is one of those books that sound really cool when it’s described to you, but the execution left me disappointed.The narrator, Charlie Law, lives in Little Town, which has been at war with Old Country for years. One day, a refugee family from Old Country moves into Charlie’s apartment building. At first, everyone is nervous about the refugees because Old Country’s army has just invaded Little Town and toppled its government. Now Little Town is run by soldiers and vicious bands of “Ra [...]

I have to say I was really hoping that this book was going to be really good. The topic had so much potential but one thing broke it for me. The writing style. The novel was so slow and the way the character talked was kind of hard to read. I liked the theme of the novel and felt that it was really sweet that Charlie wanted to help Pav is Little Town, but the way the author had the characters speak was really hard to understand. ProsThemeTopicCharacter developmentTheme and topic developmentConsH [...]

2.5 stars but I am rounding it up because let's just be nice so shortly before the new year starts!i was really excited to see a middle grade book about a refugee! Especially one that's deals with war zone refugees.Sadly I didn't really get that kind of story in most aspects so that was disappointing.We do get a refugee family that is not treated nicely and a boy that just tries to under stand what the world around him is all about, but honestly? To me this book lacked a lot to be an actual good [...]

I received a copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.My initial thoughts:1. Where was this book seven years ago?2. The formatting was a bit inconsistent. 3. This would have made a really good independent film.4. The first half was slow and innocent, the second was a crazy whirlwind of mobsters, guns, blackmail, and black eyes.5. A solid 3.5/5 stars.To expand on each of my previous points:1. Where was this book seven years ago?This is the type of book t [...]

Book Review The Bombs That Brought Us Together written by Brian Conaghan had 361 pages. The author, Brian Conaghan is also known for writing: When Mr. Dog Bites and his most recent creation, We Came Apart. I chose this book because I wanted to expand my reading horizons by reading a novel set in a dystopian world. I've watched a few movies set in a dystopian world like The Hunger Games and Divergent, but my friends have told me such great things about dystopian books. So, I finally decided to pi [...]

I received the hardback version of this book from Bloomsbury Australia, and thought the cover was both bright and disturbing. I mean, check out the bombs! :/Regardless, it's a really nice book. I'm kinda fussy about hardbacks, and really liked the look of this one.Charlie Law lives in Little Town with his parents. Little Town borders the Old Country, and the two don't get along. The Regime in Little Town is strict and delivers harsh penalties to those who steal or break curfew. Charlie's a good [...]

The main character of the story is a 14 year old boy called Charlie .Charlie lives in little town which borders the notorious Old Country where the rules are very different then where he lives. When a new family move to Charlie's town he makes friends with the son Pavel , or Pav as his friends call him. Not everyone is as welcoming to Pav as Charlie is and it's not long before Pav is getting a hard time . I really enjoyed this story about this dystopian world . The book also covered topics such [...]

I really liked this one. Most war/dystopian YA has the teenage protagonist/band of teenage heroes who rose to the occasion and save the day.Butwhat if the teenager is more teenager than hero? This one is more of an honest depiction of war, complete with lots of thoughts about who the bad guys really are, with many parallels to our own world.Highly recommended. This would be great for high schoolers who have a bit of a geopolitical bent to them, though that's certainly far from necessary to enjoy [...]

A really very beautiful, compelling and poignant story.

If it's not love then it's the bomb

2.5/3 I liked the concept of this book but it didn't quite meet the mark for me. Charlie (the protagonist) I found pretty irritating, and I didn't like how he responded to his own thoughts (things like "you know what he means, Charlie) when the idea was already conveyed without stating it. I also hated the PLETHORA OF CAPITAL LETTERS. I just find that to be really unnecessary, and feel that there are more effective ways to convey a sense of urgency or importance than just capitalising whole sect [...]

Although I initially struggled with this and found the writing quirky - young Charlie Law was engaging as he struggled to come to terms with the bombing of Little Town by the dreadful enemy. That he starts to make a friend of one of the enemy is hard enough, but finding three chairs for his den so he can impress the girl he fancies is tough. It's hard to square the daily reports in real life of life in Aleppo or Mosul and this quaint tale of survival, but as you press on you can see the subtlety [...]

2.5 starsI liked itbutI was likeWhat I liked:•The friendship between Pav and Charlie.•The concept and plot. What I didn't like:•The writing style-it didn't work for me.•Charlie didn't seem like he was 14 at first and then he changed a lot really quickly. •I couldn't connect with the characters. Overall, it was okay. It wasn't too bad and the second half was pretty good but it didn't work for me.

I took a whim by reading this book, I thought I'd try something different and I'm certainly glad that I did. A winner in the Costa Book Awards, The Bombs That Brought Us Together is about the conflict between two opposing states: Old Country and Little Town. The story focuses on teenager Charlie and his friendship with a refugee from Old Country, and his fight to protect him from those who suspect Pavel from being a spy. The dynamic of the world within Little Town presents a corrupt hierarchy, w [...]

Little Town native Charlie Law knows the rules of living in Little Town; no fighting, no stealing and no going out after dark. Charlie lives by these rules, your don't want to get on the wrong side of the Rascals and Regime that run Little Town. When Pav Duda, an Old Country refugee moves onto Charlie's block, the rules starts to get broken. Then the bombs fall, and Old Country soldiers appear, and Little Town is changed forever.This book is a very interesting and very current read.Brian Conagha [...]

There's a lot I like about this novel, particularly the many layers of conflict and especially the inner conflicts the protagonist wrestles with in the story. There's a lot of potential for meaty discussion in this narrative. What bothers me is the Little Town vs. Old Country setting. I understand the author wants to capture a sense of timelessness and universality but it comes off too vague, not enough to grab on and relate to. A novel not fully realized but one still worth reading and discussi [...]

I don't need another book that makes me want to be a teacher. However, this book is so unique and cleverly written. If I were a social studies teacher, I would tie this book into almost every war, conflict, or operation that is studied in my classroom. I can't do it justice with a simple review.As I read, I could have replaced the generic places Little Town and Big Country with country names from my deployments during my military career.

Disappointed with female characters, depicted as victims "love interest" and needing to be "saved" by the gun toting male. Wouldn't recommend to my teenagers!

this was such a thought provoking book and honestly the only thing I can say is wow.

Charlie Law is a law-abiding 14 year old who kindly befriends recently immigrated Pav. They convert a shed into their man-cave with hopes of entertaining the likes of Erin F (Charlie’s crush). Charlie knows Pav will be bullied and harassed when school starts if Pav doesn’t learn to fit in, especially learn the “lingo”. He has a Pygmalion dream of teaching Pav all the social and academic skills he could ever need. His idealism is interrupted by bombing of the area and then enemy occupatio [...]

I really liked the title a lot more than the book itself. I really liked the concept of how tragedy and misfortune can bring people together, even though we typically only think about the destructive nature and negative impacts of these events.One of things that really annoyed me was the lack of names for the two countries. I understand that this may have been done intentionally, like in the old morality plays of British literature, but after awhile I found it irksome. Another thing that annoyed [...]

The Bombs That Brought Us Together is a powerful story that emphasizes friendship and loyalty. The friendship between Charlie and Pav is the best part of the book, it was lovely to see them depend on each other and ground each other. The first person narrative is well done and creates a very distinct voice for the main character. I enjoyed getting into this world's lingo. I'm torn between 3 and 4 stars for this one.The book's strengths make it shine, but it still suffered from a few flaws. The p [...]

As I read this book, my response was constantly swinging between mild irritation and enjoyment. The author cultivates distinct "lingoes" for both the main character (Charlie), and his new friend (Pav), an refugee from a neighboring aggressive country. Conaghan explores themes of friendship, differences, loyalty, and self-preservation through Pav's limited knowledge of the local lingo and Charlie's desire to teach him. Sometimes Charlie sounds like a wanna be member of the Rat Pack, with lines su [...]

I was hoping for more from this book. I liked the premise of the book and the friendship between Charlie and Pav was definitely it's strongest element, but as a whole I don't think it was executed very well and I had to force myself to finish it.My biggest issue was in the characterisation of Charlie. He is supposed to be 14/15 but felt more like 12 for most of the novel (except a few moments in the second half of the novel, where he seemed to have jarringly aged up considetably.) His extreme ni [...]