TR&W Issue 20

7 About this book Abi loves reading, but lately books have started feeling much too real. A story covers her in seawater, and there’s a cat-like ‘wildness’ pacing the house that might have escaped from a sketchbook. Louis loves it, but it’s growing fiercer, and it won’t go back... When Abi’s dad Thinking and talking • Why is this story told from Cosmo’s point of view? • Who makes mistakes? How do they deal with them and what happens as a result? • What do Max and Cosmo learn by the end of the story? Do other characters learn things, too? Try this… n Give Cosmo a voice by roleplaying his interactions with other characters. What impact does Cosmo have on them? If he had spoken to them in the book, would anything have changed? n Is it Cosmo’s responsibility to ensure Mum and Dad’s happiness? Write him a letter, explaining what’s happening and advising him how best to help his family. n Draw a map of Cosmo’s world. Mark his favourite locations and activities. What changes because of Mum and Dad’s decision? What stays the same? 8 I, Cosmo BY CARLIE SOROSIAK, ILLUS. BEN MANTLE, NOSY CROW 16 | www.teachwire.net KEY S TAGE 2 marries Polly, everything changes. Abi has acquired two stepbrothers without caring about either of them, and sharing Dad just makes her feel all wrong. With the challenges of a newly blended family at its heart, this engrossing middle-grade novel explores the power of reading, teamwork and our wild imaginations. Thinking and talking • “Was she going to have to share Granny Grace... as well as everything else?” What do the new stepsiblings have to share? How do they feel about it? • “You have to be reading... deeply,.... with all of you...” Does magic really happen when Abi reads, or is it something else? • What turns ‘two sets of people that didn’t know each other’ into a family? Try this… n “Iffen the hungry, the untamed, Iffen the great warmth when the shivers came...” Collect information about Iffen’s appearance, behaviour and provenance. Use one of Louis’ words – guest, beast, cat, angel, fear, secret, wildness – to help you draw and describe this untameable creature. n Roleplay Abi and Louis telling Max about Iffen. How does the ‘wildness’ bring them all together? n Faced with green magic, Abi says she’s “stunned, shocked, chilled to her bones. Astonished. Awed. Lost and found”, but eventually settles on privileged . What do these words mean? How do they fit her experiences? KEY S TAGE 2 Cover illustration by Ben Mantle About this book Mum and Dad keep arguing, and Max has even heard the word divorce . Cosmo would do anything to keep his family together, but there are some challenges ahead. He’s a senior dog whose legs are getting shaky, and Max is convinced that winning a canine dance contest is the only way to stop the split. With just the right blend of humour, suspense and heartrending truth, this affecting middle-grade novel prompts us to face change and work with it for good. The Time of Green Magic BY HILARY MACKAY, MACMILLAN “Cosmo would do anything to keep his family together” DOWNLOAD RESOURCES AT Download a FREE Vi Spy book topic at tinyurl.com/ tp-ViSpy