Wish Me Luck

by James Heneghan

Twelve-year-old Jamie Monaghan finds the war exciting until an incendiary bomb destroys his bedroom while he, his parents, and the neighbors are huddled in their makeshift bomb shelter. Now his parents no longer simply talk about sending him to safety away from Liverpool; his father makes arrangements for him to sail to Canada on the City of Benares. Based on the historical account of a German U-boat sinking that passenger liner, which was carrying 100 children from war-torn England, the story will provide middle-graders with another perspective on World War II. Heneghan subtly exposes the courage, trust, and utter desperation so many Europeans felt as they sought any safe place for their children, as well as the anger, confusion, fear, and courage of the children themselves. Universal yet ancillary issues of child abuse, poverty, and adolescent cruelty add contemporary authenticity to this historical novel. The sinking of the Benares comes late in the story, and the Liverpool dialect is prevalent; however, readers will find plenty of action, awe, and premonition to carry them to the exciting climax. Although other fiction for younger YAs, such as Michelle Magorian's Good Night, Mr. Tom (1982), addresses the deporting of English children to safety, this story humanizes what is otherwise just an interesting footnote to the history of World War II.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Young Adult, Middle Grade, Classics, Action, Read For School, Childrens

208 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published March 1, 1997

About the author

James Heneghan (born 1930) is a British Canadian author. Heneghan grew up Liverpool, England, and currently lives in Vancouver, British Columbia. He earned Canadian citizenship in 1963.

Series:
* The O'Brien Detective Agency

Awards:
* Arthur Ellis Award: Juvenile
o 1995 – Torn Away – Winner

* Sheila A. Egoff Children's Book Prize
o 1998 – Wish Me Luck – Winner
o 2001 – The Grave – Winner
o 2003 – Flood – Winner

Reviews

[Agnė · Rating 2 out of 5]

Although it was somewhat interesting to experience from the survivors' perspective the air raids in Liverpool, England and the sinking of the passenger liner City of Benares after being struck by a German torpedo during World War II, the narration in Wish Me Luck is quite detached and unemotional, the plot is mostly slow and uneventful, the ending is rather anticlimactic, and I didn't really connect to or care about any of the characters.

[Julie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I do believe this was the book that taught me my favorite (dirty) reference to pregnancy: "the balloon over the toy shop." Something an uncle tells the impressionable narrator. Yep, I brush that one off every now and again to horrify those in my acquaintance.

[katnick · Rating 1 out of 5]

I was extremely moved by the story of the children who were torpedoed on the City of Benares when I read about it in Tim Clayton and Phil Craig's Finest Hour, but I just couldn't connect with this novel. The biggest problem for me was that I didn't like the narrator. Jamie is a 12 year old bully whose favorite things seem to be toilet references and watching other kids get beaten up. He constantly torments his neighbor, who is desperately poor and abused, and doesn't do anything I could call decent until near the end of the book. My other big problem was that the narration was curiously detached despite the depth of the tragedy and first person perspective. It also kept switching back and forth between past and present tense in the last third of the book. However, it was obvious that the author did a lot of research into period details, so it does provide an interesting glimpse into an often-overlooked historical event.

[Susan · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was hoping to learn about the children who were sent from England to Canada during WWII. However, the main character repulsed me so much that I didn't finish the book. Jamie is a 12-year-old boy who has a potty mind and loves watching other kids getting beaten up. He and his friends do illegal things for fun, and, instead of trying to help his neighbor who is desperately poor and abused, he is mean to him. Not my kind of book.

[Alice · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read this as a kid when I was obsessed with Atlantis, Troy, the Titanic conspiracies and the Lusitania. Loved it and have read it many times over the years as it's a quick but interesting story and well written.

[Charlotte]

wow. I had no memory of previously reading this book. Which I find odd, because it's reasonably memorable. Although the danger at sea comes fairly late in the game, so it's not quite as exciting as I expected it to be.

[Linda Russo · Rating 4 out of 5]

For 8th graders and up. Some language.

[Emily Amee · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was a fun little read when I was around 12! Sad and suspenseful at times but overall pretty good! All I wanted was for the main character to have a little more emotion! That’s all

[Joando Fernandes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wish me luck is about a boy names Jamie Monaghan that he wishes that ww2 would be over. And the war starts to get close to his house so his parents arrange for him to go the Canada . The ship that he was in was called the city of Benares, a ship that carried a hundred young British people. And for some reason the ship starts going closer to the war instead of being away from it. and his parents are very scared and don’t know what to do so Jamie I think needs to do something quick before someone dies.

[Rylee Richardson · Rating 4 out of 5]

what i have read in this book so far is really good. this book 'Wish Me Luck' is about ab oy who gets sent off to Canada during the war against Hitler. i would recomend this book to anyone because it 9s a quick read and very inspirational.

[Ed Mcgaley · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think this an ok-average read. The book covers a Irish kid who lives in Liverpool in ww2. The book isn't to exciting as there isn't any real action, and pretty much everything in the book is predictable.

[Krista the Krazy Kataloguer · Rating 4 out of 5]

A historical novel about a boy being sent from England to Canada aboard the City of Benares during World War II. The ship is torpedoed! Based on a true incident.

[JoAnn · Rating 5 out of 5]

another freaking awesome ww2 book.

[Keith · Rating 3 out of 5]

OK YA historical novel on the Yukon gold rush.

[Faraz Syed · Rating 3 out of 5]

Average.

[Justin Hall · Rating 2 out of 5]

Lame.