The Brockenspectre

by Linda Newbery

Tomas wants to be like his father – strong, brave and fearless. Pappi is a mountain guide, often away from home. He has taught Tomas to love the mountains, but also to fear their dangers – the winds and blizzards, the treacherous paths, the giddying slopes. Above all, Tomas fears the Brockenspectre – a huge, shadowy creature that lives alone in the heights, waiting for unwary climbers. Its looming figure haunts his thoughts and his dreams. When Pappi goes out one day and fails to return, Tomas knows it’s up to him to search – up on the high mountain passes, where dangers await. Will Tomas find his father . . . or will the Brockenspectre find him?

189 pages, Kindle Edition

First published July 4, 2013

About the author

Linda Newbery's latest novel for adults is THE ONE TRUE THING. She has published widely for readers of all ages, and is a Costa Prize category winner with SET IN STONE, a young adult Victorian mystery. She has twice been shortlisted for the Carnegie Medal, with THE SHELL HOUSE and SISTERLAND.

With friends Adele Geras and Celia Rees, Linda hosts the literary blog WRITERS REVIEW, which features reviews, recommendations, interviews with authors and insights from booksellers.

Linda is an active campaigner on animal and environmental issues and has published a guide to compassionate living: THIS BOOK IS CRUELTY FREE - ANIMALS AND US.

She lives in rural Oxfordshire.

Reviews

[Hannah · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very simple, straight-forward tale that would be suitable for Year3/4 children. From reading the blurb, it sounds like it's a spooky story but I didn't find that much spookiness in it. The Brockenspectre is a very small part of the story; it's based around family and Tomas' missing father more. That being said, I do like the way the Borckenspectre was revealed at the end of the book. It's a good book to have in the reading corner of a classroom.

[Bookewyfe · Rating 4 out of 5]

When I first saw this book, I thought it was going to be a short book filled with illustrations, a story, with a little bit of science. This is a 166 page children’s story about secrets, death, and mountain legends. No doubt this beautiful phenomenon has inspired countless mythological tales that span the globe, over the centuries. I hope to be able to experience it one day. A cute little book for kids who are curious and love science.

[Serena · Rating 4 out of 5]

read for work.
really liked the simple story, lots of great vocabulary which linked to our 'mountains' topic and my class (year 5) have enjoyed reading it too!

[kassua !! · Rating 4 out of 5]

one of the only books i ever finished as a child lmao

[Emily McKean · Rating 5 out of 5]

one of the best books i’ve ever read to my class - we were all HOOKED

[Alice magical library · Rating 5 out of 5]

Tommi lives next to the Swiss Alps with his mother, father and baby sister. His father is a mountain guide, and travels to the mountains all the time. But when Tommi’s father leaves and doesn’t return, it’s up to Tommi to find him. He just has to make sure that the terrifying Brockenspectre doesn’t him first…
I throughly enjoyed this short novel. It kept me on my toes the whole time, and it took me on a rollercoaster of emotions. My favourite character was Tommi because he was very brave. I would definitely recommend this book.

[Sally Flint · Rating 4 out of 5]

Almost part fairytale, part poem, this was a haunting and goosebumps tingling read. On the surface this is a simple adventure of a young boy searching for his missing father but at a deeper level it explores the power of nature, the place of mankind with in and our relationship with both each other and nature. Whilst cloaked in goodness it is disturbing as we perhaps learn that ultimately the only person we can really trust is ourself. This would be a super read for a children's book club, a quick read but loads to talk about from it.

[Tricia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wonderfully evocative simple story of loss and coping

[Emily May]

Wonderfully fresh setting- a little village in the Alps, at a time when they sill had horse-drawn vehicles. The story itself is fresh, too- I won't spoil it for you, but I've never read a children's book with this kind of twist. Lovely characters that ring painfully true with real life. I love the illustrations by Pam Smy.