What do you think?
Rate this book
Featherlight
Deryn’s father is the lighthouse keeper on Featherstone Island, keeping the lantern lit to protect passing boats from the treacherous rocky coastline. But when an emergency arises and her parents have to travel to the mainland for help, Deryn is left alone to keep watch over the lighthouse, and she finds herself in a terrible situation when the lamp runs out of oil during a wild storm. With a fishing boa t in peril on the sea, and time running out to rescue those on board, Deryn seeks help from an unusual source.
98 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2021
4 people are currently reading
208 people want to read
About the author
Peter Bunzl
13 books332 followersPeter Bunzl grew up in South London in a rambling Victorian house with three cats, two dogs, one little sister, an antique dealer dad, and an artist mum. As a child he found inspiration visiting TV and film sets, where his mum worked as a costume designer.
After art college and film school, Peter worked as an animator on commercials, pop videos, and two BAFTA-winning children’s TV shows, and wrote and directed several successful short films.
Peter’s debut novel Cogheart was a Waterstones Book of the Month. It was shortlisted for the Waterstones Book Prize and the Branford Boase Award. Moonlocket was shortlisted for the Books Are My Bag Readers Award. Cogheart, Skycircus and Shadowsea were nominated for the Carnegie Medal.
Peter lives in North London with his partner, a fox who visits their garden, and a clutter of house spiders.
After art college and film school, Peter worked as an animator on commercials, pop videos, and two BAFTA-winning children’s TV shows, and wrote and directed several successful short films.
Peter’s debut novel Cogheart was a Waterstones Book of the Month. It was shortlisted for the Waterstones Book Prize and the Branford Boase Award. Moonlocket was shortlisted for the Books Are My Bag Readers Award. Cogheart, Skycircus and Shadowsea were nominated for the Carnegie Medal.
Peter lives in North London with his partner, a fox who visits their garden, and a clutter of house spiders.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews
April 12, 2021
Well-written lighthouse-set fantasy/family story.
It's always worth trying the Barrington Stoke titles. Accessible, excellent authors, shorter content, and still complete stories.
This one begins as a story of a girl left on her own to 'man' the lighthouse her family run, as her parents return to the mainland for the birth of her baby brother. We see a little of her copying alone, worrying about her mother and brother. Then a bird hurts itself on her island home and she takes care of it, just as a storm begins brewing and her mettle is tested to its fullest.
I like the idea of a fictionalised version of the Grace Darling/Ida Lewis histories. I enjoyed the bird story, up to a point. To put the two together with the 'firebird' folklore tale just seemed to me to trivialise what such heroic historical figures did.
But readers aged 8 and above will like this, with a bit of magic thrown into a slightly unusual setting.
I wasn't quite certain of the firebird metaphor for Deryn's life and situation, but it did feel as though this slight tale could have been given more depth and spread into a full-scale novel.
One for lovers of animals, myths, adventures and heroes.
It's always worth trying the Barrington Stoke titles. Accessible, excellent authors, shorter content, and still complete stories.
This one begins as a story of a girl left on her own to 'man' the lighthouse her family run, as her parents return to the mainland for the birth of her baby brother. We see a little of her copying alone, worrying about her mother and brother. Then a bird hurts itself on her island home and she takes care of it, just as a storm begins brewing and her mettle is tested to its fullest.
I like the idea of a fictionalised version of the Grace Darling/Ida Lewis histories. I enjoyed the bird story, up to a point. To put the two together with the 'firebird' folklore tale just seemed to me to trivialise what such heroic historical figures did.
But readers aged 8 and above will like this, with a bit of magic thrown into a slightly unusual setting.
I wasn't quite certain of the firebird metaphor for Deryn's life and situation, but it did feel as though this slight tale could have been given more depth and spread into a full-scale novel.
One for lovers of animals, myths, adventures and heroes.
February 1, 2021
Buzzing with both the perils and sweeping beauty of the ocean, Featherlight is a brilliant introduction to chapter books due to the short length of the chapters and exciting themes. It would be a great first independent read for a lot of children as well due to its overall short length.
The story focuses on Deryn, daughter of a lighthouse keeper. They are the only people that live on Featherstone island and Deryn’s mum is about to have another baby. Her mum and dad must travel to the mainland and Deryn is left in sole charge of the lighthouse. She must keep the light burning throughout the night and stay on watch to ensure the safety of sailors. There are plenty of chores to keep Deryn busy throughout the day as well, never mind keeping up with her school work. During her second night in charge of the lighthouse, a small bird pays her a visit, but it doesn’t look very well. Deryn decides to look after it and see if she can make it better.
Deryn’s grandma eventually comes over from the mainland to help her look after the lighthouse until her mum and dad return, but one night, the light in the lighthouse goes out and the little bird has gone missing. Deryn and her grandma have to find a way to fix the light as well as find the bird, who might turn out to be more important than either of them realised.
I like that this story was inspired by Grace Darling and Ida Lewis but also has a link to myths and legends. The mixture of a real-life setting with an element of a myth was really interesting and would engage a variety of children. An ideal first chapter book for children aged 8 and up.
Many thanks to the publisher for our gifted review copy.
The story focuses on Deryn, daughter of a lighthouse keeper. They are the only people that live on Featherstone island and Deryn’s mum is about to have another baby. Her mum and dad must travel to the mainland and Deryn is left in sole charge of the lighthouse. She must keep the light burning throughout the night and stay on watch to ensure the safety of sailors. There are plenty of chores to keep Deryn busy throughout the day as well, never mind keeping up with her school work. During her second night in charge of the lighthouse, a small bird pays her a visit, but it doesn’t look very well. Deryn decides to look after it and see if she can make it better.
Deryn’s grandma eventually comes over from the mainland to help her look after the lighthouse until her mum and dad return, but one night, the light in the lighthouse goes out and the little bird has gone missing. Deryn and her grandma have to find a way to fix the light as well as find the bird, who might turn out to be more important than either of them realised.
I like that this story was inspired by Grace Darling and Ida Lewis but also has a link to myths and legends. The mixture of a real-life setting with an element of a myth was really interesting and would engage a variety of children. An ideal first chapter book for children aged 8 and up.
Many thanks to the publisher for our gifted review copy.
December 21, 2020
This was just gorgeous. Man, that was beautiful. A story of a lighthouse, its many jobs and an incredibly brave main character. This just oozes charm and grace. I loved this little story of a young girl and her bird. A lot of strength and love in this story! Peter Bunzl is a wonder!
May 13, 2022
A very sweet story - perfect for my y5s - lots of lovely similes for them to spot!
April 2, 2021
Amazing story.
Deryn is the daughter of the lighthouse keeper.
One day her parents leave to have a new baby.
We follow Deryn as she becomes the lighthouse keeper.
Deryn is the daughter of the lighthouse keeper.
One day her parents leave to have a new baby.
We follow Deryn as she becomes the lighthouse keeper.
April 17, 2021
This is admittedly less of a fantasy than I had expected it to be, but it’s still going in this post because there is a fantasy/fabulism element to it, plus I really enjoyed it and want to write about it! It’s the story of Derryn, who is the Lighthouse keepers’ daughter, and what happens when she is left on the island alone due to a medical emergency and the oil in the lamp burns out during a storm. It’s partially based on the story of Grace Darling, who I think is just absolutely incredible (Northumbria is one of my fave places in the whole world and I am always awestruck at her museum), and I love that this adds a magical twist to that already amazing story. Derryn is so lovely and I really felt for her, I very much enjoyed her Grandma’s appearance (there’s a certain line that made me snort with laughter!) and Tan, who I can’t tell you much about without giving spoilers, was just incredible. This packed so much into so little pages, and was just a really enjoyable, bite size treat of a book!
December 26, 2021
This is a lovely story that made me smile so much after reading it. Deryn lives with her mum and dad on a small island with a lighthouse. Her father is the lighthouse keeper, but when Deryn’s mum goes into labour she and Deryn’s father go to the mainland for help, leaving Deryn in charge to look after the lighthouse. But one night the lamp runs out of oil and a boat is in trouble, nearing the shore, can Deryn find a way to light the lamp before it’s too late?
I just love how wonderful this story is and how magical it became, literally! The story begins with Deryn’s mum going into labour and Deryn being left alone on the small island which houses the lighthouse. While her mum and dad stay on the mainland, Deryn is left to look after the lighthouse, a job that is tougher than it seems. Deryn’s story is narrated by her and gives us a glimpse into a wonderful and magical life that she spends being the lighthouse keeper’s daughter. As Deryn wonders about her future brother or sister, she spends the nights lighting and oiling the lamp and keeping the lighthouse working to help warn any boats at sea.
This story felt like a fun tale but it’s when Deryn finds something and starts looking after it that I really began to get into this story much more. I love the relationship that blossomed between Deryn and Tan and what happens as the story goes on. I don’t want to give it away, but the story does take on a magical twist and I just love how the serious tale of the boat in danger at sea is mixed in with a more magical story. The title of the book makes sense when you read further into this story and I just love how this tale pulled at my emotions, both feeling sad and happy at different points. The story has a wonderful ending and I just love how everything works out. It’s a good and satisfying ending, and a good story over all, although if I’m honest I would have loved to have read more detail about the island Deryn lives on and her life on it as at first I couldn’t even place what time period the book was set in, and many of the moments describing the island were wonderful but a bit too brief for me.
The story has a lovely ending and one which I couldn’t stop smiling about once I had finished. At the end of the book there is some additional information abou the inspiration for the story and I love how some real life people were the inspiration for what happens in the story and Deryn herself. The pre-publication proof copy I got has some lovely chapter headers featuring a feather which looks lovely, in keeping with the beautiful cover which I just adore! The book has easy to read sentences and paragraphs that are separated and have a font that is easy to read for dyslexics. It’s also published on an off white coloured paper which also makes it easier to read.
This really is a lovely story and far more interesting and special than you first think. At first it seems like a story set around the running of the lighthouse, but it becomes a much more magical and wonderful one and one that tugged at the emotions. Tan is what really made this story special in my opinion, and it has such a lovely and perfect ending too!
-Thanks to Barrington Stoke for a free copy for review.
I just love how wonderful this story is and how magical it became, literally! The story begins with Deryn’s mum going into labour and Deryn being left alone on the small island which houses the lighthouse. While her mum and dad stay on the mainland, Deryn is left to look after the lighthouse, a job that is tougher than it seems. Deryn’s story is narrated by her and gives us a glimpse into a wonderful and magical life that she spends being the lighthouse keeper’s daughter. As Deryn wonders about her future brother or sister, she spends the nights lighting and oiling the lamp and keeping the lighthouse working to help warn any boats at sea.
This story felt like a fun tale but it’s when Deryn finds something and starts looking after it that I really began to get into this story much more. I love the relationship that blossomed between Deryn and Tan and what happens as the story goes on. I don’t want to give it away, but the story does take on a magical twist and I just love how the serious tale of the boat in danger at sea is mixed in with a more magical story. The title of the book makes sense when you read further into this story and I just love how this tale pulled at my emotions, both feeling sad and happy at different points. The story has a wonderful ending and I just love how everything works out. It’s a good and satisfying ending, and a good story over all, although if I’m honest I would have loved to have read more detail about the island Deryn lives on and her life on it as at first I couldn’t even place what time period the book was set in, and many of the moments describing the island were wonderful but a bit too brief for me.
The story has a lovely ending and one which I couldn’t stop smiling about once I had finished. At the end of the book there is some additional information abou the inspiration for the story and I love how some real life people were the inspiration for what happens in the story and Deryn herself. The pre-publication proof copy I got has some lovely chapter headers featuring a feather which looks lovely, in keeping with the beautiful cover which I just adore! The book has easy to read sentences and paragraphs that are separated and have a font that is easy to read for dyslexics. It’s also published on an off white coloured paper which also makes it easier to read.
This really is a lovely story and far more interesting and special than you first think. At first it seems like a story set around the running of the lighthouse, but it becomes a much more magical and wonderful one and one that tugged at the emotions. Tan is what really made this story special in my opinion, and it has such a lovely and perfect ending too!
-Thanks to Barrington Stoke for a free copy for review.
April 3, 2021
Featherlight is the latest children's book from publisher Barrington Stoke, and combines an interesting historical setting with a story from magical myth to create an enjoyable standalone adventure.
The book follows Deryn, a young girl living on the remote Featherstone Island, a small, rocky piece of land near the coast. Her father is the lighthouse keeper for the island, and Deryn spends her days helping her mother around their cottage, learning to keep the lighthouse from her father, and exploring the confines of the island and watching the animals that live there.
Deryn's routine is completely turned upside-down when her mother goes into labour, and her father has to take her to the mainland to give birth. This leaves Deryn alone on the island to tend to the lighthouse. Knowing that lives might depend on her, Deryn settles into a new routine of keeping the lighthouse light at night, and making sure that everything stays safe.
When Deryn encounters a strange bird, however, things begin to take an odd turn, and she soon discovers that their might be more to this bird than she first suspected. And when a fishing boat gets in trouble off the coast of Featherstone one stormy night Deryn is forced into action.
The story of Featherlight was inspired by the real lives of both Grace Darling and Ida Lewis, two female lighthouse keepers from history, and the book not only shows young readers what life was like on such places day to day, with things such as the daily maintenance of the equipment, but also what could happen if things went wrong at sea. Yet it also throws in some elements from myths and legends to create something that feels both true to life, yet kind of magical too.
We spend most of the time with Deryn, and with her being the only person on the island for good portions of the book we really get a chance to get into her head and get to know her. Whilst this was a lot of fun it also left me feeling a little disappointed that we only got 100 pages with her, as she was such an interesting and engaging protagonist that I'd have been more than happy to spend even longer with her. And I think the younger readers will feel this way too, that they'll like Deryn and enjoy the time they spend with her on Featherstone.
Featherlight is an enjoyable book, one that's easy to read and manages to pack a lot into its shorter length. Whilst it is designed for younger readers I think people of any age will find something to enjoy here, as they learn about the running of old lighthouses, and get to know what life was like for the people who made protecting and saving others their lives.
The book follows Deryn, a young girl living on the remote Featherstone Island, a small, rocky piece of land near the coast. Her father is the lighthouse keeper for the island, and Deryn spends her days helping her mother around their cottage, learning to keep the lighthouse from her father, and exploring the confines of the island and watching the animals that live there.
Deryn's routine is completely turned upside-down when her mother goes into labour, and her father has to take her to the mainland to give birth. This leaves Deryn alone on the island to tend to the lighthouse. Knowing that lives might depend on her, Deryn settles into a new routine of keeping the lighthouse light at night, and making sure that everything stays safe.
When Deryn encounters a strange bird, however, things begin to take an odd turn, and she soon discovers that their might be more to this bird than she first suspected. And when a fishing boat gets in trouble off the coast of Featherstone one stormy night Deryn is forced into action.
The story of Featherlight was inspired by the real lives of both Grace Darling and Ida Lewis, two female lighthouse keepers from history, and the book not only shows young readers what life was like on such places day to day, with things such as the daily maintenance of the equipment, but also what could happen if things went wrong at sea. Yet it also throws in some elements from myths and legends to create something that feels both true to life, yet kind of magical too.
We spend most of the time with Deryn, and with her being the only person on the island for good portions of the book we really get a chance to get into her head and get to know her. Whilst this was a lot of fun it also left me feeling a little disappointed that we only got 100 pages with her, as she was such an interesting and engaging protagonist that I'd have been more than happy to spend even longer with her. And I think the younger readers will feel this way too, that they'll like Deryn and enjoy the time they spend with her on Featherstone.
Featherlight is an enjoyable book, one that's easy to read and manages to pack a lot into its shorter length. Whilst it is designed for younger readers I think people of any age will find something to enjoy here, as they learn about the running of old lighthouses, and get to know what life was like for the people who made protecting and saving others their lives.
April 26, 2023
Deryn is left to care for the lighthouse alone whilst her parents sail to the main island to have her baby brother. A strange bird flies into her window that she keeps safe, hoping to make it feel better. When the weather turns bad one night, when the oil runs out she and her grandma save three sailors from death, with help of her wondrous bird.
This was such a beautiful, magical story. Deryn was such a great character so intelligent and caring, she knew how to do everything on the island alone, she took in the strangest bird and made sure it was safe and protected. She did everything she could to make sure that those men were safe and rescued. I really enjoyed reading her story.
I liked the fantasy element within the story with Deryn’s dreams, with the unique bird and the bird helping to light the way I found it really added so much wonder to the story and so much imagination was used to create it.
I love lighthouses and stories about them and this was an incredible one, I really enjoyed reading it. I also love that at the end we got an additional fact file about the real girls that inspired the story, it was so sweet getting to learn there were real female heroes running the lighthouses.
The illustrations were adorable and I always love looking at them, seeing some of the best parts of the story illustrated, Deryn looked adorable in each one. I do recommend this book, it was such a beautiful read and so imaginative.
This was such a beautiful, magical story. Deryn was such a great character so intelligent and caring, she knew how to do everything on the island alone, she took in the strangest bird and made sure it was safe and protected. She did everything she could to make sure that those men were safe and rescued. I really enjoyed reading her story.
I liked the fantasy element within the story with Deryn’s dreams, with the unique bird and the bird helping to light the way I found it really added so much wonder to the story and so much imagination was used to create it.
I love lighthouses and stories about them and this was an incredible one, I really enjoyed reading it. I also love that at the end we got an additional fact file about the real girls that inspired the story, it was so sweet getting to learn there were real female heroes running the lighthouses.
The illustrations were adorable and I always love looking at them, seeing some of the best parts of the story illustrated, Deryn looked adorable in each one. I do recommend this book, it was such a beautiful read and so imaginative.
December 24, 2023
This was a great story with lovely illustrations about a young girl who lives in a lighthouse and rescues a phoenix chick.
It's wonderful that the publishers specialise in creating books that are more accessible for dyslexic readers. The pages are slightly off white, the lines and paragraphs more spaced out. And the story itself moves at a fast pace without feeling rushed - so you get a complete story within 90 pages. Those 90 pages means it is a shorter book than average, but feels less daunting.
It's wonderful that the publishers specialise in creating books that are more accessible for dyslexic readers. The pages are slightly off white, the lines and paragraphs more spaced out. And the story itself moves at a fast pace without feeling rushed - so you get a complete story within 90 pages. Those 90 pages means it is a shorter book than average, but feels less daunting.
May 17, 2022
For what the story could have been, it turned out quite disappointing.
I was so ready to get pulled into a stormy night at the lighthouse with magic, mystery and family values but I mainly got confronted with a narrative of a series of mundane actions. The first person POV also didn’t do the story any favours but I mainly missed the connection to the main character, her feelings and how she perceives the world and events around her.
The whole thing felt quite shallow.
I was so ready to get pulled into a stormy night at the lighthouse with magic, mystery and family values but I mainly got confronted with a narrative of a series of mundane actions. The first person POV also didn’t do the story any favours but I mainly missed the connection to the main character, her feelings and how she perceives the world and events around her.
The whole thing felt quite shallow.
July 27, 2021
Loved this book. My great great grandfather was a light house keeper and I found it really interesting learning about what lighthouses around this time were like.
Deryn is a brave little girl who is left to look after the lighthouse while her mum has her baby. She runs into some trouble along the way but uses her initiative to save the day.
Deryn is a brave little girl who is left to look after the lighthouse while her mum has her baby. She runs into some trouble along the way but uses her initiative to save the day.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 1, 2024
Children's Fiction:
Totally readable as an adult, although I did read in preparation for a class novel. It is simply beautiful. The story of a girl on a lighthouse and a phoenix. A story about birth and life and fairly short so an ideal read aloud for the first few days of the academic year. Wonderful. I will use this one again.
Totally readable as an adult, although I did read in preparation for a class novel. It is simply beautiful. The story of a girl on a lighthouse and a phoenix. A story about birth and life and fairly short so an ideal read aloud for the first few days of the academic year. Wonderful. I will use this one again.
April 8, 2021
Read- April 2021
I'm sorry but who tf leaves a child alone in a lighthouse? A freaking lighthouse!!
I'm sorry but who tf leaves a child alone in a lighthouse? A freaking lighthouse!!
May 1, 2021
This a beautiful story and another Barrington Stoke success. Loved it.
May 3, 2021
Such a cute story! It’s less than 100 pages long but such a sweet read. It’s so heartfelt! Can’t wait to put this in my school library.
July 19, 2021
A lovely easy read about a lighouse keepers daughter and a bird that flies into the lighthouse. Fabulous story.
January 30, 2022
A lovely story of a lighthouse keeper's daughter and a strange bird that helps her when the lighthouse lantern goes out.
February 14, 2022
Short but sweet.
June 25, 2022
A delightful little story!
August 18, 2022
What a gorgeous little book! I loved it.
September 5, 2022
A quick-read fantasy, dyslexia friendly and from the Barrington Stoke series.
April 9, 2023
2.75 ⭐️
April 10, 2021
Designed for less able and dyslexic readers this book gives a lot of story with a little magical twist, historical setting and a lighthouse. Really enjoyed!
August 1, 2024
Cozy and beautiful.
Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews