Firmament

by Tim Bowler

Dared by his fellow gang mates to climb into a home and steal something as a demonstration of membership, Luke apprehensively takes the challenge and, in turn, uncovers a surprising secret that changes the path of his life forever.

Genres: Young Adult, Fiction, Grief, Contemporary, Music

320 pages, Hardcover

First published April 6, 2004

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author by this name in the Goodreads database.

Tim Bowler is one of the UK’s most compelling and original writers for teenagers. He was born in Leigh-on-Sea and after studying Swedish at University he worked in forestry, the timber trade, teaching and translating before becoming a full-time writer. He lives with his wife in a small village in Devon and his workroom is an old stone outhouse known to friends as ‘Tim’s Bolthole’.

Tim has written twenty books and won fifteen awards, including the prestigious Carnegie Medal for River Boy. His most recent novel is the gripping Bloodchild and his provocative Blade series is being hailed as a groundbreaking work of fiction. He has been described by the Sunday Telegraph as ‘the master of the psychological thriller’ and by the Independent as ‘one of the truly individual voices in British teenage fiction’.

Reviews

[Scarlett O · Rating 4 out of 5]

Someone recommended this book to me and I kept thinking that it was going to be so boring and dumb but I really did like it. It wasn’t the best book in the world but the storyline had drama, action, secrets, if only a little and it was much better then expected.

[Kelly Starnes · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book exceeded my expectations. It’s such a sweet story about a young boy who is a piano prodigy and gets mixed up with the wrong crowd... his choices take this story on unexpected turns. I love the emphasis on piano and the power of music. YA lit at its finest.

[Stephen · Rating 5 out of 5]

My highest praise for this book must come with the observation that it was the first book I read by this author, and since then I have sought out everything he has written. Tim Bowler is one of the mosty popular writers for teens at the moment, and rightly so.

This is a wonderful coming of age style book with a touch of magic and a good dose of reality, written in a fluid and engaging style. There is also something passionate about the supernatural link with music evoked in this book that caused me to give it to my wife (who loves music but does not read many of this kind of story). She loved this book too.

Thought provoking, fresh and well written. This was a book to share with friends. Deserves to be better known.

[Diane · Rating 4 out of 5]

Luke's involved w/a gang that he can't leave;& he keeps hearing a girl crying, where?

[Salsabrarian]

Luke is a gifted pianist whose life has taken a detour since his father's death. He's a reluctant member of a gang of boys headed by Skin who has been egging Luke on to steal a box of valuables from old Mrs. Little's house. When Luke first breaks into the house he discovers a blind little girl hiding there. On a second attempt, he is caught by the old woman. Familiar with his musical talent, she wants Luke to visit and play piano because music seems to be the only thing that soothes the distraught girl. Luke doesn't want to do it but ends up back at the house. His playing does positively affect the girl. But he learns Mrs Little had kidnapped the girl from an accident scene and has been caring for her since. Luke reunites the girl with her parents and the experience helps him come to terms with the loss of his father.

[Tibbi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Synopsis: In this novel by Tim Bowler a young man named Luke gets into all sorts of trouble, starting out with the types of friends he chooses to hang out with but all that will change when he breaks into a house and gets caught by a little blind girl who tells the owner of the house.

Classification:
Audience: Teen's+
Purpose: Entertainment
Medium: Novel
Genre-Setting: Realistic Fiction (realism)
Genre-Style: Tragedy/Idealism
Genre-Plot: Action/Romance/Adventure

Criticism: The overall novel was one of the most moving stories I've ever read (it even had me tearing up a bit) and if I were to give it a rating I would give it 5 out of 5 stars.

[Michelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is about a boy who plays piano like his father, who died. After his father dies, he becomes involved in a violent gang of boys who try to get him to break into the Grange house, where Mrs. Little lives. This book was hard to get into and hard to keep my interest on. Only more than halfway through the book did it get interesting. I mainly read this because it was about music and piano.

[Lucía García · Rating 4 out of 5]

The outsiders meets Running on Empty meets Gilmore Girls.
I expected very little of this book, but in the end it was a page turner for me, I needed to know everything about Luke and I wish there was an epilogue.
3.5 stars

[Rose · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh. What a lovely book. I think Bowler must have loved writing Luke. He’s the kind of character who would be hard to coax, hard to get to open up and talk, but once you do, you are so, so glad. I liked all the bit about sensing spirits who were there, unseen, and about hearing music of the spheres. A bit like the writing process, I think.

[Catherine · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is my favorite book. I've read it countless times. It's off the beaten path, and it's different from all the other books I've read, and I've read a lot. I read it 4 years ago, and it still resonates with me. The music, the trauma, the dilemmas, the danger. Highly recommend. This is the only book review I've ever written (at this point). That's how important this is to me.

[Devon · Rating 2 out of 5]

A child prodigy piano player falls in with the wrong crowd. He finds a blind child, befriends an old woman, climbs trees and composes a song. I liked this book a lot, it really passed the time in Geometry.

[Linda *Rapunzel* · Rating 5 out of 5]

I learned that after someone has lost a loved one it is hard, and they are always expecting to see them again, and that some people have special talents and gifts.

[Jessy · Rating 3 out of 5]

inspiring, but confusing, because they're like "i saw him doing it." and they expect you to know what "it" is.

[Brittany Soncek · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not as good as I thought it was going to be. It was slow in the beginning, but toward the end it started to get good. It had a lot of interesting twists in it!

[Sarah Gallini · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’ve read this book a few times and I will always love this hauntingly beautiful coming of age story. I love the music theme intertwined throughout the story.

[Eilee Murray · Rating 5 out of 5]

this book is so sad and yet so amazing and wonderful