Music On The Bamboo Radio (POD)

Nicholas Holford is smuggled to the mainland of China, disguised as a Chinese. Not knowing whether his parents are alive or dead, Nicholas spends the rest of the war in a remote peasant village. Discovery means death, not just for Nicholas but also for his Chinese friends.

As the war progresses he becomes involved with Communist Chinese guerrillas. Their war is fought not only with weapons but with words. They smuggle information and news to British troops in prisoner-of-war camps. It's called 'playing music on the bamboo radio' and there's only one penalty for getting caught . . .

A nail-biting thriller with a pace that never lets up.

Martin Booth writes strong, pacy adventures with compelling storylines. His work is dramatic, cinematic and well-researched. If you're looking for a gripping read (with guaranteed boy appeal), you're in the right hands!

THE BASICS
Born: Lancashire, 1944
Jobs: Screenwriter, Novelist
Lives: Somerset
First Book for Children: War Dog, 1996

THE BOOKS
Martin Booth has written just about every kind of book going - from novels for adults and children to poetry to a non-fiction history of the Triads. Hiroshima Joe, like Music on the Bamboo Radio, was inspired by Martin's childhood in Hong Kong. His family moved there when he was six and he stayed until 1964. Martin learned Cantonese and played with local children in the streets of Kowloon. It was there that he first encountered the Triads and, at the tender age of seven, stumbled upon an opium den. Both Music on the Bamboo Radio and War Dog are set during World War Two. Music on the Bamboo Radio features a young boy rescued by Chinese servants who ends up fighting with the Communist Chinese guerilla movement. War Dog follows the adventures of a poacher's dog trained by the army. Martin's latest novel Panther (in the Surfers series) explores another of his passions - big game tracking. Martin was shortlisted for The Booker Prize for The Industry of Souls in 1998. Martin's writing is extraordinarily visual, not surprising as he has written screenplays, including one for War Dog. He has also scripted several wildlife documentaries including David Attenborough's Wildlife on One. As a journalist, Martin has made his mark as a literary critic and travel writer. An inveterate traveller, he continues to make some remarkable journeys: from Hong Kong to the Yao tribes in Guangxi; walking on foot across the Masai Mara/Serengeti in Kenya/Tanzania; rafting down the Athi River in Kenya on the first expedition to attempt this journey.

WHAT HE SAYS...
"I often start with a character, rather than a set narrative structure, and it develops organically from there."

WHAT THEY SAY ABOUT MARTIN BOOTH...
"A thrilling reconstruction of what happened after the British crown colony of Hong Kong surrendered to the Imperial Japanese Army on Christmas Day 1941... one of the charms of this impressively readable book is the way it unfolds like a short but vivid film." The Times on Music on the Bamboo Radio

"Superbly told." Sunday Telegraph on Music on the Bamboo Radio

"A brilliant read for 12-plus and particularly suitable to entice reluctant but capable boys." School Librarian on Music on the Bamboo Radio

"Booth has been one of our most underestimated writers for several years: it is time for him to come into his kingdom." Sunday Telegraph

"Booth... has the highly underrated skill to take a matter of moments and the matter of a moment and construct around them a tale that is both particular and universal. Booth is the Zen master of modern fiction." Books

AWARDS
Shortlisted for the Writers Guild Award for Music on the Bamboo Radio
Shortlisted for the Lancashire County Library/NatWest Children's Book of the Year for War Dog