Sophie Someone (Shortlisted For Costa Children'S Book Award)

Description: Shortlisted for the Costa Children's Book Award. A remarkable tale of confusion and betrayal - and a very special girl called Sophie. 'Some stories are hard to tell. Even to your very best friend. And some words are hard to get out of your mouth. Because they spell out secrets that are too huge to be spoken out loud. But if you bottle them up, you might burst. So here's my story. Told the only way I dare tell it.' Sophie Nieuwenleven is sort of English and sort of Belgian. Sophie and her family came to live in Belgium when she was only four or five years old, but she's fourteen now and has never been quite sure why they left England in the first place. Then, one day, Sophie makes a startling discovery. Finally Sophie can unlock the mystery of who she really is. This is a story about identity and confusion - and feeling so utterly freaked out that you just can't put it into words. But it's also about hope. And the belief that, somehow, everything will work out OK. SOPHIE SOMEONE is a tale of well-intentioned but stupid parenting, shock, acceptance and, ultimately, forgiveness, written in a brave, memorable and unique language all of its own.

Review: This is an absolutely exquisite book from start to finish... Not only is Sophie an incredibly endearing character but the language of the book is simply fabulous. Sophie uses code in order to make her story easier to tell, so, for example, 'legs' become 'lemmings', 'brother' becomes 'bruiser' and 'friend' becomes 'freckle'. Amazingly the code is never confusing, which further highlights what an extremely talented writer Long is, and it adds an extra layer of enjoyment to reading the book. This story will warm the cockles of your 'heater' while bringing 'terrapins' to your eyes. * BookTrust *
Told in a quirky voice and half in code, and benefitting from clever typesetting, this story about identity, secrets and hope will resonate with young teen readers -- Claire Hennessy * Inis Reading Guide *
Sophie's story is close to incredible (...)There is enjoyable comedy of both plot and character here, but the pleasure on offer in this tale mostly lies in how it's told -- Geoff Fox * Books For Keeps *
* 'Sophie Someone by Hayley Long is a story that is not easy to tell for the narrator, a story of secrets, confusion and betrayal. Because it does not sit easily with narrator or reader it is told in a very unique language that will have you compelled. Shortlisted for the Costa Book Awards, a very special book * Armadillo Magazine *
Sophie invents her own language and it's so much fun to figure it all out. This is a really clever look at identity and families * Maximum Pop Books *
A creative and memorable story about secrets, lies, and moving on * Kirkus Reviews *



Prizes: Short-listed for Costa Children's Book Award 2015.

Author Biography: Hayley Long began writing teen fiction while working as an English teacher in Cardiff. Her first teen novel, Lottie Biggs is Not Mad, was awarded the White Raven label for outstanding children's literature by the International Youth Library. Since then her fingers haven't stopped typing. Hayley has been a winner of the Essex Book Award, and shortlisted for the Costa Book Award - twice! Hayley has also enjoyed the razzle-dazzle of being a Queen of Teen nominee. Hayley has now published two books with Hot Key, SOPHIE SOMEONE and her first non-fiction title, BEING A GIRL in 2014. Follow Hayley on Facebook at www.facebook.com/HayleyLongAuthor