Gill Medway

Oscar Temple and the Yesterday Tree Gill Medway

Publisher Marketing: In this delightfully entertaining story for 8 - 12 year old children we meet our hero, Oscar Temple. Oscar has never had much time for History - until History itself reaches out and grabs him. He discovers a mysterious old photo in a family album - a picture of a cheery young man whose name has been crossed out, leaving only the date, 1913. Whatever has the young man done to deserve such treatment? Who could he have upset, and why? Oscar is intrigued - but it is not until he puts his nose to the pages and sniffs that he inhales a real whiff of the past. Oscar and his best mate Finn trawl ancestor sites on the internet and arrive at an exciting conclusion. Harry King - a famous star of the Edwardian Music Hall - looks as though he could be the young man in the photo, but how to find out more? Oscar is now a boy with a mission, convinced that the only way to find out the truth about Harry is to travel back to 1913 and meet him face to face. Oscar needs an expert on time travel. When he meets Mr Theo, in his weird and wacky sweet shop, he is introduced to the Yesterday Tree, and begins a fantastic journey into the past. He is plunged into the theatrical world of a century ago, meeting a host of colourful characters. Most important of all, is Harry King, the talented, brave and charming young song-and-dance man of the album photo - who employs Oscar as his backstage assistant. During his adventures in the past, Oscar also finds intrigue, jealousy, a foiled plot, a foolish prank, loyalty, kindness and a serious encounter with a horse and cart, as well as heart-stopping courage. But the answer to his most important question eludes him. Why ever should Harry be in such disgrace with his family? The answer is a shocking one, and lies waiting for Oscar when he returns to his own time. In 1913, World War I is just around the corner - and who could have predicted the fate of brave young Harry? How much do we really know about events in the past? Should we risk asking questions about History if we're going to be afraid of the answers? This story for ages 8 to 12 is about how we cope with the discovery that history is very real - and sometimes very tough to handle.