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Title details for Rooftoppers by Katherine Rundell - Available

Rooftoppers

by Katherine Rundell
Nicola Barber
Audiobook
1 of 2 copies available
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1 of 2 copies available
"The beauty of sky, music, and the belief in 'extraordinary things' triumph in this whimsical and magical tale" (Publishers Weekly) about a girl in search of her past who discovers a secret rooftop world in Paris.
Everyone thinks that Sophie is an orphan. True, there were no other recorded female survivors from the shipwreck that left baby Sophie floating in the English Channel in a cello case, but Sophie remembers seeing her mother wave for help. Her guardian tells her it is almost impossible that her mother is still alive—but "almost impossible" means "still possible." And you should never ignore a possible.

So when the Welfare Agency writes to her guardian, threatening to send Sophie to an orphanage, they takes matters into their own hands and flee to Paris to look for Sophie's mother, starting with the only clue they have—the address of the cello maker.

Evading the French authorities, she meets Matteo and his network of rooftoppers—urchins who live in the hidden spaces above the city. Together they scour the city in a search for Sophie's mother—but can they find her before Sophie is caught and sent back to London? Or, more importantly, before she loses hope?

Phillip Pullman, author of the His Dark Materials series, calls Rooftoppers "the work of a writer with an utterly distinctive voice and a wild imagination."

  • Creators

  • Publisher

  • Awards

  • Release date

    September 24, 2013

  • Formats

    • OverDrive Listen audiobook

      • ISBN: 9781442366565
      • File size: 168283 KB
      • Duration: 05:50:35

  • Languages

    • English

  • Levels

    • Lexile® Measure: 480
    • Text Difficulty: 1-2

  • Reviews

    • Publisher's Weekly

      Starred review from July 29, 2013
      A baby found floating in a cello case in the English Channel, and Charles Maxim, a scholar and fellow survivor of a mysterious shipwreck, become an unconventional family, guided by the philosophy that “You should never ignore a possible.” Permissive but caring, Charles lets the baby, whom he names Sophie, write on walls, eat off books, climb things, and indulge in “mother-watching” as the years pass, until unwanted attention from the National Childcare Agency sends them in search of Sophie’s cello-playing mother. In Paris, 12-year-old Sophie takes to the rooftops, guided by irrepressible roof-dweller Matteo, an orphanage escapee who literally shows her the ropes; in one breathtaking scene, he walks her on a tightrope between buildings (“Grip with your toes. Left. Stop. Do not look down”). Eccentric, tactile food imagery appears throughout, from Charles’s pork pie served on the Bible to Matteo’s fresh-cooked rat. While the children’s uncanny survival skills take occasionally graphic turns, as in a brutal fight between rooftopper tribes, the beauty of sky, music, and the belief in “extraordinary things” triumph in this whimsical and magical tale. Ages 8–12. Agent: Claire Wilson, Rogers, Coleridge & White.

    • AudioFile Magazine
      Sophie is a shipwreck survivor, found floating in a cello case in the English Channel. With no clue other than the case, she and her unorthodox guardian set out to find Sophie's mother, who is presumed dead. Employing believable accents and creating engaging characterizations, Nicola Barber takes listeners on a linguistic flight of fancy that moves from staid England to the dreamlike but treacherous rooftops of Paris. There Sophie enlists the help of Matteo, a young scamp, and his ragtag band of homeless "rooftoppers." Barber transitions seamlessly from Sophie's earnest, determined tone and English accent to the polite discourse of her guardian and the unrefined yet cosmopolitan French spoken by the rooftoppers. L.T. © AudioFile 2014, Portland, Maine
    • School Library Journal

      February 1, 2014
      Gr 3-7-A child's life started anew on its first birthday when she was found floating in a cello case after a shipwreck in the English Channel. After being rescued by a fellow passenger, Charles Maxim, she was named Sophie, and she had a happy though unconventional childhood with Charles. He was a memorable guardian: eccentric, loved and loving, and unmarried. None of this presented a huge problem until Sophie's 12th birthday when Sophie's trousers, lack of training in womanly arts, and other idiosyncrasies of the household were no longer acceptable to a rigid child welfare investigator, and Charles is informed that she will no longer be allowed to live with him; young ladies must have proper training, which is more readily available in an orphanage. Uncovering a clue in her cello case, Charles and Sophie set off to find Sophie's long-lost mother. Their quest takes them to Paris, where Charles pursues conventional lines of inquiry, while Sophie heads to the roofs of the city with a new friend, Matteo, and other "rooftoppers," orphaned children who live high above the city streets. Rich description brings scenes vividly into focus, as does the humorous interplay between characters. The mystery and magic of this exciting story (S & S, 2013) are enhanced by Nicola Barber's perfectly paced reading, well delivered all the way to the tale's satisfying conclusion.-"Maria Salvadore, formerly of District of Columbia Public Library"

      Copyright 2014 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Formats

  • OverDrive Listen audiobook

subjects

Languages

  • English

Levels

  • Lexile® Measure:480
  • Text Difficulty:1-2

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