Product Description

Michael's parents buy a yacht, and take him off to sail round the world. Washed overboard in a fierce storm, Michael finds himself on the shore of a remote island - and soon discovers he's not alone. Kensuke, a former Japanese soldier, survived the war and the bombing of Hiroshima, but his family perished. As an extraordinary bond forms between the two, Kensuke faces a heart-breaking choice: can he give up the secluded life he's built for himself to help reunite Michael with his parents? Knowing the pain of losing his own family, Kensuke knows which way he has to decide...

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #3762 in Books
• Published on: 2005-10-03
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 176 pages

Amazon.co.uk Review
It would be foolish to think that Michael Morpurgo, author of the award-winning When the Whales Came, could create something that would prove to be anything less than stunning and here, in Kensuke's Kingdom, he certainly proves he has not lost his magic touch.

When Michael is washed up on an island in the Pacific after falling from his parent's yacht, the Peggy Sue, he struggles to survive on his own. But he soon realises there is someone close by, someone who is watching over him and helping him to stay alive. Following a close-run battle between life and death after being stung by a poisonous jelly fish, the mysterious someone--Kensuke--allows Michael into his world and they become friends, teaching and learning from each other, until the day of separation becomes inevitable.

Morpurgo here spins a yarn which gently captures the adventurous elements one would expect from a desert-island tale, but the real strength lies in the poignant and subtle observations of friendship, trust and, ultimately, humanity.

Beautifully illustrated by Michael Foreman, Kensuke's Kingdom is a stylish, deceptively simple and magical book that will effortlessly capture the heart and imagination of anyone who reads it, ensuring that Morpurgo continues to stand tall amid the ranks of classic children's authors. (Ages 9 and over) --Susan Harrison

About the Author
Loved by children, teachers and parents alike, Michael Morpurgo, the last Children's Laureate, has written more than forty books and won the Whitbread Award, the Smarties Award, the Circle of Gold Award, the Children's Book Award and has been short-listed for the Carnegie Medal four times.

Customer Reviews

Voyage of Discovery but Full of Emotional Trepedation
This book, written in the first person, describes the life of a 'normal' teenage boy and his companion-dog, Stella Artois, and begins with their life together playing football with friend Eddie on the mud. However, a change in fortune for Michael and his dog soon provides excitement and trepidation as a voyage of discovery begins.

The Peggy Sue sets sail from Fareham, Hampshire and travels round the world but Michael and Stella end up in the water, washed up on an island with Kensuke and his orang-utans and gibbons.

This book is a personal diary, yet written in a narrative form. It is an intercultural experience of a young English boy who ends up meeting a Japanese doctor. There are gentle reminders to the reader of the devastation and loss which atomic bombs can cause whilst at the same time there is the gentle caring and kind development of a relationship between a ship-wrecked boy and a man many years his senior.

The theme suggests overtones of the latest TV fad of "Survivor" yet the pace and content of the book is far gentler and less vicious. We can see how characters interact with each other and the emotional upheavals that the loss of loved ones brings, whatever the age, however long the separation.

There is also mention of the plight of some wild animals and the horrendous experience which some undergo for the profits of animal hunters, whilst a realisation of how the simple orang-utan is closer to humankind than we might remember.

The book gently unfolds how, within the wider world and pace of Western life, a gentler more laid-back existence can still be found. The air of tranquillity of undiscovered places allows the reader to almost enter a fantasy existence, whilst at the same time, still being anchored into Western civilisation with memories of past experiences and future expectations.

This book is full of exciting subadventures, whilst the overall plot moves on at an appropriate pace. A definite must for any 9-13 year old, but adults too will enjoy this voyage of discovery and reunion.

It is a book of adventure...
Kensuke's Kingdom - the most emotional book I ever read in my entire life. A boy, named Michael, and hs dog Stella are washed over board from the boat, the Peggy Sue. A yacht that his father bought after he lost his job. Next morning Michael and Stella find themselves on an isolated island. Michael thinks he is alone and 'curls up to die'. However, next day, he finds, on a rock, a bowl of food. He then knows he is not alone...
I recommend this book to everyone!

This book is an excellent book and it rules!
This book is abut a boy called Michael who gets shipwrecked and lands on an island and meets a Japanese man called Kensuke and he gives Michael food and drink.To find out more read the book.The best bit is when Kensuke really helped him when he is missing his parents and they became almost a family. Kensuke is my favourite character because he climbs impossible trees and saves orang-utans and doesn't like fires and always puts them out. I would recommend this book to 6-14 year olds.