Georgie [Hardcover]

Malachy Doyle (Author)

Product Details

• Hardcover
• Publisher: Bloomsbury (2001)
• ASIN: B000PGYWRG
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)

More About the Author

Malachy was born in Ireland, went to college in England, brought up his children in Wales and has now returned to Ireland, where he lives on a tiny island off the coast of County Donegal.
After spells in advertising and as a special needs teacher, Malachy turned to writing children's books. He has now had over 70 published and has won many prizes, including the Parent's Choice Gold Award and the Anne Izard Storytellers' Choice Award (for 'Tales from Old Ireland'), the Nestle Children's Book Silver Award (for 'The Dancing Tiger'), the Tir na nOg Award (for 'Georgie') and the English Association Award (for 'Cow').

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A character to get inside your head, June 9, 2002

By 

Erika Soeterik (Auckland, New Zealand) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Georgie (Hardcover)

Georgie lives in a home for children with mental problems. He trashes his room and his clothes when things get too much. Georgie feels as if his whole world has been taken away from him when he is told he is moving, but the home itself makes him feel worse. Then he is moved to the last place for kids like him and he starts to make a connection with the world again. But somewhere deep inside his mind is the reason he is at the home and he may not be ready to remember.

This book is incredible. Georgie is the kind of character who gets inside your head and under your skin and makes you realise how lucky most of us are. This book has the kind of depth that I found reading "Speak" by Laurie Halse Anderson and "Cut" by Patricia McCormick. Like both of these other books "Georgie" is a relatively short book but it feels longer because of the intense emotions that are riddled throughout the story.

This book is amazing and I highly recommend it.

5.0 out of 5 stars Blue Skies at Last!, May 25, 2005

By 

BeatleBangs1964 (United States) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Georgie (Hardcover)

Georgie Bayliss has lived in a children's institution for several years. He is violent; he smears feces on the walls; destroys his clothes; refuses to leave his room for meals; refuses to attend school or leave the grounds and destroys whatever is in his reach. He is also electively mute and lashes out at others when provoked. In reading Georgie's reasons for attacking his fellow inmates, one can see that his behavior was not without good reason. Why institution staff don't appear to engage him more in activities or understand what he does seems rather odd.

At the start of the book, readers "meet" Georgie in this institution in Wales. Unable to cope with the boy, he is transferred by bus to another institution in the country. Once there, Georgie meets angels. The first angel is a teacher named Tommo who is instrumental in helping Georgie confront his memories of death and loss and provides him with books and a pleasant bedroom; the second angel is a student named Shannon who immediately likes Georgie and wants to reach him. In time, the pair bond and Shannon takes Georgie under her wing. Readers can't help loving the staff at this second institution.

The other children in this home have a multitude of behavioral/mental problems and I like the humane way each child is treated. Tommo really is an angel of sorts and one cannot help but feel encouraged about the nurturing environment in this Welsh institution.