By Shaun McMahon (author)
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'Fowl' by Shaun McMahon is a book that works on different levels. On the surface it's the story of a chicken who dreams of playing football for his favourite team but scratch a little deeper and it's a tale of passion and prejudice, revenge and remorse, with lessons for us all.
Bert McCluck spends all his time on Manor Side Farm honing his football skills and watching West Farthing FC whenever they're on television, sitting beside Stan Perkins, the farmer, who is also a big fan. This doesn't go down at all well with the other chickens however and they take every opportunity to ridicule and abuse him, until the day that he's spotted by the club's manager after his car breaks down outside the farm.
The West Farthing players also mock and jeer at Bert when he arrives for his trial, until, that is, they see him play. The club's star player, Chris Blackwell, who has his nose well and truly put out of joint, pays lip service to the general euphoria and pretends to
welcome and accept this new player, who the team is sure is going to win the Cup Final for them the following week. Secretly plotting to make sure Bert never makes it onto the field, his foul play has to be uncovered.
This is a well written, very enjoyable book, which addresses fundamental flaws in the footballing, and wider, world in a gentle but effective way. A sentence on the last page sums it up...'perhaps you (Bert) could start a football training school...we could think of no-one better to teach us'. Listen up F.A.
Drena Irish, A LoveReading4Kids Ambassador
Bert loves playing football. He dreams of being a professional footballer for his local side West Farthing F.C. There is just one problem. Bert is a chicken.
Read the full description
Bert lives on Manor Side Farm where the other chickens make fun of him for being different - a chicken should not play football, they say - but despite this, it is still Bert's dream. After a chance visit to the farm by Gerald Fox, the manager of West Farthing F.C., Bert is talent spotted and offered a try out. Gerald wants Bert to be their secret weapon in an upcoming game…
Shaun McMahon is an IT Technician at a junior school in Northamptonshire. He's been writing assembly plays and short scripts for many years, which are sold worldwide. He lives in Little Harrowden.
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Bert loves playing football. He dreams of being a professional footballer for his local side West Farthing F.C.
The LoveReading4Kids Editorial Team have read and reviewed Fowl and determined it is suitable for children aged 7-8 years old
Fowl features in the following genres: Animal Stories, Children's and Young Adult Fiction, Children’s, Teenage and Educational, Featured Books for 7+ readers, Recommendations, Indie Books We Love, Sporting Stories, Indie Author Books
Paperback, Ebook. Not Available.
Fowl was written by Shaun McMahon and published by Matador an imprint of Troubador Publishing Ltd
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