The Wall Between Us

• Written by Dan Smith
• Published by Chicken House

There are always going to be authors that never shy away from difficult subjects, Dan Smith is one such author.

Everything he has ever written has been thought provoking and powerful to read.

The wall between us is one such book.

Berlin, 1961. Anja and Monika are best friends – they even share a cat called Otto. When a huge barbed wire fence is built between their apartment blocks, everything changes; their city and family are divided by the Berlin Wall. In the West, Anja is sure it will be taken down, but Monika is afraid. Her world is neighbours keep disappearing, others become spies and shadowy threats lurk around every corner. Then, Anja discovers that Otto has found a way across. And if he can reach Monika, so can she …

This was such a powerful read, the action starts straight away and you are hooked by the time you reach the end of chapter one. The plight of the two main characters will pull on your heart strings. I absolutely adore how he has written it in the style of diary entries for one character and letters for the other character. I also adore how he decided to make the two characters female.

 Set in the Cold War it is atmospheric, historically accurate and highly emotional. You get to experience the time period without leaving your house, you feel scared as the soldiers shout, and worried when the wall suddenly goes up.

Dan Smith knows how to tell a story, he crafts the words of his story with skill, utterly convincing, enchanting despite the setting and powerful. His books are rich in detail demonstrating the amount of research he has done and leaving readers fully immersed in the world that he has woven. Dan Smith books are special, they are ideal for teaching children about periods of history that are difficult to talk about, and he doesn’t shy away from telling you how it is.

I look forward to seeing what masterpiece Dan Smith produces next.