Ella on the Outside

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There are many things to like about Ella on the Outside and I enjoyed it very much. The author, Cath Howe, has done a great job. It is well-written, the story unfolds at a good pace, and the use of Ella’s camera works well as a tool to convey information. The letters to Ella’s Dad allow us insights into Ella’s thoughts as well as her relationship with her Dad. It’s an effective sub-plot running through the story which connects in understated ways to the main story. Lydia isn’t your typical bully, and the word “bullying” isn’t used in the book, nevertheless Lydia’s actions are clearly designed to intimidate. The story has a satisfying ending. Charming, subtle and incredibly - suddenly - moving, Ella On The Outside is one of those delightfully unclassifiable 'thank god it's in the world books that Nosy Crow does so well. It's due out on May 3rd and I think it's something to get on your radar now.

Pressured by pushy Lydia into investigating into Molly's life and what she herself hides from inside her house. As Ella uses her photography skills to document what she finds, she learns true friendship and helps a woman in need... Ella has just moved house with her mum and younger brother. She is struggling to fit in at her new school when the most popular girl, Lydia, decides to become her friend. Ella is delighted at the attention from Lydia, but Lydia likes to investigate secrets and Ella is hiding a huge one! Eh si, perché Ella ama la fotografia e in ogni pagina traspare il suo amore per questa forma d’arte. Elle intègre une nouvelle école mais n’a pas encore sa veste d’uniforme. Elle veut se faire des amis. Il segreto di Ella di Cath Howe è un libro sull’amicizia, sui nuovi inizi e sui segreti che rischiano di rovinare una famiglia.Quel “farsi trascinare” che spesso spinge chi è più debole a commettere atti spesso ai limiti del buon senso. She is left standing in class until the teacher tells her to sit. She tries talking to the other girl that is alone - but Molly doesn't want to talk to Ella. Or share her desk! Suddenly Lydia, the "it girl" in class, decides to be her friend, what does she really want? Why is she so hard on Molly? Ella is confused by this "friendship" but keeps trying to please her - until the night she realises it has gone too far and she can't stop it. There's a lot of heart in this, and Cath Howe's writing is perfectly pitched. It captures that confusion of trying to do the right thing, trying to fit in, whilst all along not being sure what that right thing is. It's a horribly familiar sentiment whatever age you are, and Howe gets the horrible edge of it so well. She also manages to get those moments of connection perfectly judged, those moments when you meet somebody who might normal and might be nice and might actually just turn out to be a friend after all of the drama has worked itself out.

A Ella sembra incredibile che Lydia mostri interesse nei suoi riguardi e arrivi a invitarla al suo pigiama party. L’invito è due ore in ritardo rispetto alle altre invitate, ma Ella non se la sente di condannare Lydia per questo, in fondo sembra averlo fatto per il suo bene, per non metterla in imbarazzo per un suo piccolo problema, che Lydia non manca di farle prontamente notare. After telling Lydia her secret, Ella is trapped. Forced by Lydia to investigate the quiet, lonely girl at school, Ella uncovers a horrible secret that she has been hiding, and it turns out Lydia’s motives weren’t what they seemed. Ella is the new girl at school and things are going as well as you might expect under the circumstances. She's trying to fit in, not really managing, and there's this big secret that she's not allowed to tell anybody. When she's made friends with by Lydia (and I phrase that most deliberately thus), the school's number one, things seem to work out but they really don't. Lydia wants to know what Ella's secret is and nothing's going to stop her from finding out. And the worst sort of secrets are the ones which, inevitably, make themselves heard. Ella On The Outside also touches on some important issues, namely parental responsibility, the influence of prison on families, and mental wellbeing. Howe handles these well, and gracefully; I am increasingly looking for authors who present adults as adults within children's literature, flawed and honest and real and scared, and this is a massive mark in this book's favour. This book is charming and thought-provoking. Cath Howe has perfectly understood the thoughts and attitudes of young children and this book comes across as very realistic. I think young readers will be able to relate to various characters in the book and become captivated by the mysteries and relationships.

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Ho davvero apprezzato l’evoluzione di Ella, durante la narrazione riesce a mettere da parte se stessa per aiutare quella che può davvero reputare un’amica. Ella cresce e matura, capisce la differenza tra essere comandata ed essere parte di un gruppo. Quando si hanno dieci anni non è semplice accorgersi di essere una pedina, tutti ti sembrano amici, non penseresti mai che qualcuno voglia ferire i sentimenti di un altro per il solo gusto di farlo. Ella has just moved to a new town and has started at a new school. She has a huge secret that she can’t tell anyone- her dad is in prison for stealing money from the bank that he worked at. Ella will do whatever it takes to fit in with Lydia and her group of friends- even if it means spying on quiet and mysterious Molly and her mum.

Ella on the Outside is a superbly honest debut from Cath Howe, with authentic characters and important themes of friendship, loyalty, self-acceptance and parental responsibility. For me this was a thoroughly enjoyable read and I’m convinced the characters will resonate strongly with lots of readers in upper KS2. Ella moves to a new town with her Mum and brother, and starts attending Moor Lane School. It’s stressful for all the family as Ella adjusts to a new environment and her mother to a new job. Ella suffers from eczema which seems to be more severe because of this stress. Ella’s father isn’t mentioned, but many of the chapters start with a letter from Ella to her Dad. Ella’s Mum is adamant that his whereabouts be kept a secret.Come ogni gruppo che si rispetti deve esserci un leader, in questo caso il leader è Lydia, una ragazzina ricca che veste sempre i vestiti più cool e le scarpe più sbrilluccicanti. I capelli di Lydia sono sempre perfetti, pieni di mollettine e nastrini e, se le vai a genio, le porte di tutte le feste e i pigiama party si spalancano come per magia (ringrazio per non aver mai trovato una Lydia lungo la mia strada). I think this book is one that every teacher should read. It really gave me an insight into what life could be like for a new child in a class and how as teachers we often miss signs of what children are going through or how they treat each other. Children will also be able to relate to the characters because it is told through the voice of Ella and some of the experiences she has, such as moving to a new school, dealing with bullying/ manipulation from other children, joining existing groups of friends and the feeling of loneliness and being an outsider and not knowing how to fit in. Ella is constantly trying to please and make the right choice but often ends up hurting others in the process. A pattern that is shown in this story is how at the start of each chapter Ella has written a letter to her dad. Her letters are all different asking him different things that relate to her life and what she has been experiencing. We do not see a return letter to Ella until the last chapter where her dad replies to her about her visiting him at Christmas. In the letters that Ella writes, she is coming to terms with her dad being away but still has some questions, like is he allowed to have a break from prison to stay with her? The questions Ella has made me realise that children may not always fully understand their situations.

Ella on the Outside is a hugely relatable tale that will strike a chord with anyone who has felt the pressure to please a new friend or has struggled to fit in. Ella makes mistakes, but she's also hugely likeable, and author Cath Howe perfectly captures her anxieties and worries. The most popular girl at school, Lydia, makes friends with Ella, but Lydia is domineering and manipulative. While Ella wonders about Lydia’s motives, she is flatter to be her friend. Another mystery is why Molly is so quiet and why Lydia doesn’t like her? Ella is facing some big changes. She's just had to start at a new school, she's moved away from her best friend Grace, her eczema is acting up, and on top of all that, she has a huge secret to keep about her family. So when Lydia, the most popular girl in school, wants to start hanging out, things must be on the up... right? Tra i problemi con la madre e le lettere scritte al padre assente, Ella inizia la nuova scuola e cerca di osservare il mondo con i suoi occhi e non solo con l’obiettivo della fotocamera del suo nuovo telefono, regalo della nonna che appoggia le sue passioni.The only problem is, Lydia really wants to know what Ella's hiding and she's also desperate for intel on the quiet girl in class, Molly. So just how far will Ella go to keep her new friendship? It’s not easy being the new girl at school and Ella tries her best to fit in, wondering who to be friends with, struggling with the eczema that covers her skin and doing her best to not let on the big family secret that she and her mum are trying to put behind them. When very popular classmate Lydia shows an interest in making friends, Ella is flattered and desperate to please Lydia to gain a place in her inner circle. There is also Ella's mysteriously quiet classmate Molly, who says very little and who, just like Ella, appears to be harbouring family secrets of her own. As the plot unfolds, Ella is left to navigate through the tribulations of friendships, dealing with adults who don't always do the right thing and figuring out what the best way to handle big secrets might be. L’auteur nous montre une petite fille de 10 ans, passionnée de photo, qui prendra des décisions, qui s’en mordra les doigts mais qui, en écoutant les adultes, saura qu’il faut faire le premier pas quand on a fait une bêtise, soit s’excuser. Elle en sortira grandie, elle se trouvera des amis, elle saura se rebeller contre ses condisciples. Elle ne gagnera pas en popularité, mais son grand coeur fera basculer les évènements en sa faveur et en faveur de ceux qui souffrent, qui sont malades ou encore enfermés.