Good Night, Mr. Tom
1981
First Published
4.32
Average Rating
318
Number of Pages
London is poised on the brink of World War II. Timid, scrawny Willie Beech—the abused child of a single mother—is evacuated to the English countryside. At first, he is terrified of everything, of the country sounds and sights, even of Mr. Tom, the gruff, kindly old man who has taken him in. But gradually Willie forgets the hate and despair of his past. He learns to love a world he never knew existed, a world of friendship and affection in which harsh words and daily beatings have no place. Then a telegram comes. Willie must return to his mother in London. When weeks pass by with no word from Willie, Mr. Tom sets out for London to look for the young boy he has come to love as a son.
Avg Rating
4.32
Number of Ratings
52,698
5 STARS
52%
4 STARS
32%
3 STARS
12%
2 STARS
3%
1 STARS
1%
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Author
Michelle Magorian
Author · 14 books
British children's author Michelle Magorian - author of the celebrated Goodnight, Mr. Tom (1981), which won The Guardian Children's Fiction Prize - was born in Southsea, Portsmouth, in 1947. She trained to be an actress, studying at the Rose Bruford College of Speech and Drama, and at Marcel Marceau's L'école Internationale de Mime in Paris. While pursuing an acting career, Magorian became interested in children's books, writing her first novel for young readers (Goodnight, Mr. Tom) over the course of four and a half years.
