Cover designed by Sara Mognol and illustrated by Kate Forrester
A nature trail through Where the World Turns Wild, for schools and homeschooling. There is also a schools gallery of student work!
Buying links
Animals, trees, flowers, our city forbids them all…
Juniper Green lives in a walled city from which nature has been banished, following the outbreak of a deadly man-made disease many years earlier. While most people seem content to live in such a cage, she and her little brother Bear have always known about their resistance to the disease, and dream of escaping into the wild. To the one place humans have survived outside of cities. To where their mother is.
When scientists discover that the siblings provide the key to fighting the disease, the pair must flee for their lives. As they journey into the unknown, they soon learn that there’s cruelty in nature as well as beauty. Will they ever find the home they’re searching for?
Awards
Where the World Turns Wild was chosen as a reading group title for the Book Trust Secondary Schools Library Pack 2020/21. It’s been shortlisted for various regional awards, including the Alexandra Palace Biblio-Buzz Children’s Book Award, Calderdale Children’s Book of the Year, Cumbria Secondary Schools Library Book Award, Dudley Children’s Book Award, Wolverhampton Children’s Book Award and York Book Award. Where the World Turns Wild won Favourite Book in the Redhill Academy Trust Book Award 2020/21!
Reviews
“Some books are excellent story-telling, and some books broaden your knowledge and mind, and some just ought to be written and this book is all three. I loved it.” Hilary McKay
“A brilliant adventure that pulls you headlong into Juniper and Bear’s world, where survival depends upon finding the wild.” Gill Lewis
“A beautiful, memorable story about all the important things – love, family, loyalty, and courage…” Sinéad O’Hart
“Where the World Turns Wild is a journey between extremes of grey and green, propelled by a bold and timely concept, and written with sharp, intelligent prose. A truly heartfelt and very striking novel.” Darren Simpson
“Wondrous, warm-hearted, wildly exhilarating…” Nizrana Farook
“An absorbing, thought-provoking début tapping into pertinent ecological themes.” The Bookseller
“A sense of the natural world’s curative power runs through this adventurous story like a seam of gold.” The Guardian
“A gripping adventure with a subtly delivered ecological message, Penfold’s beautifully judged novel pits a pair of resourceful siblings against ruthless human forces and the awesome dangers of an unknowable wilderness. Both dystopian thriller and eloquent hymn to nature, Where the World Turns Wild is bold, original children’s storytelling.” Waterstones
“Fierce sibling loyalty and an understanding of the beauties and perils of nature make this a tremendous dystopian adventure.“ New Statesman
nicolapenfold.com 