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Twitch

Book
Twitch by M. G. Leonard

As seen:

By M. G. Leonard

avg rating

30 reviews

>> WINNER OF THE SAINSBURYS CHILDREN’S BOOK AWARDS 2021
>> WINNER OF THE CRIMEFEST AWARD FOR BEST CRIME NOVEL FOR CHILDREN 2021
>> ""A twist-laden, thriller-like tale"" Observer
>> ""Simply genius."" BBC Wildlife

From the internationally bestselling author of Beetle Boy and the Adventures on Trains series, comes the first book in The Twitchers, a thrilling mystery adventure series celebrating friendship, bravery and the incredible world of birds, starring a birdwatching detective called Twitch!

Can a birdwatcher outwit an escaped convict?

Twitch has three pet chickens, four pigeons, swallows nesting in his bedroom and a passion for birdwatching. On the first day of the summer holidays, he arrives at his secret hide to find police everywhere: a convicted robber has broken out of prison and is hiding in Aves Wood. Can Twitch use his talents for birdwatching to hunt for the dangerous prisoner and find the missing loot?

Twitch is a thrilling summer mystery adventure perfect for readers 9+ and for fans of Robin Stevens, Lauren St John and Jenny Pearson. It can be enjoyed as a stand-alone adventure or read as part of The Twitchers series.

Praise for Twitch:

“Leonard knows her audience and the jeopardy comes in flocks … Find your nest, curl up and enjoy.” The Times, Children’s Book of the Week

""A twist-laden, thriller-like tale of a bird-mad boy, some bullies and an escaped convict hiding in the nearby woods."" Observer

""A twisty crime drama as well as a persuasive story about friendship and nature."" The Sunday Times

""Twitch is a good old-fashioned adventure story that feels like a modern-day Secret Seven."" BBC Wildlife Magazine

""[A] pacy mystery adventure featuring a birdwatching detective hot on the heels of a dangerous escaped prisoner."" iNewspaper

“Leonard has crafted an intelligent mystery from unlikely material, with bonus bird facts.” Irish Times

“A winged masterpiece.” Maz Evans

“Enthralling from beginning to end, it really touched my young bird-loving heart! Just wonderful!” Dara McAnulty

“Birds, mystery and fowl play! What more could you want?” Gill Lewis

“Glorious! Full of excitement and wonder!” Sophie Anderson

“A brave and thrilling new adventure from one of my favourite writers. I honestly didn’t put the book down until the very last, exciting, page-turn and I’m twitching for the next adventure!” Jasbinder Bilan

“Twitch is an absolute triumph. The perfect blend of mystery and adventure, a winning hero with an eye for ornithological facts and a heart as big as the countryside, plus a cracking whipsmart plot, I think this is M. G. Leonard’s best book yet.” Christopher Edge

“Cracking characters, beyond pacy plotting and an ending that is almost Bugsy Malone-esque!” Phil Earle

“Twitch is a compelling read – an adventure mystery with birds – what more could any reader want?!” Stephen Moss

“Adventure, friendship and the pure unassuming beauty of nature … a book that could have been a collaboration between David Attenborough and Roald Dahl.” Dr Jess French

“A superb adventure of friendship, bravery and the wonderful world of birds, with a strong, but non-preachy theme of the benefits of connection with the natural world.” The Bookseller

“One of those really, really good books … Recommended for readers around 8 to 12 years old, and grown-ups like me who still enjoy the delight of a great adventure story!” The Bookbag

Reviews

14 Sep 2024

I would recommend it to kids aged 9-13 , it was one of the best books I have read. It is exhilarating and mysterious a real page turner. I could not stop reading!

03 Sep 2024

Really funny. Really liked the characters.

03 Sep 2024

Twitch is such a great character. He’s kind, clever, and brave, even when things get scary. Plus, he’s not afraid to be himself, which I thought was awesome. The book is not just about catching robbers—it’s about friendship, believing in yourself, and standing up for what’s right.

01 Sep 2024

Liked the mystery and bird watching element

06 Aug 2024

I like this book because it has thought me to be courageous and my favourite character
in the book is Twitch. I would recommend this book to someone because it has a good ending.

29 Jul 2024

very touching and fun and atmospheric.

27 Jul 2024

Wonderful story of not letting others knock you down for loving something they don’t! Also, a story of strength and overcoming friendship barriers!

25 Jul 2024

This book had q very good twist at the end and incorpoated homour into its sometimes serious storyline.

The character Twitch loves birds and is sometimes left out at school, however, in the summer holidays (like us now) one of the children that bullied him reveals a passion for birds and he and Twitch become friends.

However, "Robber Ryan" is on the loose where Twitch does his birdspotting and Twitch and his new friend must work together to solve this new mystery.

10 Jul 2024

My favourite characters are Ava and Tippy because of their differences.
The book was interesting because it had lot's of exciting events.

10 Jul 2024

I liked Twitch Featherstone. I was interested on how Fergal tricked Twitch.I liked Ava and Tippy because of their differences.I would recommend it to someone because it was very intresting. It was very interesting because it has lot's of exciting events.

16 Jan 2024

This book is good, lots of birds names I have not heard about before.

30 Dec 2023

Great!

28 Dec 2023

I would like to recommend it to other people. My favourite character was Twitch. It interested me because it was a mystery and an adventure story.

30 Sep 2023

This book was very mysterious a bird watching adventure. It's about a bank robber who has escaped from prison and the police are looking for her in the forest. I would recommend this book for children who like an adventure story.

02 Sep 2023

An engaging tale about a young bird enthusiast who has to negotiate a minefield of bullies, friendships, escaped bank robbers/murderers, pigeon care. A really enjoyable read.

31 Aug 2023

I recommend this book to people who like bird watching and detective stories. It was an exciting book and I couldn't put it down!

14 Aug 2023

An incredible mystery story that ticks all the bird watching boxes for me. I am an avid bird watcher, so to merge an amazing mystery with bird facts was brilliant. The characters were portrayed brilliantly and the action was well paced. Definitely one to recommend.

12 Aug 2023

A brilliant read, such a wonderful way to explore friendships and tackles bullying from a different perspective. Loved the characters and could imagine Twitch's home and garden.

06 Aug 2023

It is ok, it is nice. Not my type of book but it is a good book.

30 Jul 2023

twitch is about a boy called Corvus and his friend Jack.
they have to catch an escaped convict

25 Jul 2023

Twitch by M.G Leonard

This book is about a young brave boy called Twitch who has a passion for birdwatching but doesn’t have any friends at school. He has three pet chickens, four pigeons and swallows who nest in his bedroom.

It is a contemporary story set in a town called Briddvale. There is a beautiful nature reserve near Briddvale called Aves Wood where Twitch built his hide.

The main character is Twitch. His real name is Corvus Featherstone but everybody calls him Twitch because birdwatchers are nicknamed Twitchers.

The other principle character is Jack. At the beginning of the story, Jack is part of a gang with bullies in but, further in the story, they start becoming friends.

Another important character is Billy. They meet when Billy saves him from a tight situation and Billy seems to be a nice person but not all is as it seems…

I really enjoyed this book!My favourite part was the murmuration plan because i love their lack of determination!
One thing i didn’t like was the bullying because I don’t like violence and would also prefer a more gentle book.

I would like to ask the author about when she first became an author why.

I would recommend this book to people who like a book with crime, birds and are also aged 9-12.

12 Jul 2023

It was an amazing book I loved it so much! It was a adventure book.

11 Jul 2023

It was a great adventure book and I really liked it because it was adventure.

26 Jun 2023

The plot is thrown at you very suddenly and all the main action is towards the end of the book,but overall I enjoyed Twitch

29 Jan 2023

It's about this boy that likes birds, it's a really good story with big words. I would recommend it to somebody who loves reading.

30 Sep 2022

I liked the book and I would recommend it for other people to read. It is about a boy who has swallows nesting in his bedroom, three chickens and pigeons living in his loft. It was about a robber named Ryan but it was just his surname. And the real name was Gwen Ryan. I liked the book because it's about action and adventure which is my favourite genre.

26 Aug 2022

A great book, I absolutely loved it. Would definitely recommend to everyone who loves mystery and perseverance and ADVENTURE!

09 Aug 2022

I think it was a really good book.
My favourite character was Twitch and I would recommend it.

06 Aug 2022

Great book with adventure

30 Jul 2022

This is a fantastic book and I would recommend it to children aged 9+. It is really full of details of birds and birding included in a way that supports and develops the plot and characters (just as the train details are used in the Adventures on Trains series).

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