MR PIP

Lloyd Jones’s dazzling novel is set on a Pacific Island ravaged by war. Told through the eyes of young Matilda and drawing on the elusive power of great literature, it has caught the imagination of readers the world over.

Matilda attends the school set up by Mr Watts, the only white man on the island. By his own admission he's not much of a teacher and proceeds to educate the children by reading them Great Expectations. Matilda falls in love with the novel, strongly identifying with Pip. The promise of the next chapter is what keeps her going; Pip's story protects her from the horror of what is happening around her - helicopters menacing the skies above the village and rebel raids on the ground.

When the rebels visit the village searching for any remaining men to join their cause, they discover the name Pip written in the sand and instigate a search for him. When Pip can't be found the soldiers destroy the book. Mr Watts then encourages the children to retell the story from their memories. Then when the rebels invade the village, the teacher tells them a story which lasts seven nights, about a boy named Pip, and a convict...

Winner of the Commonwealth Writers' Prize 2007
Winner of the Montana Medal for Fiction 2007
Winner of the Kiriyama Pacific Rim Book Prize - Fiction 2008
Shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize 2007

ISBN: 9780143008965
Imprint: Penguin
Publication Date: 29 September 2008
Dimensions: 130mm x 199mm
Weight: 230g
No. Of Pages: 240