"This 2002 Whitbread Prize winner is set in WWII Britain as remembered many years later by Stephen Wheatley, a participant in the events. Stephen Wheatley was a "geeky" child whose only real friend in his small village is Keith Hayward. Keith is very much the dominant figure in the friendship, and Stephen idolizes him and his family. To him, the Haywards are everything his pedestrian family is not. When Keith decides that Mrs. Hayward (his own mother!) is really a German spy, the children start follwing her and recording her movements. Their activities set off a chain of events which destroy the lives of two families in the neigborhood and expose many carefully kept secrets. The novel is intensely atmospheric and suspenseful."
, Resident Scholar
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Review Analysis of Spies
Our unique search engine provides a wealth of detail about books by breaking them down into many different literary elements, all of which are searchable (click here).
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale (Low to High)
Plot
Tone of book?
- thoughtful
Time/era of story
- 1930's-1950's
Kids growing up/acting up?
Yes
Family, struggle with
Yes
Struggle with:
- Mother (or standin)
Is this an adult or child's book?
- Adult or Young Adult Book
Main Character
Gender
- Male
Age:
- a kid
Is this an ordinary person caught up in events?
Yes
Ethnicity/Nationality
- British
How sensitive is this character?
- sensitive to others' feelings
Intelligence
- Average intelligence
Physique
- healthy but a geeky weakling
Main Adversary
Identity:
- Male
Age:
- 40's-50's
Eccentric/Smart/Dumb:
Yes
Eccentric:
- eccentric
- emotionally unstable
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in:
- an average amount
How sensitive is this character?
- mean, arrogant
Setting
How much descriptions of surroundings?
- 8 (a significant amount)
Small town?
Yes
Style
Person
- mostly 1st
Accounts of torture and death?
- generic/vague references to death/punishment
Unusual Style:
- a lot of flashback and forwards
Amount of dialog
- significantly more descript than dialog
