Millions

Frank Cottrell Boyce (author)

Macmillan Children's Books, UK: 2004; 250pp

ISBN: 0330433318

Genres: adventure, allegory, humour, realistic fiction

Issues: family, faith, grief, values

When a bag stuffed with over two hundred thousand pounds drops out of the sky, young Damian Cunningham is sure that it is a gift from God.

He was sitting in his cardboard-box hermitage beside an English railway line, praying, when it appeared out of the darkness. While he hadn't been praying for money, surely it must have been Sent? His older brother, Anthony, decides that wherever it came from, it's theirs to spend now - and they need to hurry. All pounds Sterling must be changed into Euros by December 17th which leaves them a scant three weeks.

Life becomes more and more chaotic for the boys as they each try, in their own way, to get rid of the money. Damian wants to use it for good works - feed the poor, pay for wells in Africa, donate to local charities. Anthony, who believes in money with the same intensity that Damian believes in God and the saints, thinks that investing in a house would be a good idea - they can sell it when they are older and make a profit - but discovers that real estate agents don't take even the most intelligent children seriously. It is impossible to open a bank account without a parental signature, which would lead to questions from their father. Spending money in the playground leads to an unexpected demonstration of inflation, as the price for even the smallest favour rises to ridiculous heights. And Damian finds that not even his neighbours, the Latter-Day Saints, can be trusted to spend his generous donations on the needy. Good intentions are all very well, but it seems that while money can purchase many pleasant things, it can also buy trouble.

This is a riotous adventure with an underlying pathos that will appeal to older readers or those reading aloud. Narrated by the innocent and well-meaning Damian, the story develops through an increasingly hilarious series of events into a moving commentary on family relationships and human greed. Readers of Morris Gleitzman will enjoy this delightful novel with its whimsical humour and quirky characters.

Highly recommended.