Max really does mean well, terribly well, but he is always in trouble. So clumsy that things seem to fall over him rather than the other way around, and so forgetful that he is constantly forgetting his homework. School is supportive, but doesn’t quite know what to do about him, and he’s often in the Reflection Room. There is rather a good reason for some of this. His mum has died two years before in a road accident (there’s quite a lot about the children’s feelings on this), and because his dad is constantly busy with two jobs, he is in charge of his three younger sisters, twins of nine and six year old Ripley. Max himself is only eleven, and while all four children love their father dearly, they do have to do a lot of looking after themselves. When dad disappears one day, leaving Max in charge with a huge wad of £20 notes, it all seems rather exciting in the beginning, but after some days, he begins to be seriously worried, particularly because lots of big boxes have turned up in the house, as well as a large pink suitcase full of money. The original £20 notes have disappeared, and there is still no sign of dad, so Max hatches a plan. He steals the keys of a cottage in North Wales from his best friend’s family and takes the girls on a long trip (train, tube, train, train, bus) where he hopes they will all be safe, away from prying eyes, that might separate the children. The pink suitcase goes along! While this all may seem to need some suspension of disbelief, it won’t matter a jot to kids because the pace and humour of the story, even in its darker moments, will keep them reading. The story continues in North Wales (they make it) where the family meet other people and find what seems to be another world. There are adventures in the mountains, a possible dragon, a snow storm, and, most importantly, a realisation on Max’s part that dad is in big trouble and that he has let them down big-time. It all ends with a confrontation between dad and Max, and dad admits he hasn’t known how to handle the family on his own. Dad will probably go to jail, but the children do love him in spite of having been abandoned, and Max knows that one day he will be coming back to Wales. This dysfunctional family will have a happy ending of sorts, but it may be awhile coming. A great, pacey story.