Author(s): Philippa Werry

Historical Fiction | Waikato Book Battle 2024

“Being in quarantine sounds like being in prison,” I said, shivering. Lily nodded. “A bit like that. Except that the prison is your own home.” It might sound familiar in 2021, but this is New Zealand in 1936–37. The disease is infantile paralysis, or polio, and nobody knows where it will strike next. When even the adults are afraid, Tom finds refuge in his dream—to run in the Olympics like his hero, Olympic champion Jack Lovelock. But it's the strength of some people closer to home that provide his biggest inspiration.