Wonderful book filled with magic and adventure. I loved so much about this - that the main character was adopted, that he had two dads, and that he was dealing with being bullied. Am definitely recommending this to the children at school.

Magical adventure set in Wales where Charlie lives with his two adoptive dads. He is approaching the end of year 6 and will be starting secondary school after the summer.

As well as a loving family, which his parents are hoping to grow by adopting another child, he has two great friends who help him navigate the adventures he faces.

Which is just as well because he is shortly to find himself entrusted to protect the last firefox from the beast bent on its destruction.

Perhaps together they can defeat the bullies too.

I read this with my 11 year old son and we both really enjoyed it. Lots of interesting plot twists. We both highly recommend this.

I loved this so much! Such a wholesome lovely read with important messages for people of all ages 💜

The main character was interesting and loveable. He really wanted to do his best. I loved the magical element and the representation. It was so lovely to see the family and them trying to overcome their worries. A great magical adventure with wonderful representation!

Well I want a Cadno of my own now. This was an utterly charming and engaging book, I wasn't the target audience and yet I was utterly enchanted by the story that Newbery wrote. This is a book I would have loved as a child, and it does such a wonderful and magical job of dealing with topics like bullying, and adoption. That it is inclusive, with excellent representation is another bonus on top of everything else.

This was such a fun, fast paced book that had me hooked. I've been in a bit of a slump for about a year now but I devoured this. Our main character, Charlie, is dealing with some changes at home and also bullies at school, though he does have two great best friends. He goes off to hide a pebble (part of a game with said friends), when he's met with a stranger from another world, and a task - to protect the last firefox! Keeping the flammable creature a safe and hidden is a task - and lots of fun... but there's also danger and Charlie has to face his fears to keep his new friend safe!

This was just a joy to read and has really put me in the best of moods. I'm excited for my reading year if all the books are as fun as this one!

A wonderful middle grade read that would make an excellent book to read to a class as the end of the day. I loved the diversity in the book and all the magical elements to it.

I loved this book it was fun, adorable and a thrilling read. The creation of the Firefox what a cool and cute creation. I would really love one in cuddly toy form that is purely because of the great illustrations that are on the page which capture the cheekiness perfectly, They remind me of Beatrix Potter's illustrations.

The story itself deals with so many important topics from adoption to being a big brother to fire safety that you feel like your getting an education at the same time as an entertaining story. Also this story felt like two dads being parents was just being part of life and society that feels so special and exciting.

The riddle game I love that I want to play it I love convoluted games that hardly make any sense but you just have to figure them out. I would have liked the story to be longer but when I enjoy books that is always the case. I hope we get a second in the series I have so many questions about the Firefox and the man in the hedge. A fabulous read that should be given to every kid!

This was book was really great!! I enjoyed it a lot, loved the characters and the world building. The cover is also so lovely.

Wow! What a wonderful, warm fuzzy feeling that’s left me with! I simply adored this magical middle grade fantasy debut.
It’s a book about finding your inner courage (fire), friendships, family and standing up to bullying. As Charlie nears the end of primary school, he is charged with taking care of the last Firefox cub when he stumbles across Teg, a boy from a parallel fantasy world. Will Charlie be able to find his inner fire to protect the cub? And then there’s change on the horizon at home, which is a great representation of a same sex family unit, plus the impending transition to secondary school and the continued bullying from the class thugs. With the help of his best friends Lippy and Roo, Charlie’s adventure will have you turning the pages of this beautifully illustrated book. I think everyone is going to want their own Firefox cub!
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a review copy in exchange for a review.

✨3.5 stars ✨
Middle grade isn't my norm but I do love to dip my toe every now and then!
This was really cute and I loved the fantastical elements. Illustrations are always a fantastic addition so I loved seeing Cadno being brought to life. It was great to read a story that featured ways of being brave and also facing your fears.

Would recommend this to anyone with children!

Many thanks to the author, publisher, and Netgalley for sending me a copy of this book in return for an honest review.

This book had been on my radar since its release was announced! It is extremely popular on bookstagram. I must say that I really did enjoy this one. If you love books about magical animals then this one is for you! I loved the fact that this book focused on friendships and finding an inner bravery. I also love the fact that the main character is adopted as there aren't many books out there that feature main characters who have been adopted, especially by LGBT families.

Very well written story about finding the inner strength to deal with bullies. I'm sure the book will help and inspire a lot of children. I enjoyed reading it very much.

This is the most beautiful story. I loved the idea of the Firefox and watching Charlie and his friends try to hide the fox whilst dealing with bullying and his feelings about his dad's adopting. I loved the portrayal of same sex parents and how natural this was - it will be a wonderful book for other children with two dads to see a family like theirs so well represented. Thoroughly enjoyed this one.

My 7 year old daughter absolutely LOVED this book. She’s read it a number of times already! It’s such a heartwarming story with a wonderful take away message.

An enjoyable read and one that children will find inspiring if they find themselves in a similar situation. A boy lacking confidence finds the inner strength to deal with bullies. Very well written.

A beautifully realised adventure that begins when Charlie rescues Cadno, a magical firefox cub, and ends with him confronting his enemies and finding his courage. Framed in a happy, secure family of two dads, with the support of schoolfriends Lippy and Roo challenges are faced, treehouses and castles hidden in and all because of a personal version of the geocache adventure. There's something for everyone! thoroughly enjoyable and highly recommended.

I love when kids books use fantastical situations as a metaphor for the circumstances lots of ordinary children might find themselves in. Charlie Challinor lives in a small Welsh town with his two Dads, and is excited about the prospect of them adopting a second child, but also apprehensive. He is being bullied by two boys at school and is scared of lots of other things too. How can he learn to be brave enough to protect a younger sibling?

Charlie has his two best friends, Roo (short for Rupert) and Lippy (short for Philippa) to support him, though, and it’s while he’s playing a game with them that his big adventure begins. A boy appears from a fantastical world beyond the walls of the castle that the three friends are visiting and entrusts Charlie with a magical fox cub. The cub is able to burst into flames but remain unharmed at moments of great excitement. Because of its rarity, adults from his world have sent a monster to hunt it down and return it to them as a zoo exhibit. Charlie agrees with the stranger that this would be no life for a wild creature and promises to look after it for a few days until the monster is vanquished.

Caring for a highly flammable fox cub while attending school, and keeping it secret from everyone, including his fathers, is not as easy as Charlie expected, even with help from his friends, especially when the monster gets closer and is able to disguise itself as a human. Then there are school sporting events, shopping trips, and a charity fête – at which Lippy has a stall – to negotiate, not to mention the bullies, who haven’t given up on tormenting him. In the course of the adventure, Charlie learns the bullies have fears and weaknesses of their own, while he himself, as well as his friends, possesses strength and courage he had never realised before.

Charlie and his friends are resourceful and find a variety of ways of preventing the adults – and the monster – from spotting their new pet, even as the cub – renamed Cadno, from the Welsh word for Fox – causes chaos and sets fire to things at random. When the final showdown with the monster takes place, they find innovative ways to defeat it and learn even more about themselves in the process.

I loved this book. The pictures are beautifully detailed and all the kids feel totally real. I liked the small references to contemporary games and situations – like the pebble game – without the book dwelling so much on the last two years that it will become dated too quickly. I’m looking forward to reading more from the author and shall look out for others illustrated by the same artist too.

I loved reading this with my daughter, sharing how Charlie learned - through Cadno the eponymous Firefox - to be brave and find his voice.
A lovely read.

Charlie Challinor is not someone you'd think of as a hero - there are many things in life that scare him. Between bullies at school and changes at home, Charlie is finding things hard at the moment. The last thing he expects is to be made a guardian of a fox cub called Cadno. For Cadno is far from being an ordinary fox - he's a firefox, the last one of its kind on top of that. And if that wasn't putting enough pressure on Charlie, there's a sinister hunter on his trail.

In order to protect his new friend, Charlie needs to dig deep to find the fire he never thought he had...

'The Last Firefox' is such a fun read. It's a book about the power of friendship, about finding your inner strength, about standing up to your bullies and facing your fears. It's full of magic (there's a firefox and a sinister hunter from another world on his trail) but also very realistic. Charlie undergoes a great transformation throughout the story but he doesn't do it all by himself. He's got Cadno (I want my own own firefox!), his best friends and his wonderful dads to support him along the way. Which brings us to another reason why this book is brilliant - it shows a different family model, normalises it, makes Charlie a relatable character for many boys and girls out there. We need more MG books like this! (Can I have a book with two mummies next, please?)

I've ordered a copy for my class and I can't wait for my pupils to fall in love with Charlie and Cadno.