A delightful little story for young readers, about a boy coming to terms with the loss of his father.

I found the plot was a little bit wobbly at times, and the amount of swearing put me off a little bit.

Overall though, I can see the target audience enjoying this read.

Thanks to NetGalley & Fitzroy Books for the DRC

Very distinctive and enjoyable read, crossing A Monster Calls with The Iron Man and Stig of the Dump. The lead character, Junior, sees no benefit from his father bringing him up on a junkyard, especially when the father quickly develops cancer and passes away. But in a fit of creativity in his last week he creates something, much as he used to do as a hobby – a giant robot figure out of metal trash. Seeing Junior is bullied at school, and seeing as the robot starts to come to life at relevant times, it's obvious the thing will be a golem-like protector, surely? Well, no. Spouting nonsense messages every now and again, he tells Junior to seek the signs. And while there may be many signs, they point in multiple directions – towards protection from those rum 'uns at school, protection from the financial difficulty the yard was left in. And even seeing them is proving nigh-on impossible for Junior.

But not for us. I felt that I knew what the signs were far too early, and even considering the age of the target audience I don't think you could say that about a true classic. But this is still very good – the questions about Junior really well done, as to whether he is going nuts, still grieving, or actually the owner of a pile of junk that comes alive. And however predictable this gets, the whole is just too rich in incident, plot threads and drama that there will always be something extra wherever you look – extra to what you expected, and extra to what the story demanded. For going above and beyond, and ending up with something really wonderfully warm-hearted and fresh, this deserves four and a half stars.

This is a touching story about a young boy's attempts to come to terms with the grief of losing his father, alongside dealing with bullies and fighting off depression.

Junior's family owns a junkyard, from which his father used to make art out of scrap. After receiving his cancer diagnosis, Junior's father makes one last piece of art - a tin man - to leave as a keepsake for his son.

After he dies, his family is left not only bereft but also trying to figure out how to manage without his support. At this point, to his disbelief, Junior discovers that the the tin man has something to say to him...

The story is poignant and very readable, but the level of profanity seems uncalled-for. Barring that, I think that many in the target audience will find the experiences and characters in this book relatable.

Junior, living on a scrapyard with his mum, is mixed up and grieving in the wake of his father’s death. His dad always believed in him, said the most amazing and encouraging things, and made ordinary things seem like magic; life without him is confusing and empty. That is, until Junior’s mum gives him the key to the shed in the yard where his father was working on his last ever project. Inside, Junior finds the Junkman – a life-sized sculpture made from junk saved through what must have been years of planning and saving and putting-aside the best bits of scrap that came to the yard.

Junior is spooked and non-plussed…and then the Junkman starts speaking to him! What do his messages mean? Is Junior going mad, or is there something his dad wanted him to do?

This story is just magic – it’s gentle, kind, and sensitively told; Junior could be any child reading who feels or looks different. To deal with grief in all its surreality and rawness in the way Carey does is masterful. His drawing-in of other male role models to support Junior as he works through his grief is just beautiful, and the depiction of Junior’s relationship with his best friend is so heartwarming. Disability, bullying, bereavement, friendship, trust, and overcoming adversity; all these themes and more are touched on in this unusual gem of a book.

A captivating book for YR readers and up. A story of a father taken from a son’s world too soon, a search for healing and living as his father would wish. Why junk and the junkyard, what did his father see in the junk left behind? But for Miles the biggest question, what was his father telling him with his last gift? Fitzroy Books/Regal House Publishing and NetGalley for the ARC. The views expressed are all mine, freely given.

I enjoyed this tale about a young boy surviving life after his father died. There is something for everyone. It was a heartwarming story, and I agree with a previous reviewer that this would work great as a graphic novel.

“Nothing made sense to me anymore. I was running here, running there, looking for something that didn’t even exist. It was like my father took all my common sense with him when he died.”

Junior Miles’ dad was an artist, he made sculptures out of junks, alas, with the first pages the family discovers that the father is diagnosed with cancer, and in his last days, he made his son a life size Junkman. The story follows Junior and his journey on accepting his father’s death and present.

I loved the writing style, it was simple, as you’d think a child would talk and think, yet without making the child’s emotions and struggles offensively simple, which is a job not everyone can do well.
But, with two hundred pages, I thought the book would be more detailed and more in depth, yet the story did what children’s picture books could do, and did, in fifty pages maximum. I did like the book, it’s just that I expected a bit more because I already read multiple books regarding the same topic.
Some events and interactions was unrealistic, which I believe was a choice, making the story lean more to the cartoonish side would make it very entertaining to children, but, sadly, not so much to adults.

Finally, in my humble opinion, that would hundred percent be better as a graphic novel. It’s good! Tho it went to places I didn’t think it would go to, it was still a good time.

“I knew now that things happened when the time was right. That's what made them magical.
And I knew that even though my father was gone forever and there would be thousands of nights when that sadness would sneak up and surprise me, the way it still did for Mama, I also knew that no one could make the memories of my father die or even fade away. And I knew they would pop up whenever I needed them.”

What a heartwarming and unforgettable book about finding your purpose, never giving up, and trusting your heart. After Junior’s dad dies, he discovers a sculpture/junkman in the shed. Junior names him Mr. Miles and he helps Junior with his grief telling him “just believing is enough” and “believe what your heart tells you.” When a businessman wants to buy their junkyard, mom and Junior say no. When the businessman tricks Junior into selling Mr. Miles, whom Junior has become attached to, Junior and some friends have a plan to try and get him back. Does their plan work?

This was a sweet middle grade book that would definitely work for some readers, but it was just okay for me. Junior was a solid protagonist and I enjoyed the side characters, especially his friend, Isaac, and the artist, Elvin. I also liked the exploration of how we determine what is art and what is junk, and how we deal with grief.

Overall, the plot felt predictable and seemed to drag on a bit. I am also not sure why there was so much cursing in a middle grade novel. As a middle school teacher, I know they use that language, but I wouldn't feel comfortable handing a book with so much unnecessary cursing to my students.

I want to start by saying that every book has its readers and I think this is a lovely book for someone. I can imagine kids in the target age group who would like it, and I can imagine some adults who would like it too. That said, this one was not for me, in spite of the very charming cover.

It's set in an unspecified non-contemporary time period that seems like it should maybe be the 80s based on the ages of some of the adults and what events they reference (the one I remember offhand is Woodstock), but it frequently feels and sounds like it's happening longer ago. Without any specifics to really tie the plot to the time it's in, this makes it feel more like nostalgia to me than historical fiction (I know, it also makes me feel old to think about the 80s as "historical"). The folksy-ness will definitely be charming to some! For me that kind of nostalgia setting often produces language that was common "back then" but ranges from uncomfortable to slur now, without fully addressing the issues outdated language raises. This book only has a few of those, but they stood out to me.

On the positive side, it's very readable in spite of not being to my taste. The writing is simple and the plot follows story beats that are common enough to be entirely predictable to an adult who has a lot of experience with books and movies, but that's just right for kids in the middle grade age range (8-12), who have much less experience and are still learning how stories work. There's an inspirational father whose death leaves the family in debt, and the junk art statue he leaves behind that might come to life or might be an artifact of a child's grief; there's the best friend who joins in adventures, the cute girl at school, the ringleader of the bullies, the cartoon villain businessman who wants to buy the junkyard. These are all still new tropes to a child reader, and so more exciting.

The highlights for me were the other adults who step in on behalf of Junior, the main character: his father's longtime friend Peck, and the sculptor Elvin, both of whom are incredibly kind, and neither of whom, refreshingly, are a love interest for Junior's grieving mother (who I think is never given a name other than Mama or Mrs. Miles?). I'm always here for stories about adults being friends, creating support systems, and supporting children!

Charming and adventurous, it definitely delivers some The Iron Giant (1999) vibes. The plot felt a little meandering in the beginning, but it eventually found its legs. I did find the amount of swearing very strange for a middle grade book though.

a delightful middle grade book about a boy navigating life after the death of his father. The book centers around Junior and Mr Miles the junk man his father built before he died. The adventures that ensue are well executed and the book has a complete ending. My one criticism is the use of foul language about half a dozen times. It adds nothing to the story and is not appropriate for a book geared to 9-12 year olds