- Illustrated Chapter Books
- Ages 10–13
- Contemporary
The First Year
Book 2 of 2 in The Final YearView the full series
The sequel to the CLiPPA-winning The Final Year, following Nate into secondary school as old bullies, a shifting home life and a growing anger he calls The Beast threaten to pull him apart. A raw, tender verse novel about holding on.
- Best for10–13
- FormatIllustrated
- Length480 pp
- Read aloud~3 hr10 min
The vibe
What it’s like.
Style
- Lyrical
- Conversational
Tone
- Heartwarming
- Bittersweet
- Melancholic
- Thought provoking
- Inspirational
Themes
Experience meters
What’s it about?
The story.
Nate has survived a brutal Year 6, but secondary school brings its own trials: new teachers, familiar bullies, and the ache of being needed less at home now that his mum is finding her feet with the help of loyal Auntie San. His seriously ill little brother Dylan is still fragile, money is still short, and when a surprise addition to the family unsettles their hard-won peace, Nate feels the old fury stirring: The Beast, the overwhelming anger he fights to keep caged before it tears through everything he loves. Told in Matt Goodfellow's spare, powerful free verse and illustrated throughout by Joe Todd-Stanton, this eagerly-awaited follow-up to The Final Year is just as honest about hardship, family and the storm of feelings that comes with growing up. It reads as a complete, gripping story in its own right, but returning readers will feel the full weight of everything Nate carries. Fierce, moving and quietly hopeful.
Fit check
Right for your child?
Where it lands by age
Best for readers of 10-13, a touch older than the first book as Nate moves into secondary school and the anger theme deepens. The accessible verse keeps it open to reluctant readers, and its emotional honesty gives it real adult crossover appeal. It works alone, but lands hardest after The Final Year.
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- Best fit · 10–13
- Read aloud · 10–13
- Independent · 10–14
Prose load
Light
Visual support
Moderate
Reluctant-reader friendly
Very
Read-aloud quality
Excellent
Works well for
- Reading aloud
- Reading together
- Gift-buying
- Reluctant readers
Preview before sharing if a child is sensitive to: illness or disability, poverty or hardship, bullying, absent parent.
Bedtime suitability
2 / 5 · Better outside bedtime
Sensitive-child
2 / 5 · Use judgement
Graphic intensity
1 / 5 · None
Best for
- Verse novels
- Emotional reads
- Reluctant readers
- School stories
- Big feelings
Avoid if
- Wants light comfort read
- Sensitive to family illness
Particularly good for children who are…
- Moving to secondary school
- Anger management
- Being bullied
- Illness in family
- New step parent or blended family
In the classroom
How it works in school.
A natural KS2-to-KS3 transition read: it speaks directly to the fears of starting secondary school and to managing anger and change, and the verse form is an accessible, inspiring model for pupils' own writing about feelings.
A book children love that happens to support school — never a stand-in for the texts a class is taught with.
Why it lands
Why they love it.
Why kids love it
Nate is older but no less real, and the fight to keep The Beast, his anger, from breaking loose is gripping. Starting a new school, missing home, dealing with bullies: readers who felt seen by The Final Year will race through this, and the short verse keeps the pages turning.
- Being understood finally
- The underdog winning
- Family belonging
Why parents love it
Goodfellow returns to Nate with the same poet's honesty, now facing secondary school, a changing family and the anger that frightens him most. Spare, powerful verse that models emotional literacy and rewards reading aloud; a compassionate, unshowy look at boyhood and hardship.
- Great writing
- Conversation starter
- Cultural representation
In the series
The Final Year.
2 books · open the series →
About the creators
About the creators.
If you liked this
Three ways out of this book.
If you liked this, try…
Lateral matches. Same shelf, different texture.
Come into this from…
Easier or preparing reads — perfect lead-ins.
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