I read The Amazing Story of Adolphus Tips several years ago. And like most of Michael Morpurgo’s books, it’s a classic. In the cruellest, most inhuman of times, we find stories of courage and love – Morpurgo never fails to remind us of that.
Through a series of diary entries, we learn about 11-year-old Lily, who lives in Slapton in 1943. The war seems very far away, even though several “townies” now study in the same school as Lily. Life goes on as usual–until the people of Slapton are told they must evacuate in seven weeks. Lily’s grandfather refuses to move, but the time comes when he accepts that he will help the war effort by moving, so he does. The problem is that Lily’s precious cat, Tips, goes missing, and everyone begins to hunt for her, including the Yankee soldiers who are now in Slapton.
As the hunt for Tips goes on, relationships are formed, and these relationships drive the story, leading to the astonishing end of the book, one that fills us up and makes us rejoice.
The Amazing Story of Adolphus Tips is a beautiful, heartwarming story – I can’t wait to share it with my book club again!
Adolphus Tips
Lily renames her cat Adolphus Tips after the soldier Adolphus, whom she meets in Slapton. Whom would you name an animal after, and why? What about toys? Have you ever named a toy after someone?
Journalling
The story of Adolphus Tips is revealed to us through Lily’s diary, the perfect prompt for us to write a journal entry or two. We will begin by writing a little about ourselves – our day, and what makes it special. We will then move on to a more imaginative entry–about a day when we have to move out of our home to a new place.
Autobiography
We learn about Tips’s adventures through Lily, but what if Tips could write for herself? What would her diary look like?
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The April 2026 edition of Read, Write, Explore is sold out! New batches begin every alternate month. Join my mailing list if you would like to receive email notifications about my programmes. Alternatively, follow me on social media – Facebook and Instagram – for regular updates.
I love Michael Morpurgo’s work! We read The Amazing Story of Adolphus Tips at my book club for the first time in February 2023; I’m looking forward to rereading it with a new set of book clubbers. Meanwhile, if you’d like to explore some of his other work, here are a few books I’ve reviewed on my blog:
Although the April edition is sold out, if you would like to try out this programme and read just one book with us, I have one seat open for each book we will be reading!
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