Operation Doodlebug
🚀💥🏠💣
by Tia Fisher
★★★★★
At a glance
Things I loved:
✍🏼 Author: Tia Fisher
🎨 Illustrator: Manuel Šumberac
📅 Release Date: 5th November 2026
📚 Book type: Chapter, 256 pages
🌟 Reader level: Confident
✨ The Anderson shelter scenes
🚀 The constant threat of the V1 “doodlebugs”
🧩 The mystery of the shrapnel and prisoner of war clue
🗣️ Nellie’s struggle with reading
💪 Billy’s experience of dwarfism
🏃♂️ The trio’s decision to run away
Dive Deeper
My Thoughts...
I was sent this book by Piccadilly Press as an exclusive proof edition in exchange for my honest thoughts. As a lover of war-time books, I knew I would enjoy it, but it was even better than I had imagined.
This book is packed full of war-time facts and has clearly been carefully researched and given hours of thought. It covers sensitive topics such as war, loss, grief, fear, anxiety, illiteracy, bullying, disability - including dwarfism - and child abuse. Despite these heavy topics, it’s presented in a light and accessible way, making it suitable for Year 5+.
The characters are absolutely delightful and I adore the main trio - Billy (who has dwarfism), Stan (whose Dad has left to fight for Britain) and little, feisty Nellie (who can’t read). Together, they show what true friendship means - sticking together through thick and thin, putting differences aside and supporting each other through life’s challenges.
The vocabulary is wonderful and it contains plenty of tier 2 and 3 vocab which would be great for the classroom!
🌟I would recommend this book to Year 5+ readers, especially those who love wartime adventures or learning about other peoples' lives!🌟
Blurb
It's 1944 and Stan's hopes of keeping his family together until the war is over are shattered when his father signs up to fight. Left with his mother in Croydon as Hitler sends over waves of V1 rockets, Stan suffers endless air-raid sirens and long nights in the cramped Anderson shelter they share with their neighbours.
Then comes the news they were dreading: his father is missing, presumed killed. But Stan refuses to give up hope, and when a mysterious piece of doodlebug shrapnel holds crucial information from a prisoner of war, he and his friends run away to track down the truth.
Should I read this book?
You should read this book if you...
enjoy WW2 books
like learning about history
fancy a wartime adventure!
Reader level: confident
Content: 9+
Help me to read
V1 Doodlebug – A flying bomb used by Germany in WW2 that made a buzzing sound before exploding
Evacuee – A child sent away from home to stay somewhere safer during the war
Evacuation – The act of moving people from a dangerous place to somewhere safe
Nazis – Members of a German political group led by Hitler during WW2
Croydon – A place in South London where people lived during the war
Shrapnel – Sharp pieces of metal from a bomb that scatter when it explodes
Prisoner of War – A soldier captured and held by the enemy during war
Anderson Shelter – A small, metal shelter built in gardens to protect people from bombs during air raids
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