Brief summary
When Isabel’s parents can no longer pay the rent, they have no choice but to move out of their family home. Isabel soon finds herself feeling invisible to the people around her.
My comments
The Invisible is a wonderful book that, despite its heavy subject matter, is filled with optimism and hope. Through his book, Tom Percival nurtures a discussion around poverty and the importance of kindness and belonging regardless of circumstances, handling everything with the utmost care and compassion.
Tom Percival has used a range of figurative language in The Invisible, with each line insightful and significant, complimenting the tone of the story perfectly. Although the words themselves carry great weight, the illustrations take it to another level; they fill the entirety of every page with rich detail not often seen in picture books. I feel this is particularly useful for older children who might usually be reluctant to engage with a picture book, as the illustrations come across as nuanced and mature.
Ice curled across the inside of the window and crept up the corner of her bedpost.
Tom Percival
The Invisible feels important, and I believe that it should be available in every classroom. I used the book as part of a wider discussion around relative and absolute poverty, comparing and contrasting the UK with locations worldwide, as part of a lesson on Sustainable Development Goal 1: No Poverty. It ended up being one of those lessons that you could never have planned on paper, but where children were so engaged and showed so much empathy. Especially useful in creating an extended class discussion, was Tom Percival’s letter at the back of the book, which addresses his own experience of growing up poor as a child.
Class comments
My class really engaged with this book, and it led to a much wider class discussion than I had originally planned. A few of the children commented on how the book made them feel like they can make a real difference.
Themes
- Loneliness and belonging.
- The importance of compassion, community and family.
Curricular links
- Relative and absolute poverty (health and wellbeing).
- Sustainable Development Goals (Global Goals): 1 - No Poverty (health and wellbeing).
Points to consider in class
- Isabel’s family does not have enough money to pay the rent and bills, meaning they have to move out of their home. Tom Percival handles this with the utmost care and compassion.
