Review: Blitzers written by Alastair Chisholm and illustrated by Francesca Ficorilli

Blitzers is a high-octane, sci-fi adventure that crackles with fast-paced action, danger and discoveries in a world of virtual reality and real-life daring.

Danny has finally got his hands on the latest tech-craze gadget, a Blitzer which links to a unique creature, trained by its owner and sent into fights against other creatures in a virtual reality online world. But when Danny discovers that his creature, Chew Lip, does not want to fight, he wonders if the Blitzer given to him by his brother could be a fake or faulty. Both his best friend, Tan, and school bully, Mel are unimpressed by his creature but Danny is determined to train him and prove them wrong.

Danny’s obsession with proving himself through the success of his virtual creature leads him into an online community of Blitzer players where the overwhelming advice is to be aggressive and controlling towards the creature in order to assert dominance, something that begins to show with Danny’s behaviour in the real world.

But when something which should have been impossible happens with Chewy, Danny tries a different approach which proves a catalyst that puts him and his friends in danger. Can he discover what the Blitzers really are? Can he put a stop to a terrifying secret operation? And can he save his best friend from being lost to him?

This is a brilliantly action-packed, gripping and thought-provoking adventure that deals with a range of issues including bullying, toxic masculinity, the impact of online influencers, the ethics of big tech and the potential addictive nature of gaming. But I also think that this is brilliantly balanced with positive role models, especially in Danny’s older brother, with fighting against influences that impact in a negative way and with empathising with others. As well as being a story children will enjoy reading and discussing with their friends, I think it would be a wonderful class or reading group read with those at the top end of Key Stage 2 and into Key Stage 3 due to its rich potential for much-needed discussion of issues which really impact on children’s lives.

The full-and-partial-page illustrations throughout are fantastic, complementing the themes and fast-paced action, in this story perfectly.

An exciting, compelling sci-fi adventure that will prove a real winner with children of 9+.

Thank you to Barrington Stoke for sending me a copy in exchange for my honest opinion.

This book is published by the wonderful Barrington Stoke who publish dyslexia-friendly, super-readable and accessible books for children of all ages. This is suitable for 9+ with a reading age of 8.