A mother battles to save her child’s life by recounting an extraordinary true story of a sailor’s fight for survival at sea during the Second World War … a beautiful, poignant debut celebrating the power of words, and what it really means to be brave.

***Longlisted for the Not the Booker Prize***

'It’s a gentle book, full of emotion and it’s similar in tone to The Book Thief, a book that Rose reads with a torch under the bedclothes’ Irish Times

‘Louise Beech masterfully envelops us in two worlds separated by time yet linked by fierce family devotion, bravery and the triumph of human spirit. Wonderful’ Amanda Jennings

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All the stories died that morning … until we found the one we’d always known.

When nine-year-old Rose is diagnosed with a life-threatening illness, Natalie must use her imagination to keep her daughter alive. They begin dreaming about and seeing a man in a brown suit who feels hauntingly familiar, a man who has something for them.

Through the magic of storytelling, Natalie and Rose are transported to the Atlantic Ocean in 1943, to a lifeboat, where an ancestor survived for fifty days before being rescued.

Poignant, beautifully written and tenderly told, How To Be Brave weaves together the contemporary story of a mother battling to save her child’s life with an extraordinary true account of bravery and a fight for survival in the Second World War. A simply unforgettable debut that celebrates the power of words, the redemptive energy of a mother’s love … and what it really means to be brave.

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‘An amazing story of hope and survival … a love letter to the power of books and stories’ Nick Quantrill

‘Two family stories of loss and redemption intertwine in a painfully beautiful narrative. This book grabbed me right around my heart and didn’t let go’ Cassandra Parkin

‘Louise Beech is a natural born storyteller and this is a wonderful story’ Russ Litten

‘Beautifully written, intelligent and moving, this book will stay with you long after you reach the end’ Ruth Dugdall