The Lastling - Tapa dura

"In this intelligent, haunting adventure, Gross brings alive a nonspecific Asian landscape wracked by Western incursion...thoroughly imagined."

Paris is on a trek in the Himalayas with her uncle and her uncle's friends. On the way they come across a young Tibetan monk, Tahr, who reluctantly joins their party as his protector has died in an accident. As the trek progresses, Paris realizes the true reason for the journey - her uncle and his friends are a strange, gourmet dining club, dedicated to hunting down and eating the rarest possible animals. So when they discover a young yeti-like creature, who is very nearly human herself, Tahr convinces Paris that they have a duty to protect her, come what may. BLPhilip Gross is a well-known poet for both adults and children, and has been shortlisted for the Whitbread Poetry Award