The Ministry of Manners – at a glance
The School Reading Lists’ five word review: Dystopia, rules, machines, underground, betrayal.
Children’s book title: The Ministry of Manners.
Children’s author: David Solomons.
Children’s illustrator: Hazem Asif.
Genre: Children’s fiction, dystopia.
Published by: Piccadilly Press.
ISBN: 9781835873175.
Recommended for children aged: 9-12.
First published: Paperback May 2026.
Trigger warning: Death of a parent.
This children’s book is ideal for: starting a discussion about how restrictive governments or organisations can change the way society behaves and dictates what gradually becomes acceptable.
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Our review:
The Ministry of Manners runs the country and, no matter where you are, they are waiting, watching and listening. Alfie and Margot Hawthorne are siblings, but very different. Alfie likes to follow the rules, keep his head down, and stay out of trouble. Margot, however, dislikes any rules or restrictions, makes sure she’s heard, and finds school and life challenging.
Finally, after one too many outbursts, Margot is removed from her family and, unbeknownst to them, is taken to a Manners Retreat where she is persuaded to conform. Alfie, meanwhile, is determined to get his sister back, which leads him to an underground organisation, the Unsilenced, a group determined to challenge the ruling party by any means possible in order to force changes to the rules they live by.
Alfie, who has very influential parents and finds himself at the heart of the rebellion, is desperate to find where his sister is located and rescue her. Time is slipping away, however, and the Unsilenced, having made an unsettling discovery, need to press forward. They know the Ministry is watching and waiting to strike back, but the rebels can’t imagine just how devastating that could be.
Our verdict:
The Ministry of Manners is a dystopian novel which uses the expectation of politeness and good manners as its starting point. It may need discussion and explanation to show how a situation where everyday life changes and power is redistributed is a gradual process which doesn’t happen overnight.
Alfie and Margot are polar opposites, but ultimately, their loyalty to each other and their parents is what guides them both to their goals. The institution Margot finds herself in is a scary place, and the details leave little to the imagination. Her situation could need more discussion than Alfie’s, as ultimately his objective is to find his sister, whereas hers is survival and escape. Meanwhile, their parents find themselves in an equally difficult position where their positions and responsibilities put them at odds with their children.
In a classroom setting, The Ministry of Manners is a book which might need dissecting and discussing at length in book clubs or class. For example, children could discuss a secondary character who is punished and disappears with no further mention of their fate. It will be interesting to see if this is explored in a second book.
David Solomons is an accomplished and popular author, and The Ministry of Manners is entertaining and well-written. Covering difficult, but hopefully unlikely scenarios which the recommended age group have probably never considered outside superhero movies and gaming, it will provoke necessary discussion.
Teaching points and book club discussion ideas:
- Good manners are something we are taught from a young age. Does the author’s use of something so easily recognisable as politeness make Alfie and Margot’s situation more believable and relatable?
- Alfie finds himself breaking the rules, something he doesn’t usually do, to save Margot. How differently would she have behaved if it had been Alfie who disappeared?
- There are slogans and posters all around the school telling the students what is expected of them and how to behave. Pick a rule from your own school and design a poster showing how this should be followed.
- Alfie was shocked when he found out more about what his parents did for a living. Do you think most jobs have things you wouldn’t expect as part of their description?
- The book ends on a cliffhanger. If you were to write the first chapter of a second instalment, what would you have happen next?
Many thanks to Piccadilly Press for the review copy.
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