A perfect balance between humour and gloom in Water Wings impeccably captures the exquisitely painful emotions that surround one of the last taboo subjects--death. The story, if dealt with in any other way, would perhaps threaten to drown in a pool of misery, but Morris Gleitzman's irreverent use of none-too-subtle humour lifts the tale to a higher level, leaving the reader both moved and thoughtful in a way that many other more serious novels inevitably fail to do. The outrageously funny and divinely wicked Gleitzman, author of the devilishly comical and poignant Two Weeks with the Queen, will win over even more hearts and minds with this bittersweet comedy. --Susan Harrison