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Dhikilo is a young orphan from Somaliland (not to be confused with Somalia, which everyone she meets does) growing up in a very English home in a very English town, Cawber-by-Sands, on the coast. Already something of an outsider with few real memories of her real parents, casualties of war, she is the only person unaffected by the sudden disappearance of the letter D. She is the only person who remembers that there is one, and the only person still using it. Something very strange is going on. When things that begin with the letter D start disappearing - dogs, the dentist - it feels more than strange, it feels ominous. But it's when she decides to go to the funeral for Professor Dodderfield, who used to teach history at her school, that her adventure really begins and 'strange' starts to be her new normal.

What a delightful read this was! In the tradition of The Wizard of Oz, the Narnia chronicles, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (and any other portal-travelling, child-protagonist novel you've read I'm sure), and in time for the 150th anniversary of Charles Dickens' death, Faber has crafted one of the most engaging, enjoyable, fun stories I've read in a long time.

It helps that he's such an effortlessly good writer. The words and sentences just flow. There's no stumbling, there's no hesitation, there's no moment when your mind drifts. It's not a long book and the chapters are short, episodic, but each one rolls into the next and I just didn't want to put it down.

Some readers may decry a lack of originality. There's plenty here that's original - Dhikilo's travelling companion is a sphinx called Mrs Robinson who can transform into a brown Labrador, for instance - and other details that feel familiar are given new twists so that they become fresh and new again. I've got nothing to whinge or quibble over. Sometimes, a book comes along that you enjoy so thoroughly you just aren't interested in looking for flaws. Because I'd have to really look to find any.

Dhikilo is a great child protagonist in a long tradition of them. I lost track of exactly how old she is but I think twelve or thirteen. She loves to experiment in the kitchen - much to her English mum Ruth's dismay - and is curious and observant. There is something about young people that make them excellent portal-travellers and adventurers, which I remember talking about in my review of Lev Grossman's deplorable The Magicians - unbent by weary cynicism, perhaps, or crippled with the insecurities and responsibilities of adults, they perform their coming-of-age journeys with admirable integrity and perseverance.

What D had that many other, similar stories tend to lack is humour. The novel carries that rich thread of tongue-in-cheek, slightly silly and definitely irreverent humour that the British are so well known for. (It's what captured me from the opening pages of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, transporting me back to my childhood love for Roald Dahl books.) When Dhikilo finally meets the Gamp, that dreadful despot dictator, he is rendered ridiculous. It is a nice counterbalance to the power he wields, and a good antidote to fear (remember the spell in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, for getting rid of a Boggart when it takes the shape of your greatest fear?).

There is a hardback edition of this book which sadly wasn't available in our bookshops, but if you were going to splurge on one, this would be the book to get in hardback, especially with its gold-embossed cover and glittering dragonflies. If it wasn't clear by now: I highly recommend D, especially if you're in the mood for a rollicking good adventure. (But if you're in a nit-picky mood, definitely save this for later or you'll ruin the pleasure of reading it!) I read it as an adult novel (and it's been published as one in Australia, judging by the large format) mostly because I was expecting an adult novel, but it is definitely a child-friendly story, and I'd love to read it to my kids.