After the police accept a bribe in the form of cash, they leave, and the group once again continue on their journey; now with a children's choir accompanying them, because their headmaster has been killed.

Denise Weston Austin, colloquially known as the 'Elephant Angel', was a Northern Irish zookeeper known for keeping Sheila, an elephant calf from the Belfast Zoo, in her backyard during World War II.

[1] During the Belfast Blitz in April 1941, the Ministry of Public Security told the Royal Ulster Constabulary to shoot and kill thirty-three large animals due to concerns that the German bombings may break their cages and release them into the city.

[4][5] Thinking it was a great idea for a story, Morpurgo changed the location from Belfast to Dresden, who incidentally, also had the same kill order for zoo animals.

[8] Gerry Larson from the School Library Journal stated that "this well-paced, heartwarming narrative by a master storyteller will appeal to readers on several levels – as a tale of adventure and suspense, as a commentary on human trauma and animal welfare during war, as a perspective on the hardships facing the German people in the final months of World War II, and as a tribute to the rich memories and experiences of an older generation".

[10] Ron Marinucci from the Library Media Connection thought "the novel is easy-to-read, fast-paced, and interesting, and it's not too far-fetched, being loosely based on real historical episodes".

Young Lizzie’s story is quick-paced and moving, and her teenage viewpoint is believable as she falls for Peter and also tries to make sense of the wartime actions of the adults around her".

[12] Voice of Youth Advocates's Deborah Cooper wrote that "Morpurgo's understated style slowly but steadily draws the reader in, and while daily hardships and the actual bombing of Dresden are recounted in some detail, the story is never harrowing".

She summed up her review opining that "librarians and educators alike will welcome this semi-factual historical title as a valuable teaching aide on the subject of war.

She opined that "we hear, through speakers, music, voices, singing, the roaring of fire, the drone of planes, the whine of bombs", which all highlight Reid's performance.

[16] Dominic Cavendish of The Daily Telegraph was a little more reserved in his review, stating that "while a German-accented, dungaree-wearing Alison Reid, playing 28 roles in 60 minutes, is very good at giving subtle shape to the beast with bowed body, lumbering gait, and swaying trunk of arms, we're a long way from the magic of Handspring’s puppetry at the National Theatre".