I am in two minds over this book. And I think that reflects the fact that the book itself is trying to be two things at once. On the one hand this is a gritty realistic depiction of the most poor in a down trodden society. It is based on the trash piles that Mulligan… Continue reading Trash, Andy Mulligan
Category: Book Reviews
Everybody Jam, Ali Lewis
So now I've finished, did this novel improve? Unfortunately no! It is entirely the fault of the narrator I think and just shows how hugely important the narrative voice is in a first person narrative. Here it is the voice of a thirteen year old boy and he just annoyed the hell out of me… Continue reading Everybody Jam, Ali Lewis
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The Midnight Zoo, Sonya Hartnett
A fabulous book! At its most literal level! Reading the blurb of this, the fate of Romany children in Eastern Europe during World War II was an appealing on. Then it mentioned that they come across animals in a zoo which talk to them. Talking animals have never appealed to me: Mrs Frisbee, Beatrix Potter,… Continue reading The Midnight Zoo, Sonya Hartnett
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Small Change For Stuart, Lissa Evans
A lovely and somehow old-fashioned adventure tale. Somehow reminiscent of Enid Blyton... As well as the plethora of games you can get now where you investigate various settings, find clues, use them to unlock new rooms... This is a Carnegie 2012 shortlisted tale and very much aimed at the lower end of the age bracket:… Continue reading Small Change For Stuart, Lissa Evans
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Between Shades Of Gray, Ruta Sepetys
This is a very powerful book: all the more powerful and painful as it is based on historical fact and first-hand accounts. Lina is a fifteen year old Lithuanian school girl, a talented artist, a member of a loving family. In 1941, caught between Hitler's fascism to the west and Stalin's communism to the East,… Continue reading Between Shades Of Gray, Ruta Sepetys
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My Name Is Mina, David Almond
Just finished My Name Is Mina. Good book, interesting but I don't think it's a winner. It tells the story of Mina from Skellig, essentially recording her thoughts in a journal over the winter / spring before she met Michael. I have a memory of her being quite mysterious and enigmatically in Skellig and was… Continue reading My Name Is Mina, David Almond
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A Monster Calls, Patrick Ness
Oh, this is an extraordinary book! There are very few books that make me feel genuinely emotional and (a very little bit) teary but this was one. There is something about in simplicity of the prose, the inevitability of the ending, the unflinching acceptance of extraordinary and unavoidable pain, the wonderful mythic nature of the… Continue reading A Monster Calls, Patrick Ness
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The Blasphemer, Nigel Farndale
16.2.2012 Just about to start this: good reviews on Goodreads and an interesting cover... All bodes well! 18.2.2012 Finding the dialogue in this book the most irksome thing. The characters seem likeable enough, the war scenes are impressively described, some of the narrative is genuinely witty and has been read out loud to my wife.… Continue reading The Blasphemer, Nigel Farndale
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Tsotsi, Athol Fugard
Finished reading this now, waiting for students at school to catch up! If only some damn fool of a teacher just let them read it instead of teaching it and making them do work on it! Oh well! This is an outstanding book! The quality of the writing literally glitters on the page and the… Continue reading Tsotsi, Athol Fugard
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Iron Angel, Alan Campbell
Having read Scar Night some years ago and noticing it and it's sequels online, I downloaded them. I had memories of the city of Deepgate, suspended over an Abyss like the gaping maw of some vast creature (urban planning council had a lot to answer for!). I recalled a scarred feral angel whose monthly bloodletting… Continue reading Iron Angel, Alan Campbell
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Faceless Killers, Henning Mankell
I'm not sure why but I had high hopes for Kurt Wallander. Perhaps it was the fact that it had been adapted for TV, wherein he was played by Kenneth Branagh; perhaps it was because I'd read some good reviews. And certainly the opening chapter of Faceless Killers looked set to fulfil those hopes. An… Continue reading Faceless Killers, Henning Mankell
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