Difference between revisions of "Book Reviews From The Bookbag"
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| − | |summary= | + | |summary=Born in North London in February 1940 during the early years of the Second World War, David John White once had a brief career as an electrician. Fortunately for the world of entertainment and the public, he soon forsook the world of fuses and wires for that of the stage and small screen. When he joined Equity, they already had a David White on their records, and after a little quick thinking on the phone, he became David Jason. |
| − | Born in North London in February 1940 during the early years of the Second World War, David John White once had a brief career as an electrician. Fortunately for the world of entertainment and the public, he soon forsook the world of fuses and wires for that of the stage and small screen. When he joined Equity, they already had a David White on their records, and after a little quick thinking on the phone, he became David Jason. | ||
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1780891407</amazonuk> | |amazonuk=<amazonuk>1780891407</amazonuk> | ||
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Revision as of 12:55, 20 October 2013
The Bookbag
Hello from The Bookbag, a book review site, featuring books from all the many walks of literary life - fiction, biography, crime, cookery and anything else that takes our fancy. At Bookbag Towers the bookbag sits at the side of the desk. It's the bag we take to the library and the bookshop. Sometimes it holds the latest releases, but at other times there'll be old favourites, books for the children, books for the home. They're sometimes our own books or books from the local library. They're often books sent to us by publishers and we promise to tell you exactly what we think about them. You might not want to read through a full review, so we'll give you a quick review which summarises what we felt about the book and tells you whether or not we think you should buy or borrow it. There are also lots of author interviews, and all sorts of top tens - all of which you can find on our features page. If you're stuck for something to read, check out the recommendations page.
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My Life by David Jason
Born in North London in February 1940 during the early years of the Second World War, David John White once had a brief career as an electrician. Fortunately for the world of entertainment and the public, he soon forsook the world of fuses and wires for that of the stage and small screen. When he joined Equity, they already had a David White on their records, and after a little quick thinking on the phone, he became David Jason. Full review...
Murder on a Summer's Day: (Kate Shackleton Mysteries) by Frances Brody
It was Kate Shackleton's cousin in the India Office who sought her help to find Maharajah Narayan who had gone out hunting on the Bolton Abbey Estate and not returned, although his horse - a flighty Arab - returned riderless. The following morning a body was found - but this proved to be one of the grooms who had accompanied Narayan earlier in the day. Had he slipped jumping across the Strid and drowned? The jump across the river Wharfe looked tempting and people were warned of the dangers, but it was known that young men regularly crossed that way rather than walking to the wooden bridge or the stepping stones. Later in the day Narayan's body was found. He'd been shot through the heart and a clumsy attempt had been made to hide the body - but only Kate Shackleton believed that there was foul play. The authorities seemed determined that what had happened would be written off as 'a tragic accident'. Full review...
The End of Plagues: The Global Battle Against Infectious Disease by John Rhodes
In The End of Plagues, the remarkably clear voice of immunologist John Rhodes takes one through significant moments in man’s battle against infectious diseases. The artillery on which Rhodes focuses is that of the vaccine, which has taken us further away from the extreme grip infections once had on the course of history. The book starts with the example of smallpox, for which Edward Jenner first made a vaccine, having been in a world where variolation was on the rise. Between Jenner’s first serum transfer – from an immune milkmaid to a servant’s son – and the present day, several vaccines have been developed against ailments such as measles, various influenzas, and polio. Full review...
Close Your Eyes by Ewan Morrison
1981: Emma remembers driving through a blizzard. That is, her mother was driving, she was just a child. She remembers her mother singing. Throughout everything, what she remembers, what everyone remembers, is how her mother sang. Actually, she remembers lots of other things about her mother. Snippets mostly. Then she remembers losing her… being dropped in London at her Dad's, who didn't really seem like the dad she remembered… then the Social taking her away. Full review...
Empress Dowager Cixi by Jung Chang
It’s easy to see why Jung Chang selected Cixi as the focal point for her study of China’s tumultuous modern history. Cixi is a truly fascinating woman, one of few human beings whose existence can be honestly said to have shaped the course of history. Cixi’s biography is not only a fascinating read due to her own political machinations, but also because of the immense transformations that occurred in China during her lifetime. Jung Chang offers a detailed exploration of the period from Cixi’s entrance to court in 1852 to her death in 1908, during which time the ancient dynastic customs of China gave way to the advent of the industrial age. Full review...
The Book Of Space: All About Stars, Planets and Rockets! by Clive Gifford
There's always a danger in putting a definitive article in the name of a children's non-fiction book title. Luckily enough this volume does go almost as far as making itself definitive, with a lot of numbers and facts, yet a delivery that makes all of those and the theories and terminology it uses all palatable to the browser, and still manages to throw in the redundant unfunny cartoons at the side. In using an intelligent system of going through all the subjects under the broad subject of space, with none of the tables, box-outs and so on other editors choose, this proves one of the more sober, measured and successful books of its kind. Full review...
Bridget Jones: Mad About The Boy by Helen Fielding
Bridget, as you might have heard, is back. Some things have changed (she’s now a mother! And in her, ahem, 50s) and some things haven’t (she still has dating disasters and drinks wine as if it were water) but the most important thing of all is that she’s still Bridget, and she’s still journaling her life for our amusement. Full review...
A Piece of Danish Happiness by Sharmi Albrechtsen
Sharmi Albrechtsen was a true Hindu-American princess. Obsessed with shoes and handbags and designer labels, she saw status and wealth as the only route to happiness. But she wasn't happy enough, no matter how much designer gear she owned. And it wasn't until 1997, when she married her second husband, a Dane, and relocated to Denmark, that she began to wonder if it was something lacking in herself, rather than her possessions, that was at the root of her problems. Full review...
The Tailypo: A Ghost Story by Joanna Galdone and Paul Galdone
The Tailypo is an old story from Appalachian folklore. It has not been tamed down at all like so many of the old stories but retains all its original spine-tingling terror for the very young. Although it is listed as ghost story, it really is not. Instead it the story of a strange beast which is best left well alone. Full review...
Where's the Zombie? by Paul Moran and Jen Wainright
Where's the Zombie is basically a hidden pictures game, but unlike most books of this type, there is some storyline to it as well albeit a very limited one. It all begins when scientist Joel Peters is accidentally exposed to a new virus he was helping to create ZX-5. He is then quarantined with his whole family, right down to the dog and cat. Naturally they are all infected, and isn't long before they escape. The future of mankind is in your hands as this family must be located to learn more about how this disease operates. Your job is to search every page, find each and every family member as well as the medical kit to treat the infected. Your task will get more difficult as the infection spreads and more and more of the bystanders have become zombies as well. Full review...
Amelia Grey's Fireside Dream by Abby Clements
Amelia and Jack live in a cramped flat in Hackney where they hardly have room to swing a cat. They can't afford to upgrade in London but maybe a small cottage away from the city could be affordable. When Amelia is overlooked for a promotion at the school she teaches in it feels that the time is right for a change. After their dream cottage is sold to another buyer, they discover Brambledown Cottage. It looks to be just what they are after; however, do they really know just how much work they are taking on? Full review...
Demon Dentist by David Walliams
He ought to have realised she was evil from the start. After all, how many dentists do you know who love — yes, really love — rotten teeth? Brown, yellow, cracked, full of cavities, diseased, covered in plaque . . . you get the picture. And for Alfie, a boy who loathes dentists from the bottom of his heart and whose teeth are so rotten they ought to be a tourist attraction, danger definitely looms. You can practically hear the background music when the two meet at a school assembly: dum-dum-DUUUUMMMMMM!!!! Full review...
Bertie: A Life of Edward VII by Jane Ridley
Several of the main facts about King Edward VII (1841-1910) are reasonably well-known. Considered oversexed by his parents, Queen Victoria and the Prince Consort, he was blamed by the former for breaking the latter's heart and causing his early death with the news that he (Edward) had enjoyed himself with a lady of the night. He was notoriously unfaithful to his charming but prematurely deaf and lame wife Alexandra, hated reading books and learning but became a first-class unofficial ambassador to courts and countries abroad, and despite low expectations of others and poor health he made an excellent King for the last nine years of his life. Full review...
Peas and Queues: The Minefield of Modern Manners by Sandi Toksvig
Dear Sandi
You are my all time favourite celebrity lesbadyke, and one of the reasons I’m so very excited to be heading to Denmark this coming weekend (are all people there like you? Please say yes). For this alone, I had to get my mitts on your latest offering. I wasn’t that fussed about obtaining a book on manners previously, having always thought mine were quite ok, but I knew your take on the matter would be suitably hilarious and well worth a read. I was not wrong. Full review...
The Explorer Gene by Tom Cheshire
The Explorer Gene relates the remarkable story of three generations of the Piccard family, each of whom managed to push the boundaries of travel and break new frontiers. The grandfather, Auguste Piccard was the first human to enter the stratosphere, using en experimental balloon of his own invention. His later work, designing submarines, enabled his son Jacques to become the first person to descend to the bottom of the infamous Mariana trench, setting a world record for the deepest dive. Grandson Bertrand became the first person to fly around the world in a balloon and now seeks to break new records by means of a solar-powered craft that he intends to pilot all the way around the earth. Full review...
The Lion of Sole Bay by Julia Jones
Luke wasn't going away with his mother and brother at half-term. He was planning on spending it with his father restoring an old fishing boat on Fynn Creek. His mother dropped him off on her way to the airport and he sped away to the boat to wait for his father. Angel needed excitement and that was how she ended up in the locked boatyard with some lads and it was their larking around which knocked the prop from under a boat which then toppled and trapped a workman. The lads dashed away with Angel's screams to ring for an ambulance ringing in their ears. Angel stayed with the man until she heard the sirens. The man was Luke's father. Full review...
Enormouse by Angie Morgan
Enormouse isn’t quite like the other mice. He’s big. Really big. And while his great size can be a useful thing (he can reach into high cupboards when they’re foraging, he can carry more cheese), that doesn’t stop the others laughing at him. Full review...
Haze by Paula Weston
Gaby Winter's life used to be pretty ordinary. Apart the horrific nightmares she sometimes had about a guy and a nightclub and the death of her brother, Jude, things were going okay. Until the mysterious Rafa showed up and told her she was actually one of the Rephaim - a child of a fallen angel - and that she lived a whole other life that she can't remember, where she and Jude were warriors against demons, but on two opposite sides. The other Rephaim thought she was dead. And now they think there's a chance Jude might be alive somewhere too. Full review...
The Commitments by Roddy Doyle
It's the mid to late 1980s, and Outspan, Derek and Ray have just formed a band. The trio is three days old, with 'Ray on the Casio and his little sister's glockenspiel, Outspan on his brother's acoustic guitar, [and] Derek on nothing', as he can't afford a bass. They already feel directionless. They don't mind Depeche Mode, but Derek and Outspan draw the line at The Human League, which is one of Ray's favourite groups. Such musical differences are already darkening the band's conception. There is also a problem with their name: And And And. Ray believes they should have an explanation mark after the second And, as it would 'look deadly on the posters'. Outspan, however, thinks Ray's an idiot, and tells him where to stick his second exclamation mark. But Outspan has a plan. They need to find Jimmy Rabbitte, for when it comes to music, Jimmy knows. Full review...
Miss Dorothy-Jane Was Ever So Vain by Julie Fulton and Jona Jung
Miss Dorothy-Jane is very much obsessed with her appearance, so when she sees there’s a competition to find Hamilton Shady’s best lady she just has to enter! She spends ever such a long time perfecting her look but on the way to the contest, disaster strikes. Will she realise that there’s more to life than looks, and sacrifice her chance to win a meet and greet with the Queen (yes, her Majesty!)? Can she do the right thing, even if she gets all dirty and dishevelled in the process? I’m sure you can guess the outcome, but the final ending was a surprise, even for me. A nice surprise, I should add. Full review...
What can you Stack on the Back of a Yak? by Alison Green and Adam Stower
You might be wondering why anyone would want to stack anything on the back of a yak, but the answer is simple. In this adorable tale, Captain Quack and the Yak (you’ve guessed it, this is a rhyming one) deliver post to the top of a mountain. Along the way the Yak likes to play, and, well, deviate from the track, and no matter how hard he tries, Captain Quack cannot control him. Uh oh. One day, the Yak ends up with a rather more interesting load than his usual parcels and boxes and sacks. Full review...
Mr Tiger Goes Wild by Peter Brown
There’s something special about tigers. And there’s definitely something special about Mr Tiger. He’s the star of Peter Brown’s picture book, ‘Mr Tiger Goes Wild’. This distinctive book takes the themes of fitting in and being true to who you are, and explores them through the character of one animal who challenges the status quo and dares to be different. Full review...
Global Modernity and Other Essays by Tom Rubens
It’s been difficult to write this review. The book’s eclectic nature, with subject matter ranging from Nietzsche to the English Police Force, makes it difficult to summarise and secondly, I’m no academic and philosophy is just HARD Full review...
Bob Books First by Bobby Lynn Maslen and John Maslen
As a home educator, this simple set of books is one of the most essential educational items I own. I've ended up buying 4 sets, as one was given away to a family in desperate straights, one was water damaged, and most recently a few books out of the last set have disappeared. It is the one thing I just can not manage without, so even though I'm sure they'll turn up eventually, I simply can not wait and ordered a fourth set. I have literally invested hundreds of pounds in phonics programmes, and I have some wonderful resources, but as simple as these books are, they are the one set I can not manage without. They break everything down into such simple terms that even the youngest child can easily get a grasp of how to use phonics to decode new words. It is not even necessary for the child to know their alphabet first, although I would recommend waiting until the child not only knows their alphabet, but also can recognise basic shapes and patterns, knows text is read from left to right, and can recognise a couple of words in print, such as their own name. It is possible to teach a very young child, even as young as two or three to read a few of these books, but it really is best to achieve some degree of reading readiness first. Full review...
Ripley's Believe It or Not! 2014 by Robert Leroy Ripley
I don't normally do annuals. I'm afraid too many of the silly cartoon variety put me off the genre, but this is something completely different. It seems a shame to even call it an annual. Instead I would call this an interactive encyclopaedia of the bizarre, unusual, twisted and absolutely delightful facts that challenge you to 'Believe it or not!' Full review...
Under A Silent Moon by Elizabeth Haynes
On the morning of the first of November 2012 the police were called to a cottage just outside a small English village. A popular, attractive young woman had been found dead and murder was suspected. Was it a coincidence that there was then a report of an apparent suicide of a woman who lived close by? Her car had rolled down into a quarry. For DCI Louisa Smith this was her first major incident and it was complicated when she found that the DI on her team was Andy Hamilton. She'd been in a relationship with him and it lasted until she discovered that he was married. Hamilton hadn't given up on her though - he was still convinced that she would come back to him. Not that he planned on it breaking up his marriage, of course. Full review...
One World Together by Catherine Anholt and Laurence Anholt
A child (from an unknown country) is gallivanting throughout the world looking for a friend. He stops in Brazil and meets Paulo. He would be a good friend. Then he’s off to Morocco where he meets Mohamed. He would be a good friend too. You can see where this is going. From country to country we travel, constantly meeting exciting and interesting new children and learning about their lives. They would all be great friends for our little narrator, but who should he choose? Spoiler alert: he realises you don’t have to have just one friend, and in fact all the children of the world can be friends. Awwww. Full review...
The Thirteen Days of Christmas by Jenny Overton and Shirley Hughes (Illustrator)
Since her mother’s death Annaple Kitson, the oldest child in the family, looks after her father, brothers and sister. The family are none too happy about this arrangement since Annaple is a dreadful cook and nags her younger siblings about tidiness, cleanliness and doing things in a proper manner. Annaple dreams of romance and being swept of her feet by a dashing suitor and as Christmas approaches her father, when asked what he would like for a present, rather rashly, says, 'A husband for your sister.' Unfortunately Annaple’s sweetheart, the wealthy Francis Vere, does not match her romantic expectations so the children plan to help Francis win their sister’s hand in marriage. Francis agrees to their plan with enthusiasm and as the days pass the Kitson family home becomes the setting for an amusing and chaotic version of the carol 'The Twelve Days of Christmas.' Full review...
Couture Prairie And Flea Market Treasures by Rachel Ashwell
Shabby Chic has always appealed to me: it fits neatly with my views on recycling, upcycling and generally refusing to replace anything which still looks good and has life left in it. Rachel Ashwell takes this to a whole new level, but her most glorious moment must have been when - on her regular yearly visit to the flea markets of Round Top in Texas - she decided on a whim to buy The Outpost at Cedar Creek and she turned this into The Prairie, a group of buildings which would house her retail store and a B&B which exhibited some of her most treasured finds. As she said herself, her cowboy boots, jeans and love of poetry in country music had come home. Full review...
