The Bookbag
Hello from The Bookbag, a 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. We can even direct you to help for custom book reviews! Visit www.everychildareader.org to get free writing tips and www.genecaresearchreports.com will help you get your paper written for free.
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Botanicum Activity Book by Katie Scott and Kathy Willis
Children and adults who enjoyed Botanicum (Welcome To The Museum) by Katie Scott and Kathy Willis are going to love the Botanicum Activity Book. Don't be misled by the suggestion that the book is aimed at the seven-plus age group: there's plenty in here for anyone who is still capable of holding a pen or pencil. Full review...
See How They Lie by Sue Wallman
Fifteen year-old Mae has only vague memories of life before her dad, an internationally famous psychiatrist, set up Hummingbird Creek. To Mae the strict timetable, stringent exercise routine and perfectly balanced organic diet are normal. The Creek's patients – teens with psychological problems – might find it unnerving to be trapped in the middle of nowhere with no mobile phone or internet but Mae thinks she's lucky. Or she does until a chance incident reveals her parents have been lying about her mum's family. Mae starts to wonder what else they might have lied about. Soon Mae is questioning everything she's been told about Hummingbird Creek with dangerous, and potentially deadly, consequences. Full review...
Beyond Infinity: An expedition to the outer limits of the mathematical universe by Eugenia Cheng
I'm right.
I'm more right.
I'm right times infinity!
I'm right two times infinity!
I'm right times infinity squared!
Most people will have heard, or participated in, this type of childhood argument. It doesn't really make much sense, as we know that infinity goes on forever, and therefore two times infinity and infinity squared cannot be any bigger than infinity itself. But what exactly is infinity? This term has puzzled and intrigued people for generations, and Beyond Infinity sees mathematician Eugenia Cheng take on the challenge of defining infinity and helping us unlock its secrets. Full review...
The Covers of My Book Are Too Far Apart (and other grumbles) by Vivian French and Nigel Baines
I'm too old for bedtime stories, That's a girl's book!, I hate this book but I've got to finish it, I can't find a book that I like. You've probably heard at least one of the grumbles in this book before but have you known how to respond to it? This brilliant picture book will do it for you and is a joyful celebration of all that's wonderful about books and reading. Full review...
Every Hiddden Thing by Kenneth Oppel
Three things stir Samuel's teenaged heart. Duty to his father is one, and another is admiration for the man's career as a dinosaur hunter and aspiration to follow in his tracks. Dad has never been a professor as such, but gets called it anyway, having lucked into being quite a pioneer in the field of finding fossils. And the third thing? Rachel. Not conventionally beautiful, Samuel still finds enough in her to arouse things. But that's where the trouble lies, for Rachel's father and his are confirmed enemies and rivals. And as luck would have it, they're all four headed to the same remote, outlawish region in search of notable remains. How can they be loyal to the science, and to their families, and to their hearts? Full review...
The Twelve Lives of Samuel Hawley by Hannah Tinti
When she turns twelve, Samuel Hawley teaches his daughter, Loo (short for Louise), how to use her grandfather's rifle. Shooting a gun and hotwiring a car prove to be useful skills for this daughter of a fugitive. Hawley is a lawless modern cowboy who's had many close shaves over his years on the run for committing robberies and making dodgy deals. He and his young daughter form a cosy unit of their own; they live off of Chinese food and vending machine snacks in motel rooms and move on every six months or so to avoid the consequences of his criminal activities. But when they get to Olympus, Massachusetts, Hawley decides it's time to settle down. He buys a house by the water – with cash – and becomes a clean-living fisherman. Full review...
When Grandad was a Penguin by Morag Hood
When a little girl goes to stay with her Grandad, she is worried that all is not well. Grandad doesn't seem quite the same, somehow, and he is talking about fish a lot, none of his clothes fit, and he is spending a lot more time in the bathroom. Thankfully, one day the zoo phones up, having discovered a bit of a problem there that might explain what is going on with Grandad! Full review...
The Space Between by Meg Grehan
The Space Between tells the story of Beth, over the course of a year. We see Beth dealing with her mental illness, locked away in her own, personal 'safe' world where she feels she can maintain her happiness by remaining isolated. Mouse the dog, however, has other ideas about this! With the entrance of Mouse into her life there comes, also, Alice and slowly Alice brings both light and love to Beth's world. Full review...
A Perfect Day by Lane Smith
It's a lovely sunny day, and looks as if it may just turn out to be a perfect day, since there is a sunny spot for cat in the flowers, and a paddling pool for dog to cool off in, and bird food in the bird feeder, and a corn cob for squirrel. But, what's this? Here comes bear, lumbering into the garden to eat the corn cob, splash in the water and squash all the flowers! Full review...
The Everywhere Bear by Julia Donaldson and Rebecca Cobb
The Everywhere Bear is an important member of Class One. He enjoys a wide range of activities with the children in his class, such as bus rides and burgers, football and music. One day, when it's the new boy, Matt's, turn to bring the Everywhere Bear back to school Matt sees a cat on the way to school, and he bends over to give it a cuddle. Poor old Bear falls out of Matt's bag and into a puddle. This is the start of the Bear's most exciting (and terrifying!) adventure yet! Full review...
A Distant View of Everything by Alexander McCall Smith
Ah, Isabel Dalhousie! The more I read about Isabel, the more I like her. I could see, in this book in particular, how annoying she could potentially be as a friend, since she is forever gazing off into the distance, heading into her inner imaginings rather than staying focussed on the conversation, and yet I think she would be an interesting, and thought-provoking, sort of friend to have. In this, the eleventh novel in the series, Isabel finds herself once more embroiled in someone else's business. She, and her husband Jamie, are starting to be resigned to the fact that she just can't help but get involved! Mysteries abound, both in this business and in her own family life, as we watch her day to day doings up in Edinburgh. Full review...
The Doctor's Wife is Dead by Andrew Tierney
In 1849 a woman named Ellen Langley died at her home in Nenagh, Co. Tipperary Ireland. She was the wife of a prosperous doctor and came from a well-respected family; so why was she buried in a pauper's coffin? Why had she been confined to the grim attic rooms of the house she shared with her husband and then exiled to rented lodgings in the most impoverished part of their famine-ravaged town? Why had her death caused such uproar and ultimately, why had her husband been charged with murder? Full review...
William Bee's Wonderful World of Trucks by William Bee
Children will be who they are, no matter how you try to change them, they know what they like. You may want to steer one child away from a world of pink and the other from a world of blue, but turn your back for a moment and there they are; one playing with a doll, the other a train. There is nothing wrong with a girl liking traditional girl things and a boy liking traditional boy things, as long as they are given the opportunity to pick what they want. Some books you would assume are for one or the other, but actually transcend; these books are simply cool in their own right. Full review...
New York 2140 by Kim Stanley Robinson
By 2140 sea level has risen by around fifty feet, leaving coastal cities the world over with major problems. Some places will always be desirable, however, and when you've invested a lot of time and money somewhere you're reluctant to leave. Consequently New York remains a thriving, popular place even though half of Manhattan is under water and the streets are now canals. There are still financial traders, local politicians, celebrities, street urchins (albeit known as water rats) sharing the city and getting by. It seems like New York has stabilised into a new, watery normal but when a couple of programmers go missing from a building on Madison Square and some of the other residents start looking into it, a question begins to be asked: Does it have to be this way? Full review...
Beetle Queen by M G Leonard
A modern Cruella De Vil – only with beetles rather than Dalmatians – Lucretia Cutter has a plan: a plan that will dramatically (and theatrically) unleash her latest batch of genetically modified and highly intelligent beetles. The consequences will be devastating for mankind but few realise the danger. Luckily firm friends Darkus, Virginia and Bertolt have figured out that Lucretia Cutter is up to something and are determined to do whatever it takes to stop the evil beetle diva. Full review...
Arthur and the Kings of Britain: The Historical Truth Behind the Myths by Miles Russell
As the author of the Historia Regum Britanniae (History of the Kings of Britain), written in 1136, Geoffrey of Monmouth is commonly recognized as one of the first British historians. His book told – or is supposed to have told - the story of the British monarchy during the Dark Ages, from the arrival of the Trojan Brutus, grandson of Aeneas, up to the seventh century AD when the Anglo-Saxons had taken control of Britain. Being virtually the only work of its kind at the time, it proved very influential, and became well-known throughout western Europe as one of the great works of medieval literature as the first retelling of the story of King Arthur, Lear and Cymbeline. Shakespeare was forever in his debt with regard to the two latter. Full review...
Well of the Winds (DCI Daley) by Denzil Meyrick
It's not a happy time for DCI Jim Daley. The woman he loved is dead - there are those who blame him for what happened - and his relationship with Liz, his ex wife, and his young son is deteriorating by the day. He's finding solace in the bottom of a glass, whilst the man who used to do that all too often, his friend DS Brian Scott is off alcohol completely and has found exercise. There's a new officer in charge at Kinloch - DS Carrie Simmington - and whilst she might look young, it's unlikely that she got to that position without having a core of steel. Full review...
Here Comes the Sun by Nicole Dennis-Benn
You have to assume the team behind the cover sleeve for Nicole Dennis-Benn's debut novel Here Come's the Sun have a keen sense of irony. Either that or none of them read beyond the first page. Full review...
Owen Pendragon by W S Markendale
Monsters are slipping through somehow from somewhere to kidnap children in Cornwall and the army seems powerless to do anything about it. 12-year-olds Owen and Mary assume they too are therefore powerless as they watch friends and neighbours disappear. Imagine their surprise when they realise that thanks to an ancient relative, they have more influence on what happens than they think and not just on what happens on Earth. And their distant relative? The former monarch and head of the round table, no less: King Arthur. Full review...
The Legion of Regrettable Supervillains: Oddball Criminals from Comic Book History by Jon Morris
As much as I like comics – and I do, whether superhero ones or not – I have to admit one thing, namely that the villains in them are a bit pants. What is The Penguin but the world's worst Mafioso, with a hobby of waddling along like his pet birds? Where else do you win an Oscar of all things by playing a two-bit killer who just fell in a vat of random chemicals and changed colour, and got mardier as a result (although recently he's become a nanotech genius – but let's not go there)? And what is it with the gimp in the see-through plant pot because he is the embodiment of cold? And that's just some of the better-known enemies of Batman, one of the better goodies. You can imagine how awful the baddies related to the bad goodies can be. And if you can't, this is the perfect primer. Full review...
Stanly's Ghost: Book 3 (The Bitter Sixteen Trilogy) by Stefan Mohamed
Cynical, solitary Stanly Bird used to be a fairly typical teenager – unless you count the fact that his best friend was a talking beagle named Daryl. Then came the superpowers. And the super powered allies. And the mysterious enemies. And the terrifying monsters. And the stunning revelations. And the apocalypse. Now he's not sure what he is. Or where he is. Or how exactly one is supposed to proceed after saving the world. All he knows is that his story isn't finished. Not quite yet … Full review...
Monkey's Sandwich by Michelle Robinson and Emily Fox
Monkeys have been given the reputation of being cheeky, but do you also see them as petty thieves? How can these cheerful chimps be seen as anything other than cute, but mischievous little monkeys? Anyone who has driven through Knowsley Safari Park knows the truth. A perfectly good car drives in the monkey enclosure only to be bereft of wing mirrors, hubcaps and windscreen wipers at the end. Rumour has it that the monkeys sell these parts wholesale at a lockup in South Kirby. The monkey in this tale may not be stealing car parts, but he is a little light fingered when it comes to making the ultimate lunch. Full review...
The Legacy: Children's House Book 1 by Yrsa Sigurdardottir and Victoria Cribb (translator)
What do you wish for in your murder mysteries? An inventive death? Well you couldn't go much further than the unusual murder by household device that Elisa suffers here. She's a mother to a young family, whose husband was abroad at a conference. Do you seek awkward, unusual and/or conflicted investigators? Well, here we have a detective from the lower ranks, but the only one clean enough after post-financial crash investigations tainted all his superiors; and a woman who runs a home that investigates and recuperates child victims of sex abuse. She's here because the only witness to the murder was Elisa's very young daughter. And lo and behold, the two adults have history. Do you require taunting clues as to why this crime will be repeated? You can't do much better than the messages in numerals received by other characters and their untold threat. So it's tick, tick, tick – but what of the question marks left by the prologue, where another young family of children was separated as a best case scenario by the adoption agencies after a different nasty event in the past? Full review...
The Street Beneath My Feet by Charlotte Guillain and Yuval Zommer
It's one thing for a non-fiction book for the young to show them something they themselves can explore – the pattern of the stars, perhaps, or the life in their back yard. But when it gets to things that are equally important to know about but are impossible to see in real life, why, then the game is changed. The artistic imagination has to be key, in portraying the invisible, and presenting what can only come from the pages of a book. And this example does it at its best, as it delves into the layers of the soil below said back yard, down and down, through all the different kinds of rock, until we reach the unattainable centre of the planet. And there's only one way to go from there – back out the other side, with yet more for us to be shown. It's a fantastic journey, then – and a quite fantastic volume. Full review...
Sometimes I Lie by Alice Feeney
Christmas is barely over but Amber doesn't have much to celebrate. She's in a coma, trapped with an active mind but an inactive body, able to hear and understand but not respond to what is going on around her. And her mind's a little fuzzy on a few things too, like how she ended up there, who else was involved, and what it all means. Full review...
Larchfield by Polly Clark
I It's early summer when a young poet, Dora Fielding, moves to Helensburgh on the west coast of Scotland and her hopes are first challenged. Newly married, pregnant, she's excited by the prospect of a life that combines family and creativity. She thinks she knows what being a person, a wife, a mother, means. She is soon shown that she is wrong. As the battle begins for her very sense of self, Dora comes to find the realities of small town life suffocating, and, eventually, terrifying; until she finds a way to escape reality altogether. Another poet, she discovers, lived in Helensburgh once. Wystan H. Auden, brilliant and awkward at 24, with his first book of poetry published, should be embarking on success and society in London. Instead, in 1930, fleeing a broken engagement, he takes a teaching post at Larchfield School for boys where he is mocked for his Englishness and suspected - rightly - of homosexuality. Yet in this repressed limbo Wystan will fall in love for the first time, even as he fights his deepest fears. Full review...
Choosing the Perfect Puppy by Pippa Mattinson
If you have ever, for even a fleeting moment, thought about getting a puppy, you really ought to read this book. Too many people are carried away in the heat of the moment and must have a particular breed and go ahead without any thought about the consequences. They then have to live with the problems which might have been avoided for a decade or more. The puppy and the adult dog also has to live with an owner who might not be able to accommodate his needs. Pippa Mattinson is my go-to author on matters dog related: she talks sense. She doesn't try to talk you out of getting a particular breed or any puppy: she simply presents the facts and allows you to make your own decisions. Full review...
The Boy, the Bird and the Coffin Maker by Matilda Woods
Alberto is a carpenter, the very best in the town of Allora. But after the plague sweeps through the town, taking many of the citizens and Alberto's wife and children, he turns his skills away from furniture and toys to making coffins. Wrapped in sadness, and waiting only for the plague to come and claim his life too, Alberto lives alone, keeping company with the dead who are delivered to his house to await their coffin. One day, however, he realises that he must have a living visitor, as food starts to go missing. He begins to leave scraps of food, to try and discover who his mystery thief is… Full review...