Difference between revisions of "Book Reviews From The Bookbag"

People - Mum, mostly - are keeping secrets from Oli. Why have they had to leave London and come to live in the country with Uncle Rob? Why hasn't Dad come too? Why does everyone keep turning off the TV news every time it comes on? Why does Em's dad dislike Oli when he doesn't even know him? When will Dad come? When will life go back to normal? Full review...

I Used to Know That: English by Patrick Scrivenor

Reference

I doubt that there can be anything more unnerving than reviewing a book written by someone who is an expert in written English. I've even worried about that first sentence. But at school I loved English Grammar and a good deal of it has stuck. I'm conscious of being pedantic about mistakes other people make - but increasingly aware that there are gaps in my own knowledge which should be plugged. This book seemed like the ideal opportunity, but I'll confess that the subtitle 'Stuff You Forgot From School' made me nervous I was going to be back to reading a school textbook. Full review...

The Price of Fish A New Approach to Wicked Economics and Better Decisions by Michael Mainelli and Ian Harris

Business and Finance

Don't be put off by the title. The Price of Fish isn't just a treatise on how the local fishmonger chooses to mark up his prize catch. Full review...

The Relic Guild by Edward Cox

Fantasy

The Genii War was so devastating that now, 40 years later, the world is a dismally different place. The Labyrinth, once a hub permitting access to unlimited locations is now a prison. The police, under the control of the Resident and his especially enabled Relic Guild, maintain order. The war may have left lasting reverberations but at least the Genii have been destroyed. If they hadn't been, combine their malevolent presence with the fact that the Relic Guild is not as strong in numbers as they once were and things could worsen considerably. Errrr… Labrys, we have a problem! Full review...

I Used to Know That: Maths by Chris Waring

Reference

Maths teacher Chris Waring starts this book with the basics and gradually works his (and our) way through to about the level of GCSE. It's only 192 pages, so you can't expect it to be exhaustive but the great thing is that it isn't exhausting. Waring explains concepts clearly and with humour but most importantly he shows why the subject is important and how it can be applied to life, covering such subjects as winning - or failing to win - the lottery and the chances of being dealt a royal flush at poker. It's not just the examples which are new - it's a major improvement on the 'you will learn this because I'm telling you that you have to' approach which blighted the subject for so many of us. Full review...

Young Sherlock: Stone Cold by Andrew Lane

Teens

Every human being is a mystery, even to themselves, so there's a particular pleasure to be found in tracing the roots of someone's interests and life's work. Just how did our hero develop his ability, for example, to tell a person's character, profession and history within minutes of meeting him or her? In this, the seventh volume in the series of books about the early years of the famous Sherlock Holmes, we see how events and a most intriguing couple of mentors combine to lead him down a path to his eventual role as a consulting detective. Well, if he survives till adulthood, that is. Of all his talents the most pronounced one does seem to be the knack of finding people who are determined to kill him. Full review...

The Oxford Treasury of Nursery Rhymes by Sarah Williams and Karen King

When it comes to nursery rhymes, what you learn at your Mother’s knee as a baby is gospel. Recently I have expanded my repertoire courtesy of Cheshire libraries excellent rhyme time activities, but at heart I still can't quite come to terms with the librarian saying 'washed the spider out as opposed to my mum’s washed poor Incey out'. Sadly, Williams’ and King’s compendium The Oxford Treasury of Nursery Rhymes doesn’t take my Mum’s side in this. Full review...

Delicious! by Ruth Reichl

Billie is interning at a foodie magazine with a long history. It’s been based in the same building for many decades, so you can imagine the secrets hidden within the walls. Every recipe they've ever published, for example, is archived, so if you want the special brioche bread and butter pudding you first tasted in winter 1991, you can contact them and ask for the details. That’s part of Billie’s job, and she quite enjoys it, but then something even better comes out of the archives. A series of letters written during the war that send Billie on a mad mystery tour throughout the building and beyond. With a dash of ingenuity, a pinch of spunk and a big ol’ dollop of enthusiasm, will she be able to get to the bottom of the story? Full review...

Mambo In Chinatown by Jean Kwok

The daughter of an immigrant noodle maker, who lives with her father and younger sister in a one room apartment in Chinatown, is not the sort of person you might imagine as a skilled and elegant dancer. And, indeed, Charlie isn’t any of those things as we meet her. By day she washes pots in her father’s restaurant, by night she encourages her sister Lisa to succeed in school and succeed in a way that Charlie herself wasn’t able to. But she dreams of more, and when an entry level job at a dance school is advertised, she suddenly wants it more than anything she’s ever wanted, ever. Full review...

Snow by Walter de la Mare

This is a classic poem which has been brought to life in a lovely picture book which is perfect for the run up to Christmas and close after. It captures perfectly the sense of joy around Christmas for young children. Full review...

Dinosaur Poo! by Christyan Fox and Diane Fox

There are two things that I find are always popular topics when it comes to young children; dinosaurs, and poo. This book takes that very much to the next level in this rhyming book all about dinosaur poo. It does what it says on the tin. Full review...

Winnie's Big Bad Robot by Valerie Thomas and Korky Paul

Winnie the Witch is something of an institution in children’s literature these days, and with good reason. From the very first book in the series Valerie Thomas and Korky Paul managed to capture a wonderful sense of fun, mischief and adventure. This addition to the series is no exception. Full review...

Tom Gates Totally Brilliant Annual by Liz Pichon

Fans of Tom Gates are in for an extra treat with the publication of this Totally Brilliant Annual, which announces its presence with a rather 'loud' front cover, replete with starts, arrows, doodles swirls, aliens and stick men in bold, bright primary colours. Full review...

The Shop Girls by Elee Seymour

History

Heyworth's Department Store.

The chances are, you have never heard of it before. I know that I hadn't, before I picked up this book. And yet, there was a time, not so long ago, when everyone in Cambridge would have been familiar with Heyworth's, even if they couldn't afford to shop there themselves. Smaller than most department stores, it offered high-end fashion, childrenswear and millinery, with a staff of smiling, smartly-dressed sales assistants ready to cater to the customer's every whim. It seems sad that with the passing of generations, the very existence of the store seems to have slipped away from the collective consciousness; ask most people in Cambridge if they remember Heyworth's and the majority response would be negative. Full review...

Ghosts of Manhattan by George Mann

New York City - 1926.

A world not quite as we know it. America is locked into a cold war with the British Empire, cars are coal powered and prohibition is still in place across New York. A series of horrific murders are committed throughout the city, and the overworked police force are already overworked dealing with the gangsters and criminals that fill the city.

What is needed, is a hero. And that hero is...The Ghost Full review...

The Rising by Tom Moorhouse

Strife and Kale are two young water voles who can sniff out trouble better than their careful sister Ivy and to the fury of their protective mother, Aven. They just can't help it. But Kale isn't telling Strife everything - he has a secret. When long-lost Uncle Sylvan arrives warning of danger and the siblings eavesdrop on the adults' conversation, Kale's secret is exposed. Even though she doesn't fully understand it, Strife follows her brother into danger to avert a bigger danger. The quest on which these two young water voles embark will test them to their limits and they'll need all the help Uncle Sylvan and Fodur the rat can provide... Full review...

Wolf Brother: Chronicles of Ancient Darkness by Michelle Paver

Living six thousand years ago, after the Ice Age but before the spread of agriculture, Torak and his people understand the natural world. They revere the animals they hunt and never waste an ounce of prey. A deer provides them not only with food, but also with clothes, water carriers, shoes, rope, even needles. Torak and his people also understand spirituality. They see the sacred in the seasons and the cycle of the moon. And they believe in demons. Full review...

On Sudden Hill by Linda Sarah and Benji Davies (Illustrator)

Birt and Etho are best friends. They spend hours together playing on Sudden Hill. Usually they play with large cardboard boxes imagining that they are pirates, or soldiers or maybe kings but always they are the best of friends. Then one day another little boy, Shu, brings his box to Sudden Hill and asks if he can play too. The three boys sit in their boxes together and imagine that they are dragon slayers or skyscraper dancers but Birt feels strange. He misses the two-by-two rhythm he had shared with Etho. Can the boys make a friendship of two become three? Full review...

Wreaking by James Scudamore

Literary Fiction

A derelict mental hospital, gloomy railway arches, the bleak countryside of the English coast. It all comes at us in grey flashes. If Wreaking was a film, it would saturated with cool tones. It’s an easy novel to visualise: Scudamore’s spare, elegant style creates an almost palpable atmosphere. Full review...

Victoria: A Life by A N Wilson

Biography

Every few years, it seems, we are presented with another generously-sized biography of Queen Victoria. How many times can another author follow Elizabeth Longford, Stanley Weintraub, or Christopher Hibbert to name but three, produce 500 pages or more and still say something new about her? Can the blurb’s claim that this shows us the sovereign ‘as she’s never been seen before’ really be justified? Fortunately it can, for even more than a century after her death, there is still new material from previously unseen sources to add to what we already know about her. Full review...

Summers of Discontent by Raymond Tallis and Julian Spalding

Art

Raymond Tallis is what some people may refer to as a Renaissance Man. He is a doctor (specifically, a neurologist), a philosopher, a poet and a cultural critic. Summers of Discontent: The Purpose of the Arts Today is a collection of excerpts from Tallis’s numerous other works, extracted and collated by Julian Spalding – curator and Tallis’ contemporary. It’s a testament to the free-flowing, all-encompassing way in which Tallis writes that these excerpts sit next to each other seamlessly; they feel like one complete discussion, which is an achievement in itself. Full review...

Found by Harlan Coben

Teens

It's been eight months since Mickey watched his father die in a car accident. Since then, he's been drawn into the work of the mysterious Abeona Shelter, rescuing children and young people from dangerous situations. The latest person to go missing is Ema's online boyfriend. Mickey isn't convinced he exists, but Ema's adamant they need to look for him. Meanwhile, Mickey's nemesis Troy has been taken off the basketball team after failing a steroid test. Troy isn't exactly Mickey's favourite person, but he knows the team won't play so well without him, so when Troy asks Mickey for help to prove his innocence, Mickey reluctantly agrees. Full review...

Darkness, Darkness: Resnick's Last Case by John Harvey

Crime

It's difficult to believe that it's thirty years since the miners' strike, not least because a lot of the enmities still live on. It wasn't so much that it was the miners against the government and the police as the fact that it was neighbour against neighbour - and sometimes the problem was within a family. The Nottinghamshire miners were less militant than some of their northern counterparts - and many continued to work. And so it was in Bledwell Vale. The pit there was just about played out and was scheduled for closure, so many men were continuing to work, despite the picketing. Six months after the end of the strike the pit did close, but there was no magic solution for Bledwell Vale and thirty years on another row of the old Coal Board houses was being demolished when the skeleton of a woman was discovered. Full review...

The Lives of the Famous and the Infamous: Everything You Need To Know About Everyone Who Mattered by The Week

Biography

To describe a book as unputdownable is a pretty bold claim to make. Jeremy O'Grady, editor-in-chief of The Week does just that in the foreword to The Lives of the Famous and the Infamous, a collection of obituaries from the weekly magazine. Thankfully, his bold judgement is largely spot on.

For those unfamiliar, The Week collates the best offerings from print media outlets around the world, condenses them into smaller chunks, adds a little of its own commentary and creates a highly concise and entertaining look at the news. Full review...

Havana Sleeping by Martin Davies

Historical Fiction

Hector, a night watchman is murdered at work. There's nothing unusual about that – it happens all the time. The reason being that this is Havana halfway through the 19th century; a place of intrigue, political posturing (and worse) as pro- and anti-slavery conflicts cause bubbles under the surface of society. It's a place where an apparently lowly British civil servant like George Backhouse can be posted to influential positions. It's a place where the Americans don't trust the British, the British don't trust the Americans and everyone fears what the Spanish may do. Meanwhile a courtesan named Leonarda just wants to find out why the man she loved died. Full review...

Never too Small by Zanib Mian and Laura Ewing Ferrer

There was once a young boy who didn't try to do things because he felt that he was too small, but he was lucky. He had a good friend and that friend wrote him a letter to tell him that people are never too small, or too big, or too old to try something new. There was also a little girl and she was afraid of the dark. It was her brother who wrote her a letter to tell her that he would always be there for her. There was the boy who wouldn't try new things to eat, the young girl who was afraid of heights, a boy who was terrified about going to school and a girl who was frightened of spiders. They all had that special someone who took the time to write them the letter which gave them the confidence to overcome their fears. Full review...

The Complete Guide to Quilting Techniques: Essential Techniques and Step-by-Step Projects for Making Beautiful Quilts by Pauline Brown

Crafts

Quilting is a generic term covering patchwork, quilting itself and appliqué. All three require different skills and you'll find them all covered to a greater or lesser extent in this gorgeous book. There's an introduction covering the origin of the skills - patchwork developing amongst the pioneer women of early America for whom it was an essential way of keeping their families warm, as did quilting and for much the same reason. Appliqué is rather more decorative and luxurious and the original appliqué quilts were made to commemorate special occasions. Don't think that quilting is a craft mired in the past though - over my lifetime I've seen numerous developments and tried many of them for myself. Full review...

A Replacement Life by Boris Fishman