Book Reviews From The Bookbag
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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Eden Summer by Liz Flanagan
Best friends for longer than they can remember, Jess and Eden have always been there for each other, through the good and the bad, though there's been a lot more of the latter over the last year. They've needed each other for support more than ever. But now, Eden is missing. The police are on the case, but Jess is wracked with worry. Overwhelmed by grief, Eden hasn't been herself all summer, her behaviour erratic and often veering towards the dangerous. Desperate to find Eden, Jess takes the search into her own hands. As she makes her way through the West Yorkshire countryside, she finds herself retracing the summer she and Eden spent together, digging up buried memories and secrets in the hope that they might yield some insight into where her friend might be. Full review...
Rose in the Blitz by Rebecca Stevens
Rose's father died a while back. She still misses him, even though life goes on and her mother is remarrying tomorrow. Rose knows deep down that Sal is a nice guy but, but, but... a wedding? It's sent her into a spin. Sal doesn't smell right. His woolly jumpers are embarrassing. His beard is weird. Rose isn't looking forward to the wedding. Full review...
Captain Firebeard's School for Pirates by Chas Strathie and Anna Chernyshova
How do you become a pirate? I'm guessing you just fall into the job – after all, with only so many waterways and so much treasure to go round, you'd never have one pirate teaching another all he knows, would you? Well, in the world of this book you would – for the most peculiar-looking pirate ship is the Rusty Barnacle, and it is, as you'd guess, where Captain Firebeard teaches his pupils in the language and history of pirates. But have innocent Tommy, nervous Milton and gung-ho tomboy Jo bitten off more than they can chew? Or can their plans to surprise their teachers actually bring home the loot? Full review...
This is Not a Science Book: A Smart Art Activity Book by Clive Gifford
This is Not a Science Book explores the often-overlooked link between science and creativity. This interactive book encourages readers to get cutting, glueing, twisting, colouring and shading in order to create a variety of at-home experiments that are as entertaining as they are educational. The activities are also perfect for a rainy day; making this book a welcome resource during the long (and often wet) school holidays. Full review...
Animal Babies by Laura Barwick
Let's face it: with a fluffy lion cub on the cover, inviting readers to take a peek inside, only the most hard-hearted of individuals could resist the temptation to pick up Animal Babies to explore the further delights within its pages. Once hooked, the reader is rewarded with a visual feast of adorable baby creatures, each page seemingly cuter than the last. Full review...
Dear Charlie by N D Gomes
I can't fathom a bigger emotional mess for someone to have left behind. I wonder if you know that this would happen. I wonder if you thought about anything at all before you walked into that assembly hall at 8:22 am on the last day of school. N.D Gomes has written an exceptional novel on a controversial and relevant subject today with gun laws in question across the world. Dear Charlie is set in England in 1996, the same year in which Scotland was devastated by the Dunblame school massacre, and analyses life after an 18-year-old Charlie, student at Pembrook Academy, shoots and kills 14 people before turning the gun on himself. The novel is narrated by Sam, Charlie's younger brother, who at 16 has to pick up the pieces after the shocking event. The novel depicts how Charlie's family come to terms with his loss, how they're treated by the community, as well as the constant pressure on their lives by the media. Forced to move to a new school, Sam tries to make a new start and leave the past behind, but Charlie is never far from his thoughts. Full review...
Let's Sing and Play by Emily Bolam
Monkeys are vocal animals and if you walk through the jungle you may hear them scream. Perhaps they have just slid down an elephant's trunk or maybe they are just attempting to sing? Having a child means that you will start to hear the same rhymes over and over again, so if it takes a few cheeky monkeys to teach us a few new ones, I am happy with that. Just don't let them jump on top of my car at the Safari Park. Full review...
Driving Mad: Maniacs, Morons and the Advanced Motorist's Club by Graham Fulbright
I passed my driving test when John F Kennedy was in the White House and I've recently had to reapply for my driving licence having achieved a venerable age. When I started driving the roads were kinder, more forgiving places - or put another way, the idiots were fewer and further between. I don't know how long Graham Fulbright has been driving, but he certainly knows his motoring morons and in Driving Mad he brings us a fictional sample of their eccentricities. Well, I'm pretty certain that they're fictional - but these days you never know... Full review...
To the Bright Edge of the World by Eowyn Ivey
If you're going to go pioneering across unexplored lands, at least be prepared to accept what you seek – namely, what you've never seen before. That lesson seems quite obvious, but back in the time of 1885 Allen Forrester is a little too naïve to heed it. A career soldier, he is tasked with scouring the potential of the Wolverine River that threads south to the shores of Alaska, even though the Russians (who of course used to own the Territory) have had all manner of lethal encounters with those already living there, and even though a major stretch of the river has to be traversed in winter when entirely frozen over, as the cliffs either side are too impenetrable. Allen leaves a much younger, new bride behind – and right from the get-go his journals force him to pen words about strange happenings, strange encounters and things of legend coming to life. Like I say, what he's never seen before… Full review...
Animal Magic by Phil Allcock and Gina Maldonado
Having read many children's books in recent years I have come to know the concept of nonsense rhymes. I don't mean silly adventures that happen to be written in rhyming couplets; I mean bad rhymes. The best books for sharing should have fluidity to them, the story simply rolls off the tongue as you turn the pages. Too many times I have read a book in which the rhymes just don't scan and you end up tripping over your words. So as this book is part of the Nonsense Animal Rhymes series, does the nonsense come from the story being daft, or because the rhymes are nonsensical? Full review...
The Arty Book by Nikalas Catlow and David Sinden
Arty is your creative friend. He is the star of this art activity book from Nikalas Catlow and David Sinden. He's a bit brusque on the first page. This is Arty announces a big, black arrow. And Arty commands, Colour me in. Who could resist? Because Arty is a winsome little figure with nutty, curly hair and great big red glasses. On the cover, those red glasses spell book and they look unruly and exciting, don't you think? Full review...
The First First Gentleman by Gerald Weaver
Anyone picking up The First First Gentleman might be forgiven for snorting with laughter and making a sarcastic comment about how timely and potentially satirical it sounds. In a way they’d be right – but probably for different reasons. Full review...
Bicycling to the Moon by Timo Parvela
Bicycling to the Moon is a series of short stories which all centre around two main characters: Purdy the cat and Dexter the dog who live together in a sky-blue house on the top of a hill. Purdy is a somewhat selfish cat who demonstrates rather impulsive behaviour and is always rushing around, whereas Baxter is much more refined, thoughtful and is careful to make the right choices. Each story works as an individual tale which could be read out of order; however there is a seasonal progression to the order of the book. Full review...
Boris Babysits by Sam Lloyd
Leaving your child with someone for the first time is a daunting task for any new parent. You want to pick someone for this task that you can trust; a sensible person who has some experience looking after a baby. Perhaps a parent, sibling or a good friend? The person that you are unlikely to pick is Boris. Not only is he irresponsible, he also happens to be a monster. Full review...
The Originals: The Secret History of the Birth of the SAS by Gordon Stevens
The SAS is a regiment shrouded in secrecy. Since its spectacular rise to fame during the Iranian Embassy siege in 1978, it has become a part of myth and folklore. The paradox is that more words have probably been written about this organisation than any other military unit in the world. Some are well researched, and have a genuine historical perspective on the regiments operations and activities. Others are pure fantasy, which add little, other than further the mystique of a regiment that lives in the shadows. The Originals provides a fresh perspective. It tells the story of the birth of the SAS, by the people who were there. In a series of long forgotten interviews, the regiment is brought to life with fresh insight and wonderful anecdotes. Full review...
Dogs on Instagram by @dogsofinstagram
I'm a sucker for dogs: I can't walk past one in the street without stopping and having a conversation, sometimes without bothering to speak to the owners, so a book of pictures of dogs was going to be right up my street. The wildly popular @dogs_of_instagram, run by Ahmed El Shourbagy and his wife Ashley and launched just four years ago gives us this book of over four hundred photographs of dogs. Originally I had no intention of reviewing it: in fact I wasn't even intending to read the book, just to have a quick flick through, but within five minutes I was showing other people in the office the picture of the Weimaraner riding a bicycle. Full review...
Wild Life by Liam Brown
Adam Britman goes from a man with it all to homeless in the sniff of a line. While looking for somewhere to sleep Adam comes across an alternative community in the local park. They've come together and created structure (including an unofficial allotment) out of the disorder that's normally equated with living on the streets. It seems perfect so Adam joins them, but perfection can sometimes be an illusion. As for walking away… that's not going to be easy. Full review...
Unboxed by Non Pratt
When they were thirteen there had been five of them: Alix, Ben, Dean, Millie and Zara, and they had made a promise to return to the school where they had hidden a memory box five years later. Only five years later there are only four of them: Millie had died of stomach cancer. The remaining four are nervous about what they might find in the box, worried about what their thirteen-year-old selves might reveal about who they are now, but most of all they're missing Millie. Full review...
Lie with Me by Sabine Durrant
Paul is lots of things. A writer. A famous name (or at least he was a few years ago). A bit of a snob. A cheapskate. A ladies' man. And a liar. Oh boy, is he a liar. He fibs, he exaggerates, he omits, he tells porkies. Not about the really big stuff, nothing that will hurt anyone, just a few mistruths to see him through. It's for keeping up appearances, really. Full review...
Build Your Own Website: Create with Code by CoderDojo
The Nanonauts want a website for their band, and who better to build it for them than the CoderDojo network of free computing clubs for young people? In this handbook, created in conjunction with the CoderDojo Foundation, children of seven plus will learn how to build a website using HTML, CSS and Javascript. Don't worry too much if some of those words don't mean anything to you - all will be made clear as you read through the book. There's also information about how to start a CoderDojo Nano club with friends - which has great benefits in terms of harnessing creativity, learning how to code - and the benefits of teamwork. Full review...
The Trouble with Henry and Zoe by Andy Jones
Stop for a moment and look down at your belly, in the centre you should have something that looks a little bit like a button. It may be an innie, or an outie, but just consider it for a few moments. Do you feel better? Nope, you shouldn't do as all that navel-gazing does is make you over think things. However, without the concept a million romantic books would never be written as without the human compulsion to destroy things around them, how can any tension arise? Full review...
A Thousand Nights by E K Johnston
E. K Johnston describes 1000 Nights as a work fashioned around the creation of beautiful crafts charged with magic. She confesses that her setting is not historically accurate, explaining, I cheated a bit, because the usual date for the stories ranges from Middle Persian literature to the Caliphate Era, and I set the book about two thousand years before that. Her locations are beautifully evoked and based on her sensory experiences as an archaeologist in Jordan. A Turkish bath in Amman, the Umayyad palace on top of the Amman Citadel and the swirling sands at Wadi Rum are just a few sources she has used to recreate the spirit of Lo Melkhiin's dangerous qasr [Middle Eastern palace] juxtaposed with the mercurial nature of his wife's desert home. Full review...
Cuckoo by Keren David
Jake is a household name thanks to his role on the UK's most popular soap opera. But his character went upstairs to his bedroom six months ago and never came down again, and now Jake is facing an uncertain future. Add to that his dad's anger issues, the family's precarious finances and the demands of a severely autistic brother; Jake's home feels like a powder keg waiting to explode. It's easier to spend nights on friends' sofas and futons, but what happens when you feel like a cuckoo in every nest? Full review...
Charles Brandon: Henry VIII's Closest Friend by Steven Gunn
Charles Brandon, Duke of Suffolk, was almost unique in Tudor history in that he was a close friend and companion – in fact the closest – of King Henry VIII throughout the latter's reign, never really fell out of favour, and had the good fortune to die peacefully in his bed, just eighteen months before his notoriously capricious royal patron. Full review...
The Unseeing by Anna Mazzola
1837: Sarah Gale is found guilty of aiding and abetting James Greenwood in the murder of Hannah, his fiancée. It's particularly gruesome as the body was brutally dismembered and left in various locations around London. Bound for the gallows and fearing for the future of her young son George, Sarah petitions for mercy from the Home Office and, as a result, the Home Secretary appoints barrister Edmund Fleetwood to re-investigate the case. Edmund approaches it with an open mind but nothing prepares him for what he'll discover and not just in the professional realm. Full review...
Acts of Love by Talulah Riley
Bernadette St John presents herself as the very face of contemporary feminine independence. She is strong, career-driven, beautiful…and definitely holds the attention of the public. For Bernadette is the Man Whisperer, winning herself fame with her ability to coax secrets from the richest and most powerful men of the world, exposing them with controversial distaste in her articles. Hidden behind such a conniving and judgemental persona, however, is a deep insecurity, and a desperate longing to be loved by the perfect man. She has already decided that the newly engaged Tim Bazier is the only candidate for such a position in her heart, and will stop at nothing to win him back from his all-too-lovely fiancé. Yet what is perfect is a subject for discussion, and charismatic entrepreneur Radley Blake's unwavering attention has also fallen upon the feisty journalist. It is a weaving tale of will-they-wont-they that Riley spins here, one that I found myself unable to put down. Full review...
