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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December by Phil Rickman
On December 8th, 1980, a quartet of musicians record an album in the ruins of a haunted abbey. Tragedy strikes, and they split up, deciding never to work together again. Fourteen years later, they're persuaded to return to confront the evil they discovered - but can they find a way to stop it? Full review...
Afterworld by Lois Walden
The Duvalier family owe their wealth to sugar cane although their gratitude is shown in varying degrees and various ways. From the patriarch William (who never recovered from being hit by a manhole cover) through his wife and children, down to Theodore, the lad who gained comfort (and a certain amount of secrecy) from travel and on to their black servant Rheta B, each has had a life. Each also has a story to tell and, whether alive or in Afterworld, they're going to tell it. Full review...
The Christmas Present (Hello Kitty and Friends) by Linda Chapman and Michelle Misra
Hello Kitty and her friends have a series of books but you don’t need to know about their previous adventures to enjoy this one. There’s a helpful illustration of the whole gang at the beginning, including Grandpa and Grandma who don’t feature in these two stories, and you also get to see all the friends with their mixed up names: Hello Kitty’s twin is Mimmy (why not Hi Mimmy?!) and then there’s Tammy, Fifi and the slightly odd Dear Daniel. Full review...
Hanns and Rudolf: The German Jew and the Hunt for the Kommandant of Auschwitz by Thomas Harding
This dual biography concerns, as the title makes clear, two men. One was from an inherently German, rich Jewish family – they had a powerboat so he could waterski on the lake at their country cottage – who fled the rise of the Nazis early in the 1930s, and got away moderately lightly, only losing properties and a large and successful medical career. The other was from an inherently German family, who signed up for First World War service before his age, but only really wanted to be a farmer and family man, yet who ended up running probably history's worst slaughterhouse. Both had a connection and a shared destiny that was largely unknown before this book was researched, there's a chance that both of them had the blood of one man and only one man directly on their hands from WWII service, and both of them – again, as the title makes clear – are given the dignity of the familiar, first name throughout this incredible book. Full review...
Secrets of the Apple Tree by Carron Brown and Alyssa Nassner
On a cold winter night, long after bedtime, what could be more inviting than curling up under the blankets with a book to read by torch light? What surprises might your torch reveal? In the case of ‘Secrets of the Apple Tree’ you may get more than you bargained for… Full review...
How to Make a Million Slowly: My Guiding Principles from a Lifetime of Investing by John Lee
You should, of course, remember the old adage. 'If something seems too good to be true, it probably is'. If you find a slim book with the title 'How to Make a Million - Slowly' you shouldn't assume that you're about to have an entirely different relationship with your Bank Manager. On the other hand John Lee - Lord Lee of Trafford - was the UK's first PEP/ISA millionaire, from an investment of £125,000, so there's no need to suspect that you'll open the book to find that you're told to 'do as I do'. This is a man who has done it and has a lot of good advice - after all, he wrote the My Portfolio Column in the Financial Times for fourteen years. Full review...
Egyptomania: Our Three Thousand Year Obsession with the Land of the Pharaohs by Bob Brier
There have been so many books written on the subject of Egyptology, it would be hard to imagine that anything new could be said on the matter. However, TV presenter and researcher Bob Brier, a self-confessed Egyptophile, has managed to approach the topic from a unique perspective by allowing us a glimpse of his fascinating collection of all things Egyptian. The collection is an eclectic mix of objects, including jewellery, private letters from Howard Carter, tobacco packaging, books, posters and tea-sets. In Brier’s collection, his ornate Josiah Wedgwood Egyptian set sits proudly on the shelf next to Barbie of the Nile and a cheap King Tut cologne bottle. As he puts it: 'we all know that something can be so bad that it’s good. The true collector has no shame.' Full review...
Bear, Bird and Frog by Gwen Millward
Bear and Bird are friends who live together. They have an exciting day planned but when Frog shows up unannounced, Bear is surprised and momentarily forgets what they had been going to do. Like a good friend, even to those who drop round without warning, he invites Frog in for tea and cake and they have a chat. Bird is a little bored, to be honest. He’s waiting for them to go out, him and Bear, but Bear seems to have forgotten all about it. In the end, it’s Bear and Frog who go out, leaving Bird behind. Bird is really a bit upset about the way he thinks they’re treating him, and even when Bear and Frog try to include him he’s a bit too proud and so stays away. Full review...
Meeting the English by Kate Clanchy
Struan Robertson was just seventeen, but set to go to Aberdeen to study dentistry, when his English teacher passed him a short advertisement. A literary giant needed a carer. Why not take a gap year? Struan had never been to ‘’England’’ before and he would be living in Hampstead. On the plus side he’d been working in a care home to earn money and he could do the work. Soon - almost too soon - Struan was the main carer for Phillip Prys, rendered dumb and paralysed by a massive stroke. His family couldn’t take care of him - the young (very young) third wife was too busy with her painting. His son, Jake, had other things - anything else - to do rather than be in his father’s presence. Juliet had never been her father’s favourite but she wasn’t ‘’exactly’’ stable when it came to helping. Full review...
The Tournament by Matthew Reilly
Michael Reilly is somewhat of a guilty pleasure of mine; his novels are hi-octane adventures that are often as ludicrous as they are sublime. ‘The Tournament’ is a departure from his action packed Scarecrow and Jack West thrillers; instead creating an alternative history for our own Queen Elizabeth I. Why was she such a formidable leader whose reluctance to marry and dislike of the Catholics were only part of her make-up? Reilly poses a hypothetical tale about a 13 year old Bess going to Constantinople to watch a tournament of the world’s greatest chess players. Here she will be embroiled in a murder mystery alongside her tutor Roger Ascham. Full review...
Monkey Business by Smriti Prasadam-Halls and David Wojtowycz
We’re on Noah’s Ark and all the animals are here, from the snakes to the lions to the crocodiles. There are two of everyone, of course, though randomly there only appears to be one monkey, Charlie Chatter. And uh, oh. He’s lost his potty! Now Charlie Chatter is a bit big to be going on the potty, so the other animals, and Noah, try to convince him to try the loo instead, extolling its virtues, explaining how much fun it can be. Charlie Chatter remains unconvinced though, but when his potty fails to reappear his has a troubling choice to make. Full review...
The Emergence of Judy Taylor by Angela Jackson
Judy's life had been the stuff which many others might envy: she'd grown up with friends about her whom she'd known since primary school and married the first man who asked her - but he did seem to be doing rather well. Then one day she discovered a lump. A hard lump. In her right breast. Nerve-racking test followed nerve-racking test, but eventually she was told that everything was absolutely normal. Husband Oli wanted to celebrate. So did her friends. The problem was Judy. Missing the bus home after her hospital appointment she sat in a cafe and thought. She realised that normal was not what she wanted. She wanted something more. Full review...
The Empress by Meg Clothier
It's 1179 and Agnes, daughter of King Louis VII is sent to Byzantium to marry the young son and heir of the Emperor. However the chap in question, young Alexios, is more a drip than a chip off his father's block. This leaves Agnes to work on her own strategy for survival. For this is a world where everyone is paranoid, and with good reason as everyone is a target and Agnes isn't just a woman, she's a stepping stone to power. Full review...
The Return of Sherlock Holmes by Arthur Conan Doyle
I'm still not sure which is cheekier of the BBC – either riffing on the Conan Doyle originals for their own modern takes on Sherlock Holmes, or producing new editions of the original stories and novels with their young stars on the front, purely to tie a few sales down of what is now out of copyright. Certainly I think the latter is the greater crime, given the results on screen, for the number of young people picking up these classics for the first time on the basis of the TV and finding something quite against the grain of what they've ever read outside of school must be quite large. Still, anything to forcefeed classics to a new audience… Full review...
Dark Witch (The Cousins O'Dwyer Trilogy) by Nora Roberts
American Iona Sheehan moves to Ireland in order to discover her ancestors' roots and oh so much more. Her ancestors were witches and her cousins Branna and Conor O'Dwyer have acquired the family talent. Under their care and tutelage Iona has her own skills honed as she develops the magick passed down to her in between her work at the local stables. Unfortunately magick isn't the only thing to have survived the centuries. Cabahn, the nemesis of Sorcha, the first O'Dwyer dark witch, has unfinished business with the cousins and not in a good way. Full review...
Rules of Summer by Shaun Tan
Rules of Summer is not one of those books that is ever likely to earn the blanket recommendation One for every child's bookshelf. This book is not for every child. For some it could be the stuff of nightmares. But for those children who have grown bored with the pedestrian banality of many of the books on the high street, for children with a vivid imagination who are not too easily frightened, this book can be pure magic. It is a story of friendship, of the relationship between brothers, of anger and rivalry, and also of love and redemption, told with minimal text and the beautiful surreal imagery of Tan's paintings. Full review...
The City of Strangers by Michael Russell
In the spring of 1939 The Irish Times reported that Mrs Letitia Harris, aged 53 had gone missing from her home in Dublin. Her car was found the following morning on a cliff top near Shankill. There were bloodstains in the car, and a blood-stained hatchet in the shed back in Dublin, blood too in the flowerbed. Full review...
Let Me Off at the Top!: My Classy Life and Other Musings by Ron Burgundy
This book is a testament to my giant balls. But it's also a lot more. The story we've never been able to discern from either of the Anchorman films is one of surprising hardship, unsurprising hardness, and great hair. It's a rags-to-riches tale, as Ron Burgundy comes from a Hicksville town in the middle of the outskirts of somewhere the arse end of nowhere (a town perpetually on fire due to the accidents in the mines underneath) and struggles against all the odds – and many of the evens in the shape of women's legs – to get where he is today, thrusting himself and his news at us nightly. Full review...
Tommy Tickletail: A Tall Tale by Dom Conlon and Carl Pugh
Sophie and Sam are on a midnight mission. It's a long time since supper and they're both hungry. Obviously a trip to see what's in the fridge (they've got high expectations) is essential but there are dangers to overcome. It's dark. They really shouldn't be raiding the fridge and - most frightening of all - there's Tommy Tickletail who has a body twelve feet long and sleeps under the kitchen table. They've got to get to the fridge without waking the monster - or who knows what the consequences will be? Full review...
I Am A Giant (Tiny the Giant) by Dom Conlon and Nicola Anderson
Tiny knew that he was a giant. In fact you couldn't help thinking that he was a little bit cross about the fact that he had to keep telling people. He'd shake his fists and roar I AM A GIANT. Proof was important, of course and the first step was to measure his shadow, which he did when the sun was low - but it wasn't just one step. It was many and his shadow still ran on ahead of him. Off he went to tell the world, but the mountains were, well, dismissive and the tall trees whispered about it amongst themselves before they rejected what he had to say. The wind didn't agree either - and went on and on about it until Tiny ran away to the sea. Full review...
Sherlock: His Last Bow by Arthur Conan Doyle
The End. I got told off for writing those two simple words at the end of a short story I wrote at school, aged about eleven. If it is the end, I think the teacher was saying, it should be obvious. If it isn't, there's still no way the words are necessary. But at least I'm not alone. Conan Doyle, the south coast Doctor turned entertainer extraordinaire with all his output, was told off for the way he finished things. Holmes dead? Sorry, not allowed, Mr Doyle. Holmes retired to keep bees near Eastbourne? Beyond the pale, Sir – bring him back. You don't like the labour of proving your genius invention to be such a genius? Tough. And so we come to 'His Last Bow', which Watson tells us is the final, final, ending story with which to conclude, and a few others. He wasn't exactly correct about it being the last ones, though. Full review...
Max and the Won't Go To Bed Show by Mark Sperring and Sarah Warburton
Prepare to unleash your inner Barnum with ‘Max and the Won’t Go To Bed Show’. You don’t read this book – you perform it. So, what’s it all about? Well, if you give me a drum roll (PLEASE!) … I will tell you. Full review...
Penelope Fitzgerald: A Life by Hermione Lee
Penelope Fitzgerald came from an earnest and renowned academic family, the Knoxes, which included several prominent clerics; her grandfather was the Bishop of Manchester. A considerable biographer herself, she wrote a book on the Knox brothers, these included two Oxford pastors (one of whom, Ronald Knox, converted to Catholicism, was famous as a biblical translator and whilst chaplain at Trinity College became a mentor to the future prime minister, Harold Macmillan), a top Bletchley cryptographic analyst and Penelope's own eminent father, 'Evoe' who was editor of Punch. Fitzgerald wrote prolifically from childhood and fulfilled some of these high expectations by gaining a brilliant First at Somerville. Graduating in 1938, she was already known for her membership of the smart set, for her student journalism and a reticent, indeed peremptory manner. Women could not actually graduate at Oxford until a statute was passed in 1920. Hence she was amongst Oxford's early women graduates. Her striking appearance within the smart set earned her the nickname of the blonde bombshell. Full review...
Fin and Lady by Cathleen Schine
In 1964 eleven-year-old Fin Hadley met his half sister again. His first contact with Lady had been some years before when Lady had left her bridegroom at the altar and run away to Capri. Fin's mother and father took Fin with them as they went to Capri to bring Lady home. Fin's father had died a while ago but it was at his mother's funeral, six years later, that he and Lady met again - she was his only surviving relative and would be his guardian. Lady, Fin and Fin's dog Gus left rural Connecticut for New York. The snag about this is that Lady's well, not exactly parent material. Full review...
