Blog Tour - Quicksand by Steve Toltz

'A tour de force of sustained brilliance' Mail on Sunday Wildly funny and unceasingly surprising, Quicksand is both a satirical masterpiece and an unforgettable story of fate, family and friendship. Aldo Benjamin may be the unluckiest soul in human history, but that isn't going to stop his friend Liam writing about him. For what more could an aspiring novelist want from his muse than a thousand get-rich-quick schemes, a life-long love affair, an eloquently named brothel, the most sexually confusing evening imaginable and a brief conversation with God? 'What a joy to surrender oneself to a writer of such prodigious talent.' Peter Carey 'Tremendous' Sunday Times

Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton General Division
ISBN: 9781473606074

I really enjoyed the writing style of this book, full of comic humour, but underneath a fantastic storyline which kept me engaged throughout. 

Liam, a cop, is also a failed writer, and Aldo, an entrepreneur and criminal. The first chapter is entitled Two friends, Two agendas, (One hidden) and that sets the scene perfectly. It is a brilliant written book and one which kept me hooked right to the end and now I am unsure what to read next! 

Toltz's style of writing is easy to read, full of humor and believable, however there are also unpredictable moments and those which are thought provoking for the reader - a real roller coaster of a read but one which readers will be recommending to their book lover friends.

I received this book in return for an honest review during the book blog tour. Thank you to the publishers.

Song of the Sea Maid by Rebecca Mascull Blog Tour

Today I am part of the blog tour to celebrate the publication of Rebecca Mascull's new novel, Song of the Sea Maid.

Song of the sea maid is the second book written by Rebecca Mascull.

In Mascull’s debut novel, The Visitors, her lead was a deaf-blind girl in Victorian Britain, in which a wonderful friendship was the base for a thrilling adventure, and included a heartbreaking love story, entwined with a ghost story. I really liked this female lead and in her second book, Mascull has again written an ambitious, but fascinating story.

Dawnay Price is an intelligent and intensely ambitious young woman, who has her pathway in life clearly defined. While travelling on this pathway, she is confronted by earthquakes and all that nature can throw at her. Along the way, she is fascinated by nature and explores caves and forests, countryside and the coast.

I loved the descriptive nature of Mascull’s narrative. The story is told through Dawnay’s own voice and at times I was able to close to my eyes and imagine the locations and discoveries made on her life journey. Dawnay appeared to be a headstrong character, believing she was ahead of time in her thoughts and beliefs, feeling so strongly that she could be outspoken at times, and ready to challenge anyone who spoke out against her, something which her male predecessors were not used to.

Mascull has written a beautiful book, which I have really enjoyed and I am sure I will be rereading this book soon and there are many locations mentioned in the book and natural phenomena that I will be googling to further understand this book. The narrative allows the reader to fully indulge in the atmosphere of the story, with Mascull cleverly interweaving Dawnay’s narrative with the smells and views, sounds and thoughts that surround her while on her journey.

This book crosses many genres – there is the definite  historical fiction element throughout, however the geographical and natural science research that has been cleverly entwined throughout the story is one which has to be defined and add in the palaeoanthropology (study of human evolution) and this book is a cleverly written tale, which is entwined with a celebration of the natural world.

Thank you to Ruby Mitchell at Hodder and Stoughton for organising this blog tour and sending me a copy of the book to review.

Seasons Come, Seasons go Tree by Britta Teekentrup

Explore the beauty of the changing seasons in this timeless peek-through book with beautiful artwork from Britta Teckentrup and accompanying rhyming text. Following the life-cycle of a tree through spring, summer, autumn and winter, children will easily learn to recognise the signs of the seasons with this simple yet striking picture book.

Publisher: Little Tiger Press Group
ISBN: 9781848691810

Britta Teckentrup is a favourite author of mine. Her books are cleverly constructed and filled with beautiful illustrations.

Seasons come, Seasons go tree tells the story of a tree throughout the seasons. With cleverly planned 'windows' on each page, the reader can follow the inhabitants throughout the year. Children will adore looking through this book and spotting all of the animals hidden within the tree and during the time it is possible to talk about the seasons, the changing weather and changing colour of the leaves on the tree.

This is a beautiful book which should be treasured and shared.

Thank you to the publishers, Little Tiger Press, for sending me the book to review in return for an honest review.

The Amazing Human Body Detectives by Maggie Li

Our body is an amazing thing and there's so much more to discover about it than meets the eye. The Amazing Body Detectives is a fun and informative insight into the inner and outer world of our bodies. No nook and cranny is left undiscovered, no goosebump left unexplored. We all know that we all have unique fingerprints, but did you know that we also have a unique tongue print? Did you know that when you are awake, the human brain has enough electricity whizzing about to power a light bulb? Our eyelashes have little creatures living on them - come and take a look at them! Following on from BUG DETECTIVE, this follows the same interesting, fun and informative look at different parts of the body. Hidden elements appear on every page making this interactive and enjoyable. Taking a more lighthearted approach than many other books on the market, this book covers the key facts with fun and humor, as well as dispelling the myths.

Publisher: Pavilion Books
ISBN: 9781843652977

As a child I loved any books about the human body and I think this one would have been a popular favorite of mine.

As soon as the reader opens this book they begin a journey through the human body. Each topic has a double page spread which is jam packed full of information, facts and challenges which will keep readers busy and interested for some time. The pages are cleverly laid out to maximise space but also provide lots of information for inquisitive children or for inclusion of those school projects! 

This is a must have book for school age children as the starting point for many projects or revision. It is a great book about the human body and will capture a child's imagination when they ask how do we see, what happens to food when we eat it, or how can i feel?

Thank you to the publishers, Pavilion Books, for sending me the book to review.

Aliens (Dirty Bertie) by David Roberts

Calling all Dirty Bertie fans! Dirty Bertie - the boy with nose-pickingly disgusting habits - is back for another helping of comic chaos! With ever-increasing madcap schemes and crazy capers, Bertie continues to delight his legions of fans who revel in his revolting ways. Join Bertie in Aliens! his 26th adventure, as he prepares for an alien invasion, has a go at bird watching and tries to improve his school report! Dirty Bertie is a hugely popular series created by award-winning illustrator, David Roberts (Tyrannosaurus Drip, The Wind in the Willows, The Troll, Eddie Dickens Trilogy). With each hilarious story approximately thirty pages long and split into chapters with illustrations on nearly every spread, Dirty Bertie is ideal for confident readers to enjoy by themselves, or for sharing with your child.

Publisher: Little Tiger Press Group

ISBN: 9781847155122

This is the twenty sixth book in the popular Dirty Bertie series of books. Dirty Bertie is a lovable little boy, who has nose-pickingly disgusting habits,  who children adore reading about. Each book contains three stand alone stories and tell the tales of Dirty Bertie at his disgustingly worst.

Aliens tells the story of Bertie as he visits the local library to listen to a talk about UFO's and which leaves Bertie certain he has met with real aliens! 

These books are perfect for young readers, who are developing their reading skills, and are wanting more than basic story picture books. The three stories within each book are split into manageable chapters which are perfect to be shared at bedtime or for a child to read themselves. There are a number of illustrations throughout the book which break up the text but leave the young readers proud that they have read a 'proper' book.

Dirty Book is a great character which is loved by both girls and boys alike and I remember my son falling in love with reading through both Dirty Bertie and Horrid Henry. For young girls who like these sort of characters, David Roberts and Alan MacDonald have also written books about Angela Nicely too.

I received this book in return for an honest review from the publishers, Stripes Books. 

Apple Pigs by Ruth Gary Orbach

Some ate cores,Some ate peelings,Some ate apples from the ceiling. Soon the apples were no more We'd gobbled up our whole great store. A timeless classic, loved by a generation, reissued to be enjoyed by today's children. This beautifully illustrated tale of an apple tree that grows too many apples is delightfully told in rhyme. A little girl finds a withered apple tree surrounded by rubbish. To stop the tree being chopped down for firewood, she clears the rubbish to help the poor tree grow. When Spring arrives, the tree bursts into blossom and produces a glut of apples. But as the little girl's family try to eat, cook and hide the apples in rugs, blankets, wagons and jugs, the apples continue to grow! There is only one answer: an apple feast! A wonderful tale published in time for Apple Day, its charming illustrations and story will amuse and educate a new generation, giving them an appreciation of nature's bounty and the importance of sharing. The book includes a guide to making your own 'apple pig' (a fruit sculpture that looks just like a pig!).

Publisher: Pavilion Books

ISBN: 9781843653028

This book, at first glance, is a strange poem all about apples. However, when I read it again, I decided that it is a beautiful written poem which is a perfect celebration of harvest and growing ones own produce to share during harvest time for both humans and animals alike to eat from the land.

The story is told in verse, a beautiful poem, which gives lots of thoughts from which many discussions can be had but the illustrations which accompany it are also very good. They would make great discussion starters for circle time and are great to look at with younger children as there are lots of individual components which make up the larger scene.

I would say it is a perfect book to celebrate harvest time.

Thank you to the publishers, Pavilion Books and The National Trust Books, for sending me the book to review in return for an honest review.

The Village Show by Alexandra Brown

The warm and witty new novel from bestselling author Alexandra Brown, perfect for fans of #GBBO. For fans of Jenny Colgan and Carole Matthews. Tindledale is in a tizzy . . . The Village Show competition is coming around again and after last year's spectacular failure, the villagers are determined to win. Meg, teacher at the local school, is keen to help and to impose some much-needed order. After a terse encounter with a newcomer to the village, Meg discovers that it is celebrity chef and culinary bad boy, Dan Wright. Meg thinks he is arrogant and rude but rumour has it that Dan is opening a new restaurant in the village which could really put Tindledale on the map. As things come together, villagers old and new all start to come out of the woodwork, including new arrival Jessie who seems to have it all. But first impressions can be deceptive and Meg discovers that when it comes to Tindledale – and Dan – nothing is ever quite as it seems . . .

Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers

ISBN: 9780007597406

Alexandra Brown's back catalogue includes her debut series of books based in Carrington's department store and her last book introduced us to a new series of books based in the fictional village of Tindledale and was based in the local haberdashery shop, Hettie's House of Haberdashery, entitled The Great Christmas Knit Off.

The Great Village Show takes us back to Tindledale and we follow Meg, the acting head teacher of the village school, as she organises the village ready for the annual village show, which last year was a disaster. Although the main focus of the book is Meg's life, Brown also includes the characters who readers met in the previous book, and also other villagers as the story progresses. Tindlesdale appears to be a lovely English village which I would love to visit or maybe even live in and the likeable characters all add depth and reality to the village and leave readers wanting to meet more. 

Brown's writing style is easy to read and leaves readers with a warm and cosy glow. They are easy reads which can be devoured over a weekend.  Tindlesdale is a village which I hope to be visiting again as I am sure there is much more village life to retell in Brown's next novel. 

Thank you to the publishers Harper Collins, who sent me the book in return for an honest review.