Waiting For Callback by Perdita and Honor Cargill reviewed by Tamsin Cooke

I have to admit, I stole Waiting For Callback from my daughter.  I read it in one sitting and managed to slip it back onto her bedside table without her noticing. She is now glued to it!

Waiting For Callback by Perdita and Honor Cargill is such a fun, warm story, which will have you laughing out loud. It is about Elektra, a fifteen-year-old girl, who imagines Oscar glory to be just around the corner after being discovered by an acting agent. Yet the reality proves very different. For example, her agency isn’t some swanky LA type building but a small room above a dental practice.  Elektra soon learns that there is so much waiting about. And ‘just how many times can you be rejected for the part of ‘Dead girl number three’ without losing hope?’

Perdita and Honor have created a wonderful relatable protagonist in Elektra.  She is funny, articulate and very honest.  We live through her humiliations (of where there are plenty) her joys, and her fears. Even though she’s trying to make it as an actor, she has the same worries that most teenagers have - spots, fallouts with her best friend, annoying parents, school, and crushes…

The supporting cast are well thought out and very entertaining. I particularly like her parents – her mother’s desperation to be part of her daughter’s life, and her father’s loving indifference really shine true. Her crush is swoon worthy, her best friend great fun and her nemesis a perfect mean girl!

There are fabulous little extra details in this book. The emails from her school and her agent are incredibly witty, and I found the quotes from real actors fascinating.

Perdita and Honor have captured teenage life brilliantly, and created a great new character. I can’t wait for the next book so I can laugh even more at Elektra’s exploits.

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The Finding of Martha Lost by Caroline Wallace reviewed by Dawn Finch

Caroline Wallace – The Finding of Martha Lost

First the blurb:

Martha is lost.

She’s been lost since she was a baby, abandoned in a suitcase on the train from Paris. Ever since, she’s waited in station lost property for someone to claim her. It’s been sixteen years, but she’s still hopeful.

In the meantime, there are mysteries to solve: secret tunnels under the station, a suitcase that may have belonged to the Beatles, the roman soldier who appears at the same time every day with his packed lunch. Not to mention the stuffed monkey that someone keeps misplacing.

But there is one mystery Martha cannot solve. And now the authorities have found out about the girl in lost property. Time is running out - if Martha can’t discover who she really is, she will lose everything…

It has taken me a long time to write this review. I review lots of books and in most cases I can simply put the book down and write the review and move on. For some reason I couldn’t do that with this book. I genuinely didn’t want to let Martha go and there was a part of me that felt that once the review was done I’d have to let her go. I’ll confess that I fell in love with Martha right from the opening pages. She is the most endearing and delightful character I have read in a long time.

16 year old Martha Lost has lived her whole life in Liverpool Lime Street station and she dances and spins through her days filling the station with her joy of life, but she has never left the station and does not know who she really is. We see the world through her eyes as she puts together the missing jigsaw puzzle pieces of her life. Laced through Martha’s story we can follow a similarly lost thing; a suitcase that is possibly full of Beatles memorabilia. This piece of the puzzle is based on the real-life story of the apparent discovery of Beatles’ friend and roadie Mal Evans. The two stories interconnect and develop to creating one beautiful whole and a heartwarming and joyful novel.

Caroline Wallace is the pen-name of author Caroline Smailes and one of her bestselling books, The Drowning of Arthur Braxton, is currently being turned into a movie. This is no easy task because her writing is complex and detailed and so it will take a delicate hand to take her words from page to screen. You can follow this process on the Arthur Braxton facebook page. Wallace’s books (and those written under Caroline Smailes) are magical and extraordinary. Her writing feels to me like a harmonious blend of Alice Hoffman and John Irving, but with a distinctly British accent – well, specifically a Liverpudlian one in Martha! Wallace always seems to capture that sense of the real, but mingles it with a subtle air of magic and wonder that is utterly charming.

Be warned, if you read this book you too will fall hopelessly in love with Martha and never want to let her go. Quite simply, the most beautiful writing.

The Finding of Martha Lost is published by Doubleday (March 2016)

ISBN 978-0857523341

Review by Dawn Finch

Children's writer and librarian

President, Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals

@dawnafinch

www.dawnfinch.co.uk

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Ida, Always by Caron Levis and Charles Santoso - reviewed by Sarah Hammond

Ida, Always is a lyrical story about the friendship between two polar bears and how they come to terms with one of the animal’s terminal illness. Although this is difficult subject matter, the reader feels in safe, sure hands. We grow to love the bears, then share their grief and, ultimately, learn to heal. 

Gus and Ida, the two characters in the book, are inspired by polar bears who lived in Central Park Zoo in New York. Ida died in 2011, Gus in 2013.  Author Levis observed Gus in the zoo after Ida’s death as part of her research for the project. 

In the story, the two bears do everything together.  We see life through the senses of a zoo animal, sensitive to sound, to routine, to hearing things we cannot see. One day, Gus learns from the zookeeper that Ida is ill and will not get better.  We are reassured that Ida 'wouldn't hurt’, but her body is closing down. Levis is honest but sensitive, and takes the young reader gently through the anguish of preparing for the loss of a friend. The bears growl, whisper, cuddle, need time apart, even laugh… 

The illustrations by Santoso complement the text well. The portrayal of the bears is not overly anthropomorphised, is evocative, gentle, soft.  The landscape and the weather often reflect the mood of the moment on the page. We have a strong sense of the story world through the illustrations, and also of the way Gus perceives life.

And after Ida has gone (I have to confess that when reading the book aloud, my voice catches each time I read a certain poignant section), and as Gus grieves, his heart begins to mend. He slowly realises that a part of his friend will be with him in the memories they share, that she is with him as he sits in their favourite spots. A part of Ida is with him. Always.

I suspect that this book may well become a classic. 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Caron Levis is the author of the picture book Ida, Always (Atheneum) which the New York Times Book Review calls "an example of children's books at their best." Her first picture book, Stuck with the Blooz (HMH) was selected as one of Bankstreet College's Best Children's Books of the Year. Forthcoming titles include May I Have A Word? (FSG/Macmillan, 2017) and Stop That Yawn (Atheneum, 2018). Short stories have been listed in the Best American Nonrequired Reading, published in Fence Magazine, The New Guard Review, and in anthologies by Persea Books and W.W. Norton. Caron is an adjunct professor and the advisor for The New School's Writing for Children/YA MFA program, and an MSW candidate at Hunter College. After many years as an arts educator, Caron now loves using acting and writing to teach social, emotional and literacy skills to students of all ages through her author workshops. Having trained in acting and dabbled in playwriting, Caron enjoys turning theatre techniques into writing tool through her workshop Act-Like-A-Writer. Visit her at www.caronlevis.com. Photo credit: Jan Carr


ABOUT THE ILLUSTRATOR:

Charles Santoso has illustrated several picture books, including I Don't Like Koala, written by Sean Ferrell, Spy Guy: The Not-So-Secret Agent written by Jessica Young, Peanut Butter & Brains written by Joe McGhee, Ida, Always written by Caron Levis. Find out more about him at www.charlessantoso.com


ABOUT THE REVIEWER: 

Sarah Hammond is a writer for young people. She has published a picture book, Mine! (Parragon), and a teen novel, The Night Sky in my Head (OUP), which was short-listed for four awards in the UK. She is a Brit abroad, now living happily in Chicago, with strong ties to the UK which regularly pull her back across the Pond. 

You can find her online at: 

Web: www.sarahhammond.org
Facebook: SarahHammondAuthorPage
Twitter: @SarahHammond9 

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RIDE by Lisa Glass, reviewed by Tamsyn Murray

"As a professional surfer, seventeen-year-old Iris has travelled the sun-kissed beaches of the globe. But after a tumultuous week in Miami leaves her heartbroken, Iris returns to her home town in the south coast of England. Putting her promising career on hold. Leaving behind Zeke, the boy who changed her world. Iris is desperate to get back to her old life, to the family and friends she grew up with. She wants to rediscover her passion for surfing. She needs to move on.

But Iris soon realises it won't be that simple. Because while a summer romance might only last the season, first loves never truly leave you."

Ride is the third and final book in Lisa Glass' surfing trilogy and sees an emotionally-battered Iris returning to her roots in Newquay. Things have moved on in the time she's been gone; her mother has a new relationship, her best friend is the same but different and her ex is engaged to someone else. Only one thing remains constant and that's the sea.

Iris struggles to find her place in Newquay again. She's a celebrity now, the very definition of a local girl made good in a town where professional surfers are rock stars: she's different. And as well as having to cope with the changed perceptions of friends and acquaintances, Iris also has to deflect questions from her loved ones - where is Zeke? Why isn't he with her?

Unwilling to admit the truth, even to herself, Iris lets her emotions overrule her head. She makes some mistakes and has to live with some unpleasant consequences. And every time she surfs, she is reminded of Zeke. The upcoming must-win competition hangs in the balance as Iris loses her edge on the waves. And then she sees Zeke again...

Ride is another perfect summer read from Lisa Glass - I was instantly transported to the beaches at Fistral, Tolcarne and Lusty Glaze in Cornwall. I was impressed at the way Cornish dialect rolls off the page too - not in an intrusive way; readers might not even notice if they don't know the speech rhythms and phrases, but for me it gave the story an added layer of authenticity. I heard Cornwall in every bit of dialogue.

The delicious Zeke is absent for most of the story, but he's written in so cleverly in flashbacks and conversations that I felt he was just off the page, ready to walk in at any moment. Iris herself is a fabulous strong MC and I loved seeing her grow and change. This book is also very much about the value of friendship and I enjoyed the way these were shown: I especially want a best friend like Kelly! Ride doesn't shy away from physical relationships; there's more sex than ever, which is only right as Iris matures and grows up. It's not all romance - there's plenty of drama and of course lots of fantastic surf detail. Be warned, though; the climax of the book will have your heart racing for an entirely different reason - it had me on the edge of my seat. Lisa Glass certainly knows how to end a chapter on a cliffhanger!

I would recommend this YA book for 14+. Published by Quercus, available now!

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HORIZON ALPHA: PREDATORS OF EDEN by D.W. Vogel; reviewed by Gillian Philip

Dinosaurs in space. DINOSAURS IN SPACE!

I could just leave my review there, because let's face it, that is an awesome enough premise, but that would be doing this book a great disservice. The book opens as our protagonist Caleb sets out on a dangerous mission; but there's some unsettling history to the way his small human community met the dinosaurs.

The calamity that has destroyed Planet Earth is, for once, not the consequence of humanity's misdeeds: it's simply a giant cosmic accident. Mercury wobbles in its orbit; Jupiter's gravitational pull alters; Earth's scientists realise they have eighty years to save what's left of humanity. And that's it. From that terrifying moment, it's been a race against time to build four Horizon spaceships that will carry a small sample of humanity to distant, unknown worlds. One of the ships, Gamma, never gets out of the solar system; on the others, generations live and die without setting foot on solid ground.

Horizon Alpha is the first to reach a habitable planet, Tau Ceti e. Horizons Beta and Delta are still somewhere out there, our narrator Caleb assumes: still speeding across unimaginable distances in search of a home. That's a melancholy enough ghost in the story, but because of an explosion as the shuttles are loading, Horizon Alpha is left a wreck in space. Now it orbits Ceti, a spectral and eerie presence that Caleb can't forget – not least because his own father died there, saving as many as he could.

The sheer desperation of the survivors makes this book a nerve-shredding fight for survival from the outset. They're not well-equipped; they have no means of escape; they simply have to endure, and scavenge what they can from the planet's surface and from the wreckage of other shuttles. They can't even be sure of keeping their camp's protective electric fence powered up. And boy, do they need that electric fence...

The creatures that live on this planet aren't Earth dinosaurs, Caleb emphasises; they're what evolved on Ceti instead. Some of them are exactly like ours (what's a dinosaur story without a T-Rex or two?); others are monsters that are entirely native to Ceti. And what monsters – the highly intelligent and terrifying 'Wolves' (called that only because they're grey, and hunt in packs); the motionless, apparently somnolent Crabs, which lie perfectly camouflaged till they lunge to snap a traveller in two; Gilas, creatures that only have to bite once...

The dinosaurs clearly can't be allowed to breach Eden's fence; so fifteen-year old Caleb (who has already lost a brother as well as a father) is chosen for a military sortie, to retrieve a prized power core from a crashed shuttle. Of course, too much can go wrong on this planet; for the mission's own shuttle flight, it goes quickly, violently wrong. Only six members of the party survive the crash.

The good news: they swiftly find the old shuttle wreckage and its precious power core. The bad news: they have to make their way back to their settlement, Eden, on foot and with barely any supplies. And given the hostile environment of Ceti and its native fauna, the expedition becomes a classic, nail-biting, And-Then-There-Were-None horror story.

I was gripped throughout. Caleb has courage – it wouldn't be possible to have survived on Ceti this long without it – but he knows his shortcomings, and he is terribly afraid. His brother vanished on a similar mission, and Caleb is desperate not to become another lost son for his mother to grieve. That makes him cautious to begin with, and the reader can sympathise. The terror only increases as they get closer to Eden, and there are plenty of obstacles, inanimate and living, that threaten to stop them dead. But Caleb's is a classic Hero's Journey, and when things get critically worse, he knows he has to find it in himself to save what's left of their party.

The characters can't help but be sympathetic, given what they're up against – and what they're fighting for, which is the highest possible stakes. They're all individuals, vividly drawn, and you root for every one, from the gruff and competent General Carthage to the eager but nervous naturalist Sara Arnson. You want them all to get out alive. You know perfectly well that won't happen.

D.W. Vogel puts a great deal of care into the technical, natural and scientific detail; the Tau Ceti e ecosystem makes sense, and so does the history of humanity's remnants. There are no laser guns for fighting off alien creatures; humanity didn't have time to invent them. This is a down-and-dirty, desperate fight for survival against impossible odds; The Walking Dead, but with dinosaurs.

The story ends not on a frustrating cliffhanger, but with a development that the reader desperately wants to follow through to its consequences. I'm on tenterhooks for the next instalment.


(currently available only as Kindle edition in the UK)

Horizon Alpha: Predators of Eden by D.W. Vogel; Future House Publishing £2.04

www.gillianphilip.com






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MURDER MOST UNLADYLIKE by Robin Stevens; Review by Penny Dolan

This review was inspired by a twelve-year-old girl, waiting at the bookshop counter, and enthusiastically clutching a book to her school blazer. When I asked, she proudly showed me the title: MURDER MOST UNLADYLIKE by Robin Stevens, and her enthusiasm is why I came away with a copy for myself (and for my bookshelf for occasional young visitors.) 

MURDER MOST UNLADYLIKE, a well-paced and well-plotted crime novel is set in the 1930’s. This title takes place at Deepdean School for Girls, echoing the traditional jolly-lacrosse-sticks boarding school stories of that era. Stevens recreates a world of bells, bun-breaks, tuck-boxes, dorms, pranks and pashes, along with spinsterish teachers and the general social obligation to be “a good sport”.

The plot is, basically, one of those "who done it" puzzles, familiar to readers of Agatha Christie. The novel nips along, full of suspense, bravery and crime-solving but I felt that a particular strength of the book is that Robin Stevens does not hide the bleakness of boarding school life, nor the racism and snobbery of that life and era, possibly hinting that such matters still exist in society now.

The two third-year heroines, Hazel Wong and the Honourable Daisy Wells, have formed a secret Detective Agency. Although Daisy, with her blonde hair, wide blue eyes and energy on the lacrosse field, appears a tall and typical English Rose, she artfully conceals a Sherlockian intelligence and ruthlessness. 

 
By way of contrast, short, thoughtful Hazel Wong, with her long brown hair and dark eyes, has come all the way from Hong Kong. Sent by her wealthy father so she will have a "good English education", Hazel discovers that she must learn about the often uncomfortable “English way” of doing things, along with coping with the cold weather.  Hazel becomes Daisy's carefully observant Watson, recording their investigations in her Casebook, and we follow the twists and turns of the plot - and the oddities of school life - through her eyes and experiences. 

Daisy is admirably impulsive but shy, reliable Hazel is the one with whom the reader identifies and sympathizes. The plot starts promptly: Hazel returns alone to the “haunted” gym for her pullover but finds the body of Miss Bell lying below the balcony.  However, when Hazel and Daisy return, the science-mistress's corpse has gone. Although the headmistress reports that Miss Bell has been called away, the girls know better and set out to prove it. The short chapters whip along from one excitement to another and, for those who occasionally need to check up on who is who, or where, a helpful plan of the school grounds and list of characters is included at the front of the volume.

In true thirties-detective style, Hazel and Daisy draw up a list of suspect staff, examine their motives and whereabouts, employ clever stratagems (and lies) and pursue the case to the most surprising end. I found this book a very satisfying read, with a healthy display of bold spirits and curiosity!

MURDER MOST UNLADYLIKE is the first in a series of four crime novels (followed by ARSENIC FOR TEA, FIRST CLASS MURDER and JOLLY FOUL PLAY) and although the plots do have something slightly predictable in the solution, they all offer enjoyable escapism for 10- 13 year old readers, despite scary moments and neatly murderous contents.

(A very small worry: I am not sure that, without the enthusiasm of my bookshop friend, I’d have come away with the book. The cover art does fit the period and genre extremely well but I am not sure the covers sell the series well enough on their own. I really am hoping I am wrong here!)

Robin Stevens is also the author of one of the twelve stories in the highly-praised MYSTERY & MAYHEM anthology. She also reports on her blog that she is currently working on Book Five of the MURDER MOST UNLADYLIKE series. Jolly good show there, Stevens!

Review by Penny Dolan.

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The Fairiest Fairy by Anne Booth & Rosalind Beardshaw review by Lynda Waterhouse

This is a warm and charming picture book that should be a staple in every book corner, library and home. Why? Because it tells the story of Betty, the trainee fairy ,who starts at fairy school and find that it’s a tough and hard place to get things right. Her teacher shakes her head and thinks she is such a messy muddle.  Betty’s confidence takes a bashing when she can’t scatter all the dew drops so they sparkle in the sun, perfect her morning spell to wake up every flower or paint a pretty rainbow.

‘But little, messy Betty had a

Broken-hearted cry.

“I’m always in a muddle,

Even though I try and try”’.

This week all 6-year-olds will take their phonic test .. err .. pardon me .. will be screened and, no matter how kind the teachers are, a lot of the children, like Betty, will get into a muddle  and feel heartbroken.  They won’t understand that the main point of this test is so that schools can be held accountable and that their teacher’s pay will be linked to the results. A perfect time to read them this story and show them that there are other things that matter more than getting the ‘right’ answer. Betty is brave and clever and kind. She helps out a rabbit, a baby blackbird and a butterfly with tangled laces. She makes friends and learns the importance of friendship and working as a team.  

Rosalind Beardshaw’s colourful illustrations perfectly capture the mood and rhythm of the rhyming text. The book also includes a free Stories Aloud smartphone audio book.

ISBN 978 -0-85763-316-3

Published by nosy crow

www.nosycrow.com

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THE LIFE-CHANGING MAGIC OF TIDYING by Marie Kondo. Reviewed by Ann Turnbull.

This book sets out to teach a way of de-cluttering and tidying that ensures that you need never do it again.

"Tidy a little a day and you'll be tidying forever." Marie Kondo believes that tidying in one go is the only way to stay free of clutter. She insists that you discard before tidying, and that you do this by category and in the correct order, namely clothes - which are easiest to discard - books, papers, komono (miscellaneous items) and finally sentimental items (the hardest to let go of.) You are asked to take each item in your hand and ask yourself whether it 'sparks joy'. As long as you don't take this too literally (your thermal vest may not spark joy, but you'll miss it next winter if you chuck it out) I found this an excellent way of clearing excess clothing; and Marie Kondo's system of folding and storing clothes upright, so that you can see what's there, works well.

However, for the purpose of this review I shall focus on my experiment with de-cluttering my office. I am a writer and work at home from a converted bedroom. There are no clothes in my office, so I started with category 2: Books.

Before we start, you need to know that you are not supposed to do one room at a time. Within each category Marie Kondo advocates collecting up all the items that fall into that category in your entire house and piling them on the floor so that you can see exactly what you've got.

This is where Marie Kondo and I part company. I am more than 40 years her senior, and the thought of putting a heap of stuff on the floor and engaging in all that unnecessary bobbing up and down is a definite no-no for me. So I have to admit to having moved the goalposts right from the start. I piled my stuff on a bed, in batches.

I thought it would be easy to cull the books in my office. I usually have no trouble getting rid of excess books elsewhere in the house. However, the books in my office are mostly those I've bought for research - and since much of my work is historical fiction, that's a lot of books. I often re-visit subjects, and these are all books I use and dip into - so I removed very few.

Anxious to succeed, I moved on to papers. This was much more satisfying. I threw out dozens of manuscripts, huge folders of old research notes, decades of correspondence. I cleared my desk of multiple notes written on bits of paper and put any necessary information in a notebook.

I emptied the bulging carrier bag which used to be my repository for wrapping paper, envelopes for re-use, cardboard, etc., then selected sufficient items and put them neatly in a large shoebox (I have never been able to throw shoeboxes away, so I was glad to find that Marie Kondo recommends them for organising storage.)

I tidied my pinboards. I emptied a whole box file labelled 'Stuff for School Visits' since I don't do them any more. I threw out bulging folders of research notes for long since published books. I sorted and thinned drawers full of stationery.

My office now feels less cluttered, I know what I've got and where it is, and that I only have what I need or love. It's a more pleasant space in which to work. You won't see a lot of difference between my 'before' and 'after' photos but, believe me, I've shifted a lot of stuff - stuff which is unfortunately now piled on the landing, on chairs, and on the cellar steps, since the recycling won't be collected for a fortnight.

Marie Kondo's missionary zeal is easy to make fun of, but most of her advice is sensible. She emphasizes that you should focus not on reducing, but on choosing. Her philosophy - be kind to your possessions, thank them, and give them space to breathe - is not quite as daft as it sounds. It helps you to accept that while some possessions were important to you once, and gave you joy, you can let them go and move on.

The test, of course, is: will the clutter build up again? I hope not. But if it does - well, I've always enjoyed de-cluttering.

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GREY ISLAND, RED BOAT by Ian Beck. Reviewed by Saviour Pirotta

Title: Grey Island, Red Boat
Author and Illustrator: Ian Beck
Publisher: Barrington Stoke
Pub date: February 2016
Format: pb

Princess Opal lives on the island of Ashes, a grey place where it's always November and it never stops raining.  Her father, the king, is forever taking off in his grey ballon to remonstrate with the rain clouds and the closest the princess ever comes to excitement is watching the fishermen unload their catch. It makes for a dreary life until one day a fishermen rescues a young man in a drifting boat. A boat with a red hull!

The young man is a sort of Midas figure, except that everything he touches turns

from grey to colourful. His magic touch injects a joie de vivre into the princess' life and soon the whole island is infected with his joy.  Not everyone is happy with this turn of events, though. Especially not the king who considers the young man a threat to the island's way of life! So he has him locked up in the dungeons, much to the chagrin of Princess Opal...

This is an original story but it reads like an elegant European fairytale. The beautifully written text, laden with references to precious stones, flows from one page to another, complimenting the gorgeous, retro illustrations. These start off black and white at the start of the bock and gradually get imbued with more and more colour as the story reaches a multicoloured finale. A little gem of a book, both for its story and its fabulous production.

www.spirotta.com
@spirotta

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The Accident Season by Moira Fowley-Doyle

Reviewed by Jackie Marchant

Cara has always been aware of the accident season.  It happens every October and causes falls, injuries and even death – but only to Cara and her family.  Her best friend Bea, despite being close to the family, always survives unscathed, but her ex-stepbrother, who is not  a blood-relative, is prone.  It is the month when their mother does everything she can to stop it – from extra rugs on the floor, padding every corner in the house, making Cara and her sister Alice wear coats and gloves no matter what the weather.

But Cara is seventeen and beginning to ask questions.   What causes this month of danger, which ends at Halloween?  Is there something more sinister going on?  At the same time, she starts seeing shimmery unworldly figures that mirror her close group – herself, her sister Alice, her best friend Bea and her ex-stepbrother Sam.  These alternative people seem to echo the concepts of the faery world Bea is so interested in, while having problems of their own regarding an evil step-father, who bears a striking resemblance to Sam’s long-gone father, who left after three years of marriage to Cara’s mother.   Then there is Alice’s too-good-looking-to-be-true boyfriend and the October bruises that Cara realises weren’t accidents.  Added to the mix is the mysterious Elsie, who has been at school with them all this time, yet no one seems to notice her, especially when she disappears.

These strands are all skilfully woven together in a mix of fantasy and reality, as the mystery deepens and the dangers become more real.  At the same time, Cara has to deal with her feelings for Sam that don’t seem quite right, as well as Bea’s pulling away from her towards Alice.  The tension increases as the story unfolds and hidden secrets come to the surface.

It’s a thrilling, fast-paced read, with well-drawn characters and many heart-in-your-mouth moments.  It’s dark and mysterious, but ultimately a good, satisfying book.  Perfect for fans of Frances Hardinge, I can highly recommend it.

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RETURN TO THE SECRET GARDEN by Holly Webb, reviewed by Pauline Francis

The Secret Garden, by Frances Hodgson Burnett, first published in 1911. This continuation of the story was published by Scholastic in October, 2015. Although it works well as a stand-alone story, I imagine that most readers will know the original.

Is our expectation as a reader of a sequel high because we know that the original is a classic? I think so. It’s always tricky to write a sequel and Webb wisely chooses her own set of characters to open her story. The reader engages with her characters before we meet some from The Secret Garden. This is important so that children who haven’t read it are not at a disadvantage. 

The events of Webb’s story, told from Emmie’s point of view, take place almost thirty years later. She is ten and one of a group of evacuees being sent from their London orphanage just before the declaration of the Second World War. Destination? Misselthwaite Manor in North Yorkshire, the setting of Burnett’s book. When a Mrs Craven comes into the dormitory to see that the children are settled, the link is established. One of the children remembers the plaque in their orphanage, which reads: Founded by a Mr Archibald Craven of Misselthwate Manor in gratitude for the recovery of his son, Colin.

Emmie isn’t happy at all. She feels lonely without her cat, Lucy, especially as she is the only girl of her age in the group. Wandering alone In the huge manor garden, she comes face to face with Jack, a boy of her age, who is Mrs Craven’s son – and later, Mrs Craven herself.

Now I’m ready for a strong link with Mary Lennox, the orphaned child of The Secret Garden, and Webb doesn’t disappoint me. Emmie finds Mary’s dairies, begun in 1910, from which we learn about Mary’s discovery of a secret garden. Emmie finds it too, not the desolate winter garden of Mary’s time, but an end-of-summer garden full of scented roses and lilies.

As the seasons change, there are many happy times: Jack and Emmie become friends; Jack’s father comes on leave from the Air Force, bringing Emmie’s beloved cat from the orphanage; and games of hide and seek in the gardens. This idyll is brought to an end: Mr Craven is killed rescuing soldiers at Dunkirk. Emmie finds Mrs Craven weeping in the secret garden. There’s no tenderness in this scene. The gardener pulls Emmie away, shouting, ‘It’s her place, his and hers, their secret. Leave her alone. Stay out.’

This is the most dramatic part of the story. Emmie is even more desperate and alone. Jack still has his mother. She hasn’t. She only had the garden to make her feel special. It is biblical – chased from paradise, the Garden of Eden. ‘What if I can never go back?’ Emmie whispers.

She has to go back to rescue her cat and comes face to face with Mrs Craven, who says. ‘I stole this garden, Emmie, did you know? I can’t really complain if you do the same, can I?’

Now Emmie understands. Mrs Craven is Mary Lennox. Her husband was Colin, the sick boy who helped her in the garden almost thirty years ago.

Sometimes, as readers, we imagine what young protagonists might be when they grow up. What would Mary Lennox be like? She was a mean and sad orphan, just like Emmie. Yet she has become, thanks to Webb’s skill, a sensitive and caring adult. And now we understand that Emmie’s has the same chance to change.

Return to the Secret Garden is a book about friendship, the effect of war on families – and hope.

The secret garden has worked its magic again.

Pauline Francis

www.paulinefrancis.co.uk

Pauline Francis www.paulinefrancis.co.uk

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A DOG CALLED FLOW by Pippa Goodhart Reviewed by Adèle Geras

My usual disclaimer to start with: Pippa Goodhart is a friend of mine but I promise you I am reviewing her book because I like it   and because, apart from liking it, I think that this kind of book is often overlooked in the press and online in favour of louder, more glamorous books: books which are perceived as sensational in some way: newsworthy,  shocking, edgy.

This short novel was actually Pippa Goodhart's very first book and was shortlisted for the Smarties Prize. It's now  been reissued by Troika Books. It's short and there's a lot to be said for books which are designed for  younger children in a way that isn't too daunting or difficult, and this length will attract readers who might be put off by something denser and more complicated.

One of this story's  most important achievements  is that it encompasses many different plot strands and themes in a very elegant way. It's economical, too, and manages to paint a picture not only of a landscape, but also of a community and a particular family in very few words but without leaving anyone feeling short-changed.

 Oliver is having trouble at school. He can't quite manage reading and writing as well as he would like to.  He desperately wants a dog.   He has a problematic relationship with  Craig, a boy in his class. His parents and sister provide a happy family for him to live in, but even there, his Dad seems set against the idea of a puppy.

For  a while, Oliver  has to hide Flow,  but eventually, even Dad is won over by the puppy who is partly blind. Oliver didn't have to pay for Flow, because the farmer knows he won't make a working dog on the Fells.  

I'm not going to tell you more of the plot, but tension and excitement mount as the story progresses and everything is as  sharply organised and worked out as you could wish for. Problems that Goodhart has set up are resolved in a neat and convincing way, and the satisfaction of a happy ending for everyone is very welcome. 

This would  be a perfect book for readers who are just beginning to try whole books on their own and I think every classroom ought to have a copy on their shelves.

Readers also, incidentally, get a good idea of what the Fells look like and learn about the work of the Mountain Rescue teams. It may be a short book but it packs a punch....and there's a nice little surprise at the very end, which I am not revealing!

Illustrated by Anthony Lewis
Pbk: TROIKA BOOKS (price  £5.99)
ISBN: 9781909991163

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MISTER CLEGHORN'S SEAL by JUDITH KERR, reviewed by Pippa Goodhart

Last year Judith Kerr, now in her nineties, had a very special new book published.  Mister Cleghorn's Seal is a delight.  Handsomely produced on thick cream paper, with gold lettering on the cover, this book is a classy one, and a fun and a moving and a beautiful one.  It isn't a picture book.  It's a story book.  But every spread has wonderful soft pencil drawings to accompany the text.  The stubby nice people who live in this story world along with the big-eyed seal pup are very appealing, and the whole book has the most comfortable feel of a story one smiles one's way through reading.

The hero of this story isn't a child.  He's a recently retired old bachelor who isn't sure what to do with his time now that he has no work.  But, never mind that, Mr Cleghorn wants exactly what a child would want, and does exactly what a child would want to do.  When faced with an orphaned seal pub that's starving, Mr Cleghorn simply takes that seal pup home with him on the train.  He feeds it with a baby bottle, and waters it on his balcony with a watering can, and puts it into his bath.  

But there's a problem with keeping a seal in a flat where there's a janitor who is keen on the rules, and those rules state that no pets are allowed.  What is Mr C to do?  He considers the nearby zoo, but it isn't good enough.  Then a lady neighbour proves sympathetic ... and I'm sure you can guess how this story manages to end happily after all.  In saving the seal pup, Mr Cleghorn has saved himself.  

A post script from author/illustrator Kerr tells how this story actually puts right a sadder true story that has haunted her over for years.  'More than a hundred years ago' her father, as a young man, had saved a real life seal pup, taking it home to his flat in Berlin, feeding it with a baby bottle and watering it with a watering can on his balcony, and putting it into his bath, but that pup died.  The post script doesn't add that the man himself was then hounded from his home by the Nazis.  There's a lot of restrained emotion in this story, and that, along with the beauty of the pictures and the production, makes it moving and memorable whilst also fun.  This one really is and story and book for any age from about four up to anything you like!  

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The Great Chocoplot by Chris Callaghan. Review by Tamsin Cooke

When I read the blurb for The Great Chocoplot by Chris Callaghan – I thought what a great idea for a children’s book. I raced out to buy it, read it in one sitting, and YES – the story more than lives up to its blurb.

Jelly and her family live in Chompton-on-de-Lyte, where everyone loves a Chocablocka bar or two. So when the end of chocolate is announced, she can't believe it. Determined to investigate, Jelly and her gran follow a trail of clues to a posh chocolate shop and its owner, the pompous Garibaldi Chocolati. Gari's suspiciously smug, despite his failing business and yucky chocolate. Is it really the chocopocalypse, or is there a chocoplot afoot?

Jelly is a fabulous heroine – she’s smart, feisty and intrepid. And each member of her family is quirky and funny with their own role to play. Their witty dialogue made me laugh out loud.

This fun adventure is well paced and very clever. Chris manages to weave in science and history making the story sound so plausible, I actually might start stockpiling chocolate myself.

Jam-packed with jokes, it is aimed at 8+ , but I think it is just as entertaining for adults as it is children. In particular, I adore the witty news bulletins on the 'Chocopocal App', spread throughout the story. Plus there are great black and white illustrations by Lalalimola that really add to the humour and bring the book even more to life.

This is a truly fantastic read. And in my mind, any book that includes the word 'chocolpocalypse' deserves to be read!

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RAYMIE NIGHTINGALE by KATE DI CAMILLO. Review by Penny Dolan

Kate Di Camillo’s “BECAUSE OF WINN-DIXIE” which won the Newbery Prize in 2000, has long been one of my favourite children's books, so I was very glad to hear about the publication of her newest novel, RAYMIE NIGHTINGALE.

RAYMIE NIGHTINGALE is not a Di Camillo fantasy but a story set in Florida during the summer of 1975. The tale is peopled with a variety of eccentric and alarming characters and yet, despite some dark themes, filled with a slightly dazed optimism. 

The story opens as Raymie Clarke, the central character begins baton-twirling lessons with the alarming Ida Nee:  
“Stop that nonsense immediately,” said Ida Nee.

Even though she was old – fifty at least – her hair was an extremely bright yellow, She wore white boots that came all the way up to her knees.

“I’m not kidding,” said Ida Nee.

Raymie believed her. Ida Nee didn’t seem much like a kidder.

Raymie isn't in love with baton-twirling. She's there because, two days earlier, her father ran off to New York City without leaving any contact address. Raymie wants to enter the Little Miss Central Florida Tire Competition, hoping that when her father sees her photograph in the newspaper, he’ll feel so proud he will call her and come home again. 

She is standing in Ida Nee’s back yard with two unknown girls who both intend to enter the Competition too. The dainty Louisiana Elefante - given to fantasy, bunny-clips in her hair and fainting –  needs the prize money for herself and her Granny while the brooding, knife-wielding, lock-picking Beverley Tapinski merely wants to sabotage the whole event.  Louisiana enthusiastically names the odd trio the “Three Rancheros” and that summer's adventures make the three unlikely girls into firm friends.

Not content with just baton-twirling, Raymie decides to do a Good Deed for her competition interview. She visits the Golden Glen Nursing Home taking A Bright And Shining Path: The Life of Florence Nightingale, a library book - and hence the title of this novel. However, good-deed Raymie finds reading to the elderly is so alarming that she escapes, leaving the library book behind. 

Once Louisiana and Beverley hear about the lost book, they escort Raymie back to Golden Glen and succeed in getting the book back, mostly. From there, Di Camillo develops the story into a strong and heartfelt experience with an inspired ending and a host of eccentric adult characters. Slowly, during their escapades, Raymie understands more about Louisiana and Beverley’s lives as well as her own.

Lightly based on her own childhood, Di Camillo’s RAYMIE NIGHTINGALE deals with longing, friendship, death, determination and bravery in a wonderfully unique and remarkable way – and unlike Di Camillo’s earlier “Winn-Dixie” novel - no dogs are involved in this story. There is, however, a search for Archie the cat, last left in the care of the Very Friendly Animal Centre as well as an incident with a caretaker’s canary and some devious driving by a tiny Granny. A remarkable book with a clear sense of time and place that feels enjoyable, gently humourous and often poignant.

Meanwhile, I will be lending my copy of RAYMIE NIGHTINGALE to a certain twelve-year-old girl when we meet. I wonder what she'll think of it?

nb. I was alerted to RAYMIE NIGHTINGALE’s arrival by a recent review on the Bookwitch blog. Thank you for the recommendation, Bookwitch!

Penny Dolan

RAYMIE NIGHTINGALE,

published by Walker Books (2016) £9.99 hbk.

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