I have become obsessed with whales since reading this book. I now tell total strangers and colleagues (what I imagine to be) very interesting facts about whales. Some appreciate it more than others. Whales are amazing and mysterious creatures and remain so because we know so little about them. Phillip Hoare conveys his fascination through a history of whales, whaling and whalers, both mythic and factual. He writes with such enthusiasm and love for his subject, it’s hard not to become equally infatuated. I even read Moby Dick to satiate my desire to know more. I highly recommend both books. They both exceeded my expectations.
- Rebecca
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Neil Gaiman; Chris Riddell Much more than a simple (albeit enormously clever) retelling of Kipling’s The Jungle Book transplanted into a cemetery, The Graveyard Book is the story of a human boy called Nobody Owens, Bod for short, who is taken in and raised by ghosts after his family is killed by the mysterious man Jack. Who is, in fact, still on Bod’s case, so when Bod begins to venture out of the graveyard, the boy’s protectors—among them a werewolf and what sounds suspiciously like a vampire—have their work cut out for them. In essence, this is a book about families and growing up, scary bits included. Darkly witty, gently creepy, and delicately enhanced by some choice Chris Riddell illustrations (or Dave McKean ones if you pick up the adult edition!), the book can almost be read as individual short stories—further proof of just how skilled a writer Neil Gaiman is. - Julia |
Orphaned under what turn out to be mysterious circumstances and subsequently having grown up with an uncle who is actually something quite different than the bank supervisor he said he was, 14 year old Alex Rider finds himself drafted into MI6 service—unofficially, naturally. Sounds like the ultimate adventure, right? But soon the missions become more dangerous and the stakes more personal than Alex may be ready for…. I love these books because they are no-frills, straight-up adventure daydreams just like I had when I was bored in class and staring out the window. The action is relentless, and while the stories do all follow a comfortably familiar formula, Alex is such a sympathetic character that you can’t help but feel for him time and again, especially when he starts riling against The Powers That Be (which is saying something coming from someone who doesn’t generally gel with younger teenagers). Plus, there’s always a bad pun near the end about the baddie’s demise and you really can’t argue with that. – Julia |
An absolute classic. Why haven’t you read this already? Milo is bored. Always. Until one day, a mysterious package arrives that leads him to a land where everything is taken literally. The Phantom Tollbooth is full of wordplay (and numberplay and thoughtplay, for that matter), and so clever you’ll want to clap your hands in utter delight. It helps if you’re a bit of a nerd, admittedly, but if the mere idea of King Azaz The Unabridged doesn’t make you laugh, there’s something wrong with you. You should have that checked out. I worry. - Julia |
This is a brilliant novel. Told from the perspective of Clem remembering a life changing summer as an adult in New York. The majority of the action is set in rural Norfolk during the Cold War where he meets the love of his life, Frankie, the rich daughter of his father’s employer. This could have descended into rosy nostalgia and cliché but Peet is excellent at creating believable characters and strange twists to the tale. He captures the brilliance, boredom and uncertainty of youth with an ending that should make you cry or want to punch someone. - Rebecca |
Italo Calvino; William Weaver The framing story of Invisible Cities is slight - Marco Polo describes the fantastic imaginary cities that he has supposedly visited on his travels to Kublai Khan - but these descriptions, most of which are no less than a page - are beautiful, lyrical gems of prose. Calvino uses this device to explore the various ways in which humans interact with their surroundings and each other, resulting in a book which is profound, moving and a perfect balance between form and content. - Adam |
I found this book on the underground. I’m not sure if someone left it there because they wanted others to read it or it was left accidentally. Whatever the case I’m glad I found it. Certain books, despite being mildly depressing, reaffirm your belief that people are basically good and the world, although it may seem otherwise, is pretty amazing. This is one of those books. Any description I give won’t do it justice so read it and decide for yourself. The writing style to begin with is slightly unusual but persevere and it is definitely worth it.
- Rebecca
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A dark adventure, ranging from Ireland to the Artic, with an unusual heroine in Light – half Inuit, half Irish and all albino, The Secret Ministry of Frost is a fantastic debut novel from Nick Lake. Similar to His Dark Materials in the search for a lost father and in the desolate setting, Light’s epic journey into the artic wasteland to confront a force older than mankind, pulls you in right from the very start. The Inuit folklore she thought to be fairy tales merges with reality when Light is drawn into an age-old intrigue between Setna, the ruler of the sea and Frost, king of the cold. The action is relentless and at times brutal, not surprising given that her friends include the Tupilak, half shark, half polar bear, and a Raven God. Frightening (in a good way) and intelligent - all kids’ books should be as good as this. - Rebecca |
The set-up is basic: Jane is an operative for the Department for the Final Disposition of Irredeemable Persons, aka Bad Monkeys. Or is she? Surreality ensues. They’re not half lying about what it says on the back: The Silence of the Lambs meets The Matrix just about hits the nail on the head! A rollercoaster read of the best kind; head-turningly pacy, light of touch, and leaving you wanting just that little bit more without giving you a frustrating ending. If you get a chance to pick up any of Ruff’s other books, do! (Fool on the Hill is actually my favourite, but sadly out of print.) - Julia
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Astrid Lindgren; Joan Tate; Ilon... Little Karl Lion is dying; his brother Jonatan tells him of a magical land where people still live in “the campfire and storytelling days”. Which is exactly where they end up when Jonatan dies saving Karl from a fire and Karl finally succumbs to his illness. What follows is a fantasy adventure full of joyous pursuits, but also betrayal, and oppression, and rebellion, and the scariest dragon ever. This book influenced my views of death a long time before I even realised that’s what this one is all about. As is the case with all the best children’s books, it’s not coy or hand-waving about death or any of the other less than pleasant themes it touches on; it’s the characters' reaction to it and what happens after that makes it ultimately comforting. - Julia |
Don’t let the awful cover put you off - Alice Munro is one of the greatest writers in the world and a master of the short story, and this might be her best collection. Not very much happens on the outside, but the internal lives of Munro’s characters are
constantly going through crises, revelations and epiphanies that are so devastating and perfectly expressed that I had to put the book down and recover a few times. She writes about women going through emotional upheaval with economy and precision without it ever feeling too stylised or stilted, and can make one sentence say more than most writers can in pages.
- Adam
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Much more than a simple (albeit enormously clever) retelling of Kipling’s The Jungle Book transplanted into a cemetery, The Graveyard Book is the story of a human boy called Nobody Owens, Bod for short, who is taken in and raised by ghosts after his family is killed by the mysterious man Jack. Who is, in fact, still on Bod’s case, so when Bod begins to venture out of the graveyard, the boy’s protectors—among them a werewolf and what sounds suspiciously like a vampire—have their work cut out for them. In essence, this is a book about families and growing up, scary bits included. Darkly witty, gently creepy, and delicately enhanced by some choice Chris Riddell illustrations (or Dave McKean ones if you pick up the adult edition!), the book can almost be read as individual short stories - further proof of just how skilled a writer Neil Gaiman is. - Julia |
He calls himself Snowman. He lives in a tree on a beach, wrapped in an old sheet. The Children of Crake come to him, singing his name…“Oh Snowman! Oh Snowman! What have we found?” They are his responsibility. He was once called Jimmy, and he is in all likelihood the last human being on Earth. In Snowman, Atwood has created a great tragi-comic narrator, a jealous lover left alone at the end of the world, with only his failing sanity for company. Through his memories, we learn how this world came to be. He tells us of strangely altered animals, of nature dangerously contained, and of the mysterious Oryx, whom Jimmy loves and despises in equal measure. - Christopher |
‘Northernness’: what does it mean? Tricky, isn’t it? If stereotypes are to be believed, anyone living north of Birmingham still spends their Sunday evenings in a tin bath in front of Coronation Street waiting for their flat cap to dry. Although enormously tempted in parts, Maconie works hard to dispel these typecasts and replace them with colourful reflections of the people and culture ‘oop narf. He doesn’t mention everywhere (and if you’re from York, you’re out of luck), but anecdotes from the areas he does know do offer a welcome personal touch to a work that could so easily have taken the ‘them v. us’ angle.
- James
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A fantastic modern fairy tale for grown ups. Banishing all Disney type singing dwarves in favour of the more nightmarish Grimm versions, it tells the tale of David. With his mother recently dead and a brand new evil stepmother, he retreats into a world of talking books, werewolves, a psychotic Snow White and the truly frightening Crooked Man. Connolly builds on and toys with your childhood fears in this sinister and atmospheric novel.
- Rebecca |
If you find yourself wishing the Wire had never ended and fruitlessly surfing the channels for a satisfactory replacement, look no further. There are a few great books that fill the void but none better, in my opinion, than The Power of the Dog. Taking the drug war to South America, it follows the lives and exploits of CIA agents, drug barons and everyone else caught up in between. Winslow is not especially well known over here but is steadily building a cult following. Read him first before everyone jumps on the bandwagon.
- Rebecca
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