Newest Home and Family Reviews
Home and family
After You: Letters of Love, and Loss, to a Husband and Father by Natasha McElhone
What would you do if, without warning, your brilliant, loving, superman partner died from a catastrophic heart event at the untimely age of 43, leaving you with two young boys and a third on the way? Most of us would probably reach for the Valium and book a very long course of counseling. But Natascha McElhone couldn't because she was already stretched, juggling a busy transatlantic career as an actress as well as caring for her sparky young family. Coping as a single parent left no spare time for self-indulgence; within months she had a new baby as well. So she found her own way, grabbing instead at odd moments to write in her well-established diary. These short entries … e-mails, almost … to her dead husband form the basis of 'After You'. Full review...
The Aargh to Zzzz of Parenting: An Alternative Guide by Joanna Simmons and Jay Curtis
'All in all, having kids is an intense rollercoaster ride. It plunges up and down, and there’s lots of screaming and vomiting involved.' So that pretty much sums it up. Advertised as: 'a comprehensively unhelpful, advice-free look at life', the authors talk about Antecedents and Behaviour, without (fortunately) going too deeply into the Consequences of several dozen baby-related topics. But this definitely isn’t the rocket science of a parenting manual, or the touchy-feely of a misery memoir, rather a blackly comic gallop round pragmatic parenthood, instantly recognizable by anyone who’s been through the mill themselves. Full review...
Dadcando: Build, Make, Do ... the Best Way to Spend Quality Time with Your Kids by Chris Barnardo
The ideas in this book originated as a website that Chris Barnardo set up for divorced and separated fathers to help them spend quality time with their children Now he's written a book that although aimed at single fathers is equally as useful for married dads, and mums too or grandparents or carers to inspire crafty ideas of things to make with kids. Full review...
The Baby Diaries: Memories, Milestones and Misadventures by Tess Daly
One of the many side effects of pregnancy seems to be the need to read everything you can get your hands on about pregnancy and babies. I know that when pregnant with my daughter I trawled the library for any baby books they had, scoured the internet nightly for due date calendars, week by week guides and baby name dictionaries. I also became an obsessive baby-watcher, interested in any celebrity baby news and willing to speak to anyone 'normal' that I met who was pregnant too or who already had children. This book is aiming to be a sort of catch-all for pregnancy obsessives I think, as it's a mix of pregnancy and birth advice and information alongside of Tess Daly's memories from her pregnancies with her two daughters. Full review...
The Secret Language of Sleep: A Couple's Guide to the Thirty-nine Positions by Evany Thomas
This volume takes the premise that the positions in which couples sleep together are an insight into their private mind. Therefore, with the help of the line drawings of 39 (apparently all of THE 39) positions, one might see where one is going wrong. It’s a chicken and egg situation where you might learn you’re with the wrong bed partner, and change either them or your nocturnal habits, or in order to change yourself alter things having reflected on the contents here – with the help as they suggest of a ceiling-mounted camcorder. Full review...
Collect Autographs: An Illustrated Guide to Collecting and Investing in Autographs by Fraser's Autographs
There must be many of us who have at one time had an autograph book or something of the kind as children and asked friends, relations or even celebrities to 'do something', written to celebrities in the hope of obtaining a personally signed picture, or even waited patiently at a stage door after a play or concert eagerly clutching a theatre programme, record or CD sleeve and pen in hand. Full review...
Soul Mates: True Stories From The World of Online Dating by Sonali Fernando
Internet dating is no longer the new taboo it once was. These days, whatever type of person you are, and whatever type of person you're looking to meet, you can take your pick from any number of sites. Yes, even 'Guardian' readers can log on and look for love specifically with, erm, other 'Guardian' readers. To do so, they just have to click through to 'Guardian Soulmates', which is probably no different from 'Match.com' or 'Datingdirect', though might count a larger proportion of sandal wearing hippies among its members. Full review...
Online Therapy: Reading Between the Lines by Jethro Adlington
You can get most things online these days and even therapy is becoming more widely available on the internet. It might seem like a simple step to take but many of the signals beyond the spoken word are not available to the online therapist. In a face-to-face situation body language is an added form of communication and even small changes in skin tone can give clues as to state of mind. In a situation where these clues are not available it's essential to make the most of all the clues offered by the written word. Full review...
Bangers and Mash by Keith Hern
Keith Hern found a small lump in his neck and when the results of the tests came through he tried to put the appointment off as he had something more pressing to do, but the doctor was insistent. He knew then that he had cancer. The lump in his neck was, in fact, a secondary tumour with the primary being in the back of his tongue. But for the secondary tumour the discovery of the primary might have been too late for successful treatment. Keith takes us through the discovery of his cancer, his reactions to the diagnosis, his treatment and the titular meal of bangers and mash – the first solid food which he had attempted for some time. Full review...
Make New Year's Resolutions and Keep Them Using NLP by Donna Blinston
It's coming up to that time of year again – you know it's the one where you make resolutions about going on a diet, getting more exercise, stopping smoking or losing weight. If they last a week into the New Year you're probably doing well – and then you're left with a feeling of failure. Donna Blinston offers advice on how to make your resolutions and how to keep them – and I needed this advice as much as the next couch potato. Full review...
Prep School Children: A Class Apart Over Two Centuries by Vyvyen Brendon
Prep School Children is Vyvyen Brendon's second collection (Children of the Raj was the first). It explores the pupil experience, using primary sources like weekly letters home, memoirs and interviews, and less immediate material such as fiction, school magazines and headmasters' biographies. I came to the book with some questions: what was it like to be a boarder at a prep school? What difference did a prep school education make to life as an adult? Why parents might send their children to such schools when the horrors were well-known, many of the dads presumably having survived the experience themselves. Full review...
A Dictionary of Foreign Words and Phrases by Tad Tuleja
Take a look at the cover design of this book, and you'd be mistaken for thinking this was a trivia compendium for all those foreign words that have taken part in our English language since whenever they crossed over from their original homes. But the title is definitely honest, for this is a dictionary book first, for reference, and a browser for the trivia buff second. Full review...
Here Come the Girls by Loose Women
This is the second volume by the panelists from that nice ITV series, Loose Women. Just as promised on the cover, this book is an entertaining night with the girls. It turns out that they're just like us. The faces are already familiar and even if you don't know them yet, with nine contributors, you'll soon find a like-minded woman behind one of the celebrity faces. The women are universally warm-hearted and supportive: there will be many a lonely woman who reads this book and feels as if she sat down with a group of friends for the evening. Full review...
It's Not Fair! Parenting the Bright and Challenging Child by Gill Hines and Alison Baverstock
I like parenting books. So, even though my sons are now young adults, I looked forward to reading a new book about raising children. I'm in touch with many parents with children of all ages, and am always interested in reading current recommendations.
The subtitle of this book is, 'Parenting the bright and challenging child'. When I saw it, I wondered if it would be similar to the American book 'Raising your Spirited Child' (by Mary Sheedy Kurcinka) which I found extremely useful when my sons were younger. Spirited children are defined as those who are intense, sensitive, perceptive, persistent and energetic. Full review...
My Family and Other Disasters by Lucy Mangan
Not living in the UK means that we don't have British newspapers. Even when we lived in England, we never bought The Guardian, so I had never actually heard of Lucy Mangan before being sent this book. That's probably not a bad thing, since I began the book - a collection of her Guardian columns - without any preconceptions. Full review...
Ripping Things to Do by Jane Brocket
Right from the very moment I opened the envelope this book was delivered in, I had the distinct feeling this would be a real gem of a book, and how right I was. Though, initially, I was reminded of the Iggulden brothers' Dangerous Book for Boys series, this book has a very different ethos, even though the subject matter overlaps somewhat unavoidably making it bear comparison. Full review...
Enchanted Hunters: The Power of Stories in Childhood by Maria Tatar
Like most avid readers, I don't remember the time before there were books. We were brought up with books. There are family tales of my father as a child eating his breakfast with one hand, while trying to tie his shoelaces with the other and still contriving to read at the same time. They were a poor family, and books weren't just expensive, they were valuable. They were dear, in every sense of the word. Likewise my mother remembers her early school-years when every day ended with a chapter from one of the classics. Full review...
The Complete Guide to IVF by Kate Brian
Each year some forty thousand cycles of IVF – in vitro fertilisation – are carried out in the UK and something like a million worldwide. About two hundred thousand IVF babies are born annually with some twelve thousand of those in the UK according to a recent article I read on a BBC site. Fertility expert Kate Brian has followed her Complete Guide to Female Fertility, which we loved, with another indispensable guide – this time to IVF. Full review...
Weighing It Up by Ali Valenzuela
Although never having had an eating disorder myself, I have been interested in them since I was young. I was a competitive gymnast and that is a world where eating disorders do creep in. Now I'm a mother of three teenage daughters, I worry about the subject from a whole new angle, especially as one of them is a size 6-8 and idolises those super-skinny celebrities. Full review...
Anorexic by Anna Paterson
It might seem strange and somewhat ironic that an obese woman is reviewing a book on anorexia. But it is a topic I have always found interesting. Despite my being at the opposite end of the weight scale to Anna Paterson, I could empathise with some of the things she felt. Full review...
Girls' Night In by Loose Women
I love watching Loose Women on TV and feel it's like sitting down for a good gossip with a load of girlfriends. Every time it's on, I get involved in the debates and they spark discussions at home with whoever is around. My teenage daughters are fans of the show too.
So when I heard a book was coming out, I definitely wanted to read it! But would the fun and camaraderie so obvious on the telly really be able to translate to the written word? Full review...
The Fight of Your Life by Jeffrey Dean
This book is a wake-up call. Jeffrey Dean wrote it so that parents can understand the difficult world that their teens may have to face everyday, and through this understanding, they will be motivated to help their teens to survive. Full review...
Veg Patch: River Cottage Handbook No 4 by Mark Diacono
At a time when the climate is changing and the economy appears to be heading south the thought of being able to produce your own vegetables is very tempting. Forget about food miles and consider instead how few minutes there can be between harvesting your vegetables and the cooking process. Don't worry about pesticides and residues as you'll know exactly what's been fed to your food. Mark Diacono, head gardener on the hallowed ground of River Cottage HQ, run by the sainted Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall, tells you exactly how to go about it in this, the fourth of the River Cottage Handbooks. Full review...
The Long and the Short of it: A Guide to Finance and Investment for Normally Intelligent People Who Aren't in the Industry by John Kay
Sometimes I wonder if authors set out to stop people reading their books, strange as this might seem. John Kay is an excellent example. He tells us that he expects his readers to be erudite and to be readers of popular science. They'll never knowingly have dealt with Goldman Sachs and will pay tax at the 40% rate. At the other end of the scale they'll not be bad credit risks and just to cut out anyone hoping for a quick buck, they'll not be tempted to make a living from Stock Market speculation. If you don't qualify on all points there's not even a hint of a pass mark which might allow you to sneak into the checkout queue. Full review...
Look Young, Live Longer: The Secret to Changing Your Life and Slowing the Ageing Process by Glenn Harrold
I was really intrigued by the title of therapist Glenn Harrold's book Look Young and Live Longer. Could it be possible that a book could deliver on such a huge promise? Having been feeling more than a little jaded lately, I was willing to give it a try. Full review...
On Kindness by Adam Phillips and Barbara Taylor
As a title, On Kindness doesn't pack quite the same punch as Adam Phillip's earlier: 'On Kissing, Tickling and Being Bored'. It put me in mind of an eighteenth century treatise, and, give or take a couple of centuries, that is exactly what the book provides: a thought-provoking exposition on a currently unfashionable virtue. Full review...
Seeing Spells Achieving by Olive Hickmott and Andrew Bendefy
I felt an immediate empathy with Olive Hickmott when I read this book. We're obviously of a similar age and were taught reading and spelling in a time before you were dyslexic. I found that the terms more commonly used were 'not trying hard enough' and 'lazy'. I did master reading although I was late by today's standards but I've always struggled with spelling: certain words and letter combinations still have terrors hidden within them half a century later and until we changed the format of Bookbag I used to warn reviewers that they should check whatever I uploaded onto the site as I was unreliable when it came to spelling. Olive and I have both been saved by the spellchecker. I settled happily into reading, Olive less so, but we both made careers where numbers were important. I could read a set of accounts like a story; she found a home in engineering. We worked in areas where intuition was important. Full review...
The Complete Guide to Female Fertility by Kate Brian
It's tempting to say that every woman over the age of puberty should have access to Kate Brian's 'The Complete Guide to Female Fertility'. The truth is that they should all have their own copies and they should read the book until it's dog-eared and falling apart, because I really can't think of a better way to understand why some women are more fertile than others or some women have difficulty in conceiving. Full review...
The Thrift Book: Live Well and Spend Less by India Knight
A soon as I read the introduction I wondered if this was really going to be the book for me. Despite having two books in the top ten best seller list India Knight knew the bailiffs well and was facing bankruptcy. It wasn't that she wasn't earning money – it was simply that she had no ability to handle it. Hmm – I have a horror of debt and I can handle money. Was India Knight really going to be able to teach the person who grew up with the austerity of post-war Britain chomping at her heels anything about thrift? Plans were already forming to move the book on, when slowly and inexorably I was won over. Full review...
The Shakespeare Handbook by Michael Schmidt and Robert Maslen
William Shakespeare. If you're a fan of the theatre, you may see him as the greatest playwright of all time. If you're currently studying English at school, he may be the worst thing that ever happened to you. Over the years, I've certainly held both opinions, depending on where I was at the time.
Part of this could have been because I, like most school pupils, never had a gentle introduction to Shakespeare. If I'd had a book like this in the early years of my schooling, I suspect I may have come around to my love of Shakespeare a lot sooner than I did. Full review...
Cleaning Up: How I Gave Up Drinking And Lived by Tania Glyde
I suspect that I'm like a lot of people who enjoy alcohol on a regular basis: there's a nagging guilt and suspicion that you might have a problem. Equally, there's St Augustine's approach to a sin: you're determined to do something about it, but not just yet. So, when Cleaning Up: How I Gave Up Drinking And Lived dropped through the letterbox on Saturday morning I wondered if this was a message from a higher authority. Full review...
Garden Birds and Wildlife by Mike Toms and Paul Sterry
Garden Birds & Wildlife has been created and published under the auspices of British Trust for Ornithology (though the actual publisher is, possibly in the spirit of penance for damage inflicted on wildlife by the motorcar, the AA). Accordingly, the main focus of the guide is, indeed, on birds. It contains a wealth of information: from birdwatching to bird biology and behaviour, including visual guides to eggs and nests; practical tips and guides to bird watching, feeding (what, how and where), creating a bird-and-wildlife- friendly garden and building nest boxes; it's all there, with copious illustrations, clear text and more interesting or practically relevant facts and tips in separate insert boxes. Full review...
Write Your Life Story by Michael Oke
I love writing and over the last few years, I have begun to write my autobiography. While I find this a very rewarding process, sometimes it can be hard to stay motivated. It is easy to get bogged down in wondering if it's any good, if you are going into too much detail or not enough. Sometimes you need a push in the right direction. Write Your Life Story by Michael Oke is ideal for this, as well as for anyone interested in writing their memoirs, but unsure how to start. Full review...
The Optimist's/pessimist's Handbook by Niall Edworthy and Petra Cramsie
With a publication date in early November, the passing Christmas shopper is clearly the target for this book. The Optimist's/ Pessimist's Handbook isn't a self-help book, but a compendium of enlightening snippets. Off the shelf, I think you'd know immediately which relative or friend might enjoy receiving it. So I suggest eschewing Amazon in favour of a real-life bookshop, not least because there will be a shelf full of similar books for a surreptitious and delightful half-hour's browse before choosing. Full review...
Damp Squid: The English Language Laid Bare by Jeremy Butterfield
How do you pronounce the word ghoti? Go on, say it out loud – you must recognise it, and I dare say you've eaten one enough times.
OK, I'll help. You know gh sounds like f, like it does in rough. You know o sounds like i, just like in women. And ti is clearly the same as sh, as in notion. Yes, ghoti is pronounced fish. It's just a very blunt way of saying the rules that control the language, and how it is spelled, pronounced, used, and changes over history are all over the place. Full review...
Shakespeare on Toast by Ben Crystal
Shakespeare on Toast claims to be for virtually everyone: those that are reading Shakespeare for the first time, occasionally finding him troublesome, think they know him backwards or have never set foot near one of his plays but have always wanted to. Full review...
You Can Be Thin: The Ultimate Programme to End Dieting... Forever by Marisa Peer
After having my baby just over two years ago, I have found it quite hard to shed the weight which seemed to be sticking around. I used to be quite thin before having him, so to suddenly go up a dress size was a bit of a shock. I'm quite a petite person so even just a few extra pounds shows unfortunately. I decided I had to get rid of the weight, and so I turned to this book sent to me by The Bookbag. Full review...
How to Get a Celeb's Body: Discover the Secrets of the Stars with Your Own Personal Trainer by Elise Lindsay
I do not know Elise Lindsay - neither by name or reputation. I am optimistic and therefore think she must be a great coach. A hundred plus pages with pictures show her posing very confidently in flattering sport outfits and she does seem quite fit. I am sure she can motivate her clients and make them do their best. Quite frankly though, I do not believe that should in any way have motivated anyone to write a book. Full review...
Is This Bottle Corked? The Secret Life of Wine by Kathleen Burk and Michael Bywater
Now, I'm the first person to admit I am not a wine buff. I know a lot more now than I did before my current relationship, but she is right to say I have a very masculine (ie dead weak) sense of smell. Added to that a blunt sense of taste and I'm left saying I know what I like when I drink it, and that's it. Full review...
