Book Reviews From 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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Jessie Hearts NYC by Keris Stainton
After splitting up with Taylor, Jessie is desperate to forget about him, so her first ever trip to New York is heaven-sent – even if it does mean having to stay with her mother. Emma, her best friend, is equally thrilled to be coming with her. While Jessie is still upset at her mother’s decision to move to America, New Yorker Finn is facing problems of his own with his controlling family. Railroaded into working in his dad's insurance company during his summer holiday, he dreams of being an architect. He's also fallen hard for a girl - who happens to be his best friend's girlfriend. What will happen when these two meet? Full review...
The Breakfast Club by Kate Costelloe
Billie and her three best friends have grown to love the breakfast club they've formed, meeting every Saturday morning to pass the time and discuss the week they've had. Mario's is the perfect venue for it - so it's a huge shock when they find it's closing down! In addition, Billie's mother is adamant that she shouldn't pursue the career in music she wants more than anything, and Billie can't understand why. Can the girls find somewhere else to spend Saturday mornings, and can they persuade Billie's mum that music is what really matters to her? Full review...
Death of an Unsigned Band by Tim Thornton
Russell knows that his band is going nowhere, and the prospect of a life consisting only of a grim day job and some depressing creative exercises is getting him down. But when Josh turns up with a potential way out, it's not quite the way Russell, or any of the other band members, would have envisaged. Full review...
Zoo Girl by Rebecca Elliott
Zoo girl was not what I expected. I was anticipating your average rhyming story aimed at preschoolers with the usual obsession over zoo animals. What I got was a very deep, moving tale aimed above the usual picture book age that will resonate with people who read it from children to adults. Full review...
Blood Brotherhoods: The Rise of the Italian Mafias by John Dickie
There can be few people who are unaware of the 'mafia' particularly as the word is used as a catch-all to cover the Italian criminal fraternity – and by extension the off-shoots which have spread throughout the world – but the south of Italy has three major mafias. Sicily is the birthplace of and home to Cosa Nostra, whilst Naples and its hinterland hosts the camorra. In Calabria, possibly the poorest region of Italy, you'll find the 'ndrangheta. There are plenty of myths and legends about the birth of the criminal organisations, but Professor John Dickie has looked at their early history from 1851 through to the liberation of Italy at the end of the Second World War. He looks at their rituals and their methods and much of what you will read has been a secret until now. Full review...
Breaking Away by Anna Gavalda
Garance is on her way to a family wedding. In the car with her brother and his wife she thinks about all her siblings, what's happened in their lives and who they have all become. Throughout the journey she finds herself bickering constantly with her sister-in-law who always rubs her up the wrong way, and for the first time Garance senses some tension from her brother too who is usually calm and collected at all times. Is everything okay in his life or is his wife finally beginning to wear his patience thin? They take a detour en route to pick up another sibling, much to Carine's annoyance, and then on reaching the wedding there's a surprise in store for all of them as the four siblings find themselves on an unplanned escape, together once again, rediscovering their youthful selves in a fun, brief break from their real lives. Full review...
Tales From Percy's Park: Percy's Bumpy Ride by Nick Butterworth
At the start of 'Percy's Bumpy Ride', all the park animals are puzzled by the strange noises coming from Percy the Park keeper's workshop. They cannot guess what Percy is up to, but soon all is revealed when the doors open and Percy drives out on a spanking new machine. It's a new lawn mower and when Percy claims that it will help him fly around the park he is not joking. He and the animals roar around the park cutting the grass speedily and efficiently. However, before long the mower literally takes off and it looks as if they are all heading for a nasty accident until some very friendly sheep help to soften their landing. Percy decides that maybe his exciting new mower is perhaps not up to the job of keeping the park's grass in trim, but luckily, the sheep have given him another idea... Full review...
Freedom by Daniel Suarez
A short while ago, I read Daniel Suarez's debut novel Daemon, which was a gripping technological thriller. It may not have been a terribly original idea, but it was well written if a little lacking in character building and it did seem to end a little abruptly. The reason for this abrupt end now becomes clear, as there is now a sequel, Freedom™. Full review...
The Kashmir Shawl by Rosie Thomas
Mair Ellis and her two siblings are busy clearing out their parents' house shortly after their father's death, when Mair comes across an old package in a chest of drawers. Unwrapping the parcel from its tissue paper, Mair discovers an exquisite and expensive, hand woven Indian shawl from Kashmir, intricately woven and full of wonderful colours. Falling out of the shawl is an envelope containing a lock of hair, adding to its already mysterious nature. Full review...
The Captive Queen by Alison Weir
Vaclav and Lena are both children of Russian immigrants, growing up in Brooklyn. Vaclav dreams of becoming a fantastic magician, with his friend Lena as his assistant, and as children they practise their routine together, making lists of the things they'll need, the costumes they will wear and the tricks they will perform. Vaclav is confident and happy, but Lena is quiet, withdrawn and struggles with speaking English. Yet Vaclav believes, always, that they are destined to be together. Even when Lena disappears one day and is gone from his life for many years still he hopes that, somehow, he will find her again. Full review...
Vaclav and Lena by Haley Tanner
Vaclav and Lena are both children of Russian immigrants, growing up in Brooklyn. Vaclav dreams of becoming a fantastic magician, with his friend Lena as his assistant, and as children they practise their routine together, making lists of the things they'll need, the costumes they will wear and the tricks they will perform. Vaclav is confident and happy, but Lena is quiet, withdrawn and struggles with speaking English. Yet Vaclav believes, always, that they are destined to be together. Even when Lena disappears one day and is gone from his life for many years still he hopes that, somehow, he will find her again. Full review...
69ers: A Novel About the 1969 Isle of Wight Festival of Music by Jon Blake
In the summer of 1969, as Thunderclap Newman proclaimed in their one and only musical claim to fame, there was something in the air. The alternative generation were talking about the recent Woodstock Festival in America, and eagerly looking forward to what promised to be a similar gathering, albeit on a smaller scale, at the Isle of Wight at the end of August, where Bob Dylan was headlining. Full review...
To Save a People by Alex Kershaw
Raoul Wallenberg, a Swedish diplomat of Jewish ancestry, was without doubt one of the heroes of the Second World War. This book, by one of the war's foremost modern historians, tells the story of his humanitarian work which began with his posting to Budapest in July 1944. Full review...
Mistaken by Neil Jordan
The front cover photograph and the blurb on the back cover give this book a misty, floaty, ethereal feel. The story starts at the end, if you get my drift. The adult Kevin attends a local funeral but he's careful to remain low-key, hidden almost. Why is that? And whose funeral is it anyway? As early as page 6, Jordan's poetic and atmospheric style is apparent in lines such as ' ... close to the line of yew trees, were the massed umbrellas of the mourners, retreating, like so many mushrooms come alive in a fairy-tale forest.' Full review...
The Reinvention of Love by Helen Humphreys
'The Reinvention of Love' is one of those stories that is so bizarre and strange that it could only be based on factual events. Essentially it is a good, old-fashioned love triangle set mostly in Paris in the period from the 1830s to the 1860s; a world where fighting duels is a commonplace event. The triangle features the great French literary writer Victor Hugo, his wife Adèle and the altogether strange critic Charles Saint-Beuve who narrates much of this story, with brief breaks for Adèle's side of events and some letters written by the Hugo's youngest daughter, also called Adèle (but let's call her, as she was known to her family, Dédé to avoid confusion). Full review...
Colours Sticker Activity Book by Nat Lambert and Andrea Petrlik
It's lovely to find a book – and even better to find a series of books - which allow parents and children to do something constructive together. The first book which we looked at was Colours. On each double page spread there are plenty of things to talk about with your child, stickers to find and put in the appropriate spaces and then a game or an activity to complete. You'll find songs to sing, pictures to colour in and join-the-dot pictures to complete. There are even some smiley faces so that you can reward your child for what they've achieved. They're suitable for the three plus age group and will be enjoyed by both boys and girls. Full review...
The Game by Krystyna Kuhn
Meet Julia and Robert. They're siblings on their way to Grace College, an exclusive campus stuck up in the Canadian wilderness. It's a rum place, set by a lake under lowering mountains. It's a place of sudden night-time blackouts, unexpected screams through the dark, mysterious parties clandestinely held out of sight, and pupils declaring it all 'evil', but what is student prank and what is due to something more sinister? And what could Julia and Robert possibly be running from to force them to this strange end of the earth? Full review...
Charles Jessold, Considered as a Murderer by Wesley Stace
"Nothing in recent fiction prepared me for the power and the polish of this subtle tale of English music in the making, a chiller wrapped in an enigma [New Statesman]"
"His handling of dry comic dialogue and cynical affectation is reminiscent of P G Wodehouse… an intelligent, fun and thoughtful piece of fiction [Independent on Sunday]"
Just two of the previous reviews that adorn the back cover of 'Charles Jessold…' Full review...
When Chico Went Fishing by Robin Tzannes and Korky Paul
Chico wants to go fishing with his father very much, and begs him, but dad says no, he will make too much noise and scare away the fish. In the end, Chico sets out to go fishing on his own, and he does really well. This is a very simple story. It is accompanied though by fascinating, detailed illustrations. In fact, it is billed as a Korky Paul picture book, one in which illustrator Korky Paul has done the drawings. I think this is really interesting as often illustrated children’s books are sold on the basis of the author of the text. Full review...
East of Aden by Elisabeth McNeill
It was said that something strange happened to women when they went east of Aden. The normal rules of behaviour seemed to have been left at home and anything – well just about anything – seemed to go. Back in the early nineteen sixties three women met in Bombay. How would they fare in the hot climate? It wasn't just the women who changed when they went out to India, either. How would the husbands of Jess, Joan and Jackie cope when sex seemed to be freely available wherever they looked? Full review...
This Book Belongs To Aye-Aye by Richard Byrne
Aye-Aye goes to Miss Deer's Academy For Aspiring Picture-Book Animals. Dontcha just love that concept? He's desperate to be in a book of his own, but he's not quite ready yet. Miss Deer announces that there's going to be a very special prize for the most helpful animal of the week. However, as the week goes on, the parameters of the competition seem to change, and the Rabbit Twins are up to their usual cheeky shenanigans. Full review...
The Animal Bop Won't Stop by Jan Ormerod and Lindsey Gardiner
The words are easy to read aloud and would be fun, perhaps, to share with a small group of co-operative pre-school children and try out the suggested movements. If you want to get your kids dancing, this might not be the best choice at bedtime, and my boys are a bit wary of directed activity (so we exercise them in the park). Full review...
A Good Clean Edge by Vincent Caldey
After an acrimonious divorce, Vincent chooses to stay with his father and not his mother and sister. As his father works away much of the time, they go to live with Vincent's grandparents, who run an undertaking business. Vincent, a reserved and sensitive child, is being bullied on his way in to his new school by Frankie Lennox from the grammar school, who goes so far as to threaten Vincent with a knife. Full review...
Marcelo in the Real World by Francisco X Stork
Marcelo has spent his childhood and the majority of his teenage years at Paterson, a private school that caters specifically for those with disabilities, providing them with a protected environment where they can learn at their own rate and feel accepted. However, his father Arturo feels that it is time that Marcelo experiences the real world and really challenges himself. Using the promise of a senior year spent at Paterson rather than a public school, Arturo coerces Marcelo to take up a small position for the summer in the law firm that he owns. In the firm, Marcelo is forced to interact regularly with a plethora of different personalities, and while some prove to be enjoyable company, others leave him feeling confused and distressed. Things really come to a head when he is forced to make a momentous decision, one that requires him to either ignore his conscience, or end up betraying his father and by extension himself; it is not a decision that is logical, and will require Marcelo to not only empathise with others, but also understand what makes himself tick. Full review...
The Queen's Governess by Karen Harper
Kat Ashley isn't a name one usually associates with the Tudor era, but just like the more famous characters of the period, she has her own fascinating story to tell, a story which this book captures perfectly. As Thomas Cromwell's spy, Anne Boleyn's confidante and later Princess Elizabeth's governess, Kat Ashley certainly knew the Tudor court well and it is through her fictional diary entries that the reader is invited to know the dazzling, yet dangerous Tudor court too. Full review...
Snow White by Sally Gardner
Having read many retellings of Grimms' tales, it is refreshing to read one that expands the story familiar into six short chapters while remaining faithful to the original narrative. Gardner adds some detail to the story (the Seven Dwarfs try to protect Snow White by inventing some alarm systems to warn of the queen's approach, and Snow White is making an apple pie when the queen disguised as an old woman arrives with the poisoned apple) but does not remove or prettify the more violent aspects of the story; the huntsman kills a deer and persuades the queen that its heart is Snow White's, and the queen is smashed to smithereens on rocks as she tries to escape from the dwarfs . The prince arriving and Snow White returning to life after the piece of poisoned apple is jolted from her mouth is the resolution to the story, but the dwarfs being the guests of honour at the wedding is a nice touch. Full review...
Dot-Dash To Dot.Com by Andrew Wheen
You know exactly what you're getting when you read the summary of Andrew Wheen's Dot-Dash To Dot.Com. How Modern Telecommunications Evolved from the Telegraph to the Internet sums it up perfectly. This is a history of technology and the people involved in creating that technology. It serves as a primer for anyone with an interest or need to know about telecommunications. Full review...
The Butterfly Heart by Paula Leyden
'The Butterfly Heart' takes place in Zambia, the beautiful 'butterfly heart' of Africa. The story is told through two voices: Bul-Boo, a young girl who lives with her family and twin sister Madillo, and Ifwafwa, the Snake Man. He is old and wise and has the unique ability to communicate with snakes. The twins' lovely and gentle friend Winifred is in trouble. Her father has died, and his brother has arranged for her to marry his friend, a man old enough to be Winifred's grandfather. Winifred seems resigned to her fate, but Bul-Boo is determined to do something, and in desperation, the twins turn to Ifwafwa. Full review...
As Good as God, as Clever as the Devil: The Impossible Life of Mary Benson by Rodney Bolt
Since I hadn't previously heard of Archbishop Benson, let alone his wife, I must commend the title, cover and advertising of this book. All of the above provided an accurate and irresistible glimpse of the biography within, and I wasn't one whit disappointed in my choice. Full review...
American Caesars: Lives of the US Presidents, from Franklin D Roosevelt to George W Bush by Nigel Hamilton
The premise is simple: take twelve men (and unfortunately they are all men, but that's not the author's fault) who have achieved high office and look at each of them. Firstly, take a look at the road to the high office, then how they performed once they reached their goal and finally a look at their private life. Suetonius did it first when he wrote The Twelve Caesars and now Nigel Hamilton has taken the same journey with American Caesars, a remarkably in-depth look at twelve consecutive American presidents from the twentieth and early twenty-first centuries, starting with Franklin D Roosevelt and finishing with George W Bush. Full review...
Bouncy Bouncy Bedtime by David Bedford and Julian Russell
At the very start of this book it is bedtime, but before going to sleep, the author asks the young reader:
'Have you ever wondered what the animals do?
Do they go to bed like me and you?'
and then we are asked to imagine... Full review...
Stanley's Stick by John Hegley and Neal Layton
Stanley loves his stick and carries it everywhere. He loves to play with it and finds all sorts of uses for it. Forget all those expensive plastic toys; the stick is the best toy he could have. (It is nice to see a child in a book playing with something that doesn’t cost money). Full review...
Island of Thieves by Josh Lacey
While Tom's parents have their first childless holiday in decades, our hero is supposed to be staying at his uncle Harvey's flat. Unfortunately his uncle is a roustabout adventurer, and with a clue to a treasure's location is himself going to Peru to seek the rest of the map. When Tom invites himself along he has no idea Harvey is already wanted by Peru's biggest criminal, nor what this impetuous decision will lead too... Full review...
Agatha Parrot and the Floating Head as Typed Out Neatly by Kjartan Poskitt by Kjartan Poskitt and David Tazzyman
Agatha Parrot lives on Odd Street, which is appropriate since her story is rather an odd one. Part school drama, part slapstick farce this is a funny, ridiculous romp of a story! Full review...
The Little Mermaid by Laura Barella
I've always found the story of the Little Mermaid to be a rather strange choice for a toddler's picture book since it doesn't have the expected happy ending. Of course that means that usually the ending gets altered, to make it palatable for little ones. This particular retelling for younger children is unusual as it steers clear of a romantic happy ending in Disney-style and actually ends on quite a solemn, sad note. Full review...
Snug! by Carol Thompson
What makes you feel snug? Tucked up like a bug in a rug? Being as snug as a mole in his underground hole? This story looks at all different ways that make us feel cosy and warm. Full review...
The Scarecrow Who Didn't Scare by Neil Griffiths and Vicki Leigh
Farmer Wallace makes himself a scarecrow, but the crows and rabbits and mice take no notice of it, eating the seeds and shoots and ears of corn so that when the farmer comes to harvest his crops he finds nothing. He throws his scarecrow into the hedge in a temper and there poor scarecrow lies... Full review...
Scribble, Scribble, Scribble: Writing on Ice Cream, Obama, Churchill and My Mother by Simon Schama
The collection has been divided into reader-friendly sections named, for example - Travelling, Testing Democracy, Cooking and Eating, to name but three. As a professor of Art History, it shouldn't come as a surprise that there's also a rather chunky section on Schama's thoughts on the art world. Politics also is a centre-stage subject. Each article is headed with where it first appeared and the numerous Guardian pieces may be well-known to some. So I suppose you could say that this is second time around, for those who missed the first publication. Not a bad thing at all when the writing is as good as this, I'd say. Full review...
Haunting Violet by Alyxandra Harvey
Violet Willoughby is the daughter of one of England's foremost mediums. With her mother in high demand, she follows her, assisting in her work as she puts the cream of society in touch with their dear departed. Of course, it's all fake. Violet has spent seven years helping her mother con the gullible into believing she has real psychic powers, so Violet herself certainly doesn't believe in ghosts. Which makes it all the more surprising when one appears to her… Full review...
The Grasshopper's Run by Siddhartha Sarma
India 1944, and the Japanese are coming. In a brutalopening, we see the inhabitants of a small village get massacred, and the brutal killing of Uti, grandson of the leader of the tribe who live there. His best friend Gojen escapes, as he's in school far away. On hearing of the tragedy, the youngster swears revenge, and embarks on a journey which will take him across his country in search of the man responsible for his friend's death. Full review...
Dead Beautiful by Yvonne Woon
Renee is a normal school girl living in sunny California. On her sixteenth birthday she is drawn to the woods by her house. There she finds the dead bodies of her parents, surrounded by scattered coins, and shreds of cloth in their mouths. The police say they both died from a heart attack, but Renee isn't convinced — something more sinister must be going on. Full review...
