Reading Roundup for January 2024

If you have noticed that things have been a little quiet on the blog this week, it is because this gorgeous little bundle of mischief has joined the family!

When I lost my lovely border collie to old age last September I was completly heartbroken. At the time I did not think I would ever have another dog again. Any of you who have lost a beloved pet will understand exactly what I mean. But then my daughter-in-law sent me a link to this litter of puppies, and they and their mum were only twenty minutes away... well you can imagine the rest. I was instantly in love again.

We have called her Roxie and she is a border collie/Bedlington terrier cross. She is a little darling and I am so happy to have another writing companion... that is when she allows me to do any actual writing! So, I hope you will bear with me if my reviews are less frenquent than they usually are.

That said, here is my list of books that I have managed to read this month.

Books I Have Read

Cover the Bones by Chris Hammer - This book is part of the Ivan Lucic and Nell Bucanan series and well worth reading. You can read my review here.

The Pierogi Peril by Geri Krotow - The second book in the Kielbasa Queen series. It was a light-hearted story which will appeal to cozy crime readers.

War of the Wind by Victoria Williamson - I love this author's books. They are all very different but all brilliant in their own way. This one is aimed at children of 10+ You can read my review here.

Maisie's Big Book of Kindness by Lucy Cousins - This lovely picture book for children has a positive measure about kindness, thoughtfulness and sharing.

 

Back to Her Future by Cary J. Hansson - This was a fantastic novel and was easily a five star read for me. You can read my review by clicking here.

The Austrian Bride by Helen Parusel - This was an excellent book set in Austria during the annexation in 1938. You can read my review by clicking here.

Stitch by Padraig Kenny - Based loosley on Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, this was my favourite book this month. You can read my review by clicking here.

But You Did Not Come Back Again by Marceline Loridan-Ivens - Although I did not get around to reviewing this book it is well worth reading.

Will You Be My Friend? by Sam McBratney - I will be posting my review of this gorgeous book for young children very soon.

A Kestrel for a Knave by Barry Hines - A brilliant modern classic and my review will be coming soon.

Harvest Cruise by Rebecca Benison - This is an exciting adventure story based around a singles cruise ship. You can read my review by clicking here.

River East, River West by Aube Rey Lescure - A fabulous book set in China. You can read my review by clicking here.

The Secrets of Crestwell Hall by Alexandra Walsh - This is a dual timeline book, moving between the 17th century and the modern day. You can read my review by clicking here.

Books I am Partway Through

 The Brother Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoevsky - expect to see this one here for a while.

Newborn by Kerry Hudson

A Brilliant Life by Rachelle Unreich

Maude Horton's Glorious Revenge by Lizzie Pook

Reading Roundup for October 2023

 

Hi everyone. Here we are at the end of October, and here in the UK it is seasonally wet. The leaves on the trees are yellowing and all around me looks pretty.

This month I celebrated my ten year blog anniversary and posted my favourite book from each decade. I will pop a list at the bottom of each post with a link to each of those reviews in case you missed any. It was lovely to reaquaint myself with books that meant so much to me.

October has provided the perfect weather for hunkering down with a book and I have done that whenever time permitted. Here are the books which I have read this month.

Books I Have Read

The Stories We Cannot Tell by Leslie A. Rusmussen - This was a fantastic book about two strong women and the bonds they form when their pregnancies go wrong. You can read my review by clicking here.

The Puppet Maker by Jenny O'Brien - This is the first in the Alana Mack detective series. It features a disabled detective and was enjoyable to read. You can read my review by clicking here.

The Memory of an Elephant by Alex Lasker - This was a fabulous read which was chosen by my book club and well worth reading. Unfortunately, I did not have time to review this book but it was a great read and I highly recommend it.

Lady in Waiting: My Extraordinary Life in the Shadow of the Crown by Anne Glenconner - This one was chosen by the book group that I lead and was an interesting read. She has led a fascinating life and the glimpse into Princess Margaret's life was really interesting.

The Mile End Murder by Sinclair McKay - A non fiction title based on a true crime of a murder committed in 1860 in London's East End. I enjoyed this very much.

Celebrations for the Woolworth Girls by Elaine Everest - This is the ninth book in the series. I haven't read the previous ones and it works well as a standalone novel. You can read my review by clicking here.

Black Fox One by Elyse Hoffman - This follows on from The Vengeance of Samuel Val which I reviewed last month (here) Again, it works well as a standalone novel. You can read my review by clicking here.

Spooky Little Halloween: A Finger Wiggle Book by Sally Symes and Nick Sharratt - A sweet little board book for little ones. You can read my review by clicking here.

The Mother of All Problems by Nancy Peach - This book was my favourite read this month. Emotive and funny about a woman who is trying to be juggle life. You can read my review by clicking here.

Pax and the Missing Head by David Barker -  A dystopian story for middle grade children and an excellent read. You can find my review by clicking here.

Blood Libel - by Michael Lynes - A book set in Spain at the time of the inquisition. The first in the Isaac Alvarez. I really enjoyed this and I will be reviewing the second book in the series soon. You can find my review of Blood Libel by clicking here.

Charlotte's Snowman by Lainey Dee - A nice picture book for children about a child who develops a friendship with a snowman. You can read my review by clicking here.

Books I am Partway Through

Ghosted by Rosie Mullender

The Chilbury Ladies' Choir by Jennifer Ryan

New York Miracle by Margo Laurie

This month was my ten year blog anniversary which I celebrated by posting my favourite book from each decade and you can read the post by clicking on the book title. As promised here they are, just in case you missed them.

My celebratory post can be found here.

2013 - My Dear I Wanted to Tell You by Louisa Young

2014 - Prayers for the Stolen by Jennifer Clement

2015 - The Pearl That Broke It's Shell by Nadia Hasimi

2016 - The Girl in the Red Coat by Kate Hamer

2017 - The Orphan's Tale by Pam Jenoff

2018 - White Chrysanthemum by Mary Lynn Bracht

2019 - A Fine Balance by Rohinton Mistry

2020 - The Five by Hallie Rubenhold

2021 - The Girl with the Louding Voice by Abi Dare

2022 - House Boy by Lorenzo DeStefano

Happy Halloween Everyone!

(header photo courtesy of Samuel Chorlton)

Spooky Little Halloween: A Finger Wiggle Book by Sally Symes - Illustrated by Nick Sharratt - #BookReview

This little witch is riding on her broom. Wiggle wiggle, zoom-zoom!

This little wolf sings a song to the Moon. Wiggle wiggle, ahhwwoooo!

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Enjoy and encourage imaginative Halloween play with your baby in this spooktacular finger wiggle book!

Poke your fingers through the holes of this lighthearted Halloween board book to make wiggly legs for your favourite cast of creepy characters in spooky season! From the witch on her broom to the wolf howling at the moon, from the bat that's hanging upside down to the pumpkin that's round, share the joy of reading together with your baby. Bright, high contrast illustrations and finger holes to explore, make this book the perfect start to a lifelong love of books.

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This delightful little board book for Halloween will appeal to all pre-school children.

This colourful book is beautifully illustrated by Nick Sharratt. Each page features a different halloween related character e.g. a witch, a wolf, a spider, a ghost, a pumpkin, a bat, a black cat and a friendly looking vampire. Each one provides the opportunity to wiggle fingers through, making it a wonderfully interactive book to share with little ones.

I think it is utterly delightful and would make the perfect Halloween gift for babies and very young children.

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ISBN:  978 1529512663

Publisher:  Walker Books

Formats:  Board Book

No. of Pages: 18

About the Author:

Sally Symes is a freelance children's book author, designer and illustrator with over 25 years experience. Her clients include: Walker Children's Books, What on Earth Publishing, Britannica Books, Nosy Crow, Harper Collins and Frances Lincoln.

She has written and designed over 50 books for children and her collaborations with Nick Sharratt have won many awards including The Educational Writers’ Award for The Gooey, Chewy Rumble Plop Book and The Southampton Favourite Book to Share Award for Something Beginning With Blue. One of our Finger Wiggle Series, Look at Me was recently chosen to be part of BookTrust's BookStart packs. (Bookstart gives a free book pack to every baby born in England, Northern Ireland and Wales.)

She worked for many years as a designer of children’s books before turning her skills to writing them too. She was Senior Editor at Campbell Children’s Books (Pan Macmillan) for many years and has an excellent understanding of the children’s publishing market. She writes fiction and non-fiction for ages 0-10 years.

She lives in a lively village in West Sussex and loves running, swimming, cycling and singing with her local choir. She works from a shed at the bottom of her garden accompanied by her grumpy cat, Bumble.

About the Illustator:

Nick was born on August 9th, 1962 in Bexleyheath, Greater London. He grew up in Suffolk, Nottinghamshire and Greater Manchester.

 

When he left school he went on an art foundation course at Manchester Polytechnic ( now called Manchester Metropolitan University ) where he spent a very happy year learning to draw people and places from real life.

He then got a place at St Martin's School of Art (now Central St Martins) in London to study graphic design for three years. 

The first books he drew pictures for were educational textbooks and after a couple of years he was asked to illustrate his first picture book Noisy Poems which was published in 1987.

He gradually did more and more book illustration and began writing his own books too but it wasn't until the mid 1990s that he decided to stop the other kinds of illustration and concentrate solely on children's books.

He has now illustrated close to 300 books. They range from board books for babies to novels for young teenagers. He has worked with authors including Julia Donaldson, Jeremy Strong, Michael Rosen, Giles Andreae, Kaye Umansky, Kes Gray and most notably Dame Jacqueline Wilson and he's also written around 40 of his own books. He is delighted that quite a few of the books have won prizes. He was the official illustrator for World Book Day in 2006 and has a fellowship from Hereford College of Art. He is also a proud recipient of a gold Blue Peter badge.

(book courtesy of the publisher)

(author media courtesy of her website https://www.sallysymes.com/index.html)

(illustrator media courtesy of his website https://www.nicksharratt.com/)

(all opinions are my own)