I've enjoyed reading books by Terry Pratchett for many years; usually we've acquired each of his new works in hardback form soon after publication. However, part of the enjoyment was reading the books aloud to my teenage sons. Now that they've both left home, I wasn't sure that there was any point buying more than we had already.
However my younger son had been given 'Unseen Academicals', and recommended it. So when we stayed with him recently, I borrowed it - and very much enjoyed it.
It's 37th in the Discworld series. It's a story about the wizards at Unseen University and the introduction of 'foot-the-ball' into Ankh-Morpork. Or rather, the re-introduction of a relatively civilized game of football, based on discoveries in ancient documents, to replace the rough and rather dangerous current version being played regularly on the streets.
As is common in Pratchett's writing, however, there are many plotlines which seem, at first, unrelated. So it's also about an unusual, likeable and highly intelligent goblin called Nutt, who clearly has some dark secret. He works as a candle-dribbler in the vaults of Unseen University. If you don't know what a candle dribbler is, then you'll have to read the book to find out.
Oh, and it's about the fashion industry, too. At least... fashion as perceived by the dwarfs. Bearing in mind that traditional Discworld dwarfs are all male, with beards, and that until recently it was quite shameful for female ones to admit their gender, it's quite a dramatic move to consider chainmail that might appeal to the feminine side of the dwarfish race.
Indeed, more than anything, this book is about change in the Discworld. Rather than being stuck in the Middle Ages, as seemed to be the case in some of the earlier books, Unseen Academicals shows forward-thinking and progressiveness amongst the varied population.
I chuckled aloud once or twice while reading it - most unusual for me when not reading aloud - and found myself feeling quite involved with several of the characters. Definitely one of the better of the recent Discworld series, and one which I definitely would like to have for my own shelves at some point. I'm delighted to see that the paperback version will be released in a month.
Highly recommended.
Review copyright Sue's Book Reviews, 29th April 2010
So, having read 'Intrigue in the Village' - despite, in general, finding Rebecca Shaw's novels to be compulsive without much character development - I thought I might as well continue onto the other book I had recently acquired.
"Whispers in the Village' is 12th in the Turnham Malpas series about a small fictional village somewhere in England. It's little different from the previous novels in this series, since the Rector, Peter and his family, go on a year's mission assignment in Africa. Peter and his wife Caroline have been central in the other Turnham Malpas books; indeed, the first book in the series, 'The New Rector' introduces Peter as a likeable, if sometimes mistaken or misguided man.
Peter's replacement, Anna, is not all that well received. Partly this is because, of course, as any Anglican knows, no new minister can ever live up to the previous one. But it's also partly because she has some modern ideas about making the church more lively, and attractive to younger people, and pushes her ideas rather more rapidly than she should have done.
Moreover, one of the young men of the parish develops an unlikely crush on Anna... and then she introduces a rather shifty character to the neighbourhood, which really gets the gossip going.
Meanwhile, regular communications from Peter appear in the form of emails, and they too have a shock towards the end of the book.
As with most of Rebecca Shaw's novels (which can all be read individually, though it's probably helpful to have read at least one or two others beforehand) there's not much character development. I got the feel for the 'type' of each person, but no insight into their inner feelings or motivations. I thought the plot was good and the pace rapid, but despite rather more shocks than normal in these books, I found myself unmoved by any of them.
Still, good light reading for odd moments on holiday. And this series somehow continues to be compulsive reading...
Review copyright Sue's Book Reviews, 18th April 2010
I'm not quite sure what it is about Rebecca Shaw's books that makes them rather compulsive. I have several of her Turnham Malpas series, about a small village in England; I don't rank them as my favourites... and yet if I happen to see one I haven't yet read, at a good price in a charity shop, I tend to buy it.
I was fortunate to spot two of these books on a relative's shelves recently, neither of which I had read. I asked if I could borrow them, and was told to take them... they're not the kind of books to read frequently, but useful to while away a few hours on holiday or in an idle moment.
So first I read 'Intrigue in the Village'. This book, 11th in the Turnham Malpas series begins with the wedding of two slightly unlikely characters, both of whom I recalled from previous novels in the series. I don't recall at all whether there was a hint of romance between them in an earlier book, but it didn't matter; it's not necessary to have read any of the others as each is complete in itself.
The book is then mainly about this couple as they adjust to each other; one is a wealthy but somewhat ruthless landlord; the other much more inclined to philanthropy. There's also a rather odd thread involving someone holding seances in her home, inviting various people and - apparently - communicating with spirits. And there are plenty of general soap-style episodes: people being fired from jobs, a new and impoverished family arriving; suspicions of infidelity, accidents, and more.
There's a chart of characters in the front of each of these books which is sometimes useful when I forget who is whom; unfortunately they don't necessary explain who all the people are in the book, and have some listed who don't appear at all. There's also a diagram of a map of the fictional village of Turnham Malpas.
The writing style is casual, the characters not very well developed.... and yet there's something about these books that continues to make them compulsive reading.
Review copyright Sue's Book Reviews, 14th April 2010
When my sons were small, in the early 1990s, I enjoyed reading them my own childhood favourite books. I also liked discovering some new children's authors. Of all the writers in the latter category, my absolute favourite was Dick King-Smith. We had kept several of his books, but had somehow managed to give away (or lose) one of my favourite series of his, the 'Sophie' books about a small but determined girl who wants to be a lady farmer.
So I was delighted to find four of them, at 50p each, in good condition, at the Book Den in Burgess Hill. On Monday, I picked up and read 'Sophie hits six'. In this book Sophie's cat Tom has to acquire a new name, as she gives birth to kittens. Sophie has to give them away... but in return for one of them, is given a different kind of animal.
I love the character of Sophie who is remarkably like one or two other small and determined girls I have known. I'd recommend this as a read-aloud for children of about four or above who have got used to books with short chapters; it doesn't have to be read after the two earlier books (Sophie's Snail and Sophie's Tom) since it's complete in itself, although it's probably best to read them all in order.
It's interesting enough, too, that it could be read by any child of four or older who is reading reasonably fluently; the language is fairly simple, the text bigger than that of an adult book, and there are some delightful line drawings scattered throughout. And yet the characters are so real that it can be enjoyed by people of any age.
Definitely recommended.
Review copyright Sue's Book Reviews, 12th April 2010
I'd never heard of the authors, Bill Thrall or Bruce McNicol, but had seen this book advertised in others I'd read recently by the same publisher - particularly 'The Misunderstood God'. It was recommended elsewhere as a good book to read after 'The Shack'. So, finding a good price from The Book Depository, I ordered it.
'Bo's Cafe' is a fictional account of a man called Steven, who's having problems in his marriage. He feels his wife is too demanding and finds himself taking his anger out on her. She gets upset and has threatens to throw him out. But instead of trying to work things through, he spends less and less time at home.
As the story opens, he's just gone into a pub where he gets chatting with a slightly odd older man who seems to know him. A stalker, perhaps? An angel...? Knowing it was a Christian novel, I wouldn't have been surprised at either.
But this older guy, Andy, turns out to have been a friend of Steven's father, and has had his interests at heart for a long time. So they get chatting, and after some initial reluctance, Steven realises he is worth talking to. At a future meeting he is taken to a cafe owned by a man called Bo, which has a relaxed, friendly and rather eclectic clientele. Gradually Steven learns more about himself, and he also, slowly, begins to learn better how to relate to his wife.
I found the book enjoyable, on the whole. It was somewhat predictable, but not too 'preachy'. I suppose it's intended mostly for Christians stuck on the idea of what grace really means, who like formal, structured meetings on Sundays but don't really get any further.
Or perhaps as an eye-opener for those who have only seen rigid fundamentalist Christians and have no idea about ordinary, everyday followers of Jesus. The idea of being accepted, warts and all, seems big in the book - but that's what I already expect from Christian friends. The cafe seemed fairly normal to me - or at least, what I would like to be normal.
Probably worth reading, but not the spectacularly brilliant or insightful novel that I was half expecting.
Review copyright Sue's Book Reviews, 11th April 2010
Slowly, interspersed with many other books, I'm re-reading my way through the lengthy Chalet School series by Elinor M Brent-Dyer which I thoroughly enjoyed in my teens. I have about half of them in hardback; the rest are in a somewhat abridged Armada paperback form.
The last one I read was 'The Chalet School and Jo', back in February. I decided to leave out the eighth in the series (Chalet Girls in Camp) since I remember finding it fairly dull many years ago. So this week I re-read 'Exploits of the Chalet Girls', which follows on immediately afterwards.
Jo Bettany is still head girl of the Austrian boarding school started a few years previously by her sister Madge Russell. In this volume, an Annexe to the school has been started higher up in the mountains, closer to the big TB sanatorium where Madge's husband Jem works.
The main feature of school life this Autumn term is the arrival of a new girl called Thekla who is extremely snobbish. One wonders why her parents - who presumably inculcated her into this mindset - sent her to a democratic school where people of all backgrounds, races and classes mix happily. She upsets several people by her attitude, which was perhaps a believable one in the 1940s when this was written; she seems like rather a strange caricature today.
Thekla gradually settles in and becomes less objectionable, although there's no particular incident that makes this happen. Indeed, she seems rather pushed to the background after her unfortunate start. Perhaps there is more of her story in the original; this Armada version is basically a fairly run-of-the-mill school story, with the usual pranks, snow fights, staff evenings and Christmas pageant (with far too much detail).
I do like these books, but should probably pick and choose which ones I re-read in future. 'Exploits of the Chalet Girls' isn't currently in print, although it can often be found second-hand. I wouldn't particularly recommend it, except for those reading or re-reading the entire set.
Review copyright Sue's Book Reviews, 3rd April 2010
