Twerp by Mark Goldblatt ~ A Review

Twerp by Mark Goldblatt

Published: Random House for Young Readers, 28th May 2013

Length: 288 pages (eBook edition)

Where Did I Get It? Kindly received for review from NetGalley

Summary (from Goodreads):

Julian Twerski isn’t a bully. He’s just made a big mistake. So when he returns to school after a weeklong suspension, his English teacher offers him a deal: if he keeps a journal and writes about the terrible incident that got him and his friends suspended, he can get out of writing a report on Shakespeare. Julian jumps at the chance. And so begins his account of life in sixth grade–blowing up homemade fireworks, writing a love letter for his best friend (with disastrous results), and worrying whether he’s still the fastest kid in school. Lurking in the background, though, is the one story he can’t bring himself to tell, the one story his teacher most wants to hear.

Inspired by Mark Goldblatt’s own childhood growing up in 1960s Queens, Twerp shines with humor and heart. This remarkably powerful story will have readers laughing and crying right along with these flawed but unforgettable characters.

Opening Line:

My English teacher, Mr Selkirk, says I have to write something, and it has to be long, on account of the thing that happened over winter recess – which, in my opinion, doesn’t amount to much.

~

My Review:

This is not the type of book that I would usually pick up but I really enjoyed it nonetheless.

A book about taking responsibility for your actions, Twerp is told through the eyes of Julian, a 13 year old boy growing up in 1960s America and is an honest and heart-warming read.

The narrative is very true to the voice of a 13 year old boy – Julian sets off talking about something, then gets distracted by a tangent (usually amusing) before returning to the point he was originally making. It also shows the things that feel the most important when you are that age – whether or not you are the fastest runner in your postcode still and how much you hate Shakespeare, the sudden realisation that girls are somthing other than yucky and how easy it is to get led astray by other people.

The story was fairly simple, the climax wasn’t anything too shocking or even surprising – you sort of know it is coming by Julian’s growing reluctance to write – but it was effective because of the emotions packed in.

The writing is very raw in that Julian holds little back, he is honest about himself and his friends and this adds to the pace of the book. I raced through it, feeling like I was listening to his thoughts rather than reading his diary (which it is of a sort).

I loved the interaction between the characters and you could tell that it is at least loosely based on the author’s own childhood simply because of the vibrancy and roundedness of the characters and locations. It was easy to lose yourself in it and really sense the atmosphere and settings of the story.

It was a quick read and one that I enjoyed as an adult probably as much as I would have if I had read it when I was closer to Julian’s age.

My Rating: 5/5*

Flood and Fang by Marcus Sedgwick ~ A Review

Flood and Fang (The Raven Mysteries #1) by Marcus Sedgwick

Published: (This edition) Orion Children’s Books, April 2010

Length: 246 pages (paperback)

Where Did I Get It? Borrowed it from Liberty

Summary (from Goodreads):

Meet the wonderfully weird Otherhand family and their faithful guardian, Edgar the raven, and discover the dark secrets of Castle Otherhand. Edgar is alarmed when he sees a nasty looking black tail slinking under the castle walls. But his warnings to the inhabitants of the castle go unheeded: Lord Valevine Otherhand is too busy trying to invent the unthinkable and discover the unknowable; his wife, Minty, is too absorbed in her latest obsession – baking; and ten-year-old Cudweed is running riot with his infernal pet monkey. Only Solstice, the black-haired, poetry-writing Otherhand daughter, seems to pay any attention. As the lower storeys of the castle begin mysteriously to flood, and kitchen maids continue to go missing, the family come ever closer to the owner of the black tail…

Opening Line:

I suspect I may have fleas again.

~

My Review:

I really enjoyed this book. Aimed at children probably 7+, Flood and Fang is narrated by a delightfully sarcastic old raven called Edgar and is littered with fantastic illustrations.

Every page has something to look at – tiny fleas bouncing on the top line, Edgar flying across the page dropping feathers behind him, Fellah the evil little monkey clambering up the side of the text – beautiful but simple black and white images that look like they have been drawn onto the pages just for your amusement.

The story itself was fairly simple; big creepy gothic castle with slightly mad family living in it, big slimy thing spotted in the grounds, kitchen maids going missing left right and centre – find the creature, remove it, everyone (but the eaten kitchen maids) lives happily ever after.

Knowing how it was going to go from the start didn’t make it any less enjoyable though, it was comfortable and easy to read, it made me giggle and it was a satisfyingly round little tale.

I love Edgar – his dry humor, stubborn nature and pride in all things raven-y made for a delightful veiw point that was very refreshing.

It was humourus without being patronising and the layout of the text and pictures was engaging without being irritating – a balance many Children’s novels get wrong.

I am definitely going to keep a copy of this around for when the kids get bigger, and may even splash out on the rest of the Raven Mysteries series for them (although I will have to read them first, obviously!)

My Rating: 4/5*

Never Too Old

I’m currently reading Flood and Fang by Marcus Sedgwick -  a novel aimed at children – and I am loving it.

It is like a sunny day in the middle of a snow-filled March (sounding familiar?) – I read quite a lot of Young Adult fiction, an awful lot of adult Urban Fantasy, a simdgeon of saucy stuff and the odd crime, thriller and horror and I love them all, but there is nothing quite like stepping back and picking up a piece of Children’s literature.

There is just something magic about it – the something that instilled in me the passion to read and to write – and for all it is well below my ‘reading age’ and not aimed at me at all, I love to read it.

I still happily read Brian Jaques Redwall books without a second thought and consider Children’s novels as ‘must reads’ just the same as anything else. Especially now I have two children of my own, granted they can’t read yet but they are both happy to sit down with books by themselves and point things out in the pictures and pretend to read them. They love story time and have favourite characters already (such as ‘Barry the fish with fingers’ or ‘Ba-weee!’ to Arthur) and I am hoping this will stay with them as they grow older.

I have a large amount of my old favourite children’s novels still (on my bookshelf in my old bedroom… sorry Mum & Dad!) and I hope that Tori and Arthur will love at least some of those as much as I did. But I want them to read everything – from my old Animal Ark collection and classics like Colin Dann’s Animals of Farthing Wood through to whatever is new and ‘cool’.

Will Tori discover Jaqueline Wilson and love her like all my friends did? Or hate her books like I did? Will Arthur read the Redwall novels and spend days pretending to be a woodmouse with a sword like I did? Will they love the Horrible Histories books and read each other Goosebumps stories at bedtime and give themselves nightmares?

I am looking forward to discovering new books and redicovering old ones with them – reading Harry Potter as a bedtime story, chapter by chapter. Sharing their school books and expanding my own library as we go.

But even if I had never had Tori and Arthur, you can bet your bottom dollar I’d still be picking up books like Flood and Fang because they are brilliant. Children’s literature is not something to be dismissed once you hit adulthood – it is magical and funny and clever and eye-opening if only you give it the chance. Remeber, you are never too old for books – any books.

30 Day Book Challenge: Day Twenty-Eight

The Last Book You Read

The last book I read was Peter Rabbit and the Egg Hunt based on the original characters and illustrations by Beatrix Potter.

My Mum gave Tori this book for Easter and I love it too much to put it away now that Easter is over. It’s just beautiful. With lots of flaps to lift and fantastic pop-up pages to look at and explore, it keeps Tori’s attention as we join Peter as he meets all his friends and goes on a big Easter egg hunt.

I’m a sucker for Peter Rabbit and a sucker for lift-the-flap books. This combines both those things – I think Tori will get sick of it way before I do….I will just have to start reading it with Artie instead…

Summary (from GoodReads)

Peter Rabbit is a good little bunny (most of the time!) and now he’s getting ready to celebrate Easter. He fetches some groceries for his mother, helps himself to some vegetables in Mr McGregor’s garden and joins his friends for a fantastic Easter egg hunt.

30 Day Book Challenge: Day Eight

A Book That Scares You

 

As well as being pathetic and crying at everything, I am also quite easily scared. This said, I quite enjoy being scared by books – it’s exciting and somehow more enjoyable than being scared by films which I have to really be in the right mood for else I hate.

I could pick one of many Stephen King novels for this however the first book that sprang to mind was one that will probably surprise you – my Mum’s favourite book, The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett.

Yes, you did read that right.

The book scared me silly, listening to the audio tape scared me silly and even the film/TV adaptations give me the creeps. I just don’t like it at all.

Summary (from GoodReads):

A ten-year-old orphan comes to live in a lonely house on the Yorkshire moors where she discovers an invalid cousin and the mysteries of a locked garden.

Burnett’s classic story of a disagreeable and self-centered little girl and her equally disagreeable invalid cousin is as real and wise and enthralling now as it was when it was first written over 75 years ago. The strength of her characterizations pulls readers into the story, and the depth inherent in the seemingly simple plot continues to make this sometimes forgotten story as vital to the maturation of young readers as Tom Sawyer and Little Women.

Tori’s Choice: The Usborne Book Of Christmas Stories (Review)

The Usborne Book Of Christmas Stories by Russell Punter and Illustrated by Philip Webb

Yes, yes, I can hear you – ‘But it’s only November!’ – I know. But I thought I’d review this now so that you have time to go out and buy it as a present before Christmas really arrives!!

Tori recieved this stunning storybook last Christmas and I knew the instant I opened it that it was going to be a long-standing favourite.

The book is beautiful to look at before you even venture inside the cover. Bright colours, friendly looking writing and everything kids love about Christmas – Santa and his reindeer, present, snow, sledging, snowmen, pretty lights – adorn this large (but not too large for a child to handle) hardback volume. I say hardback, as it is, but it is almost padded to the touch rather than harsh – perfect for little fingers to grip when they’re sat on your lap for storytime.

Inside the book is no less beautiful, every page is full colour with big, bold pictures that compliment the stories. Philip Webb’s illustrations are clever and even had me chuckling as I noticed all the little details. They are bright and colourful and even last Christmas, when Tori was only 5 months old, she would point out things that caught her eye and grin broadly.

The book contains six different stories including:

‘The Fake Santa‘

Santa Claus is very confused to find parents shouting at him on his rounds and accusing him of upsetting all the children. Puzzled he continues on his rounds only to spot a sleigh very similar to his own following along below and goes down to investigate. Will Santa save the day and solve the mystery of the second sleigh?

‘The Elf and the Toymaker’

Alfie the Elf is not having a good time in Santa’s Toy Factory. He’s supposed to be in charge of sweeping the floors but it’s just so boring he keeps falling asleep! One day Alife dozes amongst the presents long after everyone else has packed up and gone home and when he wakes up he decides to have a closer look at the Toymaker. Alfie has always wanted to be in charge of the Toymaker but as he curiously peers down an interesting looking tube he loses his footing and falls in! Now he has to try get out without breaking everything or getting squished when they turn the machine on in the morning…

‘Freezy’s New Buttons’

Freezy the snowman is very sad – every other snowman on his street has lovely pebble buttons but he doesn’t have any at all. Then one day two men run past his garden and press three very shiny buttons onto his chest. Pleased, Freezy sets off to show his buttons to all his friends but when he spots a discarded newspaper with the headline JEWEL THIEVES STEAL DIGBY DIAMONDS he realises that his buttons are a little more precious than pebbles. Freezy really wants to help the police catch the thieves – but how can a snowman help catch crooks?

Each of the stories is charming and witty whilst still being short enough to keep even the most fidgety child entranced. Whether you are reading together in a quiet five minutes between presents and roast turkey on Christmas Day or curled up at bedtime in the run up to the big event this book is brilliant, if you read one story or two or even the whole book, you and your child will never grow tired of it. There’s always something to notice and plenty to talk about with Baby both about the stories and their morals and about the pictures and characters.

Tori loves this book and so do I – I have been looking forward to getting it out of the cupboard again ever since I grudgingly put it away last February!