Pappa Gander: the Less Better Half of Mother Goose by Robby Charters
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Wow! Having read this book with a review in mind I feel slightly breathless and very bemused by it. There were times when the surrealism I associate with Lewis Carroll, Douglas Adams or Spike Milligan came across very strongly and I had to pause and think again. Did the author mean some of the crazy things that I had read or was there another underlying message there for the adult who was “sharing” the book with their child? This is not to say that I did not enjoy reading it because it was refreshingly new in many ways: crazy, as I said before, but also fun and fast moving with plenty of opportunity to question and laugh out loud.

Some of the rather outrageous statements - e.g. “but the beans they ate made them flatulate so strongly, it propelled them upward so did they begin, from the gas within, to fly, though they felt awkward up-up they went, by gas they were sent with beans for rocket fuel” - might not always receive parental approval but would be very acceptable to the kids I’m sure!

I found the layout of the text and the illustrations somewhat strange and crude and many professional educators would want editorial improvements in this respect. As a retired teacher I often had to resist reaching for my red pen but as a parent and grandparent of kids who love this kind of nuttiness I had to reconsider, put aside my first reactions, allow surprise and be “amused”. In the end this collection of craziness: cartoons, stories, limericks, and variations on traditional tales is well worth reading to/by 8 to 12 year olds in my opinion, but its presentation just needs a little tidying up.

I received a complimentary copy in exchange for an honest review.


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Snapdragon by Kilby Blades
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This is a well-written book that has an interesting plot involving two main characters, Darby and Michael, who, while strongly resisting a relationship that moves any further forward than companionship, come together (in every sense of the word) from the beginning and wind up in such a tangle of confused emotions it makes keeping to their “Snapdragon” arrangement seem impossible. The sub-title of “Love Conquers None” is a bit of a giveaway to the arrangement that when either use that word there is a clean break in the relationship and they can just walk away from each other. The background conflict running through the story, therefore, is between love and career. Complications in Darby’s work life and family encourage support from Michael which inevitably affects their resolve to avoid commitment.

This story of a 21st century contemporary romance will no doubt appeal to fans of the genre. It has perfect people in it with perfect minds and bodies who achieve perfect sex whenever they have the opportunity. Unfortunately, it is not the kind of book that I like to read. Despite some very interesting and involved dialogue here and there I found the characters too one-dimensional. Everything about them and their lifestyle personified the word boring to me and I was reminded once again why I find it impossible to enjoy this genre. There are very creditable attempts from the author to relate the tale from Darby’s POV and her anguish, her doubts and lack of confidence at times do establish something of her character but for me she lacked real depth.

I received a complimentary copy in exchange for an honest review.


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Bipolar 1 Disorder - How to Survive and Thrive by Molly McHugh
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

From the very beginning the author admits to writing a memoir of her personal experiences living with the illness Bipolar 1 Disorder. At times it came across to me as a combination of a brief autobiography and a self-help journal, even though it was a difficult read. Molly McHugh keeps nothing back when describing her manic phases and the unsympathetic treatment she was often subjected to when a younger adult. Despite this the reader is often fed many light hearted, amusing moments through her incredible sense of humour. When I was constantly reminded that the book was dealing with a form of mental illness, together with several tragic incidents that left my jaw dropped in disbelief, I was just amazed to find the author’s constant positive attitude to life. It was something to be admired and applauded.

Moving from the personal to the more informative list of treatments, drugs, technical articles and books etc was a good thing later in the book. McHugh could have been accused of trivialising what is after all a very serious illness in the first few chapters as she tended to give many of the psychiatrists, nurses and so on caricature nick-names, like Dr Sexy and the Drone. However, her feelings and seriously considered opinions were also dealt with throughout the book and provided a more than adequate counterbalance to her occasional levity. It is not the sort of book that one can claim to enjoy since, notwithstanding the smiles, it is not a source of entertainment. But it is a very well written account and would be very helpful to sufferers (is that the correct term?) and their family and friends: helpful as a practical source of resources, as well as an important sharing of emotions and possible misgivings about Bipolar disorders.

If I have any negative criticisms they are that there are many references offered as internet online links and I found they were a bit “shaky” in that I often had to click on them several times to find the page site. Some of the links did not work at all even after many clicks. A minor inconvenience which could be a glitch with my PC I suppose. Plus there were occasional strange phrases used in sentences that I found hard to understand, such as: “Still single yet having connecting on many levels with other decent, fun-loving folks throughout my life including a romantic relationship or two, is enough.” What does that mean? Would some commas have helped? It could just be down to a difference in US and UK English language semantics. I’m still not sure, but even so, I highly recommend this book for the reasons given above; and because it is highly illuminating to someone, like myself, who has not knowingly had contact with a person with Bipolar Disorder 1 or 2 but probably has fears and prejudices about it.


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The Road to Nyn by Brian Michaud
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I have looked forward to an opportunity to read The Road to Nyn since reading the sequel, The Ring of Carnac, as that was one of the best books in the children’s fantasy genre I had read in a long time. Fortunately I was not disappointed, even though there are strong similarities in parts to The Lord of the Rings. For me any mention of the “Dark Lord” is a reminder of Sauron and I had to erase those mental images when those words occurred within this intriguing and convoluted story. The rookie knight, Kay, and his companions are involved almost from the beginning in a trek to confront the Dark Lord about the terrible circumstances around the events that had happened to his village, including his family.

Along the journey the group of friends meet goblins, elves and mermaids in various situations of danger, horror and amazing magic. There are very many different adventures and characters, with twists and turns aplenty, for young (and older) fantasy fans to enjoy. The descriptions of serious incidents and amusing conversations presented to readers by Michaud are well done. The scenarios are interesting and the characters well drawn. This is a skilful writer who will without doubt attract many more fans of his own through this book. For me The Road to Nyn is a better book than its sequel though it was a close contest.
I received a complimentary copy in exchange for an honest review.

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