Oh this is nice. Eland's carving herself something of a delightful and rather elegant niche here, discussing complex and often challenging emotions wiOh this is nice. Eland's carving herself something of a delightful and rather elegant niche here, discussing complex and often challenging emotions with a lightness of touch and a beautifully wistful style. Having previously looked at sadness in When Sadness Is at Your Door, she's now focusing on happiness and how it's been with you, all along.
There's a deeply philosophical edge here and I felt like this would pair well with something like The Yes, particularly in the hands of somebody skilled, for both books embrace the strangeness of knowing oneself. These are big and complicated emotions, even for adults, and here Eland delivers her message with an appealing, beautiful softness. Some of the sentences are complex, but there's a sense of reward throughout. This is a book that wants to be read languidly, so go softly, go slowly, go gently into it.
The artwork is a treat as well. Rich and subtle; her use of saturation really appealed to me as well. How does one draw happiness? Here she plumps for something round and rich and solid, coloured in a vibrant, unusual peachy orangey pink. (A precise description, I know, but I'll explain all in a second). It's a colour note that continues throughout the book, sometimes thinner and fainter or fatter and thicker and brighter until the colour almost neons off the page. Neon isn't a verb normally, but it is here. I loved the clarity of her vision, the way that she trusts the reader to piece the story together and figure out what's happening and trust in that.
A beautiful, wise look at emotions and one to treasure. My thanks to the publisher for a review copy....more
Some of the earliest stories I remember reading are myths and legends, and I rather love seeing them reinterpreted and remade for a new generation. AlSome of the earliest stories I remember reading are myths and legends, and I rather love seeing them reinterpreted and remade for a new generation. All stories are remade in the telling of them (and indeed they should) but myths and legends always seem particularly fitting for such a thing. We reinvent them, we remake them (a quick shout out here to the remarkable Wyrd Museum trilogy by Robin Jarvis: The Woven Path) and in reshaping the exterior, we reinforce the heart of them. Does that make sense? It's like the telling of it - the way we dress it up and present it to make it understood by our audience - makes that central point even clearer still. The story may be being told in 1820 or 2020, but Odin still hangs from the tree. Fire is still stolen from Olympus. Loki is still ... Loki. And so these stories endure, survive.
And in How To Be A Hero these stories thrive. I realised it when we got to the door of Asgard which has the message "Frost Giants Keep Out" and, underneath it, "Loki smells of PoOo".
I mean, perfect.
Weldon's well into her stride at this point and things only get better from there. We get a rich and boldly told story which sees a Viking thief team up with a trainee Valkyrie and a very talkative cup. Their adventure takes in the nine worlds and more besides; Vikings who dislike travelling minstrels, a familiar trickster God, and a 'not terribly happy at being disturbed' dragon. It is the first of a trilogy so while there's an ending, it's not as definitive as it might be. Having said that, I found every inch of this a treat and loved it. It is such a distinctive, fun effort.
I always struggle with age recommendations but if you have a confident young reader who still likes the break of illustrations every now and then (Katie Kear's work is lovely here!) then this will be perfect. I'd also recommend pairing it with some non-fiction if you can because Weldon picks up a lot of stories and ideas that a voracious reader would enjoy exploring further. There's a lot here to enjoy.
My thanks to the publisher for a review copy. ...more
I've had a fair few 'meh' books over the past few weeks; those books that are the ones that sort of don't quite work for you, or leave you feeling a lI've had a fair few 'meh' books over the past few weeks; those books that are the ones that sort of don't quite work for you, or leave you feeling a little ambivalent about them. And that's fine - that happens. Sometimes books don't work for readers, or it's not the right time to meet them or find them, and sometimes you've just got to accept that this is how it is. And then I read The Last Girl by Goldy Moldavsky and I loved it. I'm always interested by books that try to do something different and find their own space in the world (there might only be seven stories to tell, but my goodness you can work how you tell it..) and The Last Girl does that in spades.
Let's set the scene: a prestigious school, a club, and a new girl trying to find a place to start over. There's complex, messy friendships; the dark spectre of privilege, pop-culture and a group of people devoted to exploring the scary side of the world. These takes the form of a club devoted to horror films and - no spoilers here. But it's the sort of thing that feels like it might become something of a franchise and I wouldn't be surprised to hear of more to come here. The framing conceit really is very good.
Though I suspect I prefer the other title of 'The Mary Shelley Club' (which should give you some idea as to one of the references here), I thought this was excellent. Moldavsky is a pacey, stylish writer and I loved how fiery and honest her work is here. People are real here - this isn't about smoothing the edges of people, it's about exploring them. And with that comes interest; a novel that's psychological, dark, and gripping. I loved it.
My thanks to the publisher for a review copy....more
Vy's Special Gift took my breath away. I was offered a copy of it to review by the author, and the outline intrigued me so I accepted. The book itselfVy's Special Gift took my breath away. I was offered a copy of it to review by the author, and the outline intrigued me so I accepted. The book itself made me have a little moment because it's very, very good. There's something rather magical about Trinh's simple, genuine story, and when it's paired with the melancholic beauty of Shelvia's artwork, it goes somewhere rather special indeed.
Based on a true story in Trinh's homeland of Vietnam, it tells the story of a girl waiting in a line for free rice. As she waits in the long, long line, she expresses kindness and understanding to those about her - something that she's rewarded for in the story's conclusion. It's set during the pandemic and so the vast majority of characters wear masks, personal protective equipment, and also practice social distancing.
The book wears its morals very lightly. Trinh never heads down the laborious route of 'behaving like this is good!' but rather lets her story speak for itself. Textually, it's restrained and more powerful for that. Though there were maybe two or three words I've have deleted (I'm always one to push for less rather than more), I found the story an intensely elegant experience. There's something very soft, honest and beautiful about it.
Shelvia's artwork is frankly stunning at points, wedding the cultural touchstones of COVID-19 with a poetic use of line and colour. There's a moment of crisis within the story for Vy, and Shelvia handles it with such beautiful, subtle restraint. I'm always impressed by artists who know when to hold back, and this moment in particular was perfect. I loved this. It was so beautiful, so poetic.
I'd suggest Vy's Special Gift can be used in discussions about the pandemic, particularly for those who may be experiencing some nerves and social anxiety - the message of kindness, empathy and concern for others is a very relevant one for all ages. I'd also recommend it for people interested in picture book technique and style - I suspect there's an essay or two begging to be written here.
You can see Vy's Special Gift being read online here. Basically, I loved this. A lot.
I am (very) grateful to the author for a review copy. ...more
1. Having the fire on on a cold winter's day. Snow falling down outside, steadily, softly. A darkening sky. StDogger's Christmas by Shirley Hughes is:
1. Having the fire on on a cold winter's day. Snow falling down outside, steadily, softly. A darkening sky. Stillness. 2. Being under the blanket on the sofa, watching a classic movie. Something black and white. Toasty warm from top to toe. Heart, full. 3. Freshly buttered toast. Crumpets, perhaps. Golden, soft. Loveliness.
Every time I read it, I have the tiniest of moments. There's something in Hughes' style that gets me - that will always get me. She writes with such soft, gentle richness. Her artwork is full of life and heart (there's nobody else who can capture 'light' quite like her) and every single line sort of sings with this sense of movement. These aren't isolated snapshots of a distant life; these are moments full of purpose and drive. There's a before and an after. There's a story, even in the smallest of details.
A brief word on story. Dogger's Christmas functions as a sequel to Dogger and I'm always concerned about sequels because they can work to exclude readers who haven't read that which came before. We're in safe hands here, however (were they ever anything else?) because Hughes hints towards the prior text whilst never, ever, forgetting her readers which may have come to this first. Such a gift, such the mark of somebody who is very, very good.
This is a year where Christmas may be different for a lot of people. My thoughts are with you if you've been impacted by the everything of the past few months and if you're finding this time difficult. Books like Dogger's Christmas take on an extra special, beautiful resonance at this point because they stand as this sort of timeless symbol of who we are. We love, we live, we lose things, we find ourselves; we bond over the pages of a beautiful, kind and gentle book. Buy this for your loved ones, buy it for yourself.
Make your buttery toast, find your blanket.
My thanks to the publisher for a review copy. ...more
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