Mostly Mary and All Mary

Title: Mostly Mary and All Mary
Author: Gwynedd Rae
Illustrator: Clara Vulliamy
Publisher: Egmont
Published: February 2017
Format: Hardback
Source: My own copies

I have always been a huge fan of the “Mary Plain” books and therefore I am very excited about the re-released editions with new illustrations by Clara Vulliamy. “Mostly Mary” and “All Mary” have been released so far with more books to come, and the tale of the unusual first-class bear from the bear pits of Berne is sure to be just as popular with children today.

 The first book of the series, “Mostly Mary”, focuses on Mary's time in the bear pits with her cousins and older relatives. We are introduced to Mary’s family and the people who visit her at the bear pits.  Mary always means well, but her best efforts are not always appreciated by those around her and often get her into trouble. In “All Mary” she travels with the Owl Man, first to stay with the Fancy Coat Lady and then to England where she wins a white rosette in a show. Unsurprisingly she causes chaos wherever she goes which adds to the fun. At the end of “All Mary” she is given a hero’s welcome back to Berne and is presented with a gold medal by the Mayor. These two books act as a perfect introduction to Mary and her best friend, the Owl Man. Future books focus mainly on the two of them and the adventures they have together. Everywhere she goes Mary makes new friends and leaves a lasting impression.

When Knight published their editions of “Mary Plain” back in the 1960s, there was a split between fans who embraced the new illustrations by Janina Ede and fans who preferred the old illustrations. However, the new illustrations have managed to effectively combine the best of both illustrators whilst being in Clara’s own distinctive style. Mary is still an adorable and endearing character but I think the new illustrations of her family really demonstrate their individual personalities. Additionally, there is a timeless feel to the art, making it appeal to both older and younger audiences alike. Not only is Mary a character that the modern audience will fall in love with, but her friends and family will stand out to them as well.

To see these books back in print is a dream come true, considering that they were such an important part of my childhood. These editions are beautifully produced with hard covers and gold highlights on the dust jackets. If you remove the dust jacket you find a secret message from Mary in her unique writing style. Clara Vulliamy is a brilliant choice for the new illustrations and they really are books to treasure. I cannot wait for the next books to come with Mary's further adventures. "Mary in America" and "Mary in London" will be published in October.

I would like to note that these are my own copies, but they were sent to me by Clare because we both love Mary. There was no request for a review at any time.

 

Timmy Failure Mistakes Were Made

Title: Timmy Failure Mistakes Were Made
Author: Stephan Pastis
Publisher:  Walker
Published: 2013
Format: Paperback
Source: My own copy

This is the first book in the "Timmy Failure" series. There are another three books in the shops already and a fifth on the way later this year.

Timmy is the head of the detective agency Failure, Inc. and aims to achieve success as a detective, but many obstacles stand in his way, including his mother, his grumpy teacher Old Man Crocus and, most of all, his own ego. The characters are very amusing and Timmy, who owns a pet polar bear that he calls Total, reminds me of the eponymous Calvin from “Calvin And Hobbes”. Being a big fan of this comic strip, this made Timmy an engaging and funny character to me from the start. Other characters that play an important role in the story and that I found amusing include his friend Rollo, his unwanted admirer Molly Moskins and his nemesis Corrina Corrina, who also runs a detective agency. Furthermore, the illustrations that accompany the story are drawn in a cartoon style similar to Stephan Pastis' comic strip “Pearls Before Swine” and fit really well with the text. I feel that children and their parents will like these pictures and find them appealing, adding to their enjoyment of the text.

Overall, I found this to be an extremely funny book and just as hilarious as “Pearls Before Swine”. The storyline features several wacky hi-jinks, the characters are amusing and the pictures will appeal to all. This is a must-read if you enjoy books that make you laugh out loud, especially if you are a fan of “Pearls Before Swine” and “Calvin And Hobbes”.

Pugs of the Frozen North

Title: Pugs of the Frozen North
Author: Philip Reeve
Illustrator: Sarah McIntyre
Publisher: OUP
Published: 2015
Format: Hardback
Source: My own copy

 

“Pugs Of The Frozen North” is the third book created by both Phillip Reeve and Sarah McIntyre, and I was lucky enough to attend a workshop focusing on it at the Guardian Offices in London. The book contains the same humour and depth as their first two collaborations “Oliver And The Seawigs” and “Cakes In Space”.

After the Lucky Star is crushed by ice, the cabin boy Shen escapes with 66 pugs and meets up with Sika, who plans to enter the Great Northern Race so that she can ask the Snowfather to cure her grandfather. Upon entering the race with the pugs taking the place of huskies, they find themselves up against a colourful cast of contestants and encountering snow trolls, sea monsters and noodle-eating yetis. The story contains many memorable characters including the adorable pugs themselves that help the heroes to make it through the race. Some of the contestants in the race remind me of characters from the classic TV series “Wacky Races”; for example, the moustache-twirling antagonist brings to mind the memorable villain Dick Dastardly. However, this is intertwined with an original plotline by Reeve in order to create a new and fascinating story that will appeal to all ages, not just fans of “Wacky Races”. Additionally, McIntyre includes stunning drawings on every page, which help to engage the child even more with the already amazing storytelling. The end papers have pictures of all the 66 adorable pugs in the book, along with their names. I had great fun trying to work out who they were named after, with some more obvious than others (Ardagh for example).

In conclusion, I love this book as much as I love Reeve and McIntyre's previous two books and would recommend this to people of all ages. Both of the creators have achieved in producing a well-written story with beautiful illustrations that you will want to read over and over again.

 

The Bolds

Title: The Bolds
Author: Julian Clary
Illustrator: David Roberts
Publisher:  Andersen Press
Published: 2015
Format: Paperback
Source: My own copy

Two English speaking hyenas leave the Masai Mara to take on the identities of Fred and Amelia Bold, a young couple from Twickenham. Fred gets a job writing jokes for Christmas crackers and Amelia makes hats from unusual items such as egg boxes. They have two young children Bobby and Betty and are very happy with their new life in the suburbs. The children have a human friend, Minnie, who knows their secret, but can be trusted not to let on to anyone else. The only problem they have is their grumpy next door neighbour, Mr McNumpty, who is extremely unfriendly. One day the Bolds visit the local safari park so that the children can see the wild animals and get a taste of what life in Africa was like for their parents. Whilst there they make friends with the park's hyenas and hatch a plan to rescue Tony, an elderly hyena at risk of being put down by the vet.

The story is told in such a way that you can imagine Julian Clary reading aloud to you. The style is very chatty with plenty of asides from the narrator which makes it very easy to read. I think that this book would be great to read aloud. An audio book read by Julian Clary would be brilliant except for one small problem; you would miss out on David Robert's fantastic illustrations. The book is packed with illustrations which complement the text perfectly and really bring the story to life. I particularly liked the way that the pages are black with white writing when the story takes place at night or in the dark. Mr Bold's job writing jokes gives Julian Clary the excuse to include plenty of Christmas cracker type humour, which can make you groan, but in a good way. The story itself is really funny and made me laugh out loud a lot. I was particularly amused at the thought of Mr McNumpty dating Joan Collins and living the high life. The book is quite thick for one aimed at younger readers, but that is because there are so many illustrations which will appeal to children making the move to longer books. It is really easy to read and the story races along. I am really looking forward to the publication of The Bolds to the Rescue in March 2016. It sounds as if it will be another brilliantly funny book.

You Rule! Create Your Own Country

Title: You Rule! Create Your Own Country

Author: Scott Forbes and Emma Laura Jones

Publisher: Lonely Planet Kids

Date of Publication: September 2015

Format: Hardback

Source: Complimentary copy from publisher

I live in the UK, but I also live in Thanesia which is part of the Empire of Austenasia. As a result I was extremely curious to read You Rule! Create Your Own Country. The book is set out in chapters dedicated to the different stages you need to go through to create your own country. It explains in detail how to choose a site for your country, make it official and everything that is needed in the day to day running of your own state. It gives information about other micronations as well as details on “real” countries. There are short tests to complete which will help you to decide how to set up and rule your country. By the end of the book you will be able to set up your own micronation.

I found this book very easy to read. The information is split up into chunks so you can read as much or as little as you like in one sitting. The pages are colourful with plenty of cartoon-like illustrations and photos. There is also a serious side to the book as it explains the politics of “real” countries and the United Nations. Children will learn a lot while having fun. It can lead on to lots of activities, at home or in school, based around maps, design, law and government. There was only one problem with the book; it didn't mention Austenasia! Despite this it is still a really good book.

Dork Diaries

Title: Dork Diaries

Author: Rachel Renee Russell

Illustrator: Rachel Renee Russell, Nikki Russell, Leisl Adams

Publisher: Simon and Schuster

Date of publication: 2009

Format: Paperback

Source: My own copy

Dork Diaries (originally named Dork Diaries: Tales From A Not-So-Fabulous Life in the USA) is the first instalment in the tween book series of the same name which concentrates on the antics of the dorky Nikki J. Maxwell and her family, friends and rivals.

In spite of the marketing advertising it as the girl’s counterpart to Diary Of A Wimpy Kid, the story’s plotline itself is entirely different, with Nikki moving to the elite Westchester Country Day school and facing off against the resident queen bee MacKenzie Hollister in a school’s art competition. She also makes friends with the zany Chloe and Zoey and attracts the romantic attention of the school newspaper’s photographer Brandon Roberts. All of these characters are memorable and fleshed-out and the hijinks that occur as the plot progresses will have you both laughing out loud and sympathising for Nikki at the same time. The pictures, another gimmick of the book that stand out, are drawn in either a cartoony stick-figure style or a manga influenced style. Being a big fan of manga myself, I really liked this addition to the book and felt that these pictures were really well-drawn and humorous. Furthermore, it features nearly all of the high school genre conventions that we know and love as well as some new additions to it.

Overall, this is a very funny book with brilliant cartoons and memorable characters that everyone can enjoy and sets the tone of the series as a whole as well as providing a good start to it. I would definitely recommend it for the pre-teen and early teenage market.

My Brother is a Superhero

Title: My Brother is a Superhero
Author: David Solomons
Illustrator: Laura Ellen Anderson
Publisher:  Nosy Crow
Published: 2015
Format: Paperback
Source: My own copy


Luke is a massive comic fan and, as a result, is an expert on superheroes and the powers they use to defeat evil villains. So it's not surprising that when Zorbon the Decider needs to create a superhero to save the universe he arrives in Luke's garden. Unfortunately Luke needs a wee and so his brother Zack, who has never read a comic in his life, receives the super powers instead. Zack is going to need all the help he can get to defeat Nemesis.

Luke has to take on the role of the superhero's sidekick and try to overcome his envy to help Zack save the world. He is helped in the process by his best friend Serge,who is a massive fan of Star Lad, as Zack is known, and Lara, a reporter on the school newspaper, who is desperate to unmask Star Lad. Trying to keep Zack's identity from these two whilst requiring their help adds to Luke's problems.

This book made me burst out laughing on a train full of people, it is that funny. I could not stop reading it and had to stay up late to find out if Zack (and Luke) managed to save not one, but two universes. The story flows really well and I found myself reading “just one more chapter” until I reached the end. It manages to strike the right balance between humour and thrills so that the reader is gripped to the end. I really enjoyed it and cannot wait until the sequel, My Teacher is an Alien Overlord, comes out next summer.

Diary of a Wimpy Kid

Title: Diary of a Wimpy Kid
Author: Jeff Kinney
Publisher: Puffin
Published: 2008 (2007 in USA)
Format: Paperback
Source: My own copy

In light of recent comments that Anthony Horowitz made about today’s books, I thought I would re-read the first Diary Of A Wimpy Kid book. In contrast to what Horowitz said, I feel that it is not an example of “dumbed down” literature and there is a lot more to it than might first appear.

The first instalment of the series concentrates on our protagonist Greg Heffley arriving at his new school with his best friend Rowley and the hijinks that he gets up to both there and at home with his blissfully unaware mother, his apathetic father, his grumpy older brother Roderick and his brattish young brother Manny. There are plenty of humorous moments in the book, with the “cheese touch” being a big focus. However, unlike several of the books that have been published in order to capitalize on its success, Diary Of A Wimpy Kid makes no attempts at sentimentalism and instead comes off as a satire of typical school life as well as clichés such as the embarrassing family (there is a strong amount of favouritism going on in the Heffley family that does not appear in other books of the same genre). Greg himself is not always perfect and therefore, he comes across as a flawed yet well-meaning individual that you’ll end up sympathising with. As he is not the type of person who likes to keep in touch with his emotions, the story is written in a straightforward, honest manner that heightens the humour of several scenes. In addition, the cartoons are hilarious and will appeal to anyone, with funny captions and speech bubbles to go along with them.

In my opinion, Diary Of A Wimpy Kid isn’t just a comedy with what people refer to as “boy’s” humour in it. It’s also a brilliant satire of school life as well as the clichés that tend to pop up in other stories. This is what makes it a worthwhile book to read for both boys and girls as well as one of our best comedy books of today.