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‘The Many Worlds of Albie Bright’ – Christopher Edge

The Many Worlds of Albie Bright

I picked this book up thinking it would be a quick read. It was, but that doesn’t mean it’s a book I won’t be thinking about for a long time afterwards.

My interest in Science is minimal, and I confess that anything linked to what I called “hard maths” (i.e. physics) in school still leaves me cold. So why did I find myself walking down the road with my head in this book desperate to finish it? It is, basically, a book I fell in love with.

Named after his parents’ favourite scientists, Albie Bright is a boy that I immediately warmed to. When we first meet him he and his father are adjusting to life without Mrs Bright, who died of cancer just two weeks earlier. Neither Albie or his father are really doing anything other than existing at the start of the novel, and Albie’s questions about what exactly has happened to his mother would – I suppose – be of comfort to any child in similar circumstances.

Due to the fact that Albie’s parents have always encouraged his natural curiosity, his father’s reluctance to talk to Albie about what has happened shows the depth of emotion these characters are feeling. Rather than dwelling on this however – which I imagine could have been very depressing – Edge takes us in a totally different direction.

When Albie’s father tries to comfort his son, things don’t quite go as you’d expect. Using quantum physics to explain that if there are parallel universes there is the possibility that, somewhere, Albie’s mother is still alive creates a sense of hope in Albie that, while naïve, is touching to watch. Fired up with determination to find his mother again, Albie creates Quantum Banana Theory which allows him to travel to a parallel universe.

This is the point at which we are well and truly in the realm of the fantastical. I found myself laughing at some of the scenes that we get to witness, but throughout there was a thoughtful exploration of Albie’s feelings and a clear focus on showing us just what Albie in each parallel universe gained, and lost. I loved how we got to see Albie slowly come to the realisation that you have to live with what you’ve got and make the most of it.

I can’t wait to see what the students who select this under the BookBuzz scheme make of this one.

‘Hot Milk’ -Deborah Levy

Hot Milk

The day I finished this rather unusual novel coincided with the announcement that ‘Hot Milk’ was on the short-list for the Man Booker Prize. This in no way impacts on my review – if anything, it makes me wonder whether I wouldn’t be better off focusing my attention on the ones that didn’t make the list, since I really found myself confused by this novel.

The story, such as I understood it, focuses on 25-year-old Sophia. We are told she has a first-class degree in Anthropology and is working on her doctoral thesis. For such a clever woman, she seems remarkably stupid. When she accompanies her mother to Spain in order to seek further medical intervention for the mysterious ailments that have plagued her mother for years, I can’t understand why she doesn’t leave her to it. The mother is manipulative and the manifestation of her physical ailments seems to come and go depending upon who she is talking to, or what else is happening. Yet Sophia happily accompanies her from appointment to appointment and seems content to do nothing to break out of this debilitating co-dependant relationship.

There are some quirky characters, though I don’t feel I really ever got to see them as anything other than a device to illustrate whatever point Sophia wanted to make about herself at the time.

Throughout the novel I was struck by a number of images or repeated references. I’m certain these were important, but I’m still not certain why. I found this an easy book to read as it is relatively short, and the action is easy to follow. However, the language is richly evocative and I cannot help but feel that it is the kind of novel that I ought to read again in order to try and make more sense of it. Unfortunately, I’m not sure I’ll be in a hurry to do so.

‘Quantum Drop’ – Saci Lloyd

Quantum Drop

The front cover for ‘Quantum Drop’ suggests an explosive read, but I have to confess that I didn’t have quite that experience as I was reading.

Anthony Griffin (the name we know our main character by) is determined to find out who was responsible for the murder of his girlfriend, Tais. This prompts him to take his life in his hands and trail the Bettas in an attempt to find out exactly what happened.

Lloyd creates a world that has blended the real and the digital seamlessly – now virtual reality has become commonplace, with people entering the Drop in order to carry out a range of tasks. Corruption is rife, but with gangs controlling who is able to access all manner of resources it is inevitable that some miss out.

Personally, I felt that in this novel we never got enough opportunity to know the characters in the detail needed to get me to care about what was happening to them. There was plenty of action, but I felt it came at the expense of detail that would have made certain events a lot clearer.

 

‘Darktown’ – Thomas Mullen

Darktown

Due for publication on 13th September 2016, I was excited to be approved by publishers Little, Brown Book Group via NetGalley for an advance copy of this novel.

Described as a “riveting and elegant police procedural” I was keen to see how Mullen would link the context of race relations in 1948 Atlanta with the demands of a crime story. While it took me a while to really get into the feel of the characters and how they were linked, as far as the action goes I was hooked from the opening pages.

When we first meet Boggs and his partner Smith we are efficiently shown just how helpless the first eight coloured police officers in Atlanta actually were. They are given no cars with which to patrol, they are not allowed to carry a gun, their  contact cards have to be paid for from their own pockets and they are not actually allowed to arrest anyone without a white officer being present. Throughout the novel I admit to feeling an element of seething frustration on behalf of these characters who were treated so poorly solely because of the colour of their skin.

As we are shown Dunlow, a bigoted cop who has grown used to people doing things his way, lock horns with Boggs it is clear that things are not going to go smoothly. I could not believe some of the details we are given in the novel – but however upsetting they might have been to read, I think they were vital. This was a compelling read that I can’t wait to see people’s reaction to. The news that this novel is due to be adapted by Sony Pictures Television and Jamie Foxx is exciting stuff, and I can’t wait to see how such a gritty read translates to the screen.

 

‘Miraculous Miranda’ – Siobhan Parkinson

Miraculous Miranda

Sometimes a book comes along that is just perfect in every way. For me, ‘Miraculous Miranda’ is one of those books – and I really hope it gets read by a wider audience than its target group of upper primary-age children.

Miranda lives with her mum, dad, gran and older sister, Gemma. She is a rather precocious individual – though her confidence and sparkiness come across as enthusiasm and interest at this age – and  I loved her fascination with words and their meanings. Her older sister has a condition that Miranda is not told much about, but it means Gemma is often taken to hospital.

As an adult reading this I was trying to piece together the background to the characters and their stories, but it really is not important within these pages that we don’t know all the details. We see events through Miranda’s eyes, and her reaction to what’s going on around her is touching.

We see Miranda trying to deal with what she can see is not an ordinary situation, without being told all the details. This does lead, inevitably, to some confusion – the incident with her classmates being very concerned for Gran because they haven’t understood a word Miranda used in her journal was a little sad, while being very humorous. There is. it seems, something to be said for talking to younger children about illness and not trying to hide the truth from them completely!

This is a book that I could see myself reading again and again, without tiring of Miranda and her imaginative perception of the world around her.

A huge thank you to NetGalley and publishers Hodder Childrens’ Books for the copy in advance of publication in exchange for sharing my honest thoughts.

 

‘The Movie Version’ – Emma Wunsch

The Movie Version

Due for publication in October 2016, I thank publishers Amulet and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review. Described as ‘a whip-smart, heart-wrenching debut YA novel about first love, first loss, and filmmaking’ this strikes me as the kind of novel that will divide opinion.

In ‘The Movie Version’ we are introduced to Amelia and her family. She is obsessed with movies, and in her life elder brother Toby is the archetypal star. Everything revolves around her popular, smart brother and Amelia seems to accept her role as ‘second-best’ without question.

After returning from a summer away working, Amelia can’t help but notice that her brother has changed. He’s always been a little erratic, but Amelia is concerned by his outbursts and lack of personal hygiene. Initially she puts Toby’s changed behaviour down to a summer of smoking pot – and she covers for his slip-ups without question, because that’s what she’s always done – but when he is found in a state of extreme anxiety it is clear that something is not right.

Slowly it becomes clear that Toby is actually suffering with schizophrenia. His illness impacts on family life in ways that they cannot imagine, and it is all too apparent that Amelia has hidden behind her brother for so long that she has not really pushed herself to develop personally.

Initially I found the constant film referencing a little self-congratulatory, but I know this will appeal to some readers. Amelia veered between sensitivity towards her brother and genuinely offensive – perhaps this is realistic, but I wonder if her attitude will make it harder for some readers to really empathise with her.

‘The Bronze Key’ – Cassandra Clare and Holly Black

The Bronze Key

Cassandra Clare and Holly Black waste no time in reminding us of the events of Book Two and returning us to the thick of the action. Call remains a target, and he is unsure who to trust after the revelations about who he really is.

With some hesitation, Call returns to the Magisterium for his third year. Sadly, after the horrific murder of one of their peers, it is clear that someone is out to get Call. He, Aaron and Tamara don’t get a moment to relax as they – against everyone’s wishes – hunt for the killer themselves. To mark the development of the characters we get slightly more focus on their interpersonal relationships, but this actually provides some comic relief.

There are more than one or two dramatic moments, and we get some further revelations to pique our interest for the next book. I couldn’t help but feel some reservations about the integrity of a number of the characters who feature in this story. No matter what they say, I just don’t trust those people who claim to have Call’s best interests at heart. However, I think some of these characters may well feature further on in the series so we’ll see how things develop.

Personally I was a little surprised by the route taken by the authors right at the end. If I’d read this as a younger reader, I’m not sure I’d have wanted to continue the series – although I do wonder whether Call will end up dabbling in this area and continuing Constantine’s work.

Now all that remains is to wait for another year…

‘Born Scared’ – Kevin Brooks

Born Scared

Due for publication in early September 2016, this is the first offering by Kevin Brooks since he won the Carnegie Medal in 2014 with the highly topical The Bunker Diary.

Brooks has always been one of those writers that I’ve admired for tackling that which is not obvious. He finds the unusual in every one of his characters, and sometimes it is more successful than others. In this instance, though there are things I would have liked to have further detail about I have to say that I was absorbed throughout the time I was reading this.

From the opening pages we are told that Elliot is scared of everything. There is no obvious explanation for this, and nobody seems able to help him. He survives because of his daily dose of medication – but even that experience creates fear. I think there is a part of Elliot that many people will identify with, though his anxiety is extreme and he appears to be resigned to allowing others to manage his environment as best they can.

While Elliot’s experiences would be interesting, they wouldn’t keep us engaged for the whole novel. So we find Elliot in the awful position on Christmas Eve of only having two pills left and, with an awful snow storm on the way, plans are made for his mother to collect his prescription.

It may seem a farcical situation, but Elliot’s mother gets caught up in events that nobody could predict. When she does not return at the expected time, Elliot is forced into the truly terrifying situation of having to step outside his own home and go to find her.

Telling you what happens to Elliot from this point on would be unfair. Suffice to say, Brooks describes the terror Elliot feels with sensitivity. It was thoroughly absorbing to read. I’d have liked a little more detail in places, but I could not wait to finish it once it became clear how the various characters were linked.

A huge thank you to Egmont publishing and NetGalley for the advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

‘The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde’ – R.L. Stevenson

Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde

There’s nothing like returning to a classic to remind me why I love reading, and how lucky I feel to be part of a literary heritage that covers such a wide range of narratives.

I find it hard to believe that there is anyone who does not know the basic outline of this story. The concept of scientific advancement and the horrors of behaviour outside the social norms were topical ideas at the time Stevenson wrote this, and the conflict between personal desire and social convention remains relevant today.

Re-reading The Curious Case, I was struck by the fact that Mr Utterson – as the epitome of a Victorian gentleman – narrates these events in an attempt to make the supernatural elements of the story more palatable to readers of the time. While the conventions of Gothic horror tend to make me laugh now rather than feel the fear that would have been experienced by Stevenson’s contemporaries, I can still admire the construct of this novella. A deliciously dark story.

 

‘Outstanding’ – Kathryn Flett

Outstanding

Thanks to publishers and NetGalley for the advance copy in exchange for my thoughts, though I wish I could be more positive.

Perhaps it was because I read this just prior to the return to work (in a school) so I was slightly put off by the setting and the characters, but I really found it hard to feel any empathy with any of the characters involved or even really care what happened to them.

Super Head teacher, Eve, came across as rather clueless for someone in charge of what is meant to be an outstanding school and I got sick and tired of the SEN agenda being shoved down my throat at every available opportunity. While there were some amusing moments, for the most part there were too many sub-plots to allow me to engage with any of the events in the way I had hoped to.

While this wasn’t for me I am sure it will have its fans.