children Archives - The Quick and the Read

Book Review: ‘How to Raise a Viking’ by Helen Russell

I enjoyed Russell’s ‘The Year of Living Danishly’ and so was pleased to be granted an eARC of ‘How to Raise a Viking’. I’m really intrigued about the Danish/Nordic/Scandi way of life and loved Russell’s chatty and self-deprecating wander through her experiences of (firstly) living Danishly and (now) raising Viking children.

Book Review: ‘Nuclear Family’ by Kate Davies

As a huge fan of Kate Davies novel ‘In at the Deep End’, I was pleased to be granted a review copy of ‘Nuclear Family’ by NetGalley. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the chance to read and review – as always, opinions are entirely my own.

The book opens with Lena buying a DNA kit as a Christmas present for her dad (Tom) and her twin sister (Alison). She thinks it will be fun – plus there was an offer on the kits, so they’re a bargain! However, it forces Tom into the confession that Alison and Lena were conceived using a sperm donor – something that neither were really ready to find out in their thirties. Both respond very differently – but the impact on both is lasting as they reconsider their relationships, thoughts about having their own children and what it means to be family.

Blog Tour: ‘Last to Leave’ by Lucy Martin

Thanks to Random Things Tours for my place on the blog tour and copy of this book for review – as always, opinions are entirely my own.

The Blurb:

When Hannah Lloyd falls from her third-floor balcony at the end of her birthday lunch party, suspicion falls immediately upon the three guests who had only just left the apartment, alongside Hannah’s estranged husband Adam and a jealous neighbour with an axe to grind. But as the investigation develops, so does the network of suspects, eventually revealing a chilling connection between the crime and those in charge of preventing it. Forced to work alongside her arch-nemesis DCI Matt Preedy, DS Ronnie Delmar finds herself looking over her shoulder at her own colleagues and questioning the motives of those she thought she trusted.

My Review:

Blog Tour: ‘Yinka, Where is your Huzband?’ by Lizzie Damilola Blackburn

Welcome to my stop on the blog tour for ‘Yinka, Where is your Huzband?’ – thanks to Penguin/Viking Books for inviting me on the tour and for my copy of the book for review. As always, opinions are entirely my own.

The story centres on Yinka Oladeji, a thirty-one year old Londoner who is looking for love. Unfortunately, her extended Nigerian family don’t think she has time to waste and are praying for her – while constantly asking the whereabouts of her ‘huzband’. As her friends, cousins and sister get married and start families, Yinka seems to be treading a solitary path. When her cousin Rachel gets engaged, Yinka sets herself a challenge to find a date for the wedding – with some unexpected results.

Blog tour: ‘Tinker, Tailor, Schoolmum, Spy’ by Faye Brann

Welcome to my stop on the blog tour for ‘Tinker, Tailor, Schoolmum, Spy’ by Faye Brann.

Thanks to Random Things Tours and Harper Collins for my copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

This book is published on 2nd September.

Book Review: ‘The Chateau’ by Catherine Cooper

I devoured Cooper’s first novel, ‘The Chalet’ in one sitting during a heatwave – and I’m pleased to report that ‘The Chateau’ was every bit as gripping! This is another one that I sailed through with remarkable speed.

Thanks to NetGalley for the advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

Blog Tour: ‘Mrs Narwhal’s Diary’ by S J Norbury

Welcome to my stop on the blog tour for ‘Mrs Narwhal’s Diary’ by S J Norbury.

Thanks to Damp Pebbles tours for inviting me on the tour and for providing a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review. This book is published by the brilliant Louise Walters Books.

From the Publisher:

“It was Woman’s Hour who suggested I keep a diary. They said it was good for mental health, and I must say I did feel much less frazzled after writing everything down yesterday. The frustrations were all still there, but somehow smoothed out – as if by a really good steam iron.”

Mrs Narwhal is overwhelmed. Her husband, Hugh, is unkind and unhappy – working every hour at a job he hates to save the ancestral home he never wanted. Then there’s Hugh’s sister, Rose, who’s spurned her one true love, and ricochets from crisis to crisis; and not to mention two small boys to bring up safely in a house that could crumble around their ears at any moment…

When Hugh’s pride receives a fatal blow, and he walks out, Mrs Narwhal is plunged into a crisis of both heart and home. With help from Rose she sets out to save the house her husband couldn’t. But can she save her marriage? And does she really want Hugh back?

Funny, charming, and moving, Mrs Narwhal’s Diary is an irresistible story which will enchant and delight its readers.

My Review:

This isn’t my usual genre, but I’ve heard such brilliant things about Louise Walters Books (plus I enjoyed ‘Old Bones’ by Helen Kitson from the same stable) that I was keen to join the blog tour. I’d seen someone suggest that this book had echoes of ‘I Capture the Castle’ by Dodie Smith (a favourite of mine) and was drawn by the idea of a gentle, funny read.

‘Mrs Narwhal’s Diary’ is covers a tumultuous year in the life of the Narwhal family. Mrs Narwhal’s husband, Hugh, has inherited his family estate and it isn’t in a good way. Add in Hugh’s loose cannon of a sister (Rose) who is separated from her husband, two lively sons, a slightly odd groundsman, a difficult customer of her husband’s furniture business, a surly cleaner – and it is clear that Mrs Narwhal has her work cut out for her!

Given the diary format, it is Mrs Narwhal’s voice that we hear most distinctly and what a voice it is! Funny, thoughtful, wise – she is a character that the reader cannot help but warm to, even though I was a bit frustrated by some of her reactions to things in the novel. I loved that you could hear her almost unfiltered private thoughts which was important in gaining an insight into the other characters and events. It’s a wholly realistic and engaging voice and the reader shares in her frustrations, sadness and moments of joy.

However, my favourite character in the novel had to be Rose – she is brilliant! She is much less measured and diplomatic than Mrs Narwhal and I loved the way she was often tactless and blunt, yet clearly fun and respected by those around her. I also loved her involvement in the stately home visit that ended rather unfortunately…

With such strong female characters (including the memory of the terrifying Greer), Hugh was always going to be a disappointment. However, it is precisely this about him that allows the women to shine in this novel and take charge of the huge project that comes their way regarding Narwhal Hall.

The characterisation is one of the real strengths of the novel – like real life, this isn’t packed with exciting events or plot twists. Instead, it is the quiet story of a family rearranging their relationships and redrawing boundaries as life moves on around them. It is all the better for this and allows for some really insightful and clever observations on human nature.

However, all the wisdom and insight of the novel rather takes the reader by surprise as it tends to be the humour and ridiculousness of everyday life (especially everyday life in a crumbling stately home) that is foregrounded. There are some very funny events, not least the opening of the novel when Mrs Narwhal is waiting anxiously for the piper to fall through the boards of the tree house.

Little details – both relatable and those unique to the Narwhals – are what make this novel. The missing scissors, the stuffed polar bears, the ghastliness of the school fete, the Minecraft posters on the precious wood panelling, the insulting poem about a character’s generously-sized bottom – these are the things that make the reader laugh and make up the days of the lives of the Narwhal family.

I’d whole-heartedly recommend this book to those looking for a funny, charming and sweet novel. It isn’t without its quiet sadness, but it is absolutely relatable and entertaining. Comparisons with ‘I Capture the Castle’ are justified – the eccentric family living in a run-down setting – but Mrs Narwhal deals adroitly with so much more than Cassandra Mortmain as she faces everything that middle-aged life can fling her way. And always with wit and humour and charm.

About the Author:

S J Norbury lives in Herefordshire with her family. Mrs Narwhal’s Diary is her first novel.

Purchase Links:

Amazon UK: https://amzn.to/3aDOjKw

Book Depository: https://bit.ly/3xscUMc

Waterstones: https://bit.ly/2R5p3pt

WHSmith: https://bit.ly/2QZkOMq

Foyles: https://bit.ly/3gHJMKX

Nook: https://bit.ly/3aEgMQf

Blackwells: https://bit.ly/3tXM1xk

Publishing Information:

Published by Louise Walters Books on 16^th May 2021

Blog Tour: ‘Behind Closed Doors’ by Catherine Alliott

Welcome to my stop on the blog tour for ‘Behind Closed Doors’ by Catherine Alliott.

This book was published on 4th March by Michael Joseph and I thank the publisher for my copy of the book in exchange for an honest review, plus the invitation to join the tour.

I’ve read a lot of Catherine Alliott’s books, although not so recently, so I thought I knew what I was getting myself into with this one. Absolutely not so!

In this book, Lucy Palmer seems to have it all – a big house in London, a job writing cosy crime novels, a handsome husband and two grown-up children who are both successful in their own ways. However, this is all a facade and Lucy’s marriage is about to end spectacularly and suddenly – and, when is does, she has some work to do in dealing with her past. Leaving London, she goes to care for her elderly and bordering-on-alcoholic parents in the country where she starts to rebuild her life.

This is an altogether darker story than I am used to from Alliott, both in the truth about Lucy’s husband, Michael, and the events surrounding the end of the marriage. It also touches on some poignant issues, especially caring for elderly parents and ageing.

However, everything else I expected from Alliott is also there, so this slightly darker turn works well. It still has elements of humour – I really loved Lucy’s parents and their hectic social life of boozy octogenarian parties, plus the sassy teenage twins who have much more of a finger on the pulse than the adults. There’s also romantic strands to the story, although these aren’t as central as I would have expected given what I’ve read of Alliott’s writing previously. Instead, the love story is quite understated and works really well given Lucy’s situation.

I really loved the family dynamic that is at the heart of this book. Lucy is at the centre of a supportive, if slightly eccentric, family network and this is one of the real strengths of the novel. There’s the ageing parents, growing old disgracefully but still frail, Lucy’s sister (Helena) who absolutely has control of everything except her own children, plus Lucy’s children – the strong and reliable Imo and thoughtful, calm Ned. I especially liked the strong women in the novel – Helena and Imo being my favourites, although there are other surprisingly awesome women (and a few men!) along the way.

Although this was not what I wholly expected when I picked up this book, I’d recommend it. It is certainly less cosy than I was anticipating and includes some difficult issues, not least domestic abuse, but it is an immersive and engaging read. I genuinely struggled to put it down and loved the clever, understated explorations of relationships and dependencies between people.

‘More than a Woman’ by Caitlin Moran

I love Caitlin Moran. I think she is funny, brave and always readable. I love the fact she has turned her considerable journalistic writing skills into a career in which she produces brilliant fiction and non-fiction books. She is the reason I have a Times subscription (she is a regular writer for them) and a shelf full of her previous books.

That needed to be said up front. Although I read and review lots of books, I’m not the most impartial reviewer in this case. Evidence: I pre-ordered this book and paid out of my own pocket! No ARC, no waiting for the prices to come down, no second-hand copy, no waiting for Christmas…honestly, this is all so out of character for me!

With that said, I did wonder how she would have enough to say about the topic of being a woman. She covered a lot of ground (rather marvellously) in her book ‘How to be a Woman’ ten years ago – how much more is there to say?

Loads, it turns out. Moran is now in her forties (like me) and has plenty to say about this stage in her life. It is in middle age that (Moran observes) life becomes less about you and more about everyone else – your children growing up, pressures of work, ageing parents – and it is really tough. You aren’t the same person as you were ten years ago and it needs a whole new way of navigating. Add into this the current state of society – it’s safe to say the patriarchy hasn’t yet been smashed – and Moran has plenty to write about.

This book is structured into chapters denoting an hour in the middle-aged women’s day. Thus, we are taken from 7am (The Hour of ‘The List’) through various points in the day – The Hour or Parenting Teenage Children (eeek – not looking forward to this myself!), The Hour of Housework, The Hour of Crisis… It is all hugely relatable and it is strangely comforting that the things I stress about seem to be universal.

Particularly striking for me was ‘The List’ as I’ve done a lot of thinking about mental load recently and the fact that women seem to bear the brunt of the thinking about things. It was heartening to read Moran’s own list and think that I am not the only one trying to keep on top of work, parenting, marriage, life admin, pet care…

Yes, there are a lot of serious points made here about women’s place in society and the pressures to ‘have it all’ (read: ‘do it all’). However, it is also absolutely hilarious and Moran is unafraid to share some rather intimate things. It is like a chat with your best friend, if your best friend is a totally unfiltered over-sharer! The bathwater thing (you’ll have to read it) really made me laugh out loud…

As well as being laugh-out-loud funny in places, there are some really serious points, especially Moran’s daughter’s fight with anorexia. I found the story extremely moving and am glad that Moran (and her daughter, because it was shared with her permission) included this intimate story that shows that each family has its struggles behind closed doors.

This is a feminist book but one that should be required reading for everyone – it is so insightful and engaging that I think anyone would enjoy it (and probably learn something along the way).

Please do go and buy a copy of this book. If you are a women of a similar age to Moran (or live with one) then you will recognise a lot here. It is uplifting and extremely funny, but will leave you with a lot of food for thought.

If you’d like a copy of this, please use my affiliate link below – this earns my blog commission at no extra cost to you.

‘Life in Pieces’ by Dawn O’Porter

This book, to be published on 1st October, is a non-fiction journal of the lockdown period in spring/summer 2020 by the journalist, writer and television presenter, Dawn O’Porter.

I really like Dawn O’Porter. Having watched several of her documentaries and read a couple of her novels, I’d say I was pretty much sold on her work and so was very much looking forward to reading this book, a diary of her lockdown experiences. She lives in LA with her actor husband and two small sons so I was fairly confident that her experiences of lockdown wouldn’t be anything like mine!

Saying that though, O’Porter’s experiences are pretty relatable for anyone who has lived with small children. The potty training, the sleep deprivation, the repetitive questions about favourite dinosaurs…I think most people would recognise something there! Add into this pet ownership, navigating the weird new world of lockdown, preparing for a house move, cooking, and the ups and downs of marriage and I expect that something in this book will strike a chord with everyone.

Other reviewers have mentioned that it is a bit soon to be reading about lockdown. As we seem poised on the edge of a second wave of coronavirus, I can totally understand that this book might be a bit too much for some people. As it was, I didn’t particularly focus on the lockdown theme as O’Porter writes engagingly about things not connected to the virus.

Yes, it was lockdown that meant she had to spend more time with her kids, but the anecdotes about family life are funny and entertaining. Indeed, there’s plenty here that’s not corona-themed, such as O’Porter’s grief about the death of her friend, Caroline Flack, or her musings on the death of George Floyd from the centre of LA’s protest-zone (where she lives).

At its best, this book is hilarious and fresh – a funny and lively take on a time that challenged most of us. However, for me, the political elements of the book were slightly less successful and a bit discordant after the candid, confessional style of the rest. It was interesting to hear O’Porter’s views on racism and anti-racism, but it did move the book from something fairly light and entertaining to something more didactic, which wasn’t really what I was after.

Overall. if you like Dawn O’Porter’s writing then there is a lot you will like here. Some of the things she writes about are relatable, some are a bit banal and some are a bit odd (she lost me at the crystals). Some things are very funny and others sad. What isn’t in doubt is O’Porter’s ability to entertain with her writing and it is for this reason that I’d recommend this book.

I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley in return for an honest review.

If you’d like to pre-order this book (released 1st October), please use my affiliate link below – I’ll earn commission at no extra cost to you. Thanks for supporting my blog.

Header photo with thanks to engin akyurt for sharing their work on Unsplash.