Browsing in the local Waterstone's bookstore today [which I often do on Friday afternoons], I was delighted to see they are already promoting Philip Pullman's new work, to be published on October 19th. Pullman's trilogy, His Dark Materials, was a sensation when it was originally published in the late nineties. Its controversial subject matter raised …
Category: young adult fiction
The Midnight Palace
by Carlos Ruiz Zafon (translated by Lucia Graves) Re-post of original review Secret Societies and Ghostly Terror by Bookheathen) ‘Never mind the number of candles on your birthday cake,’ writes Zafon in his introduction to The Midnight Palace, ‘for those in the know, it’s what lies beneath them that matters’. Zafon’s first four published novels …
Harry Potter and the Flexible Title
The Deathly Hallows by JK Rowling Whilst I read most of the Harry Potter novels shortly after they were published - my daughter had a collection - I didn't get round to reading the final volume until a few weeks ago. I knew the story of course, having seen both the movies. However, so often, …
Britannia Rules
Bad Timing by Nicky Peacock A Review 'With his amazing organisational skills, Lyle had arranged for all the humans in Hope nad Glory to donate a pint of blood a month.' The title of my contribution today is in no way meant to be a political or racial statement! In my wholly unexpected (well, unexpected …
Not all universes are the same
A Review of Northern Lights The first book in Philip Pullman's fantasy trilogy for young adults The main protagonist in Northern Lights is Lyra, a twelve-year-old girl who lives in one of Oxford University's many colleges. Only Lyra's Oxford is a different Oxford. It lies in an alternate universe, an upside-down world with zeppelins, witches …
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