Top 5 Books for September 2011
- Blue Eyed Boy by Joanne Harris
She’s one of Yorkshire’s most famous exports and known by many as the talent who gave the world Chocolat. Today however Joanne Harris is carving a niche for herself as a psychologically thrilling author. Blue Eyed Boy is set in the Yorkshire town of Malbry where the focus is on a potentially sociopathic man. The man is BB, he lives with his Mum, he’s in his 40s and the only way he can escape his unsatisfying existence is online. His internet avatar is - blueeyedboy – and it’s through this personality that he shares with the world violent fantasies featuring people from his own life. Throw in the mystery surrounding the death of his two brothers and you have yourself a rather gripping page-turner.
Blue Eyed Boy by Joanne Harris is published by Doubleday (paperback; £7.99). It is also available through amazon.com and all good booksellers.
- Are We Nearly There Yet by Ben Hatch
You can read a free extract taken from this book in this edition of the e-zine but to get you going, this is the tale of Ben and his wife Dinah at appoint in their lives when they were both bored, broke, burned out and turning 40. In that context imagine what you’d do if you were approached to write a guidebook about family travel. Like any sane couple they jumped at the chance, rented out their house and packed everything into the boot of their Vauxhall Astra. It’s the kind of adventure that a lot of people would like to attempt and when you read about the deadly puff adders, Billie Piper’s pyjamas and an encounter with a friend of Hitler, you’ll understand why. In summary it’s 8,000 miles of adventure on the road.
- Everyman's England by Victor Canning
Back in the 1930s the Daily Mail – a British tabloid, commissioned Victor Canning to write a collection of stories describing England in the time between the two world wars. It’s a nostalgic offering in the best kind of way and it’s full to the brim with humorous observations about the British way of life, in times gone by. Canning might be better known as a thriller writer but his observations of sleepy villages and pastoral scenes in this book, are just as riveting.
Everyman's England by Victor Canning is published by Summersdale (hardback; £12.99). It is also available through amazon.com and all good booksellers.
- Jamrach's Menagerie by Carol Birch
Jamrach's Menagerie takes us back to the slums of Victorian London – a prison like environment that young Jaffy Brown never expects to escape from. However at the age of eight a chance encounter with a Mr Jamrach changes Jaffy's fate forever. Jaffy is swept away to the docks and before he knows it, he’s waving farewell to his old life and his beloved Ishbel. On a ship bound for the Indian Ocean Jaffy and his friend Tim, embark on a journey that will push their bond, their concept of faith and all ideals of love to the very limit.
Jamrach's Menagerie by Carol Birch is published by Canongate Books Ltd (paperback; £7.99). It is also available through amazon.com and all good booksellers.
- Pigeon English by Stephen Kelman
Pigeon English has been shortlisted for the 2011 Book Manner Prize and here’s why. Eleven-year-old Harrison Opoku arrives in the UK from Ghana with his mother and older sister. They move into the ninth floor of a tower block in an inner-city housing estate where life is very different from what Harrison and his family once knew. Not understanding the danger from local gang – the Dell Farm Crew and fascinated by a pigeon which frequents his balcony, Harrison starts to absorb British culture. However when a boy is knifed to death nearby and the police appeal for witnesses, Harrison starts a murder investigation of his own and in the process, unwittingly endangers those closest to him.
Pigeon English by Stephen Kelman is published by Bloomsbury Publishing PLC (paperback; £12.99). It is also available through amazon.com and all good booksellers.
Are We Nearly There Yet by Ben Hatch is published by Summersdale (paperback; £8.99). It is also available through amazon.com and all good booksellers.
- Robert Savage
