Memoirs of a Neurotic Zombie by Jeff Norton - Cover Reveal

A while back I was fortunate to me invited to a blogger event held by the lovely people at Faber. My personal highlight of that event was writer Jeff Norton (he of Metawars fame) giving us a special reading of his new book, Memoirs of a Neurotic Zombie. It was flippin' hilarious, and one of the funniest things I had heard for a long time, and so I am really chuffed to be part of the big cover reveal. 

Today, there are 18 blogs showcasing a short extract of Memoirs, along with the fab cover for the book, which is due out this summer. I have to say I totally love the extract that I have been assigned - how could I not? It's about farts and I'm a boy! (yes, even at my age I still find farts amusing).

Extract #17: Adam ruminates on cleanliness after being drenched in coke.

Normally, I don’t need to be told to take a shower. If I could, I’d shower five times a day, just to scrub off the grime that hung in the air. For example, did you know that when someone farts, particles from their bum actually float around in the air? So when you smell a fart, those particles are actually nestled in your nose? The official population of Croxton (not counting undocumented aliens and tourists) is 21,371, and that’s a lot of bums doing a lot of farting, creating a lot of particles that cling to your hair and skin. If you ask me, five showers a day doesn’t seem like enough when surrounded by over twenty thousand fart-producing bums, but the one exception I made was for showering at school especially during lunchtime.

‘But sir,’ I said, using the word ‘sir’ to appeal to his authoritarian nature, isn’t it the high school’s football practice hour? I can shower at home later.’

‘Yeah, it’s not like it’s dirt,’ said Jake.’

‘You’re covered in cola,’ said the teacher. ‘And it’ll attract bees and rats and-‘

‘What kind of bees?’ I asked, wondering there was some link between my killer bee and banning of syrupy soda from school grounds.

Each of the 18 blogs participating in this cover reveal has an extract. if you want to head to the first one (chronologically as far as the book is concerned) then head on over to Readaraptor. If you've read them all so far and you want to read extract #18 then head on over to Much Loved Books.

Review: Brilliant by Roddy Doyle

When Uncle Ben’s Dublin business fails, it's clear to Gloria and Raymond that something is wrong. He just isn’t his usual cheerful self. So when the children overhear their granny saying that the Black Dog has settled on Ben’s back and he won’t be OK until it’s gone, they decide they're going to get rid of it. Gathering all their courage the children set out on a midnight quest to hunt down the Black Dog and chase it away. But they aren’t the only kids on the mission. Loads of other children are searching for it too, because the Black Dog is hounding lots of Dublin's adults. Together – and with the help of magical animals, birds and rodents – the children manage to corner the Black Dog . . . but will they have the courage and cleverness to destroy the frightening creature?

Ray and Gloria's Uncle Ben has moved in with the family as things have become difficult for him recently. The kids adore their Uncle Ben and are initially very excited, but they quickly discover that all is not ok. Instead of sitting around chatting loudly into the night as they used to do, Ben and their parents do little but mumble quietly so the kids can't hear what they are talking about. One night the kids manage to overhear the conversation, and they hear their Gran mention a Black Dog, saying that it has got their Uncle Ben and has the whole of Dublin in its grip. The children take it on themselves to track down this Black Dog and vanquish it from their city, and along the way they are joined by a variety of talking animals and more and more of the city's children.

Brilliant is Roddy Doyle at his best. It is a wonderful modern fantasy story that also manages to cover the difficult subject of adult depression with sensitivity, but without ever dumbing down for its young audience. Mental illnesses such as stress and depression seem to be far more prevalent in today's society, and it can be very different for children to understand why previously joyful loved ones now struggle to get out of bed in the morning, or sit staring into space for hours on end, or start crying with seemingly no reason. By using the 'Black Dog' as a physical manifestation of the depression that permeates through a city whose residents are going through significant financial difficulties, Roddy Doyle helps his young readers to understand the nature of depression.

The story itself is almost fairy tale-like in nature, with kids battling against an evil monster, especially when you throw in the talking animals. It has humour, action, cracking dialogue (would we expect otherwise from Roddy Doyle), and also moments of extreme pathos. It is the kind of book that will make you grin from ear to ear, but it might also make you cry as well. However, the greatest message is that of the power of laughter, especially that of innocent children, and its this that had the story lingering in my mind long after I had finished reading it.

Whilst reading Brilliant I had a feeling that I had read it somewhere before, or something like it. A quick internet search showed that is was originally published as a short story some time ago, and yet, unlike Gaiman's The Ocean at the End of the Lane, which also started off as a short story (and to me felt it was padded out to make a longer book), Brilliant always feels like it was written as a complete book from the start. 

This is a cracking book for 8-10 year olds, and if studied at school in PSHE lessons it may even be suitable for Year 7s because of the discussions in would promote. It could also be used on a one-to-one basis with children whose parents are struggling with depression, although a little caution would be needed as this is a fantasy story and as such there is something of a 'happily ever after' ending to the story.

My thanks go to the fab people at Macmillan for sending me this read via netgalley.

Bookbuzz 2014

Several times over the past five months I have mentioned that time was tighter than ever because I was involved in a secret project. That project was Bookbuzz and as of last Wednesday I am finally allowed to talk about it.

Towards the end of last year I received a lovely email from the fab people at Booktrust, asking me if I would be interested in being part of the panel who would select the books for this year's Bookbuzz scheme. Bookbuzz is a scheme run by Booktrust, whereby school's can pay £2.50 per Year 7 pupil, and in return every one of those pupils will be able to choose a brand new book. The list of books changes each year, with the books being chosen by a panel of 'experts', which always includes at least one teacher and one librarian. Please take time to head on over to their website at http://www.bookbuzz.org.uk/ to read about the scheme in more detail.

I felt very flattered to have been approached by Booktrust, and needless to say I responded with a very enthusiastic "Yes please!" And so, shortly after Christmas, a box containing the first books from the long list of 84 titles arrived and I started reading (following a quick sigh of relief when I worked out that I had already read fifteen of the titles on the list). The plan was that by the time the panel had its first meeting in February every book on the list would have been read by at least two members of the panel.

Mid-February came and the other four panel members and I braved the storms and floods to head into London for our first meeting. I guess this might always be a slightly nervous time for the Bookbuzz team, bringing together a group of people who might have very different tastes and opinions. Arguments? Rants? Fights? I suppose it really could have kicked off, but it didn't. We gelled as a team very quickly, and the object of the first meeting - to arrive at a list of 35-40 books that we would all then read before the final selection meeting in March - was achieved incredibly smoothly, and everyone left with big smiles on their faces.

Cue more reading, and this time we only had a month to read any books on the list that we hadn't already read. I found myself reading during even the tiniest free moment to make sure I was able to give a full and honest opinion at the final meeting, and those four weeks simply flew by. Come mid-March we all met up again (this time in much nicer weather conditions), with four hours set aside for coming up with our final list of twelve books. And we managed to do this in just two hours, much to the surprise and delight of the team from Booktrust. It just happened that the books that were huge favourites of mine, just happened to be very popular with other members of the team, and vice versa. In fact, some books were so popular that they made it on to the final list with very little final discussion at all. 

In the end, the biggest challenge was to ensure that there was something for everyone on that final list - boys, girls, struggling readers - and we also had to make sure that there was a mixture of fiction genres, non-fiction, poetry and short stories. This meant that some very popular titles had to be relegated to the reserve list, but that is only as a result of the wonderfully sheer breadth and diversity of the titles that had been submitted by publishers. 

Of course, we were then sworn to absolute secrecy until the list was officially released, and that happened last Wednesday. It's great to be able to finally talk about it, and I look at that list of twelve books and genuinely feel that we have chosen a great list of books. Even better, along with some very famous names in children's literature, we have also managed to choose some brilliant debut titles, and hopefully this will bring these new writers the increased attention they deserve.

It was an absolute privilege to work with Jake, Rosemary, Leanne and Katherine as part of the Bookbuzz panel. I read many books that I might otherwise never have picked up, some of which I absolutely loved (Geek Girl and Stories of WWI being perfect examples). Huge thanks must also go to Laura, Caroline and Alison from Booktrust for looking after us so well (and thanks also to the ever fabulous Rosi Crawley for suggesting me as a possible panel member in the first place). If, as a librarian, teacher or blogger, you are ever offered the opportunity to take part as a panel member then please make sure to accept the offer - you will not regret it. Despite there being a huge number of books to read, at no point did it feel like a chore, and you will be left with a warm glow inside, in the knowledge that you have been involved in a scheme that brings joy to a lot of children, a worrying number of whom currently have next to no books of their own.

If you are a teacher or school librarian then I really recommend taking part in this scheme. You have until 23rd July to register, and you can do so by heading to http://www.bookbuzz.org.uk/about-us/register/

The books: