The Asparagus Bunch by Jessica Scott-Whyte

This is one of those books that takes you by surprise, in the best possible way.  It is the story of Leon and his mother Caroline as they navigate the many pitfalls that could occur as a result of Leon’s firm ideas about what is acceptable, due to his diagnosis of Asperger’s.  We begin the story as Leon is starting at his 7 x new school (he is very precise about the number of schools) in Blackpool.  Things do not get off to a good start when he makes a comment about the Afro hairstyle of a girl called Tanya.  After this very rocky episode, he also makes the acquaintance of a boy called Lawrence, who announces that he also has Asperger’s.  Both boys find themselves the target of the school bully, Glen and have to avoid him and his gang of followers.  When you add in the fact that Tanya has dyslexia and Caroline has secretly had a boyfriend for 6 months, then the scene is set for an explosion of misunderstandings .

This sounds like a very serious book and it does have some very strong themes, yet it is also extremely funny as we get to know the three main characters and see how they negotiate with each other, gradually easing their way to a form of friendship.  Leon is the most amazing character and to begin with he feels very difficult to feel sympathy for.  He is so rigid in his thoughts and habits, but does not understand that this is somehow different from the majority of people.  Even his food has to be served in the same way, with a very set menu for the week.  However, I am completely in awe of  Leon’s collection of chocolate, he not only has an encyclopedic knowledge of different types of chocolate bar/sweet, but he has a room lined with drawers containing samples and the room itself is thermostatically controlled and kept at 18.3 degrees Celsius; basically this is like the RHS seedbank, but for chocolate!

I found this book absolutely inspiring and it felt that I was getting a window into the issues that neurodiverse people have to contend with.  There have been quite a few ‘celebrities’ who have recently announced that they have been diagnosed as being autistic and hopefully  this will help others to understand the issues.  I love the banner at the top of the front cover which says “Just do it.  Differently”, to me it just emphasizes the fact that everyone has their own way of doing things, whether it is collecting books about Christmas and also Books/Libraries, as I do, or whether it is having rigid timetables for things.  This is an outstanding 5-star read.

The Author

 

 

Thank you to the publishers, Welbeck for this set of discussion notes that can be used with classes and reading groups.

https://bit.ly/3cjxpo9

“Leon John Crothers is 4779 days old (thirteen years and one month, if you’re
mathematically challenged), he has been ‘moved on’ from six different
schools and most people think he has an attitude problem. Leon doesn’t
care for the label, in the same way that he doesn’t care for Tim Burton,
supermarket trolleys, train fanatics or Bounty bars.
This time, however, things may turn out differently as help comes from where
he least expects it – Dr Snot, a physician at pains to help Leon navigate
‘normal’ and classmates, Tanya and Lawrence who both face their own
challenges. When school bully Glen Jenkins humiliates Leon in the school
canteen and almost destroys Lawrence, Leon very reluctantly agrees to the
formation of a club, The Asparagus Bunch.
How Leon manages to navigate school woes and family drama –
and astonishingly ends up with not one but two friends – is nothing short of a
miracle, or maybe just simply down to being different.”

 

The Asparagus Bunch by Jessica Scott-Whyte is published in paperback on 21 July 2022 for 11+ readers.

Welbeck, 9781801300469

 

 

 

 

 

Autumn Moonbeam: Dance magic ! by Emma Finlayson-Palmer and Heidi Cannon

Uclan, 9781912979769

It is so delightful to see the growth in the number and quality of books for the younger reader.  There was a time when it felt as if it was only reading schemes that were available.  thankfully this is no longer the case.

This is the first in a series of stories featuring the young witch Autumn Moonbeam and her love of all things to do with dancing.  This young heroine really want to make a success of her dancing, but she is unfortunately one of those people who are always accident prone.  she hopes that she will eventually make it big and her real wish is to be accepted into a dance team.  When her friend Leif, who attends Sparkledale Dance Academy, brings a flyer into school, Autumn gets very excited; the Academy is about to hold trials for young people to try out for their competitive dance team, The Black Cats.  However, Autumn’s nasty neighbour Severina is also determined to make the team and she is willing to go to great lengths to achieve her end, even putting a spell on Autumn that turns her into a black cat.  The question is, will our heroine achieve her dream?

What a delightful story that will really resonate with so many young children.  The characters are at that age where they are wanting to branch out and do things, but they are also very vulnerable and worried about whether they can fulfill their dreams.  It is great to see a story where the friends and adults are all very supportive and even the ‘nasty’ Severina is made to understand the consequences of her behaviour and starts to mend her ways.  It is a great read for fans of series such as Amelia Fang and Leonora Bolt.

Once upon a Fever by Angharad Walker

A favourite theme found in literature is that of an alternative world and in this country it very often centres around a world with a vastly different version of London.  If you like this type of fantasy, then you are really going to love this book.

This story centres around two sisters Payton and Ani Darke, who have moved to Lundain with their father, who works as a Methic (Doctor) at King Jude’s Hospital and their mother, who is a patient in the hospital.  They live in a world that is very different from our own because the country has been devastated by a mysterious fever that seems to affect people and their emotions; this has led to a view that all emotion should be suppressed.  There has also been a change in the way the country is governed and the power now lies with two large groups, the Bankers and the Methics, everyone else is subservient to them.

The two sisters discover that their lives are beginning to diverge and whilst Payton looks to science in the hope of finding a cure for her mother, Ani discovers that there might older and more natural ways to help those who are suffering.  As they both explore new paths they discover that  there are some good people in the world, but also that you can’t always trust those who you have looked up to in the past.  They learn the lesson that power can corrupt and that even those closest to us cannot always be trusted.

This is an absolutely brilliant teen novel from the author of “The Ash House“.  It is full of darkness and a lingering sense of evil that permeates the world in which the girls live.  The emphasis is very much on trying to remove emotions from those that have been struck down by the fever, because the illness is creating a wide range of disturbing symptoms in the patients.  It feels like a comment on the world that we live in and the way that mental health has been dealt with in the past; in fact the hospitals bear a close resemblance to the images we have of Victorian hospitals, with their dark spaces and rigid rules.  However, there is a glimmer of hope in the middle of this dystopian world, as Ani discovers when she is taken to Hyde gardens and meets the two remaining members of the ‘Wilders’ Guild.  These are people who are close to nature and understand that we need this link to the natural world and that it can bring a sense of peace, or at least tranquility to the troubled mind.

The author has created a truly frightening world, where disease has changed the way we all behave and has allowed small elites to take control of life.  There are definitely shadows of events that have, or could occur if we cannot deal with the pandemics that arise; we have all seen the rise in authoritarianism and the consequences if this is allowed to continue and take permanent control.  One of the really worrying elements of this are the quasi-scientific methods used by the Methics and the feeling that no one is trying to make any advances, despite the girls’ father supposedly researching a cure for their mother.

I have loved this book and the two main characters, who are each struggling to make sense of the world that they live in.  Many of the people they meet are also fighting against the dangers that they face and they find that together they are able to put up a stronger resistance to the powers that be.  Definitely a 5 stars from me, for this one.

About Angharad Walker

“Angharad Walker grew up on military bases in the UK, Germany and Cyprus, where stories were often being told about far-flung places, past conflicts, and friends and family.

She studied English Literature & Creative Writing at the University of Warwick and the University of California Irvine. Her fiction has been published in Structo and A Million Ways, and her poetry has made it into Agenda broadsheets and Ink Sweat & Tears.

She lives in South London. When she’s not writing, she works as a communications consultant for charities and not-for-profits.”   Chicken House website.

Poppy loves Devon by Gillian Young

This is the second story about a rather fantastic young golden retriever called Poppy.  For anyone who has ever owned a dog there are so many moments when you nod your head and remember when your own dog did exactly the same thing; from rolling  in fox poo, to running after some exciting movement in the undergrowth.  The series is called the “Crazy Cream Adventures” and is based on the author’s own pets, as explained in her resume.  This story takes Poppy and her family, she calls her humans her ‘pawrents’ on their holidays to Devon, somewhere that Poppy loves.  They are staying on a farm and Poppy soon starts making friends, except for the resident sheepdog; who is very reserved.  When Poppy finds a lost puppy, things begin to get interesting and she thinks that there is a ‘monster’ lurking in the woods.  The question is whether our heroine can solve the mysteries and have the holiday she wanted.

This is a great adventure for all dog lovers, even if they don’t have one of their own.  It is told from Poppy’s viewpoint and it is fascinating to see the way that she and her human manage to misunderstand each other.  Whilst not intended as a ‘funny’ story, you can’t help but laugh at some of the antics that the animals get up to.  There are elements of adventure and intrigue in this story, but overall it is a beautifully gentle story of the relationship between dogs and their humans.

About the Author
Gillian Young is a full-time writer and illustrator of children’s middle-grade
fiction.
Gillian has always been passionate about writing and art. Following art
college, she worked as a Graphic Artist. During this time, she settled down, got
married and had two children. Becoming a mother reintroduced her to the magic
of children’s fiction. Every night she’d read Peter Rabbit and Benjamin Bunny to
her kids. Eventually, she had the idea of writing stories of her own.
To be an author was still her dream – that had never gone away. Snatches
of time between going to work and taking care of the children were spent bent
over her laptop writing – until 2015…
A battle with cancer led Gillian to re-evaluate her life. Writing was her
medicine and it was because of this that she decided to ‘go for it ’ and focus on
becoming an author.
Much of Gillian’s work is inspired by her golden retrievers who have
achieved some fame around the world through their Instagram page
(crazy.cream.retrievers). Following her previous books, Poppy on Safari, and
Tammy and Willow, Gillian has appeared on radio and magazines talking both
about her books and her experiences fighting and defeating the big ‘C’.
Gillian lives with her family in Worcestershire.

ESSENTIAL DETAILS

Title: Poppy Loves Devon

Author: Gillian Young

Genre: Children’s Fiction, Middle Grade, Chapter Book

Publisher: Troubador

Publication date: June 2022

Availability: Paperback, eBook, International distribution

ISBN: 9781803132655

Page count: 272

Price: £9.99

Online: www.gillianyoungauthor.com

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