BOOKS, BOOKS, AND MORE BOOKS by Lynne Benton

 I'd like to start this post by thanking everyone who contributes to Abba for their varied and interesting posts, and especially for their recommendations of books and authors, both old and new.  I’ve been tempted by many, bought quite a few and enjoyed most of them. It is always a delight to discover a new author, or at any rate, one who is new to me, especially in these trying times.

Having been inspired by Sue Purkiss’s recent review of Natasha Farrant’s “Voyage of the Sparrowhawk”, I bought and read it and absolutely loved it.  I’m sure I’m not the only children’s writer to value recommendations of books, especially those which have won prizes – it’s so useful to read them and work out what made this book a prizewinner, what attracted the judges, and what makes it stand out from other, books.  Sue’s review of this book is much fuller than mine, but basically the book is set in 1919, and it’s the story of Lotti and Ben who, having to leave their home territory in a hurry, make the drastic decision to sail their narrowboat across the Channel to France to find Ben’s brother, who is “missing believed killed” during the Great War.  It really is an excellent read, and well deserving of its prize.

After I’d finished it, I decided to look up Natasha Farrant’s previous book, “The Children of Castle Rock”.  This book also looked interesting, so I bought and read that too and thoroughly enjoyed it.  It is the story of Alice, who is sent off to a rather unusual boarding school in Scotland, where she thinks she will be friendless.  When her father disappears, she determines to find him, so she sets out to look for him across the Scottish highlands to a remote island with the help (and occasional hindrance) of her new friends.  The ending is not what you might expect, but it’s very satisfying.

Algorithms have not had a good press lately, especially since last summer’s exam fiasco, but there are occasions when they can be useful.  In particular I know whenever I buy a book online, an algorithm suggests other, similar, books I might enjoy too.  Their idea of similar is not necessarily the same as mine, but I often check them out just in case.  And the latest of these, recommended after I’d read “The Children of Castle Rock”, was “The Valley of Lost Secrets” by Lesley Parr, which also proved to be a find.  This is about two brothers, Jimmy and Ronnie, who are evacuated from London to a small Welsh mining valley at the start of WW2 with their classmates.  New alliances are made and old alliances crumble  as the brothers come to terms with their homesickness and find a way to settle into their new environment, solving an old mystery along the way.

As well as these books, I have either noted or downloaded several other books that have been suggested in various posts over the last year or two, and although I haven’t yet had a chance to read them all, I really value books recommended by fellow children’s authors, so please keep them coming!

website: www.lynnebenton.com

Latest book:

Published Franklin Watts, Oct 21