There’s a theme I’ve noticed more and more on Twitter: read more women. It’s something I’ve been consciously doing myself, which is why if you’ve been following my blog, you would have noticed outpourings of devotion to writers like Emma Cline, Mary Watson, Sophie Hannah and Karen Russell among others.
Continue reading “LEGO book reviews: Women’s Prize for Fiction” →
Sometimes book bloggers come across books by accident. This weekend I flew up to Jo’burg for the Kingsmead Book Fair. On the flight home, my companion, who happened to be the youth books publicist for NB, had a nap, leaving an upcoming YA title poking out the magazine sleeve in front of her. It was too tempting to resist.
Mythological heroes serve many purposes. They reveal the best and worst of us, they give us something to aspire to, and they mirror our lives on a grand scale.
Continue reading “LEGO book review: Circe” →
If this is the first time you’ve found yourself reading my blog, here are two important pieces of information:
1. I love LEGO.
2. I’m probably the biggest Agatha Christie fan in South Africa.
Continue reading “Celebrating Agatha Christie with LEGO” →
When I discovered that Mary Watson’s debut young adult novel was going to be published by Bloomsbury, I knew right away that it was going to be very, very good. I’ve been quoting Watson’s short fiction in my workshops for some time, especially her Caine-Prize winning story, Jungfrau. I’m not the only one who thinks her short story collection, Moss, contains some of the best fiction out there. When she left for Ireland nearly ten years ago, it felt like South Africa had lost a very important voice. Until now.
First let me say that I am a huge fan of David Walliams. Specifically, his comedy. I love Little Britain, Walliams and Friend, and all his appearances on shows like The Big Fat Quiz. I really enjoy his comedic style, with his signature build-up, pause and dry punchline.
Continue reading “LEGO book review: The Boy in the Dress” →
I must confess that I haven’t actually read Practical Magic. It’s one of my favourite films, which doesn’t really count, I know. Truthfully, I didn’t even know it was a novel until I saw a Tweet about the release of its prequel, The Rules of Magic.
Happily, having since ordered Practical Magic for later, I decided to tuck into its prequel over the Christmas break.
Imagine my surprise at seeing a new short story anthology written by a friend and fellow Trade Secrets contributor available for free on Amazon.
Continue reading “LEGO book review: Dark Shenanigans” →
Wink Poppy Midnight by April Genevieve Tucholke wasn’t what I was expecting, which I guess is why you’re not supposed to judge a book by its cover. I did. The gorgeous black cover looked gloriously spooky and immediately caught my eye when I visited The Book Lounge to spend some birthday vouchers. I loved the assortment of owls, moons, apples, spiderwebs and stars set against the black background. I added it to my Halloween reads pile.
Continue reading “LEGO book review: Wink Poppy Midnight” →
The Breakfast Club meets Gossip Girl in this fast-paced teen murder mystery.
Five high school students are given detention when phones are discovered in their bags by a teacher notorious for searching gym bags before lessons. One of the students, Simon, runs a gossip App called About That, making him the most hated kid at school. What makes him so dangerous is that the rumours he reports always turn out to be true.
