On his 100th birthday he hobbles out of the window at his retirement home and embarks on a journey, picking up a band of comical misfits along the way. Quite the picaresque novel we learn of Allan's instrumental hand in the design of the a bomb and his education of the young General Mao among others.
Suspension of reality is necessary to get through the hundred year old man but once abandoned this is a gleeful treat of a book - an excellent holiday read.
The Rat is called Rose and is 16 year old Pearl's brand new baby sister. Pearl calls her the rat though... doesn't go to see her in the neo-natal unit or help out when Rose comes home and her Step-Dad desperately needs her help.Pearl is trying to come to terms with her mother's death and in the year that follows we watch the cycle of grief and acceptance. Pearl is lucky to have the support of her Stepfather, her best friend Molly and finds solace in the next door neighbour's grandson, Finn.
A beautiful debut YA novel full of emotion and grit and a definite recommendation for those who cried at The Fault in Our Stars or Now is Good.
It's been a while since I've read a historical novel but this caught my eye - more faction than fiction, the May Bride is Katherine, new wife of Edward Seymour who comes to Wolf Hall during Jane Seymour's impressionable years. She brings with her an air of mystery and fresh perspectives on the Seymour home.This was a slog unfortunately but may just have been as there's a lot going on at the moment. It had a lot going on and yet not much at all and I'm still not sure if I'd recommend it to others apart from steadfast historical fiction fans.
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