Books for Christmas- A guide to buying those last minute presents

Last minute shopping getting you flustered?  In my opinion you can't go wrong with a book, and here are my recommendations for the game addict, teenager, fangirl and bibliophile in your life.

For the one addicted to games-
Collins Little Book of Bananagrams

If you're buying for one of the many Bananagrams addicts out there, then this little book of hints and tips could be the perfect stocking filler.  It's a handy, pocket-sized guide of useful ways to work challenging letters into a game, variations to the traditional game and even ways to get extra vital seconds of time over your opponent (who knew there was such a knack to turning over tiles?)

My only slight gripe is there are LOTS of exclamation marks and ellipses in this book, which when you read it cover to cover rather than dipping in and out can be a bit much.  However, the book fulfils exactly what it sets out to, so I can't argue with it as a fun gift for the wordaholics.

After reading this I'm expecting to win every game of Bananagrams I play over Christmas and reign as Top Banana in my house. 


For the teenager-
Girl Online- Zoe Sugg

There's been a lot of furore over this one, especially the question did 'Zoella' write it herself ?  (The answer to that is no, it was ghostwritten).  Most importantly, is it worthy of the hype?

I have to say I really enjoyed Girl Online.  It's not a lifechanging book, not the best written, it's predictable.  But I found myself whizzing through, keen to find out if Penny and Noah had a future.  It's a contemporary look at teen life which examines the effect social media has on friendships and relationships, and as a blogger myself I thought it really came across how a community can come together through shared interests and discussion.  Personally, I would have liked to have seen more of Penny's blog posts and feel it would have allowed further character development and for me as a reader to get to know more of her innermost thoughts.

There are plenty of fantastic YA books out there right now, but if you're looking for the must have book for teen girls this Christmas then you can't go wrong with Girl Online.

For the fangirl-
McBusted- Jennifer Parker

For the die hard fans of Busted and McFly, McBusted feel like a bit of a compromise.  True, there's an overlap in their guitar-led musical styles, their devil-may-care attitudes and their lack of conformity towards mainstream fashions, but they have very definite fanbases of their own.  However, now McBusted are an actual bone fide band rather than a bit of a musical experiment as it first seemed (their debut album as a six piece released last month signifying this as a serious project for all involved rather than the extended 'lad's trip' of music, madness and mayhem which doubled as their 2014 tour), they earned a book of their own.  And Jennifer Parker was the one to write it. 

If you've ever been a fan of Busted and/or McFly then you'll find excerpts from interviews and the official books quoted throughout familiar.  It's probably most suited to a newbie to the fandom. Although this is an unofficial product, there's obviously been great care taken to make this book as reliable and trustworthy as possible- not something which can always be said when it comes to unofficial books about popstars. 

There are plenty of pictures for your visual pleasure and if your fangirlling heart doesn't beat faster reliving Harry's bulging biceps during Strictly Come Dancing or Danny's half unbuttoned shirts (hello chest hair!) then there's something seriously wrong.

If you can't give the gift of Mr Judd or Mr Jones to the McBusted fan in your life this Christmas (and you can't- sadly they're already spoken for) then this book could well be the next best thing. 

For the bibliophile-
The Bookshop Book- Jen Campbell

I don't know where to start with this one.  My mind was literally blown. 

I guess it's pretty obvious that I'm totally and utterly smitten by all things books.  I wouldn't have a blog dedicated to them if I wasn't!  And bookshops are even better, so many of these beautiful word-carrying, dream-fuelling objects all gathered together in one space.

The Bookshop Book shares the stories of some of the best/most unique/most famous book shops in the world, as well as those of the people who run them and the people who keep them going.  I beamed continually as I read this book and made a mental list of the ones I desperately need to see for myself!

So be warned, this is a great present for anyone who loves books and bookshops, but may lead to daydreaming and wanderlust.

With thanks to the publishers of McBusted, The Bookshop Book and Collins Little Book of Bananagrams for providing me with a copy of these books in return for an honest review.

Roy- The Roy of the Rovers autobiography

The Blurb

The greatest story ever told by the world’s most beloved sportsman, Roy of the Rovers, in his own words for the first time.

The shocking details of the five terrifying kidnappings that threatened to blight his playing career; the stomach-churning murder attempt in 1980, which left Roy in a life-threatening coma; the sickening car bomb attack that tragically killed eight of Roy's team-mates while on a pre-season tour of Basran; the devastation of losing his wife, former Melchester club secretary Penny Laine, who died in a car accident that brought Roy closer than ever to quitting the game he loved.

And finally the horrific helicopter crash in 1993 that resulted in the amputation of Roy's legendary left foot, bringing the curtain down on his sensational, game-clinching, goal scoring exploits.
Candid, emotional, optimistic, and never nothing less than inspiring, the autobiography of the man all fans of the game know simply as Roy Race aka 'Roy of the Rovers' lays bare for the first time the truth behind soccer's ultimate fairy-tale story.

It’s all Rover, and it is here for the first time for his fans to enjoy all in one victorious book.

The Review

Roy Race (AKA Roy of the Rovers) is the perfect football hero.  He's successful, a family man and dedicated to his beloved Melchester Rovers in a way that few modern day footballers are.  He's one on his own, and I'm surprised he (ahem) hasn't written an autobiography before now.

I really wanted to love this, to fondly relive some of the moments from the comic strips of my youth, such as the Mel Park earthquake.  Unfortunately, I found it a bit lacking.  Firstly, I found the discrepancies between the blurb and actual text of the autobiography irritating, for example the 'eight FA Cups' of the back cover to the ''eleven times' FA Cup winner mentioned on p112 and 'five terrifying kidnappings' which become being 'kidnapped nine times' on p131.  I don't know if it's supposed irony, playing on the hyperbole of the comic strips and Roy's confident demeanour or what, but I found it extremely frustrating. I'm not a big enough fan to know Roy's career history off pat, so I don't know which, if either, are factually correct.  Not good for an autobiography.

I would also have loved some of the iconic images of Roy's career in a picture section-after all, isn't that the bit we all flick to first in any autobiography worth its salt?  There was nothing like that.  I'm not sure if it was due to copyright, but I found that really disappointing.

Also, I am a massive fan of Penny and would have liked more of their life together to have been focussed on in the book.  Unfortunately, she comes across as little more than a baby machine, which isn't fair portrayal. 

I'll be honest, I really wish it had been done as a compilation of the highlights of Roy's career in comic strip format-whether that was simply linking the strips that had been run over the years with snippets of text in between or completely reworking it but retelling the story we all know and love in the format we are familiar with.  I wasn't overly enamoured by the ghost writers style either, I'm convinced there are fans out there who could have done a better job of sharing Roy's inimitable story.

For me, I'm sad to say, it didn't work.  I'd say this is one for the 'die hards' but unfortunately I think most die hards would say this is a poor, inaccurate effort to recreate the magic of Roy's career and moreso his private life.

NB. Yes, I am fully aware Roy Race is a fictional character.

With thanks to the publisher who sent me a copy of this book in return for an honest review.

Roy is out now, published by Random House.

Lives of the Novelists- John Sutherland

Lives of the Novelists, subtitled 'A history of fiction in 294 lives' is a collection of short biographies covering influential authors over five centuries.  At over 800 pages long, this great tome of a book is obviously the result of an incredible amount of research from Sutherland. 

Most of the biographies are around three pages long, which is enough to give a flavour of the life the author led.  Sutherland references both the most highly regarded and the overlooked,  so even the widely read will learn something from this work.  At the end of each biography there is the authors full name, 'must read text' and a suggestion of a biography for further reading.

Lives of the Novelists could be read from cover to cover (as I did- I felt that by reading it chronologically I was able to get an overview of social changes from the 1600s onwards as well as learning about influential authors) or could be used as a reference material to be dipped in and out of.  Possibly a useful resource for literature students, John Sutherland's labour of love reinforces just how many authors meet a tragic end or live an unfulfilled life despite success.  It should also come with a warning-I have added a huge amount of books to my 'must read' list as a result of it!

If you are looking for an accessible, comprehensive overview of writers' lives then Lives of the Novelists could be just what you're looking for. 

Lives of the Novelists: A history of fiction in 294 lives is out in paperback today, published by Profile.

8.5/10

With thanks to Profile for providing me with a copy of Lives of the Novelists in return for an honest review.