Publication date: 2008-02-04
RRP: £12.72
Price: £6.88
Review "Navy Lark": Just the Ticket v. 19 (BBC Radio Collection) / The Navy Lark:
Creator: Alex Jennings
Edition: Abridged edition
Publication date: 2005-09-05
RRP: £15.99
Price: £13.23
Review Emperor: The Field of Swords / HarperCollins Audio:
Publication date: 2008-03-03
RRP: £11.73
Price: £5.63
Review My Sister Jodie: No. 5 / BBC Audiobooks Ltd:
Edition: Unabridged
Publication date: 2008-04-21
Dewey code: 808.51
RRP: £17.99
Price: £11.18
Review Stand and Deliver: Method to Public Speaking / Simon & Schuster Audio:
Edition: Bilingual
Publication date: 2008-04-01
Dewey code: 438.3421
RRP: £13.99
Price: £7.10
Review German for Dummies / John Wiley & Sons:
Edition: Har/Com
Publication date: 2004-06-01
Dewey code: 135
RRP: £17.10
Price: £8.97
Review Lucid Dreaming / Sounds True Audio:
Edition: New edition
Publication date: 2006-03-27
RRP: £6.85
Price: £4.09
Review The Suitcase Kid (BBC Audio) / BBC Audiobooks Ltd:Lesley Dunlop reads The Suitcase Kid in this unabridged three-cassette pack. Although there are many children's books about divorce, few move beyond bland therapeutic preaching into the realm of well-told stories. This one does. A hard look at joint-custody life, The Suitcase Kid follows Andrea West and her tiny stuffed rabbit, Radish, through the painful adjustment of being a kid with divorced parents. She must leave the home she loves with the mulberry tree in the front yard, and deal with parents who still fight, step parents, step siblings, two different bedrooms (neither of which is really hers), loneliness, and an acute longing for the past. Her grades sink. Her friends drift away. And she's not quite sure how to fix any of it. Wisely, Jacqueline Wilson doesn't offer instant solutions; rather, she chronicles Andrea's journey to the beginning of equilibrium in her new life. Things will never be the way they were, but, as the book suggests, they'll get better over time. [+]And because it's well written and honest, The Suitcase Kid will appeal to any child who enjoys realistic fiction, not just those who "need" to read a book about divorce. (The publisher recommends the The Suitcase Kid for ages 8-12, but it could well appeal to children who are a couple of years younger or older. ) Running time is three hours five minutes. -Susan Harrison Although there are many children's books about divorce, few move beyond bland therapeutic preaching into the realm of well-told stories. This one does. A hard look at joint-custody life, The Suitcase Kid follows Andrea West and her tiny stuffed rabbit, Radish, through the painful adjustment of being a kid with divorced parents. She must leave the home she loves with the mulberry tree in the front yard, and deal with parents who still fight, step parents, step siblings, two different bedrooms (neither of which is really hers), loneliness, and an acute longing for the past. Her grades sink. Her friends drift away. And she's not quite sure how to fix any of it. Wisely, Jacqueline Wilson doesn't offer instant solutions; rather, she chronicles Andy's journey to the beginning of equilibrium in her new life. Things will never be the way they were, but, as the book suggests, they'll get better over time. And because it's well written and honest, The Suitcase Kid will appeal to any child who enjoys realistic fiction, not just those who "need" to read a book about divorce. (The publisher recommends the The Suitcase Kid for ages 8-12, but it could easily serve kids who are a couple of years younger or older. ).
Publication date: 2005-05
Dewey code: 154
RRP: £11.95
Price: £5.89
Review Overcome Addictions / Diviniti Publishing:
Creator: Jeremy Bulloch
Publication date: 2008-11-13
RRP: £17.61
Price: £8.49
Review "Doctor Who" and the Time Warrior (Classic Novels) / BBC Audiobooks Ltd:
Publication date: 2008-02-07
RRP: £7.82
Price: £3.23
Review Naughtiest Girl: Naughtiest Girl Keeps a Secret AND the Naughtiest Girl Helps a Friend v. 3 / Hodder Children's Books:
Publication date: 2005-03-01
RRP: £9.99
Price: £6.40
Review Just Like a Roman: A Fact Filled History Song by Suzy Davies (Songsheets) / A & C Black Publishers Ltd:
Publication date: 2007-09-29
Dewey code: 808
RRP: £12.76
Price: £10.01
Review Access Accents: Yorkshire (North and South): Dialect Training CD for Actors / Methuen Drama:
Creator: Alan Bennett
Edition: Abridged edition
Publication date: 2002-08-05
RRP: £9.00
Price: £6.33
Review Peter Pan and Wendy (BBC Radio Collection) / BBC Audiobooks Ltd:
Creator: John Sessions
Publication date: 2005-10-07
RRP: £14.99
Price: £9.79
Review Armageddon / Macmillan Audio Books:
Edition: Exclusive to Gardners
Publication date: 2007-10-01
RRP: £12.99
Price: £2.89
Review The Pickwick Papers (Classic Drama) / BBC Audiobooks Ltd:
Creator: Samantha Bond
Publication date: 2008-04-03
RRP: £16.63
Price: £8.90
Review Voice of the Gods (Age of the Five 3) / Hachette Audio:
Edition: Unabridged
Publication date: 2008-06-01
Dewey code: 158
RRP: £17.99
Price: £7.19
Review Channeling Grace: Invoking the Power of the Divine / Sounds True Inc.,U.S.:
Publication date: 2008-05-31
RRP: £3.99
Price: £2.16
Review The Story of Thumbelina (Read Along with Me Book & CD) / Award Publications Ltd:
Publication date: 2008-03-03
RRP: £12.72
Price: £4.70
Review The "Good Life": Wind-Break War v. 5 (BBC Audio) / The Good Life:
Creator: John Lee
Edition: Unabridged
Publication date: 2008-04-22
Dewey code: 823.92
RRP: £17.49
Price: £15.41
Review The White Tiger: A Novel / Tantor Media, Inc:Winning the Man Booker prize is something that most authors dream of, although - ironically - the reputation of the prize itself was under siege a few years ago. Books that won the award were acquiring a reputation of being difficult and inaccessible, but those days appear to be over - and unarguable proof may be found in the 2008 winner, The White Tiger by Aravind Adiga. Apart from its considerable literary merit, the novel is the most compelling of pageturners (in the old-fashioned sense of that phrase) and offers a picture of modern India that is as evocative as it is unflattering. The protagonist, too, is drawn in the most masterly of fashion. Balram Halwai, the eponymous `white tiger', is a diminutive, overweight ex-teashop worker who now earns his living as a chauffeur. But this is only one side of his protean personality; he deals in confidence scams, over-ambitious business promotions (built on the shakiest of foundations) and enjoys approaching life with a philosophical turn of mind. But is Balram also a murderer? We learn the answer as we devour these 500 odd pages. Born into an impoverished family, Balram is removed from school by his parents in order to earn money in a thankless job: shop employee. He is forced into banal, mind-numbing work. But Balram dreams of escaping - and a chance arises when a well-heeled village landlord takes him on as a chauffeur for his son (although the duties involve transporting the latter's wife and two Pomeranian dogs). [+]From the rich new perspective offered to him in this more interesting job, Balram discovers New Delhi, and a vision of the city changes his life forever. His learning curve is very steep, and he quickly comes to believe that the way to the top is by the most expedient means. And if that involves committing the odd crime of violence, he persuades himself that this is what successful people must do. The story of the amoral protagonist at the centre of this fascinating narrative is, of course, what keeps the reader comprehensively gripped, but perhaps the real achievement of the book is in its picture of two Indias: the bleak, soul-destroying poverty of village life and the glittering prizes to be found in the big city. The book cleverly avoids fulfilling any of the expectations a potential reader might have - except that of instructing and entertaining. The White Tiger will have many readers anxious to see what Adiga will do next. -Barry Forshaw.
| Browse Audio CDs:
Models & Brands:
"Navy Lark": Just the Ticket v. 19 (BBC Radio Collection), Emperor: The Field of Swords, My Sister Jodie: No. 5, Stand and Deliver: Method to Public Speaking, German for Dummies, Lucid Dreaming, The Suitcase Kid (BBC Audio), Overcome Addictions, "Doctor Who" and the Time Warrior (Classic Novels), Naughtiest Girl: Naughtiest Girl Keeps a Secret AND the Naughtiest Girl Helps a Friend v. 3, Just Like a Roman: A Fact Filled History Song by Suzy Davies (Songsheets), Access Accents: Yorkshire (North and South): Dialect Training CD for Actors, Peter Pan and Wendy (BBC Radio Collection), Armageddon, The Pickwick Papers (Classic Drama), Voice of the Gods (Age of the Five 3), Channeling Grace: Invoking the Power of the Divine, The Story of Thumbelina (Read Along with Me Book & CD), The "Good Life": Wind-Break War v. 5 (BBC Audio), The White Tiger: A Novel |
