Lowly’s Book Blog

OK so the title says it all. It may not be the longest title of any book I have read, but pretty close. This second book in a new series of detective stories for children was lovely and funny.

Whiffy Newton has noticed that trousers in the neighborhood are being stolen and then returned, altered. Actually they are cut in half and sewn back together. It appears no one is safe. Even Whiffy’s favourite tracky dacks get taken. Can Whiffy get to the bottom of the mystery? (Pun intended).

This is a series that will certainly appeal to those kids in primary school who absolutely adore Captain Underpants and all those other books that just venture over the boundary normally drawn around children’s literature. It is not a book of great literary worth. Turn the brain off and get ready to enjoy some silliness as you read any of the books in this series.

Bubble gum. What kid doesn’t love a bubble gum contest? And what if the prize for winning the contest was a new mountain bike? This is the very simple idea for a gently humourous book.

Terry Gatsby is proud of his bubblegum blowing skill. And he figures that with a week’s regular practice he can win this contest easily. However, his father has other ideas, and when the bubblegum ban is proclaimed, Terry is devastated. (And you have to laugh at the restaurant scene that precedes the ban.)

Enter Eleanor and her magic bubblegum. Terry discovers that when he blows a bubble with these gumballs any wish he makes is instantly granted. First lesson, be careful what you wish for. Second lesson, plan your wishes and don’t get carried away. Third lesson, sometimes winning isn’t the most important thing.

Learning is never easy, and this book is filled with funny ‘learning’ experiences for Terry. The humour is much more gentle than the slapstick of Paul Jennings or Andy Griffiths. Terry gets himself into trouble, but then has to successfuly extricate himself. The bubbles also put him into some situations where he needs to make important decisions, so the book isn’t completely silliness.

I have never heard of Lola Jesse as a children’s author, and I can find no reference to her on the web, so I will make the assumption that this is her first novel. But here I believe she has created a gentle read that may never win any prizes or awards, but it will amuse children everywhere.

I didn’t like this book when I started. It seemed just too simplistic even silly. But I persevered and by the end it wasn’t too bad.

Robert Stoner is a young boy who is having difficulty handling his parent’s divorce. Robert is sent to boarding school because his parent’s can’t agree about who should have him when. Life has settled into a routine of alternate weekends with each parent, and weekdays at school scheming up ways to get rid of Mum’s new boyfriend and get the parents back together. One scheme is the idea that if Robert can repair the bride and groom figurine from the wedding cake, the magic will return to their relationship. And that is Robert’s excuse for his unending supply of superglue.

When superglue was first released on the marketplace there were all kinds of urban myths about skin getting stuck together, zips and locks stuck, and hundreds of other comic situations. They are all in this book. Robert and his superglue are a nightmare!

Barnard loves puns. I love the name for the principal of Robert’s school, Ms Take. And the questioning of Jon Ho, Robert’s best friend, adds to the gentle humour of the novel.

I think this will be a popular book for upper primary, and some lower secondary students.

I guess it is only fair that occasionally I list a book that is absolutely awful. And this one qualifies.

Walter the Farting Dog is a series of books about a dog with intestinal problems that gets caught in impossible situations and only high air pressure can get him out. Naturally Walter comes supplied with ample amounts of the air under pressure and rescues himself and his whole family.

This time Walter joins his humans for a vacation cruise. Naturally his presence makes breathing uncomfortable for all the rest of the passengers, so Walter end up on a lifeboat floating behind the cruise ship. Inevitably the power fails on the ship and everyone is dependent on Walter’s fart to navigate back to shore.

Obviously a silly storyline. Really, I could find nothing of value in this book for children. It caters to a natural fascination with toilet humour shared by young children, but why does it take three authors and an illustrator to put together a book whose only purpose is to generate profits for the publisher.

This is the funniest book that I have read in a very long time! Kids are always asking me for a funny book, and this is it. Open any page between 1 – 150 and I defy you not to laugh right out loud within a page or two of reading!

There’s no easy way to put this, so I’ll just say it straight out. It’s time I faced up to the truth. I’m fourteen years old and I have Ishmael Leseur’s Syndrome.
There is no cure. And so begins the story of Ishmael Leseur’s year 9 survival.

With a name like Ishmael Leseur, you just know that the narrator was bullied since forever. And he has learned to live with it and survive, not confortably, but survive. And then in year 9 a new student James Scobie is introduced to the class, and Ishmael is made his mentor. James is a very different young man, and Ishmael becomes his best friend.

As funny as this book is, there is a very warm, even emotional story hidden between the laughs. Through the year Ishmael learns a lot about life, priorities, and friendship. He comes through year 9 a much stronger person.

Every young adult will find something to enjoy in this book. I highly recommend it to everyone.