☼Summer Reading ~ Azúcar by Nii Ayikwei Parkes

Destination ...Caribbean ☼

Peepal Tree Press Ltd

8 June 2023

My thanks to the publisher and Tory Lyne-Perkis for my copy of this book

Part socio-political satire, part romance, Azúcar (sugar) is the long awaited second novel from the critically acclaimed Ghanaian-British novelist, Nii Ayikwei Parkes (author of award winning novel Tail of the Blue Bird (Jonathan Cape). Set in a world where everything is on the move: people, ideas, food and music, Azúcar is a magic realist tale set on a fictional island in the Caribbean that asks what price we pay to have a place called ‘home’?

Sonada Sun is the sweetest rice in the world, and on the mythical Caribbean Island of Fumaz two young lovers, Ghanaian-born, Caribbean-raised musician Yunior and Caribbean-American college student Emelina Santos, heiress of the Soñada dynasty, lock eyes at a fiesta yards from her family’s city home.

In the ensuring years Yunior and Emelina travel divergent journeys through history, music, myth and heartbreak; confronting the question of what it means to belong to a place or to another person. Several years later the two are united in a quest to save Emelina’s family’s plantation from closure. To succeed they must find a way to bring back to life a plantation with soil so saturated with sugar that it can no longer support crops.

Yunior brings the knowledge of a scientist, the skills of a farmer and the heart of a musician to life in Fumaz. As a farmer, he sees how much of his West African food has journeyed across the Atlantic to make the island’s unique cuisine; as a musician he becomes part of the spirit that puts the island on the world stage, out of all proportion to its size.

Love and death, harmony and conflict are the motives of a set of vividly drawn characters, brought alive by Parkes’ flowing, elegant and heartfelt prose, that alongside people, food and music moves freely back and forth across the seas between Africa and the Caribbean.

📖 My Review..

In ordinary circumstances, Ghanaian-born, Caribbean-raised musician Yunior and Caribbean-American college student Emelina Santos, heiress of the Soñada dynasty, would never have met, that is, until fate brings them together. 

Set on a fictional island in the Caribbean, music, life, love, tragedy and heartbreak bring these two beautiful people together in a lyrical story which looks at the idea of destiny, what it means to be family and of the importance of bringing life back to those who have had hope taken away from them. A short but powerful story I read Azúcar in one sitting and was captured by Yunior's story as he pursues his dream but was also equally invested in Emalina's quest to fulfill her destiny by taking control of her family's sugar-soaked rice plantation. 

In Azúcar two quite separate stories converge and both Yunior and Emelina are lively protagonists however, it is their individualism which brings them together and their very differences which make this into such a compelling and beautifully written story about the need to find the place we call 'home'.

About Nii Ayikwei Parkes

London based Ghanaian-British writer, editor and publisher, Nii Ayikwei Parkes is one of the UK’s leading black voices, winning critical acclaim as a poet, novelist, broadcaster, and children’s author.

His debut novel, Tail of the Blue Bird (Jonathan Cape, 2009), was hailed by the Financial Times as ‘a beautifully written fable… simple in form, but grappling with urgent issues,’ and lauded internationally, becoming a bestseller in Germany and notably winning France's two major prizes for translated fiction – Prix Baudelaire and Prix Laure Bataillon – in 2014. He is also the author of two books for children – The Parade and Tales from Africa – under the pen name K.P. Kojo.

A published poet since 1999, his poem, ‘Tin Roof’, was selected for the Poems on the Underground initiative in 2007, followed by the poem ‘Barter,’ chosen from his first full poetry collection The Makings of You (2010). His 2020 poetry collection The Geez, was longlisted for the Rathbones Folio Prize, shortlisted for the Walcott Prize and was a Poetry Book Society 2020 Recommendation, while his a Ga language book, The Ga Picture Alphabet was shortlisted for the 2021 Jhalak Children’s & YA Prize.

He is the author of the poetry chapbooks: his début eyes of a boy, lips of a man (1999), M is for Madrigal (2004), a selection of seven jazz poems; and Ballast (2009), an imagination of the slave trade by balloon.

In 2001 Nii Ayikwei Parkes founded flipped eye publishing, a UK based publishing house which focuses on voices from the margins of British society. As editor and publisher at flipped eye Nii has played a key role in developing poets including Inua Ellams, Malika Booker and Nick Makoha as well as publishing the débuts of award-winning writers including Roger Robinson, Warsan Shire and Nikesh Shukla.

Nii Ayikwei is the literature programmer for Brighton Festival the city’s annual multi-cultural arts festival and serves on the boards of World Literature Today and the AKO Caine Prize. Previously he has served as a judge for several literature prizes including the Commonwealth Prize, the NSK Neustadt Prize and the Harvill Secker Young Translators’ Prize. In 2014 he was named one of Africa's 39 most promising authors of the new generation by the World Book Capital Africa 39 Project.

Outside of literature, Nii Ayikwei has written for publications such as the Financial Times, National Geographic, the Guardian and VICE, created adverts for the likes of Guinness and DHL, and modelled for Toyota and Ozwald Boateng.

 

Twitter @BlueBirdTail

@peepaltreepress

📖 Book Review ~ The Gifts by Liz Hyder

 

Manilla Press
10 February 2022

My thanks to Historia Magazine for my copy of this book

It will take something extraordinary to show four women who they truly are . . .

October 1840. A young woman staggers alone through a forest in the English countryside as a huge pair of impossible wings rip themselves from her shoulders.

In London, rumors of a "fallen angel" cause a frenzy across the city, and a surgeon desperate for fame and fortune finds himself in the grips of a dangerous obsession, one that will place the women he seeks in the most terrible danger . . .

The Gifts is an astonishing novel, a spellbinding tale told through five different perspectives and set against the luminous backdrop of nineteenth century London, it explores science, nature and religion, enlightenment, the role of women in society and the dark danger of ambition..

📖My Review..

I’m rather late to the party with this book as I have only just discovered this lovely story after winning a copy of The Gifts in a competition run by Historia Magazine. And what a treat of a read this has turned out to be with its intricately plotted story about four courageous young women who dared to flaunt the confines of Victorian society. Dipping into the boundaries of science, nature, religion and enlightenment we venture into the realms of dangerous possibility.

Male domination abounds in this tale of thwarted mastery and with four strong female characters there is never a moment when you are not cheering on Natalya, Etta, Mary and Annie as they seek to find the answers they so desperately need in a world which is dominated by overpowering, and misguided, men. Carefully blending history, magical realism and fantasy, this story took me on a wonderful journey into the dark, dark world of Victorian melodrama, from its vividly described opening chapter, to the very last sentence, the story grabbed my attention. 

The Gifts is a beautifully written historical novel which takes the idea of the classic fallen angel and turns this violently on its head in a powerful story which shocks in places but which is also wonderfully empathic in its depiction of four women who dared to be different in a world where men really wanted to keep them firmly in their place.

Best Read with…a large glass of port wine 🍷 

About the Author

Liz Hyder has been making up stories ever since she can remember. Originally from London, she now lives in South Shropshire. She has a BA in drama from the University of Bristol, and in early 2018, she won the Bridge Award/Morniak Mhor Emerging Writer Award. Bear mouth, her debut young adult novel, won a Waterstone’s Children’s Book Prize, the Branford Boase Award and was chosen as Children’s Book of the Year in The Times. The Gifts is her debut adult novel.

Twitter @LondonBessie #TheGifts

@zaffrebooks

Summer Read ~ The Strawberry Thief by Joanne Harris

Orion
4 April 2019
Chocolat #4

Vianne Rocher has settled down. Lansquenet-sous-Tannes, the place that once rejected her, has finally become her home. With Rosette, her 'special' child, she runs her chocolate shop in the square, talks to her friends on the river, is part of the community. Even Reynaud, the priest, has become a friend.

But when old Narcisse, the florist, dies, leaving a parcel of land to Rosette and a written confession to Reynaud, the life of the sleepy village is once more thrown into disarray. The arrival of Narcisse's relatives, the departure of an old friend and the opening of a mysterious new shop in the place of the florist's across the square - one that mirrors the chocolaterie, and has a strange appeal of its own - all seem to herald some kind of change: a confrontation, a turbulence - even, perhaps, a murder.

My thoughts..

Once again Vianne Rocher plays a pivotal role in the story, however, in The Strawberry Thief we start to learn much more about her 'special' child, Rosette, who is now sixteen. With the woodlands and fields around Lansquenet-sous-Tannes her playground, Rosette develops a rapport with Narcisse, the taciturn florist, who facing the end of his life has secrets he needs to reveal.

Those who are familiar with this series will take great delight in seeing the return of old friends, particularly, Francis Reynaud, the priest, who continues his watchful eye over the villagers, and the enticing smell of rich dark chocolat infuses the village of Lansquenet-sous-Tannes with its own special blend of magic. There's always a sense of mystery not just from the characters who each have their own little moments but also in the way their stories weave and flutter, revealing secrets and creating a story which lingers even as the wind threatens to blow it all away.

Throughout the story I had a sense of the author, maybe, tying up a few loose ends and I was a little afraid that perhaps this would be the last of the chocolat stories but there's a lovely ending to the novel which could blend very nicely into a continuation - I really hope so, as I would miss this little corner of rural France and the characters who, over twenty years, have had such a special place in my heart.

Returning to the sleepy village of Lansquenet-sous-Tannes is a long awaited treat and having been a huge fan of this series and of this author's writing, I knew from the very start of The Strawberry Thief that I wasn't going to be let down. It's pure chocolat infused magic from start to finish.

I listened to The Strawberry Thief as an Audible recording, which was beautifully narrated by the author, Joanne Harris, over 10 hours and 23 minutes. I loved listening to the author's interpretation of her words which gave the book a really personal feel as I felt that she was reading, and occasionally singing, just for me 😊

About the Author

JOANNE HARRIS is an Anglo-French author, whose books include fourteen novels, two cookbooks and many short stories. Her work is extremely diverse, covering aspects of magic realism, suspense, historical fiction, mythology and fantasy. In 2000, her 1999 novel CHOCOLAT was adapted to the screen, starring Juliette Binoche and Johnny Depp. She is an honorary Fellow of St Catharine’s College, Cambridge, and in 2013 was awarded an MBE by the Queen.

Twitter @joannechoclat #TheStrawberyThief

@orionbooks

The author in my spotlight is...Valerie-Anne Baglietto

I am delighted to welcome to Jaffareadstoo the author

Valerie-Anne Baglietto

Hello Valerie-Anne and thank you for being my author in the spotlight today....

Tell us a little about yourself and what got you started as an author?

I was born in Gibraltar, but my family moved to England when I was three. My grandfather and great-grandfather were writers, and I don’t remember a time when I haven’t written myself, although those early ‘books’, stapled together by the nearest available adult, weren’t exactly complex. But I did illustrate them! The one I recall most vividly was a story about a little boy whose mother's nose was long and spiral-shaped. Over twenty years later, my first published novel – the rom-com THE WRONG SORT OF GIRL – won the Romantic Novelists' Association New Writer's Award. But my writing career coincided with the beginning of married life, and once babies and post-natal depression came along, my writing took a back seat for a few years. Recently, I’ve been working on contemporary fiction with fairy tale elements, and my latest, FOUR SIDES TO EVERY STORY, was shortlisted in the 2105 Love Stories Awards. I’m also the bossiest member of the Novelistas: a group of friends and writers based in North Wales, including the popular authors Trisha Ashley and Anne Bennett. We get together regularly for mutual support, while overdosing on cake and coffee, and we also have our own blog, Novelistas Ink.

 

Amazon UK

Where did you get the first flash of inspiration for Four Sides to Every Story?

The inspiration for a novel with that title came to me on a train to Cardiff early in 2012, although I had no idea who exactly the four narrators were going to be. I always intended it to be a modern romance with a magical thread running through it, though, and I liked the idea that not all the narrators would be reliable, which would keep readers on their toes.

What came first – the idea or theme, the plot, place or characters?

The idea and the theme came first, and sprang from the title. I wanted to show how one plot can be viewed from a number of distinct perspectives. Like a bowl of fruit being drawn by four artists with varied styles. At the end of the day it’s the same bowl with the same fruit in it, but when the artists are finished you can guarantee you’ll have four very different paintings.

Your book is a mixture of romance, magic and fairy tale – explain to us a little more about the plot without giving too much away.

It’s essentially a love story, but not related solely from the hero and heroine’s viewpoints. Being a fairy tale, I brought in a fairy godmother, although much younger and less theatrical than the sort we’re used to. And although I had a ‘wicked’ stepmother in the plot, I used the outlook of an innocent stepchild as my fourth narrator. In spite of how it may sound, it’s very much a modern story, based in a picturesque, fictional village in Cheshire. It’s not set in a distant fairy tale land in some undefined era, it’s much more relatable to our own contemporary existence – even if the fairy godmother has no idea how to work an iPhone. There are no puffs of pink smoke, or wand-waving, or sprinkling of fairy dust to bring the hero and heroine together. It’s more the sort of match-making you’d find in Jane Austen’s EMMA, but the magic is there, woven subtly through the story. Oh, and there’s a twist. A massive one.

How do you plan your writing, and are you a plotter, or a see where it goes kind of writer?

Something in between, I’ve found. When I start work on a new project, I have a beginning, and I usually know where I want to end up, with a few important scenes along the way. I feel restricted if I plot too much. I really need a book to flow organically as I write. Saying that, I usually have a timeline (an old calendar that hasn’t been scribbled in works well for this) because it’s very easy to mess that up – I speak from experience!

What is your definition of writing Heaven and writing Hell?

I’m not sure if my answer is quite what you were after, but I did give it some thought and I wanted to be honest.

I think it’s wonderful that more writers than ever have the opportunity to get their work in front of a reader nowadays. With the boom of digital publishing, small presses and print on demand, there are so many avenues open to us, and we have the chance to experiment and push our writing in directions that might not have been available to us previously (writing Heaven). Larger publishers react to trends, but not all readers want to consume the latest crop of whatever’s ‘hot’. Authors can interact with readers directly now, and there’s the opportunity for more diversity because of that, if we choose to take it. But at the same time, this has led to the market rapidly becoming saturated, and for some authors, writing is just a hobby. This inevitably means there are fewer fulltime writers able to make a reasonable living.

For me, storytelling has been my profession for twenty years. I’ve studied the craft, and I continue to study it, and I work hard and persistently. But at times, it can be the most frustrating and demoralising of occupations (writing Hell), because so many people feel they can do it without any training or apprenticeship, and without much effort. For instance, I wouldn’t start plumbing in a sink; I have no idea what I’m doing. Or wiring an electrical socket. I could learn – maybe! – but that would take time. Yet there are people out there who pick up a pen and think that’s all it takes to call themselves an author, and there’s something disrespectful about an attitude like that.

(Rant over – sorry, Jo!)

Its not a rant at all, Valerie -Anne - glad to have your opinion...

And finally - how can readers find out more about you and your writing?

Well, it would be lovely if anyone did want to find out more, and hopefully I haven’t put anyone off! I enjoy interacting with other writers and readers on social media. You can find me here: Facebook and here: Twitter @VABaglietto, and I’m on Instagram as well: @valerieannewrites. I also have a website: www.valerie-annebaglietto.com, where you can contact me directly via email.

Before I go, I’d just like to say thank you, Jo, for having me here on your blog. I appreciate the opportunity, and I hope my answers haven’t bored anyone. My kids would be yawning by now, but I can’t use them as a gauge. I could probably tap dance in wellies wearing a sequined tutu, and I’d still be dull old Mum!

Huge thanks to Valerie-Anne for taking the time out of her busy schedule and for her insightful answers to my questions. It's been a real pleasure to have your company on the blog today.

Four Sides to Every Story is available on Amazon Kindle

~***~

Lost Lake by Sarah Addison Allen

St Martins Press
2014

There is always something truly magical about a Sarah Addison Allen story. There is no doubt that she has captured a perfect corner of the magical realism genre and has truly made it her own. From the beginning of her books, I am always captivated by her command of the story and by her ability to transport me into a magical and very different world.

In Lost Lake, we are introduced to newly widowed, Kate and her eight year old daughter, Devin, who hope to make a new start after the tragic loss of a husband and father. Returning to Lost Lake, Kate hopes that the surroundings and time will ease her pain, but somehow the magic she remembers from her childhoods spent at Lost Lake, seems to have disappeared and when her aunt Eby who runs Lake Cottages, decides it’s time to sell up, Kate discovers that you can make time standstill, and sometimes you never realise things are lost, until they are found.

I enjoy these pretty little stories purely for the chance to get away from reality. And for just a few hours escape into a world of small town friendships, of love affairs lost and won, and of gentle kindnesses amongst friends.

Lovely.

 My Thanks to NetGalley and St Martins Press for my ecopy of this book.

*~*~*

About the Author

***

Review ~ The Wishing Thread by Lisa Van Allen

Ballantine Books

September 2013

As an enthusiastic knitter, I was really interested to read this book which is in part magical realism and part fantasy, and which features the deliciously quirky Van Ripper sisters, whose home is the aptly named ‘Stitchery’ in the heart of Sleepy Hollow. Surrounded by the essence of their craft, the sisters are said to knit magic into their stitches, weaving good fortune and love potions into gloves,hats and scarves for their neighbourhood. However, the sisters combine their talents in very different ways. Aubrey is the one who has stayed at home with family matriarch, Mariah, whilst Bitty and Meggie have spread their wings further afield. When Mariah, dies, the sisters come together for a reunion in Sleepy Hollow, in which the future of the Stitchery must be decided.

This quirky story really kept my interest and I found much to enjoy, not just from the references to knitting but also in how the story pulled together all the elements and combined them to form a story of family, and the unshakeable bonds which bind us together. There is no doubt that the author has great skill with words; her fine attention to detail and wonderful cast of characters make this a lovely book to read. The idea of knitted magic is so well done, you almost find yourself hoping that all hand knitted goodies held the same brand of enchantment.

I really enjoy this type of magical realism and found that much of the story reminded me of the writing of Sarah Addison Allen’s, whose work I enjoy. Without doubt, The Wishing Thread compares very favourably against this authors work and I can only hope that Lisa Van Allen goes from strength to strength in a genre which suits her style of writing quite perfectly.

My thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing - Ballantine for my ecopy of this book