The Big Hoot for Birmingham Children’s Hospital

Posted on by Libby Price

As many of you will know, we have been helping our friends to fundraise for Birmingham Children’s Hospital for the last year – as their son is being treated there for a brain tumour. They’ve already raised in excess of £20k – but are still looking to support them even more. (Blatant request for donations as the Just Giving link is here.)

Anyway – this summer BCH (that’s what those in the know call Birmingham Children’s Hospital!) have an amazing event on in and around Birmingham – called The Big Hoot and here’s a quote from their website to give you the background.

The Big Hoot swoops into Birmingham 20 July – 27 September 2015

Presented by creative producers Wild in Art working in partnership with Birmingham Children’s Hospital, The Big Hoot has brought businesses, artists, schools and the local community together to create a public art trail of stunning owl sculptures on display across Birmingham from 20 July until 27 September.

With 89 giant owl sculptures to see – each one individually and intricately created by artists from Birmingham and beyond – this ‘owl-spotting’ experience is inspiring fun for everyone and is completely FREE.

Follow the trail from the City Centre to Sutton Coldfield; Winson Green to Bournville and many places in between and enjoy beautiful open spaces; inspiring buildings and Birmingham’s cultural heritage along the way.

All the giant owls have been sponsored by companies and organisations and at the end of the trail, they will be auctioned to raise money for Birmingham Children’s Hospital.

Children and young people from Birmingham’s schools have also been busy creating over 120 owlets. These are displayed in ‘parliaments’ across the city as part of The Little Hoot education programme.

We hope you have fun discovering all the owls and now…let the ‘owl-spotting’ begin!!!

The Price family were very excited to hear about this and immediately downloaded a copy of the trail from the website (you can also get hard copies at various locations around the city).

This week we’ve started on our owl spotting quest – and are ticking off the owls as we find them (we have a copy of the trail on the kitchen wall, as well as one for when we’re out and about – we’re taking this very seriously!!)

The kids did a couple over near Thinktank earlier in the week,

The Big Hoot 1 The Big Hoot 2

and even more today…

Big Hoot 3

(They were excited, I promise, but it was just raining heavily at the time!  A trip to the Cadburyworld shop afterwards did help cheer them up!!)

I’ve set up a Facebook photo album and will update it as we add to the viewing list with the various owls and owlets – and it would seem most of my Brummie Facebook friends are also on owl spotting missions.  Lots have also been involved, through the schools that they work for, in the painting of owlets – so we’re hoping to spot those too.

Not only are these owls beautiful – it’s also a great way to get ourselves out and about around our fabulous city this summer.  If the weather could just join in and play the game a bit better that would be great!

The kids are already deciding which one they want to bid for in the auction in October!

Book Review: One Summer Night at the Ritz by Jenny Oliver

Posted on by Libby Price

One Summer Night at the Ritz

“One Summer Night at the Ritz is the enchanting fourth story in Jenny Oliver’s delicious Cherry Pie Island series.
For Jane Williams, balmy August evenings are usually spent swimming in the river or lounging on her house boat on Cherry Pie Island. But, this summer, a set of tragic wartime diaries has changed all that.
Now, Jane’s heading for an appointment with Will Blackwell, one of the world’s most infamous hoteliers, in the heart of London’s West End. And, standing under the spectacular twinkling lights of The Ritz, it’s safe to say she’s feeling a tiny bit out of her depth…
But Jane’s about to discover that, sometimes, the bravest steps can lead to the most magical summer nights!”

I have just devoured the 4th in the Cherry Pie Island series in one afternoon!  I have loved the previous books in this series, and this one was no different.  It’s a stand alone book – but with clever nods to the previous books throughout – and the scenes being set for the next.

I’ve never stayed at The Ritz – although have had breakfast there – and the book really gives the feel of the old fashioned glamour of it – and describes London beautifully.  Jane is a lovely character – and you’re rooting for her throughout the book. She also makes me feel less bad about my falling apart Birkenstocks!

I enjoyed the fact the story takes you off Cherry Pie island – but brings you back to familiar ground as well.

As always, a lovely, funny, feel-good, escapist, easy read.

On a geeky, pedant level (both being my forte!) there is a grammar error in the first few paragraphs (story where it should be storey, as we’re in England not America) and about six times during the book there are typos, where an additional letter features in front of a word where it shouldn’t.  I know this doesn’t affect the story overall – but it does grate with me.

** carefully checks I haven’t written ‘effect’ or ‘great’ **

I’m slightly gutted we have to wait until October for the next instalment – although as that’s going to feature Christmas weddings, I guess it’s closer to the festive season.

Oh – and Jenny Oliver has very, very kindly donated the chance for the winning bidder at a charity auction in September that I’m helping to organise to be a named character in a future book – so who knows, one of us could be a guest at one of the weddings maybe?!?  (Obviously I will  blog about how you can bid for this once the auction site is up and running!!)

But for now – why don’t you catch up on the beginnings of the Cherry Pie series?

Book Review: A Meditation on Murder by Robert Thorogood

Posted on by Libby Price

I was offered a copy of this by Mumsnet to review – and never one to turn down the opportunity of a free book – I jumped at the chance.

A Meditation on Murder

I must confess at this point that I have never watched the BBC series ‘Death in Paradise’ – it has always struck me as something my 86 year old Nan would like – real ‘Sunday night telly’ in the style of Bergerac but on a slightly more exotic island than Jersey. (Got to love a 1980s TV reference!) However – I’ve seen enough trailers to know what the original main cast looked like – and their mugshots are also on the back of the book – so the characters were immediately pictured in my head.

Here’s what Amazon says about it (and it’s pretty much the first page of the book too).

“An original story from the creator and writer of the hit BBC One TV series, Death in Paradise, featuring on-screen favourite detective, DI Richard Poole.

Enhance your enjoyment of the series as, for the first time, Robert Thorogood brings the characters to life on the page in an all-new locked-room mystery.

Aslan Kennedy has an idyllic life: leader of a spiritual retreat for wealthy holidaymakers on one of the Caribbean’s most unspoilt islands, Saint Marie. Until he’s murdered, that is. The case seems open and shut: when Aslan was killed he was inside a locked room with only five other people, one of whom has already confessed to the murder.

Detective Inspector Richard Poole is hot, bothered, and fed up with talking to witnesses who’d rather discuss his ‘aura’ than their whereabouts at the time of the murder. But he also knows that the facts of the case don’t quite stack up. In fact, he’s convinced that the person who’s just confessed to the murder is the one person who couldn’t have done it. Determined to track down the real killer, DI Poole is soon on the trail, and no stone will be left unturned.”

You are immediately transported to a spiritual retreat in the Caribbean – having been to a similar place in St Lucia, I could really imagine being there (rather than in a slightly damp West Midlands which is where I was actually reading the book).  The author really evokes the feeling of the tropical island throughout the book.

The prologue sets the scene (and at the end of the book I had to go back and read it again to see if I’d missed any clues) but within a few pages the murder has been committed and Aslan is dead.  The story then follows the murder investigation.

DI Richard Poole (a UK police officer now based in the Caribbean) hates the sun, sand and sea and living in Saint Marie.  His people skills are rubbish – but I must admit to really liking him.  His geekiness, analytical mind and sand-phobia all making him rather similar to me………

I have to say that I did guess the means of the murder very early on – if not the definite culprit or the reasons why – and I found myself shouting at the book a bit because neither the DI or his colleagues had sussed it out.

There are loads of twists and turns, with red herrings and seemingly random bits (the removal of the lizard from Richard’s ‘house’?) – but I can see how it would make great TV. In fact it almost feels like it’s been written for the TV rather than as a book.  There are a few places where the plot to date is summarised – like it’s the start of a new episode.  One thing I did really like is that at a three or four junctures in the book, the contents of the white board in the police station are written down giving details of the victim, suspects etc – and that was great – and I guess something, as a reader, you are always doing in your head.

The conclusion of the book comes quite quickly – and all the loose ends are very cleverly wrapped up.

Overall I did enjoy the book.  It was very ‘nice’ and ‘harmless’ in the traditional style of an Agatha Christie or Murder She Wrote episode. It was well written, excellent at bringing about the character of the Caribbean and concluded well.  It made a nice change from some of the more psychological and graphic thrillers that seem to be the genre of the moment. A pleasant, easy summer read.

Now maybe I’ll lend it to my 86 year old Nan…………

Book Review: The Farm by Tom Rob Smith

Posted on by Libby Price

The Farm

“Daniel believed that his parents were enjoying a peaceful retirement on a remote farm in Sweden, the country of his mother’s birth. But with a single phone call, everything changes. Your mother…she’s not well, his father tells him. She’s been imagining things – terrible, terrible things. In fact, she has been committed to a mental hospital. Before Daniel can board a plane to Sweden, his mother calls: Everything that man has told you is a lie. I’m not mad…I need the police…Meet me at Heathrow. Presented with a horrific crime, a conspiracy that implicates his own father, Daniel must examine the evidence and decide: who is telling the truth, his mother or his father? And he has secrets of his own that for too long he has kept hidden…”

This was recommended to me on Facebook by a friend who reads – and enjoys – similar books to me, so I downloaded it without reading anything about it – or about the author. I have not read his critically acclaimed Child 44 trilogy – so was coming at it totally cold.

The book is told in places through Daniel’s eyes – and partly through his mother Tilde recounting stories, and this flows well. I was intrigued to read more and find out what happened. The writer clearly uses his own Swedish roots to set the scene very well for the sections set over there, and the various celebrations etc.

I can’t really talk much about the actual storyline without giving away what it’s about – and the conclusion – so I won’t!

There are some huge leaps of faith in parts – with characters whizzing around the Swedish countryside, and some characters are introduced without you really finding out much about them at all – Daniel’s partner and Father being two very peripheral characters that aren’t properly introduced at all and yet could have played much more significant roles.

The ending is a bit odd. One huge element of the storyline is tied up neatly – but there are still lots of lose threads in other areas – particularly with regards to Daniel and his family. I’m not sure if this has been left for a sequel – or if we are never to find out how they all move on from the repercussions of the events in the book.

Overall I enjoyed this and wanted to keep reading – but it didn’t completely knock me off my feet. I would definitely try books by this author again though.

Book Review: I Let You Go by Clare Mackintosh

Posted on by Libby Price

I let you go

“A tragic accident. It all happened so quickly. She couldn’t have prevented it. Could she?

In a split second, Jenna Gray’s world descends into a nightmare. Her only hope of moving on is to walk away from everything she knows to start afresh. Desperate to escape, Jenna moves to a remote cottage on the Welsh coast, but she is haunted by her fears, her grief and her memories of a cruel November night that changed her life forever.

Slowly, Jenna begins to glimpse the potential for happiness in her future. But her past is about to catch up with her, and the consequences will be devastating . . .”

This was recommended to me by a friend (and it would seem that a mutual friend knows the author personally through her previous life in the police) but it was worthy of the recommendation on content alone. It was BRILLIANT.

It starts off with a car crash and then the aftermath of the crash.  About half way through there is an AMAZING twist – one that makes you want to go back to the beginning of the book and start again to see if you can see the clues, as I’d completely missed it on initial read.  I can’t really say any more without giving it away!

Some of the chapters are written in the first person as if Jenna is speaking – and initially these alternate with third person narrative of the police investigation.  As the book develops a third ‘voice’ is used too.  It is very clever writing and keeps you on the edge of your seat.

The descriptions throughout the book – from the tragic crash, to the Welsh coastline, are wonderfully emotive and evocative. You are rooting for Jenna throughout the book and her personal roller coaster.

I really don’t want to say too much, as you need to read it to see how it develops – but I would very highly recommend it.

This is Clare Mackintosh’s first book – and I’m very much looking forward to reading her future books.

School Run Strop – Wicked Wednesday 24 June 2015

Posted on by Libby Price

Now my youngest is renowned for her strops (she even made the front page of Mumsnet!) – and it’s been a few weeks without one, so we had a classic today.

She refused to walk through the school grounds to get her big sister from school. A stand off ensued. OBVIOUSLY it was school sports day so there were loads of extra people, including well meaning Grandparents (not hers) asking what the matter was.

Strop 1

After 10 minutes, I had to give in and carry her. But when we got to the playground I put her down – and the strop turned into a sleep, on the concrete …….

Strop 2

This is my entry for Brummy Mummy of 2’s #wickedwednesdays

brummymummyof2