The TV Kid
by Betsy Byars (Viking, 1976)
Short book. Short chapters. Byars again creates a relatable MG character with life issues. In this instance, however, it’s not clear whether she’s advocating imagination (albeit TV-fuelled, not dissimilar from the escapism of The Cartoonist) or the maturing benefits of real-world experience.
A Stroke of the Pen: The Lost Stories
by Terry Pratchett (Harper Collins, 2023)
audiobook read by various narrators (ISIS, 2023)
A collection of very early Pratchett stories, pseudonymously written and mostly lacking impact as individual pieces. Though they have their moments (and are lent panache by the various audiobook readers), few would garner more than a ‘ho-hum’ if their authorship were unknown.
Toy Story
dir. John Lasseter (1995)
Pixar’s first feature-length film and the first ever to be fully computer-animated. Pioneering kudos aside, Toy Story remains (thirty years on!) a charming, perfectly paced and pitched family film whose script earns the viewer’s engagement and whose toy characters are joyously compelling.
The Mysteries of Great Cities
by Baroness E. Orczy (The Royal Magazine, April-October 1902)
reprinted in “Rivals of Sherlock Holmes”, ed. Alan K. Russell (Castle Books, 1978)
Seven serviceable mystery scenarios (almost entirely unrelated to the titular ‘great cities’), dressed up as short stories and related by a one-quirk armchair detective to a superfluous Watson figure. Orczy offers no investigation and little by way of intrigue or literary merit.
Science Fiction Movies
by Philip Strick (Octopus Books, 1976)
Broad in its definition of science fiction, wide-ranging in its consideration of obscure and/or non English–language movies, Strick’s compendium offers both a balanced, incisive overview of the vintage SF corpus and a good-humoured jumping-off point for delving into individual genre films.
First Term at Malory Towers
by Enid Blyton (Methuen, 1946)
audiobook read by Beth Eyre (Hodder Children’s, 2017)
The first book of what might be Blyton’s best series. First Term introduces the characters and setting while forever preserving the boarding experience within a spirit of post-war optimism. A delightful school story with ups and downs and an open, straightforward charm.
Protection
by Robert Sheckley
Galaxy Science Fiction (April, 1956); UK No. 39 (June, 1956), pp. 54-63.
One of those technically insubstantial Sheckley short stories that nevertheless skims along with sufficient comedic insouciance to qualify as a good read. The protagonist accepts an alien protection service, just because it’s free, but in doing so brings about his own undoing.
The Girl on the Boat
by P.G. Wodehouse (George H. Doran, 1922)
audiobook read by Frederick Davidson (Blackstone, 1998)
Consummate audiobook reading. Incongruous cover. Though P.G. muffs the ending a bit—rather than prove himself through breaking up a dog fight, Sam Marlowe prevails upon Billie Bennett as a cowardly Galahad—the buildup is vintage Wodehouse, ingeniously woven and drolly expressed.
The Tricksters
by Margaret Mahy (Orion, 1986; CollinsFlamingo, 2001)
A supernatural coming-of-age novel. The large family cast adds a chaotic, disorientating element but also a homely verisimilitude plus, it turns out, a mystery hiding in plain sight (masquerading as a smokescreen for the overt, speculative goings-on!). Slow-building but worth committing to.
Kiss Me Kate, Series 1
by Chris Langham & John Morton (BBC, 1998)
A delightfully droll, oft-overlooked British sitcom that sails along on character interplay and comic timing. Perfectly cast with Caroline Quentin playing a sardonic counsellor, Chris Langham her deadpan colleague, Amanda Holden their naïve receptionist, and Darren Boyd their affable but dim-witted co-tenant.