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A rough guide to writing a 400 word review
My good friend on here, Teresa Renton, suggested that I write a guide on how to write a review. I respect Teresa enormously. She is a wonderfully gifted writer whose work has variation of tone but always great depth and lyrical quality which should be explored at your leisure - but soon.
By Rachel Deeming2 months ago in Writers
Rachel Reviews: Breakfast of Superheroes (1st book in the Cockroach the Superhero series) by Steve Frederick
I think it is the dream of most schoolboys to have a superpower - to discover that there is something they have that makes them stand out from the crowd. I've certainly had many conversations in the past with my sons about what superpower I would have and why. Steve Frederick taps into this and creates a book which is bound to appeal to middle graders as superhero-dom becomes a reality for his main character, Kyle, an ordinary schoolboy, who stumbles on an extraordinary item.
By Rachel Deeming2 months ago in BookClub
Rachel Reviews: Adolescence (2025)
*I started writing this some time ago. Life temporarily distracted me and time passed. I'd written too much of it to let it languish here unread but please bear in mind that the Emmys were held in September. I liked my intro too much to alter it considerably.
By Rachel Deeming2 months ago in Geeks
Rachel Reviews: Thrive in Chaos by Jace Parker
I loved this book and everything that it sets out to do. I spent my time reading it, sagely nodding at the good sense contained in it and reflecting on how experience shapes us into the people we are, not always for the better in some cases.
By Rachel Deeming2 months ago in BookClub
Rachel Reviews: Afternoons of Suspended Love by Stefania Lucchetti
Poetry traditionally concerns itself with the passion of youth, reinforcing the idea that sensuality and vigour as part of a loving relationship are the domain of young lovers, more than any other. This view is challenged in this collection from Lucchetti, where she writes poems from her own experience, exploring the love of a mature relationship, post children. I found this refreshing and admire her enormously for her openness and candour.
By Rachel Deeming2 months ago in BookClub
Rachel Reviews: The Toffee Man and the Kingdom of Ends by L.K. Quinn
This was a tough read but for all the right reasons. It's not a happy story in a lots of ways and yet, there are moments of rightness which lift the narrative back into the realms of optimism. However, there is also a lot in this book to make you squirm and rile you to anger. It's a good book in that regard as it is emotionally stirring.
By Rachel Deeming2 months ago in BookClub
Rachel Reviews: Obesseus the Mighty Muncher by D.T. Tucker
Welcome to Snackland where the buffet is under threat. This place needs a hero and fast! Enter Obesseus, a burp-fuelled powerhouse of few words who may be limited in the thinking department but he has a whole lot of heart and courage (although there's an argument to say that this is mainly propelled by his love of dumplings rather than any altruistic mindset).
By Rachel Deeming2 months ago in BookClub
Rachel Reviews: The House of Promise by Indrajit Garai
A book about bullfighting is an ambitious undertaking, knowing how it is a tradition at the heart of Spain's culture. Passion, ceremony and performance are all wound up together in what is essentially organised animal cruelty and Garai, in this novel, attempts to tackle this rather conflicting set of issues through a vast array of characters who proffer, from their occupations and backgrounds, the vast plethora of views and circumstances that surround la corrida.
By Rachel Deeming2 months ago in BookClub
