#Review By Lou of The Ha-Ha By Tom Shakespeare @Tommyshakes #TheHaha @RandomTTours #BlogTour #SocialComedy #Humour #Diversity

The Ha-Ha
By Tom Shakespeare

The Ha-Ha is a humorous social comedy book, in a P.G. Wodehouse sort of way with eccentric characters and poignancy. Discover the blurb and review as part of the RandomTTours blog tour as you wheel down the page to a country house setting… Discover more about Tom Shakespeare too, he seems an interesting guy, who’s done a lot.

Blurb

A modern country house farce with a diverse cast of characters

Fred Twistleton is about to turn forty. Gathering with his friends to celebrate at a rented stately home, he finally hopes to get together with his college crush, the woman of his dreams, Heather. But Fred is also keen to publish his memoirs, and Heather realises the revelations they contain could threaten her career as a high-flying foreign correspondent.

When the treasured manuscript goes missing under mysterious circumstances, Fred’s at a loss. Could someone have stolen it? Where has the resident pig gone? And will all the group remain friends by the end of the weekend? With burst pipes, sunken kayaks, and suspicious puddings, thank goodness Fred is only going to have one fortieth birthday.

Praise for The Ha-Ha

‘A beautifully observed and highly entertaining tale. Tom Shakespeare is a fine comic writer’ Alexander McCall Smith

‘A blissful social comedy, stuffed with cherishable lines’ Lissa Evans

Review

Turning 40, wheelchair bound Fred (which has, uniquely, given the author an opportunity to show the needs a wheelchair user may have. I know as my mum uses one and also has a zest for life), has decided it would be most fitting to rent a stately home and invite his friends, one being someone whom he had a crush on and didn’t really do anything about back at college. Now, he’s got ideas to buck up his ideas and do something about that. He’s also ambitious, seeing this is quite the auspicious occasion and turning such a special age, he has decided to write his memoirs. So far, all plans are moving in the right direction…. until they don’t and so much that could go wrong, does go wrong.

It could be a comedy of errors or like The Play That Goes Wrong, in modern terms. It, however, also feels like it could play homage to P.G. Wodehouse, with the humour and country house setting, but also with an element of Tom’s own take on the genre, giving it a fresh, modern feel.

The Ha-Ha is a book of humour and poignancy, all brought to life through the eccentricity of its characters, some who are kind, some who are ego-centric and one pig. in the form of Sonia, a literary agent who has experience of unrequited love, an old school friend who lives in a van, a stressed social worker and more… not forgetting the mischievous pig.

There’s also the matter of manuscript of the memoir going missing. It could destroy a career. It could create tensions within this group of friends…

Ultimately the book has the feel-good factor and fun.

About the Author

Tom Shakespeare CBE is a social scientist and bioethicist, an academic who
writes and talks and researches mainly about disability, but also about ethical
issues around prenatal genetic testing and end of life assisted suicide.
Born in 1966 in Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire, he studied at Cambridge
University and has lived in Gateshead, Geneva and Norwich, while working at
Universities of Sunderland, Leeds, Newcastle, then at World Health Organisation
in Geneva, afterwards at UEA Medical School, and presently as Professor of
Disability Research, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.
Tom has presented programmes and documentaries on BBC Radio and has
written for publications including The Guardian and The Lancet, alongside talking
to academic, professional and lay audiences around the world.
He has been a stand-up comedian, an actor, a dancer, and an artist. A father of
two grown-up children, he now lives in London. https://farmerofthoughts.co.uk/

#Review By Lou of The Rabbits By A.A. Milne @farragobooks #AAMilne #Satire #TheRabbits @RandomTTours #Historical #BlogTour

The Rabbits
By A.A. Milne

Mention AA Milne and the first things that usually come to people’s mind is Winnie the Pooh and his friends in Hundred Acre Wood and Christopher Robin. AA Milne didn’t only write children’s books, he also wrote for adults. The Rabbits was originally serialised in Punch Magazine. It has been all re-published in a book, which I have the privilege to review for part of The Random T. Tours blog tour. What I think you may also find interesting is a bit more about A.A. Milne, so I’ve included a bit after my review.

Blurb

Pre-war halcyon days captured in a series of comic sketches, the ‘Rabbits’ offer the purest of escapism – and possibly A. A. Milne’s most distinctive work

The adventures of a group of friends, pre-war, with far too much time on their hands.

The Rabbits, as they call themselves, are Archie Mannering, his sister Myra, Samuel Simpson, Thomas of the Admiralty, Dahlia Blair and the narrator, with occasional guests. Their conversation is almost entirely frivolous, their activity vacillates between immensely energetic and happily lazy, and their social mores are surprisingly progressive.

Originally published as sketches in Punch, the Rabbits’ escapades are a charming portrait of middle-class antics on the brink of being shattered by World War I, and fail entirely to take themselves seriously.

Review

The Rabbits was a surprising read. Not having read any of A.A. Milne’s adult material before, this intrigued me, after all I, like so many children grew up with his Winnie the Pooh stories and his poetry, such as Now We Are Six and loved them.

The Rabbits is a look at the middle classes just before world war one fully broke out, more at a time when the world was on the brink of war. There are friendships sharing past-times, playing sports such as crickets and eccentricities in personalities; it’s quite a study into this period of time, brought to readers with humour.

It reads like it is serialised in a magazine, which brings a different feel from your typical novel and yet still works rather well, once you’ve got used to the feel and style of it.

At a time where, yet again the world seems so uncertain, this book brings lightness and a time to relax and be transported to a different time and have a laugh at good wit. A.A. Milne turns out to be quite the satirical comedy writer and it’s enjoyable.
It’s quite poignant in a way, knowing what we know, that these were the last easy-going sunny days before the world grew darker as war broke out.
Let your mind wander to times gone by. It’s a very enjoyable read.

A.A. Milne wanted to be known for more than just his creation of Winnie The Pooh and now, all these years later, hopefully he will be. It truly is worth reading.

About The Author

A. A. Milne (Alan Alexander) is best known for his books about the teddy bear Winnie-the-Pooh, but was also an accomplished writer of fiction for grown-ups.

Prior to the First World War he worked as a young man as Assistant Editor of Punch magazine.

After leaving the army, he began to write plays, short stories and novels; and then later works for children, including the poetry collection When We Were Very Young and the storybook Winnie-the-Pooh in 1926.

Milne continued to be a prolific writer until his death in 1956.

#Review By Lou of Leave No Trace By Jo Callaghan @JoCallaghanKat @simonschusterUK #LeaveNoTrace #Thriller @RandomTTours

Leave No Trace
By Jo Callaghan

Leave No Trace is a different crime book. Humans and AI come together. Check out the blurb and my review below as part of the Random T. Tours blog tour.
I didn’t read much acclaimed, In A Blink Of The Eye first and I felt that it was fine to read this as a stand-alone or of course, read after that.

Blurb

DCS Kat Frank and AIDE Lock return in the provocative new thriller from the author of In the Blink of an Eye.

One detective driven by instinct, the other by logic.
It will take both to find a killer who knows the true meaning of fear . . .

When the body of a man is found crucified at the top of Mount Judd, AIDE Lock – the world’s first AI Detective – and DCS Kat Frank are thrust into the spotlight as they are given their first live case.

But with the discovery of another man’s body – also crucified – it appears that their killer is only just getting started. With the police warning local men to be vigilant, the Future Policing Unit is thrust into a hostile media frenzy as they desperately search for connections between the victims. But time is running out for them to join the dots and prevent another death.

For if Kat and Lock know anything, it’s that killers rarely stop – until they are made to.

Review

Leave No Trace is almost futuristic in that one detective is human and the other is AI, except nowadays, this feels closer than ever and even the original creator of AI is now questioning certain aspects of its unleashing. An AI detective feels just a step or two further than that of what we see today.

Leave No Trace is a very well-written, thought-provoking book. You can tell for awhile that the AI is perhaps not perfect within the detective creation, but mixed in with humans, it feels increasingly humanistic as though your brain almost accepts it and I think that’s down to the great quality of the writing, until you remember that it’s AI and this is what makes it interesting for society and readers. It adds many questions for the real world about how far AI could go and how far humans perhaps want it to go and the impacts. It’s quite an exploration of it in this crime series.

The mystery itself is intriguing and some of the book is set out like an interview, which adds an immersive quality. Time is running out for the detectives to solve the case as there’s the danger of more murders. It’s a challenging, rather dark case because how do you solve a murder, when seemingly there’s no trace to collect clues from?
For the answer, you’ll need to find out by reading the book.

Overall it’s a very good read, in its style, including its short, sharp sentences, especially at the beginning and the compelling twists of the plot.
It’s thought-provoking nature beyond the page.

#Review of Jekyll and Hyde By Gary McNair A #Stage Adaptation By @TheGaryMcNair @OriginalTheatre Starring @ForbesMasson @lyceumtheatre @ReadingRep #Theatre #JekyllAndHyde #RobertLouisStevenson

Jekyll and Hyde

By Gary McNair, adapted from the novel by
Robert Louis Stevenson
Directed by Michael Fentiman

I saw this one-man show, starring Forbes Masson on Original Theatre Online.
Discover the synopsis and my review below, as well as a link where you too can watch this great play.

Synopsis

Streaming Online
Drama | Thriller | Classic

Forbes Masson (The Crown, Farm Hall, Newsies) stars in this captivating one-person play, written by Gary McNair.

“Are those little voices in our heads our friends, or our enemies? What if they’re neither, what if they’re both?”

Royal Lyceum Theatre Edinburgh presents Reading Rep Theatre’s production of
JEKYLL & HYDE
By Gary McNair, adapted from the novel by Robert Louis Stevenson
Directed by Michael Fentiman

The classic story of Jekyll & Hyde is turned on its head revealing the depths of one man’s psyche and the lengths we will go to hide our deepest secrets. What will happen to a curious mind as it’s left to its own devices?

A brand new film of this critically acclaimed show, commissioned by Original Theatre in special arrangement with the producers, exclusively streaming on Original Online.

Review

A door, just a lit door in the shadows of darkness in a minimalist set, but a highly significant door nonetheless. All eyes are on this and Forbes Masson in what is an exceptional one man play.

There are quite a few characters that are bestowed upon Forbes Masson to play and each one is deftly portrayed. No need to worry about getting lost as to who’s who, he’s found ways around that, through voice and tone changes and ingenious ways of using props. This has made it easy to follow.

Forbes Masson, shrouded in darkness, pulls you into a wonderfully curated intense atmosphere that builds and builds as the psyche of Jekyll and Hyde are examined. Surprisingly, there’s also some humour within the play, delivered with excellent timing.

Jekyll and Hyde is a haunting, compelling play that I highly recommend.

Watch Here On Original Theatre if you dare to find what lies behind that door and inside the psyche of Jekyll and Hyde…

#Review By Lou of Apprenticed Into Night By LindaAnn LoSchiavo #LindaAnnLoSchiavo #Poetry #SFPA #TheBritishFantasySociety #DramatistsGuild

Apprenticed To The Night
By LindaAnn LoSchiavo

Apprenticed To The Night is 66 poignant poems by LindaAnn LoSchiavo. She is a native New Yorker poet, who is a four time nominee for The Pushcart Prize. She has also been nominated for Best of the Net, the Rhysling Award, and Dwarf Stars. She is a member of SFPA, The British Fantasy Society, and The Dramatists Guild.

Below, you’ll find the blurb and my review of Apprenticed To The Night.

Blurb

“Apprenticed to the Night” is a collection of 66 poems focused on mortality, betrayal, memory, trauma, and the bewilderment of loss as constantly shifting enigmas. It explores themes of life, death, childhood, trauma, family, and love. The book is divided into three sections: Youth, Maturity, and Beyond.

Review

Whisking yourself away into poetry for a change can be an interesting and sometimes enlightening experience. Poetry is also easy to dip in and out of as they’re short and yet often have something that resonates or can be empathised with or share joy with, so worth giving a go, especially if you find it isn’t normally for you. Poetry is something I occasionally take on from their poets or publishers to give a go. Poetry goes back into all or most of our childhoods, sometimes with humour, darkness, lightness. The difference being when we grow up, we find its more adult themes and yet the rhythmic nature of them is similar, making it something familiar.

So, what of “Apprenticed To The Night”?

The themes are of life and love through difficult and traumatic times and lighter times. There’s the childlike innocence and the deep desire to protect it, keep it forever, but there’s death in the family and this in-turn creates a desire to preserve the deceased one’s legacy, no matter what. The sense of family-ties and bonds is reflected in the writing.
Within the writing, you see the imagery created in the words and feel the searing pain in the rhythm. Through the darkness comes poignancy with tinges of hope for better things to come, even when the searing complexities of life puncture and penetrate it.
The writing is beautifully presented in various styles of poetry that still marry-up with each other to form quite a succinct book as night brings comfort and dangers.

#AuthorInterview conducted by Lou with Jo Szewczyk, author of Surviving Gen X @HenryRoiPR #JoSzewczyk #GenX #1990s

Welcome Jo Szewczyk to my blog to be interviewed about the literary fiction book, written very much based on experience, so is also semi-autobiographical about “Surviving Gen X” in the 1990’s. We talked about culture, technology then and now, Gen X and Gen Z and positive takeaways from the 1990’s. Some of the interview is searing and other parts have words of wisdom.

First, let’s take a look at the blurb and then the Q&A style interview.

Dive into the kaleidoscopic streets of 1990s Las Vegas with “Surviving GenX.”

Amidst the flickering neon lights and the haunting echoes of slot machines, we follow an unnamed protagonist and a battered housewife, both seeking an escape from their tormented pasts. As they wade through the city’s seedy underbelly, they find an unexpected refuge in one another—a bond forged in the fires of a metropolis hell-bent on their ruin.

A potent tapestry of humor, heartbreak, and raw human resilience, this narrative unfolds with the surreal quality of a fever dream. Oscillating between the chaos of a city that never sleeps and the quiet moments of vulnerability shared between its two protagonists, “Surviving GenX” isn’t just a story—it’s an experience. An experience that delves into the desolation of a generation caught amidst the disintegration of societal norms, searching for meaning in a world that seems to have forgotten them.

Join this evocative journey through a decade marked by upheaval and transformation and discover a tale that is once a testament to the indomitable spirit of Generation X and a haunting reflection on the universal human quest for connection.

Now we know a bit about the book, let’s begin with the interview

The book is set in the 1990’s. It was globally, a time of change, culturally and technologically, what did you like most about this decade?

I liked that everything was possible. We were not yet at war with the world—just with ourselves. We crawled out of the ‘Just Say No’ sludge and explored a new technology that was like a little sibling trying to figure out its place not just with us, but with itself within the world. Close your eyes. You can almost make out the spectral hum of dial-up that promised to bring the planet together. Too bad it turned out to be little sibling stunted with a mind of a child and armed with a bazooka.

2. Surviving Gen X is a potent, evocative title. What made you choose this as a title?

A Ouija board. I had to take that name or Pazuzu would unleash all hell on me. I had already upset that vampire trying to sell me Amway. Autumn mauve my butt.

3. What piqued your interest about exploring universal and timeless themes, such as human connections, love, loss etc within the backdrop of the 90’s?

Truth be told, I have no idea any of those themes were in the book until people pointed them out. I just wrote from experience to create this literary biography, which is, I believe just term 3,982 for ‘Creative Non-Fiction’.

4. What positive ‘takeaways’ do you feel different generations can take away from reading your book?

Our generation was the last to do really dumb stuff and not video tape it for the world to see. I think if the newer generations can see that it is okay to be dumb, just no need to televise it, then they can all learn something. Baby Boomers can learn just how f’d up they made us. Gen Z can hopefully learn not to leave permanent reminders of their worst days for the world to see forever on memetic loop.

5. You talk about the “indomitable spirit of Gen X”, do you still feel some of that resilience and spirit to keep going and truly living life, not just existing, all these decades later and how important do you think that is?

How many Gen X singers can you name who are still alive? I guess we all lose in the end, but until that end comes, we keep trying to survive one moment at a time. Our parent’s generation saw a president assassinated on tv, civil rights protests, and the Vietnam war. We saw the space shuttle explode, AIDS, Crack, and Techno (I think that last part is a song, eh?). We saw walls come down and gated communities go up. I think because of this we saw the value and shortness of life. We knew we weren’t invincible. I think we all knew we were very vincible.

6. You’ve chosen now to tell a bit of the Gen X story from how Las Vegas is, how important do you think it is for other generations, globally, to look and understand, acknowledge different times and not dismiss them, or see them in isolation of each other?

I think the current trend of judging history by the lens of today is the obvious yet unavoidable flaw of the politically correct culture that Gen X tried to fight (and lost horribly). I remember when Social Justice (Warriors) were derogatory terms and now they are college courses and degrees. When people get offended by a joke written before they were born—yet miss the point of the artist who makes it—it makes me pause and wonder just how badly we (Gen X) lost that war against PC. Is the take away that other generations will be mindless yumps bouncing between protest slacktivism de jour? Are they aware the more they do this the less power they have and the more power they give away to the very people they think they are protesting? Is it too late for them? Will they be able to see something with a critical lens that wasn’t handed to them via tik tok? Will Google save them all? Does AI tell them how to think n feel? Is Insta the end of thought? I’m not sure. If anything, I hope the new generations can allow themselves to be wrong—allow themselves to think for themselves. Maybe they’ll get the right answer—maybe not. Maybe they’ll find out there isn’t a right answer. If other generations can review history (contemporary and other), in some sort of common field with each other, the world might be a better place.

7. What positive ‘takeaways’ do you feel different generations can take away from reading your book?

8. Do you celebrate the publication day of a book, if so, what do you do?

I would have liked to—but I was so busy with everything else I didn’t get a chance to really give it its proper due. Heck, we hit #1 and I still have the cake on ice, so to speak. I guess it’s a bit like martial arts—people tend to focus on the publication as a big grand event (and it is), much like earning a black belt….only to find out that it’s really the things you do once you earn that black belt (or get the book out) that really becomes the full journey.

I guess David Lee Roth said it best: The problem with dreams is, by the time they come true, you’re already someone else.

9. What are you reading just now?

I’m reading three books ‘the old fashion way’ and one through audible. My audible is the ‘last’ Witcher book: The Lady of the Lake by Andrzej Sapkowski. My physical/ebook readings, currently, are Jaimee Wriston Colbert’s How Not to Drown; Nicole C Luttrell’s Nova; and Weis and Hickman’s newest Dragonlance series. If we expand that to gaming, I’d have to add Free League’s Pirate Borg gaming book and some other RPG-centric material that I’m using for my next book.