Saturday, 26 November 2016

Farewell to Upton Park: The Official Celebration of West Ham's Home 1904-2016 by Andy Hooper & Lee Clayton #bookreview


Book review: When I got "Farewell to Upton Park: The Official Celebration of West Ham's Home 1904-2016" I thought it'd be a collection of iconic moments that have taken place in the stadium. The sort that Karren Brady mentions in her foreword as she talks of Hurst, Peters and Moore's first match back at the stadium after they helped England win the World Cup, how they came onto the pitch before the rest of the team to be serenaded by the fans, and the scissor-kick goal Paolo Di Canio scored versus Wimbledon. Or maybe the sort that Trevor Brooking mentioned in his opening piece entitled "The West Ham Family" when he talked about winning promotion in 1981 with players such as Alvin martin, Billy Bonds and Frank Lampard Snr.

But this book isn't that at all. Instead, it is the third introduction by Lee Clayton which best describes this book. "Over many days in that final, dramatic season... award-winning photographer Andy Hooper captured images of players, legends and supporters, iconic images of a stadium that had been 'home' since 1904." 

These photographs are spread over six chapters: The Fans, Boleyn through the ages, Our Home, Match Day, The Legends of Upton Park, and The Final Game. Of these, my favourite chapter is the shortest, the 11-page "Boleyn through the ages", where there are a handful of historic photos with interesting accompanying captions.

The rest of the book is probably best for people wanting to recapture the atmosphere of going to a match at Upton Park in 2016, or who wanted to relive the fireworks and hullabaloo of the last ever match played there.

True, the photography is of a good quality, and all very arty (see the reflection of Upton Park captured in a bubble on the cover as a case in point) but I would have liked more history to in here, especially given Upton Park was West Ham's home for 112 years.

The Secret Railway and the Crystal Caves by Wendy Meddour #bookreview


Book review: I got this for my nearly 10-year-old daughter to read. She says:

The story follows Ella and Leo as they attempt to return the incredible Crystallator (which is needed to open up the crystal caves again so they so they can be mined for fairy dust) to the High Chief of the Hob Goblins, Gripendulum, the leader of the Kingdom of Izzambard. 

When I was reading it I liked how the only way to get into Izzambard was if the time was 11.61. I didn't like Griselda, the evil character. I laughed when Leo tried to wake up the sleeping key and failed, and I was sad when Griselda's mechanical moles came to stop Ella and Leo. Also, it was a little hard to follow at first because I had not read the first book in the series.

I think this book is good for children the same age as me (nearly-10).


Saturday, 12 November 2016

From Russia with Love by Ian Fleming #bookreview


Book review: "From Russia with Love" famously was one of President JFK’s top 10 favourite reads. It also inspired the second Bond movie which, being early in the series, is pretty similar to the book.

The book starts from the Russian side. Indeed it isn’t until chapter 11 of 28 that James Bond makes an appearance in the flesh.

The early chapters introduce “Donovan Grant or ‘Red’ Grant – Chief Executioner of SMERSH”, Rosa Klebb and Tatiana Romanova as they form a plot to kill Bond, although Tatiana, or Tania, is more a pawn in the plot than an instigator.

The plot is formed, to kill Bond, the spy who “has at least twice frustrated the operations of SMERSH” (see previous Bond novels for those occasions). He is to be “killed with IGNOMINY” with “great scandal required”, thus making it clear to the spying world that, after making some “stupid blunders, [which] has made the Soviet Union look foolish and weak throughout the world”, SMERSH is back.

Luckily for James Bond fans he manages to survive the plot, or does he? – the book ending in a cliffhanger.

Along the way, Bond displays his analytical thinking and eye for detail, useful traits for a spy, and the book is a thrilling read, with plenty of suspense, especially whilst he takes the Orient Express train home.

James Bond will return in Dr. No.