Published By: Monarch Educational Services
Pages: 132
Released On: 06/08/2024
Reading Age: Up to 12
When Groundworld is on the brink of extinction, it takes one mole with courage to save the day.
When Benjamin, a junior mole digger, witnesses a human invasion of his homeland, he must find his long-lost courage and unite two culturally distinct realms to fight the intruders and save his kind from extinction. What perils lie before him as he ventures into the unknown? Can Benjamin go up against a rough bunch of illegal animal trappers before it’s too late?
Meet the Groundworld heroes as they defend their country’s sovereignty and save their fellow citizens from capture and extinction.
*****
Thanks to Adrian for sending me a copy of his new book in return for an honest review.
I am 30 years old (at time of writing) and have been writing for most of my life, and here comes Adrian, a boy still at school, with a published book. I ought to feel jealous and annoyed, but I’m the opposite; I’m so happy to see young talents coming through in the literary world.
I mean, this isn’t a book aimed at 30 year olds, let’s be honest. And so I’m going to try an review it as if I was the target audience.
It is a nice short book, quick to read, short enough to keep young children interested but long enough for older children to enjoy.
It had hints of A Bug’s Life, and Antz about it (films that I’m aware may feel ancient to people of Adrian’s age, but films I grew up on).
For me, at its heart, it’s about the little guy standing up for what he believes in, standing up for his home and his “people” against the more dominant and invasive species, in this case, humans; it’s about being brave, about stepping out of the shadows and showing your worth.
I loved the name of their home – Soiland. It’s so simple but made me smile. Similar things include Puddleland, and the restaurant Insecteria, the badger called Bad Ger, the mouse called Mousepehine, and the hedgehog Quillbur, as well as The Fantastic Parmesan.
There are a range of characters of all types: moles, badgers, mice, humans – they’re all fun and all individual. Some more developed than others, some felt a bit like 2D background characters, but I’m fine with that.
There was a bit towards the end where I found myself thinking “well that was a bit unrealistic”, and then I remembered it was a story about underground animals fighting humans and it’s all a bit unrealistic, but marvellously so.
I don’t know if it’s just because I have an early digital version or not, but I’m hoping there will be some illustrations or drawings of some sort in the finished copy because that’ll really add to the story ad help youngsters get and stay invested.
There are bits that are better than others and the odd bit that needs a bit of tidying up to make it read more fluently, but I think for a writer Adrian’s age, it shows great promise for a future career in writing. I think it may also inspire more young people to pick up a pen and write, that books and storytelling can be fun and cool.
It’s fun, fast-paced, cheeky, exciting, original, perfectly pitched for its audience, with some highlights for the grownups reading it as a bedtime story. It’s a feel-good story and I was smiling throughout it.
Books By Your Bedside 