3 whimsical books you may not have heard of

I’ve decided to add a post of 3 quick book reviews of books that are underrated - all of these books are stand-alone and not part of series The three books are all five stars 1. The closest thing to flying byGill Lewis 2. The Great Choco-plot by Chris Callaghan 3. The boy who swam with Pirañas by David Almond Honourable mention to a wonderful book - the girl of ink and stars (although you would probably find it at your local Waterstones )

The boy who swam with Piranhas is by David Almond, an author you might recognise from picture books, it is a heartfelt story about a boy running away from a workaholic family to travel with a fairground. It’s about family, forgiveness, wonder and love. I would recommend it for ages 7 year old + as it can really be enjoyed by anyone who understands it. It also has a few lovely illustrations.

The next book is The Closest Thing to Flying by Gill Lewis. This is a friendship and freedom story from two different generations intertwining. This feminist, true to life but also magical (not literally) story. The first story is of Saimara a Eritrian refugee, the older story is about Henrietta* who is starting to hear of the suffragette movement from her delightful friend Kitty. It’s very sad at times and I’d recommend it for 10+-year-olds.

The final book is The Great Chocoplot by Chris Callaghan. It is a really funny tale about a foretold choco-pocalypse (as in the extinction of chocolate in Chompton-on-de-Lyte, an English town that invented chocolate and thrives on a good Block-a-choca). When a new pompous chocolatier- Garibaldi Chocolati with his posh Chox chocolate and Easter Egg Island artefacts come to town, its up to Jelly to uncover this choco-plot. Special mention to Mrs Bunstable for being the best secondary character. I found this at the book fair on World Book Day. I would give it 5 stars and recommend it for 7+ year olds.

*(also the name of the small town in which a RAVEN CYCLE SERIES is set, review is newly updated so go check that out)