Pass the Pickled Porcupine & Other Wild Food Stories

Pass the Pickled Porcupine & Other Wild Food Stories is a new book from Graham Chalmers who is an expert hunter, fisherman and food forager.

Born in Zimbabwe in 1957 he was privileged with access to wilderness areas in Africa.

He eventually moved to South Africa and whilst earning degrees in business and law, he continued to develop his skills as a food expert and game cook.

In 2000 he moved to Britain and continued his interest in wild-sourced food i not only the UK but also Europe and America.

This book is a series of essays about a staggering 50 different types of wild foods, which also contains information about Graham's abilities as a forager,a hunter, a fisherman and a cook.

You'll learn about collecting hedgerow blackberries in Britain, and hunting Cape buffalo in South Africa.

Learn how to make Mopane Worm Stew, using dried mopane worms), how to make a delicious traditional biltong, learn that aardvarks are not, generally, eaten in Africa (despite what some books might try to claim), learn how to prepare an abalone, how to make impala chops teriyaki, how to cook bass, freshwater or Texan black.

You'll learn how to cook medallions of wild boar with banana, (ripe bananas are specified) how to fry crocodile steaks, and even more interesting meals besides.

The book contains some cautionary tales, including how mussels can kill you, even should you not eat one. Scary stuff, mussels!

The book makes a fascinating read for the amateur or the professional cook who will now know how to cope if the owners of an eating establishment comes into the kitchen with a mysterious delivery shouting: "I've just got a load of Ostrich meat. Do something with it, OK?" The recipe for Ostrich Stroganoff is on page 181.)

I feel that the book would have greatly benefited from illustrations (either line drawings or photographs) but there are none. A pity, but it's still a very interesting book that you should add to your collection of culinary books.

It's published by The Book Guild at £9.99.

Victoria to Vikings

Victoria to Vikings The Circle of Blood is a new historical novel from published author Trisha Hughes.

Although a work of fiction the book is filled with historical detail and it covers in great detail the Georgian and Victorian eras, up to the reign of Queen Elizabeth II.

It also examines in part two the Kings of England and of Denmark.

Queen Victoria is looked at in great detail. Under the reign of Queen Victoria, England, argues Trisha Hughes, achieved a rank on the international stage that it had never aspired to previously.

She also touches on another Queen of equal greatness, Queen Elizabeth II. She also indicates that the Prince Phillip her "Stalwart and loyal" husband also has a strong Viking heritage.

Although written as a work of fiction I would heartily recommend this book to any students of history as you will find that Trisha Hughes as already done all the work for you. But if you quote from her work, do remember to properly cite it!

It's published by The Book Guild at £8.99.

Arthursdale Boy Nidderdale Girl

Arthursdale Boy Nidderdale Girl is a memoir bu Frank Pedley. Frank is 85, a former soldier and a Wensleydale sheep enthusiast.

He was subjected to the kind of unofficial familial adoption that was once fairly common in Britain, but not so today. He was "adopted" by his Victorian grandparents, an action which rescued him from a probably fairly grim existence in the slums of industrial Leeds.

He was able to enjoy the benefits of a decent education at Tadcaster Grammar School. He also met with and became utterly enchanted with an attractive girl with brunette hair (in short pigtails) who wielded a large hockey stick. They were in the same form at school, which is how they met.

A family bereavement meant they were separated, but several years later they met again. But the circumstances were a little bit awkward. Frank was commissioned after passing out at Sandhurst, and was about to embark on an overseas tour of duty with his first regiment. Also, Ruth was engaged to be married.

Through the pages of this fascinating book we read of their long courtship and their long marriage and their life together, sometimes turbulent, sometimes not. Their marriage was brought to a conclusion only by her death in 2007.

The memoir is both poignant and utterly candid, more so than many autobiographies, it has to be conceded.

As well as his marriage and his family life Frank writers about hid experiences in Malaya, of his working life during the Cold War era. He was involved with the Cabinet level contingency planning for the recovery of the United Kingdom should the British Isles have suffered from a Russian nuclear attack.

He also describes the problems of restoring 17th century properties, sheep rearing and exhibiting at the highest national levels. He also writes very movingly on the dreadful horrors of the 2001 foot and mouth epidemic.

He also incorporate some of the evidence that he has gathered based on years of research into his family tree, going as far back as the 17th century and revealing several major surprises.

The book is well illustrated with many photographs.

It's a book that belongs in the rich history of biographies because it tells it like it is and is well-written. I feel that this book will become a standard reference work for many years to come.

It's published by The Book Guild at £17.99 in hardback.

The Artemis File

In The Artemis File author Adam Loxley the action starts at once. But what action?

George Wiggins meets an excitable woman in his local, but all was not quite what it seemed.

A national newspaper publish a crossword, which totally blows a covert intelligence operation known only to the secret services. Or so they had thought.

A CIA officer who had defected and was thought to be dead proves himself to be very much alive by passing an envelope to an utter stranger, only recently recruited as a mule. In a nearby pub. Though, curiously, the envelope appears to be empty of any content.

What, exactly, the hell is going on? Secret service operatives in Langley, Virginia, Tel Aviv and London burst into frantic action as they decide that they need to put into practice an operation to make certain that the details of a secret conspiracy that they had though buried some two decades ago.

If the secret comes out, governments will fall, the balance of power in the world will change. Probably for ever.

The established order of things is severe threat. Who are they? What do they hope to archive? And who, or what, is Artemis?

It's a spy novel thriller in the best sense of the term and it's published by Matador at £9.99.

Another great book to take on your holidays.

Aya and Papaya Meet the Big Little Creatures

Aya and Papaya Meet the Big Little Creatures is the second book about the adventures of Aya and Papaya written by MQ.

it's morning time, the sun is glimpsing through Ayua's window and she slowly opens her eyes and gives Papaya a big hug.

She leaps out of her bed and draws open the curtains. As she does this, she is smiling. why? Because she has remembered that her best friend, Samy, is coming to visit to play.

So it is tht Aya, Samy, Papaya and Bamboo decide to have a bit of an adventure by visiting the big castle which is at the end of the garden.

But how can they get there, safely? For they must be very courageous and walk past the big little creatures who live in the garden.

Whilst they make their journey through the garden the friends learn valuable lessons about treating others with kindness and respect and also they learn about bravery, too.

This fantastic children's book is created by MQ, written by And Abey and stunningly illustrated by Leo Antolini.

It's published by Matador at £8.99 and this charming book should be owned by all parents and grandparents.

Norman Snodgrass Saves the Green Planet

Norman Snodgrass Saves the Green Planet is a book from Sue Bough. It tells the story of Norman. Norman is an ordinary sort of a chap. He is somewhat overweight and a bit clumsy, he usually spends his time avoiding being teased by his Poggle classmates. For they are all Poggles.

He is somehow given the great honour of looking after Spong, the class pet. Who Norman manages to lose. He has to enter the weird Green Planet to attempt to track Spong down and return him to the school.

During his searching he meets up with a strange and mysterious scientist, a professor, and Norman learns that all is not well and that a series of deadly hazards are putting their planet at risk.

So, what's a Poggle to do? This Poggle, Norman Snodgrass, decides that not only is he going to find and save Song, he is going to embark on a dangerous, perilous and highly risk mission to Save The Planet!

Can Norman find Spong? Can he save the entire planet? Will he become a hero to his fellow classmates?

Read this book and find out!

It's an environmentally aware book for children and costs £7.99 and is published by Matador.

Sue has also illustrated the book throughout.

'Cinderella', I Wish!

'Cinderella', I Wish! is a powerful and very compelling true life story from Dominique Deveraux's ife.

As a young black child she was living a very enjoyable life with her white foster parents who loved and adored her.

But then disaster strikes, as Nanny dies and she has to be removed from the home where she knew only love and she enters a new world of heartache and troubles.

She is placed into a new home, but rather than love and compassion she is subjected to abuse and misery.

Her life dissolves into one of trauma and fear. She is subjected to abuse, suffers domestic violence and even witnesses murder.

Can Dominique learn to be her own true self, again? Can she find love in her own heart for not only others but also for her own self, too?

Can she deal with people who lie to get what they want, use violence and threats to control those they pretend to love?

There's a lot for her to contend with, an unexpected but welcome pregnancy, the problems of living with ME and the career changes this creeping, vile disease can bring about (REVIEWER'S NOTE: I have personal experience of this little understood but potentially devastating health complaint)  and a variety of other issues that seem to prove the old adage that what doesn't kill us makes us stronger.

It's an amazing memoir and from an almost little orphan girl without a glass slipper or a prince to an agony aunt and a key manager for 30 years in Children's Social Care Management, I think that Dominique did very well indeed with her life. Just proves that nobody needs a glass slipper, after all!

The book is published by Matador at £9.99.