Zero Tolerance

Zero Tolerance is a novel written by a retired teacher who goes by the name of "The Old Grey Owl."

There are troubling times in the world of education. The Head of Humanities who seems to long for snow. In Norway.

A therapy dog that is put to sleep in order to save money, there's an Ofsted inspector who grades sexual encounters on a clipboard. As they are their own sexual encounters, that's probably not as creepy as it sounds, but even so...

What happened to the Deputy Head after the Year 11 Prom? 

What of the once great LEA empire, now whittled down to nearly nobody at all?

What of the Syrian refugee? What is he to make of it all? And what is the Secretary of State for Education really up to?

Of course, none of these events could ewer happen in real life, could they? But the former English teacher and deputy head and one time exam moderator for GCSE English exams who wrote this book might not be too certain about that.

It's a cynical, wry and amusing look at the British education system and many teachers will, upon reading it, purse their lips, nod and say: "I used to work with someone, just like that!"

It's published by Matador at £9.99.

A Journey Through South-East England

A Journey Through South-East England is another excellent walking book from published author and expert walker Brian J. Rance.

You'll have followed Brian from Broadstairs to Lewes. Now you can join him on the huge walk through Kent and East Sussex, which he was able to achieve just prior to his 70th birthday.

You'll follow the walk with Brian from Lewes to Hartfield, from Hartfield to Upnor and then, ultimately, from Upnor to Woolwich, Brian's birthplace.

There are many highly detailed walking maps and some highly amusing cartoons and some amusing asides. For example in Chafford it seems that everything is called Chaff
ord.

He takes us to a pub that was once named after a famous hoax, checks out the site of the hoax, looks an elegant humpback bridge, drinks one pint of beer in a disappointingly busy pub, and chats to the many people he met on his walk, including the owner of a quivering and rather wet dog.

If you intend to walk in the footsteps of Brain, or even if you don't, you really should buy this book.

It's published by The Book Guild at £14.95 and will make an excellent gift for the walker in your life.

The Funnies

In his latest novel The Funnies, BAFTA-nominated creator of a number of hit BBC comedy series Paul A. Mendelson introduces us to the hero, Marius K.

It explores, but in a subtle and humorous way, some very interesting philosophical concepts.

Science is good, right? But what if it wasn't all that good, all the time?

A sense of humour is a good thing, right? But what if some clever scientists decided to use their knowledge of science to have the sense of humour removed from everyone at birth?

That is exactly what happened in the country where Marius K. was born and lived. Everyone had their sense of humour removed.

But what if some people, some people such as Marius K. had, somehow, not had their sense of humour removed?

What could they do? Where would they go? Could they survive?

Some of those people fled into the forest and they were driven, no, determined, to keep humour a real, and living force.

Marius K, age 12, flees into the forest, abandoning his family and his beloved pet dog in order to find the others who, like him, had managed to retain their sense of humour.

But did they exist? And could Marius K. discover them before the very un-fun Fun Police found Marius K? And have his illegal sense of humour removed?

But how do you try to make someone laugh when their own father had removed their sense of humour? 

And how can you foment a rebellion when all you had was your sense of humour and some really, really crazy ideas?

Within the novel there are also some telling asides that point out the foibles of our own society.

Will the humourless Deputy Minister of Humour prevail and finally snuff out all humour? Or will the Funnies finally succeed, against, all the odds and, laughingly, claim victory? And if so, how?

You really, really do need this book. It's published by The Book Guild at £8.99.

It's aimed at a young audience, but everyone of any and every age will love it.

World Book Day: Not just one for the kids!

As I’m sure you know World Book Day is fast approaching. It's on 5th March 2020.

Whilst kids are choosing their costumes and deciding which book to use their tokens for we have something special for the grown-ups out there. 'Awakening' by Nevsah is winging its way to the UK after being launched with much success in the USA, published by a division of Hay House.

‘Awakening’ is a book for all ages ranging from young adults to those older and wiser, we can all benefit from the awakening of this book. With this book, author Nevsah hopes to expand the readers’ consciousness and provide tools on how to live an extraordinary life by staying awake and connected.

Nevsah is a respected global expert and educator who has been teaching and lecturing for  nearly two decades.

In this book, she explores the subject of the many misconceptions surrounding spirituality and what Awakening actually is.

“There are a lot of misconceptions about Awakening which is one of the reasons I wrote the book,” explains Nevsah. “I have come to a realisation that Awakening is not what people think it is. People think awakening is some spiritual experience where you get filled with love and light. But actually, those kinds of experiences are there because of some chemical shift in the body, they are not even real.”

The Private UK Book Launch will be held on March 9th 2020 at The Swiss Church in London. Followed by a Hay House LIVE on May 2nd and 3rd.

The skills and tools shared in the book ‘Awakening’ will be conducted and taught in a 12-hour intense workshop called ‘Awakening to The Executive Mind’ hosted by Nevsah herself on Friday, March 21st 2020 in London.

Awakening: Awakening is not what you think is available to buy at Amazon, Waterstones and Foyles.


Nevsah F. Karamehmet is a respected global teacher and published author who is dedicated to expanding human consciousness and has impacted over 100,000 individuals through her workshops, talks and training.

She is an expert in Breathing and Behavioral Sciences with a 20-year track record of unrivalled expertise.

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Oranges and Lemons

Oranges and Lemons is a debut novel from Paula F. Andrews.

Jessifer Jordan is an outgoing teenage girl. She is known for being a loyal friend and always open and she has a love of acting.

When Adeline, a friendly but ghostly girl from the Victorian era makes an appearance in her life, naturally Jessifer confides in her best friend. But when it becomes obvious that her best friend doesn't believe her, Jess decides that secrecy is the way forward.

Before Adeline came into her life, Jess had been outgoing and sociable, but now she had turned into a far more serious girl, cutting herself off from others as she tries to establish exactly what it is that her ghostly friend wants.

Jess finds herself taken back to the 1860s where she meets with a medical doctor who seems to be of a somewhat mercurial nature and who has a somewhat obsessive relationship with the potentially fatal drug morphine. 

Jess slips between the time of Adeline and her own time, and as she does, she begins to understand that Adeline is bring back memories of Jess' own deceased sister. Which means that her own, hidden, grief begins to reassert itself.

Can the help of her own and wise great aunt Ruby help her? Will she be able to confound the maniacal doctor? And what about the mysterious cat? What does the cat have to do with what is happening?

And what of the Victorian ghost child, Adeline? What does she really want? And can Jess help her achieve it?

With this novel, aimed at children, but enjoyable by adults, too, Paula F. Andrews has hit the ground running and I will state that Paula F. Yates is an author to watch for in the future.

It's published by Matador at £8.99