TumTum & Nutmeg

After my last entry and review of a book full of demons and the Devil it was time for a change. Those of you seeking a creepy book for Halloween see my review of The Boneshaker below. This week I needed relief from the scary, and read TumTum and Nutmeg: Adventures Beyond Nutmouse Hall. This British import is wonderfully written. If you read The Borrowers Series or The Little's and enjoyed them, then this is the book for you. I found myself charmed by TumTum and Nutmeg themselves, and General Marchmouse's childlike antics are hysterical. I particularly enjoyed the scene where the General mounts a full blown attack on a doll house with G.I. Joe action figures. See a summary below, and come and check the book out of the library.

From School Library Journal:
Rose Cottage is a modest abode "rife with clutter and chaos." But behind a broom-closet door, hidden by a heavy chest of drawers, lies a 36-room mansion, home to Tumtum and Nutmeg Nutmouse. The retiring animal couple takes great pleasure in helping absentminded Mr. Mildew and his motherless children, who live in the cottage, in small ways—darning socks, rewiring heaters, and patching shoes. But a visit by the Mildews' odious Aunt Ivy turns the quiet couple's life upside down after the woman spots them on the upstairs landing. A full-blown mouse attack ensues, requiring the assistance of neighboring General Marchmouse and his mouse battalion. Adventure upon adventure follows, including trouble at the local school and an encounter with pirate rats (who are hindered by liqueur-filled chocolates).

The Boneshaker

"Strange things can happen at a crossroads." This is a lesson that Natalie Minks comes to learn about her town. This is a wonderful historical fantasy with a dramatic "good vs. evil" theme. Natalie must save her town from demons and even the Devil himself, with the help of her friends and a few strange characters in her town of Arcane, Missouri. It has been a long time since I found a book that kept me up reading late at night. It was so suspenseful that I couldn't sleep until I had found out what happened next. I would recommend this book to anyone who loves the horror/fantasy genre. Be prepared to lose some sleep!


From School Library Journal:
Natalie Minks, 13, likes machines-the way they make sense, the way all the gears and cogs fit together to make something happen. When Dr. Jake Limberleg's Nostrum Fair and Technological Medicine Show stops in at her father's bicycle repair shop because a wagon wheel has fallen off and disappeared, Natalie knows that the man is not meant to fit into the machinery of her life. Her ailing mother has told her stories of bargains made with the Devil, and of besting wickedness by looking it right in the face. Limberleg has a collection of clockwork figures that work without being wound up and never seem to run down. When Natalie begins to have inexplicable visions of the malevolent forces facing Arcane, MO, she isn't convinced that she is equipped to fight the evil at hand. Soon almost everyone is taken in by Limberleg's promises of miraculous healing and snake-oil cures, and it becomes clear to Natalie that she is their only hope of survival. Enhanced by full-page drawings, this intricate story, set in the early 20th century, unfolds with the almost audible click of puzzle pieces coming together. In the gothic tradition of Ray Bradbury's Something Wicked This Way Comes (S & S, 1962), The Boneshaker will earn itself a place in the annals of stories about children and the struggle between good and evil.-Heather M. Campbell, formerly at Philip S. Miller Library, Castle Rock, CO Copyright 2010 Reed Business Information.