It's time for another batch of book reviews, and this week I take a look at the varied themes of genocide, teenage school life, revenge and philosophy...

Sudan by Ninie Hammon

Sudan by Ninie Hammon - 4.8 / 5.0

Sudan by Ninie Hammon deals with the government organised genocide in Sudan, so as you'd expect given the subject matter it's pretty heavy reading at times and doesn't pull any punches. It's a fictional story, but all of the horrific events described in the book are based on actual atrocities that have taken place in Sudan.

Author Ninie Hammon doesn't sugar coat things, so the powerful writing will pull on your heart-strings at times, but Sudan is a brilliant book and an important book that deserves and needs to be read by a bigger audience. If it was produced in a way which captured the emotion of the book, then Sudan would also make a very powerful movie or TV series.



Knocked Out By My Nunga-Nungas by Louise Rennison

Knocked Out By My Nunga-Nungas by Louise Rennison - 4.7 / 5.0

This is the third instalment of the adventures of Georgia Nicolson and her wild pet cat Angus, and the style of humour is identical to the first two books.

Georgia's continuing adventures see her faking illness as a cover for being suspended from school, heading off on a family trip to Scotland, and having to choose between Robbie the Sex God and Dave the Laugh.

Overall, the hilarity is more or less at the brilliant level of the previous books, and if you're a fan of the series then you'll also love Knocked Out By My Nunga-Nungas.

The Racketeer by John Grisham

The Racketeer by John Grisham -  4.9 / 5.0

Most John Grisham fans will probably thoroughly enjoy The Racketeer, even though the plot deals more with revenge rather than with the courtroom justice featured in many of Grisham's books. The main character is Malcolm Bannister, a former lawyer and innocent man who was wrongly sent to prison by the FBI for money laundering.

While in prison, a federal judge is murdered and Bannister is the only person who knows who the real killer is, so he makes a deal with the FBI in return for his freedom. But things aren't quite as simple as they seem, and I personally loved the way events unfolded as the story reached its conclusion.

The Racketeer is a great book which will particularly appeal to readers like myself who enjoy clever plot twists and like to see an ingenious plan come to fruition.

The Sunday Philosophy Club by Alexander McCall Smith

The Sunday Philosophy Club by Alexander McCall Smith - 4.2 / 5.0

The Sunday Philosophy Club didn't quite have the magic of Alexander McCall Smith's No.1 Ladies Detecetive Agency books, but it was still a pleasant read. At times the narrative included Isabel Dalhousie's rambling thoughts on various aspects of morality and ethics, and I personally enjoyed these divertions but others may find them a distraction and prefer the story to progress a bit quicker.

For a book about a possible murder the whole plot seemed surprisingly low key, but it still has Alexander McCall Smith's distinctive style, so while it wasn't my all-time favourite book of his, it was still a satisfying read.







The above book reviews are the opinions of Charles Fudgemuffin. Charles is the author of the lighthearted crime comedy 'Fly-Tipping', which is available for kindle from Amazon.

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More book reviews:
Book reviews (part 8)
Book reviews (part 9)

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