Rumpole for the Defence
by John Mortimer; audiobook read by Bill Wallis (Bolinda, 2016)
originally “Regina v. Rumpole” (Allen Lane, 1981)
Seven further trials, adapted from the 1980 BBC Radio series (plus one Play for Today). Behind Rumpole’s cynical bluster and his numerous personal and professional setbacks, Mortimer offers up ingenious case studies in legal defence. Bill Wallis’s audiobook reading is superbly Rumpole-like.
The Secret of Moon Castle
by Enid Blyton (Basil Blackwell, 1953) [Armada, 1991]
![Book cover: “The Secret of Moon Castle” by Enid Blyton (Basil Blackwell, 1953) [Armada, 1991]](https://www.derelictspacesheep.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Blyton_Secret-Moon-Castle.jpg)
Blyton’s ‘Secret’ series ends with a bit of a whimper. The villain is unambiguous and the mystery entails a nebulous mining scheme that, Scooby-Doo style, would have remained hidden if not for his trying to scare the kids off with manufactured spookery.
Maid Marian and her Merry Men, Series 1
by Tony Robinson; dir. David Bell (BBC, 1989)
One-of-a-kind children’s comedy with a penchant for slow-rapped beatbox scene-setting (courtesy of Danny John-Jules). Episodes rattle along through a gamut of small-scale absurdisms, over-the-top, self-aware characters, corny anachronisms and genuine wit. Tony Robinson brings Blackadder vibes as the villainous Sheriff of Nottingham.
The Left Hand of Darkness
by Ursula K. Le Guin (Ace, 1967)
audiobook read by George Guidall (Recorded Books, 2017)
Accomplished prose, meticulous worldbuilding. The Left Hand of Darkness won Nebula and Hugo Awards, and on the strength of its pioneering contribution to feminist SF, who can argue? The plot, however, is far from riveting—a slog for readers and characters alike.
The Wombles: Beautiful Boating Weather
by Elisabeth Beresford (Hodder Children’s Books, 1998)
A slight (14-page) picture book adapted by Elisabeth Beresford from the 1997 TV series (itself derived from her MG novels)! The Wombles prove as loveable as ever, the pictures here being taken directly from the show, but there’s nothing of independent merit.
Artemis Fowl
by Eoin Colfer (Viking, 2001); audiobook read by Gerry O’Brien (Puffin, 2013)
The fairy world is imaginatively realised and affords a new set of (magical) parameters within which Colfer can manifest Artemis’s ingenious criminal scheming. O’Brien’s audiobook reading goes some way towards papering over such writerly cracks as blatant tell-don’t-show and one-dimensional, stereotyped characters.
Faerie Tale
by Raymond E. Feist (Doubleday, 1988)
While Feist’s leisurely characterisation of the Hastings family draws the reader in and makes them susceptible to the creeping dread of faerie lore, the workmanlike omniscient narrative and muddled plot (once removed of its glamour) are unlikely to truly unsettle adult readers.
Doctor Who: Out of Time
by Matt Fitton; dir. Nicholas Briggs (Big Finish, 2020)
David Tennant and Tom Baker make for an arresting duo and are given time to interact, the story’s emotional depth further complemented by Kathryn Drysdale’s performance as Jora. A shame, then, that the threat had to come from blustering, blogging, self-opinionated Daleks.
Teen Titans: Beast Boy loves Raven
by Kami Garcia; ill. Gabriel Picolo (DC Comics, 2021)
The title says it all, with Garcia and Picolo keeping an unapologetic focus on Raven and Beast Boy’s burgeoning romance (instalove, to be sure, but not out of keeping with their age and shared insecurities). The bad guys’ plan is concomitantly half-arsed.
Dylan Moran: What It Is
(Live in Sydney, 2009)
Moran appears more inclined to make a point than in previous recordings, and consequently less able to do so (his off-the-cuff artillery ceding ground to encroaching vagueness and derailments of thought). When in flow, still a waspishly beleaguered, bildungs-roaming, man-child philosophiser nonpareil.