BOOK REVIEWS
story time
For the whole family
For mom
For dad
For the family
The Yellow Eyes of Crocodiles
by Katherine Pancol
The Moaning of Life:the Worldly
Wisdom of Karl Pilkington
by Karl Pilkington
Bake Happy
by Gail Bussi
(R320, Penguin Books)
Bake Happy, as the name implies, is all about
the joy of baking and eating! Gail Bussi’s
collection brings together over 100 recipes,
some from her early childhood (peering over
her mother’s kitchen table), some collected
on her travels, and others that she has created
herself. From cakes, puddings and biscuits to
savoury tarts and breads, there is a tempting
something for everyone – and to suit both
beginner and more experienced bakers.
(R195, Penguin Books)
Are you in need of some escapism
accompanied by lots of laugh-out-loud
moments? Then this international best-seller
is for you. The Yellow Eyes of Crocodiles
follows a familiar plotline of a downtrodden
and dissatisfied wife and mother who,
through misfortune, is forced to take control
of her life and in the process reinvents herself.
However, beyond the bones of the plot there
is not much else that is familiar or typical. For
starters, I don’t think I’ve previously read
about a leading lady’s husband ditching
her to start a crocodile farm in Kenya, with
his manicurist mistress…
And so the novel is brought to life with
offbeat details and characters, lots of French
sass and affairs (the author is French and the
novel is set in Paris), kooky moments and a
feel-good ending. It’s chick-lit at its finest!
For the kids
Peter Saves the Day!
(R95, Penguin Books / Puffin)
For ages of 3 to 6 years. The characters of
Beatrix Potter’s classic children’s tales have
been brought to life in this animated story, so
you can introduce them to your children. The
mischief this time is caused by Squirrel Nutkin,
who stole and then lost Old Brown Owl’s
glasses. Owl is angry, and so Peter Rabbit and
his gang have to find the glasses as fast as
they can, to return them to him. During the
story other popular Beatrix Potter characters
make appearances, such as Mrs Tiggy-Winkle
and Jeremy Fisher. Added extras include a
map and a skills challenge for your child
to complete.
0514MMM2.indd 7
You may know Karl from An Idiot Abroad, the
British travel documentary created by Ricky
Gervais and Stephen Merchant. In it, Karl is
the idiot. Unscripted and filmed as it happens,
Karl creates comedy by just being, well, Karl.
You can expect the same quirky Karl to be
talking to you from the pages of The Moaning
of Life, as he travels the world to find answers
to the big question of life: what is the purpose
of it all? Specifically, he explores some of the
most universal things about being human marriage, babies, work, happiness and death
– through other cultures and people. The
results of his quest are honest, insightful and
hilarious. (His take on having kids? He can’t
understand why people say it is life changing,
because so is losing a leg, but why would you
want to do that?)
Does he find the meaning of life? We’re
not telling you, you’ll need to read the book
to find out. But we promise the read will
be worth it.
**WIN**
Win a copy of your book of choice
featured here and 2 complimentary
tickets to the MamaMagic Expo.
Simply SMS : ENTER (FIRST 2 WORDS
OF BOOK NAME) + YOUR FULL NAME
& POSTAL ADDRESS to 32015
Prize must be collected from the
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competition has closed. Standard Competition
Terms & Conditions apply, see page 1.)
(R195, Struik Lifestyle)
The book is lovingly packaged, with inspiring
quotes, playful illustrations, and anecdotes
and stories about where the recipes came
from. Gail’s love of delicious baked goods is