Review - Pages & Co. Tilly and the Bookwanderers.

Hello hello my lovelies,

So I've finished my first book of the year. It took longer than expected as I was away with my family over Christmas and didn't get much reading done at all.

Anyway, no more excuses! 

Here is my review for Pages & Co. Tilly and the Bookwanderers by Anna James.

Synopsis

A magical adventure to delight the imagination. A curl-up-on-the-sofa snuggle of a debut from a uniquely talented author.

Eleven year-old Tilly has lived above her grandparents' bookshop ever since her mother disappeared shortly after she was born. Like the rest of her family, Tilly loves nothing more than to escape into the pages of her favourite stories.

One day Tilly realises that classic children's characters are appearing in the shop through the magic of `book wandering' - crossing over from the page into real life.

With the help of Anne of Green Gables and Alice in Wonderland. Tilly is determined to solve the mystery of what happened to her mother all those years ago, so she bravely steps into the unknown, unsure of what adventure lies ahead and what dangers she may face.

I'm going to start off by saying that having read this book, I think that if there was ever something that I wish I could do, it has to be book wandering like Tilly. Imagine being able to actually go into a page of your favourite book and talk to characters, feel and smell the setting and watch the story unfurl before your eyes. Wouldn't that be amazing!

Tilly is a curious girl with a love for books. She has been brought up by her grandparents who own a book shop (something else idyllic right there!). Her dad died before she was born and her mother went missing shortly after that. Living in a bookshop and being surrounded by people who enjoy the beauty of reading means that she has fostered that love too. 

However, things aren't all as they seem. She thinks she sees characters from her favourite book. She hears her grandparents having secret conversations. This piques her curiosity and Tilly sets off to find out what is happening. 

Entwined with this, is her desire to find out what she can about her mum and dad and her developing friendship with the boy across the road.

The chapters rolled at a quick pace and I really enjoyed the chapter titles. They added more quirkiness and set the my mind wondering what each title meant. There were titles such as: Readers are so Messy and Some Books are Loved and Some are Forgotten.

I have to say that my heart skipped a beat and I was extremely excited when Tilly ends up in an old Peter and Jane Ladybird book. I was brought up on these and I could actually picture the illustrations from that book as I was reading this one. I think it was at this point that I just wanted to be Tilly!

As Tilly book wanders more and more, some things are as she expects and some things just aren't and the sentences quicken as tension builds on the adventures; but the final twists which round the book up are something I would never have guessed in a million years. Obviously I'm not going to give that part away. You'll just have to read it to find out.

You can tell that Anna James has a deep set love for books and reading as that comes through so clearly and there are some gorgeous quotes to boot.

'Bookwandering is, at its core, the magic of books and imagination pushed to the limit, and then tipped over a little bit further.'

'Be brave. Be curious. Be kind.' This I feel I should give to my class.

'But I think a bookshop is like a map of the world. There are infinite paths you can take through it and none of them are right or wrong. Here in a bookshop we give readers landmarks  to help them find their way, but every reader has to learn to set their own compass.' 

If you weren't a book lover before you read this book, you certainly would be after. It really is a little book of warmth and love that makes you feel good and affirms all you think of about books and reading. It's a real gem of a book and if I could, I'd personally thank the author for bringing back memories of my childhood and allowing me to read a book in which I smiled practically the whole way through. 

Rating: 

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Happy reading

Allison x