Synopsis: When Mungo’s Dad dies he has to move to the country. It’s Deadsville. Give him kebab shops, tattoo parlours, and record stores any day. But then he meets the boy with the extraordinary plan…

Review: Mungo can’t believe his luck moving to the country - manuresville. It’s so boring, the corner shop is smelly, nothing like the deli’s he’s used to in London. To make things worse the people are so old, manure munchers as Mungo calls them. When he meets a weird boy his own age he becomes strangely fascinated by him. Of course he would never normally hang out with such a nutter, but the boy is so interesting and he creepily knows so much about him. The strange boy is also called Mungo, of all unusual names, and he too is named after his Scottish great-grandfather, and he too has no dangle in his earlobes, a ‘slime head’ like Mungo…is it a coincidence, is he lying or is there more to it? Gradually Mungo becomes more and more intrigued by this boy who shares his name, determined to discover the link between them. Except the boy has plans of his own and it involves crawling down a deserted well on a rope-ladder…

Nigel Richardson’s second novel is full of surprises. The first-person narration is both convincing and humorous. Mungo’s voice really captures a teenager and his thoughts on country living brought back memories of growing up in a rural setting. The novel doesn’t really sparkle until chapter two, but persevere and Mungo’s interest in the other Mungo keeps the pages turning and the reader guessing. Richardson expertly weaves humour with the grief and pain of losing a parent. Recommended.

2007-03-29