Review: Call of the Penguins by Hazel Prior

Call of the Penguins is the sequel to Away with the Penguins (one of my all-time favourite books), so when I was offered an early copy I think I may have screamed with excitement! You don't need to have read Away with the Penguins to enjoy this story, but you will get more out of it if you do.

In Call of the Penguins we meet 87-year old Veronica and her much put upon housekeeper Eileen, who are living in Veronica's huge Scottish house along with 9-year-old Daisy, who is recovering from having chemotherapy. To help keep Daisy positive, Veronica has been telling her about her previous adventures in the Antarctica (Away with the Penguins), where she met orphan penguin chick Pip.

When national treasure and documentary filmmaker Sir Robert Saddlebow invites Veronica to co-host a TV programme on seabirds, she is thrilled - even though it means travelling across the world to Australia and the Falkland Islands. However, as Veronica and Daisy set off on their adventure, Veronica's grandson Patrick is heading in the opposite direction, arriving from the Antarctic after falling out with his 'penguinologist' girlfriend Terry. Wondering if irresponsibility is in his genes, Patrick decides to find out more about his father, who abandoned him when he was a baby.

Call of the Penguins is a warm-hearted, witty, thoroughly uplifting story about family, finding your true 'family', and friends who become like family - with all the associated arguments and misunderstandings that go with that! In Veronica's case, her 'family' also includes penguins and she is very passionate about their environment and survival. A reoccurring theme is climate change and the effects of single-use plastic on wildlife. Veronica is a fabulous character, even when (particularly when?) she is being interfering, bossy and/or annoying. I love her!

Thoroughly recommended, particularly if you loved Away with the Penguins and books such as Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine. One of my favourite reads this year.

Thank you to Hazel Prior and Transworld/Penguin Random House for my copy of this book, which I received via the publisher and reviewed voluntarily. 

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Away with the Penguins by Hazel Prior

Review: Away with the Penguins* by Hazel Prior

I downloaded this book because (1) a friend recommended it to me, (2) of the very clever title, and (3) the absolutely gorgeous cover. I am so glad I did. This book will definitely be one of my favourite reads this year. Think Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine - but with penguins!

Veronica McCreedy is very wealthy, lives in a huge mansion in Scotland, is never seen without her ruby red lipstick and has a collection of very expensive handbags. She spends her days collecting litter from the beach ('People who litter the countryside should be shot'), watching wildlife programmes on TV, and bossing her much put upon assistant around. She's also 85 years old.

Realising that she has no family or friends to leave her fortune to, she tracks down her long-lost grandson. The meeting is such a disaster (for both of them!) she thinks she should just leave her money to the penguins. Or rather, the scientists who are studying them at a remote and poorly-funded research station in the Antarctica. And because Veronica is a sensible (stubborn, bloody-minded) kind of person, she decides to pay the research centre a visit before agreeing to part with any cash. Much to the horror of the scientists...

The story is told from the point of view of Veronica and her grandson Patrick, interspersed with short blog posts written by one of the scientists. Both Veronica and Patrick are brilliant characters with very strong, very different voices. Veronica, for example, turns up at the research station with all the correct gear, whereas Patrick just jumps on a plane and arrives in the Antarctic completely unprepared. The story is very funny, completely realistic and also poignant - especially during flashbacks to the 1940s, when Veronica was an unmarried mother. There is a serious message about climate change, lots and lots of penguins, and a cute little rescued chick called Pip. The only bit I wasn't keen on was the epilogue, because it tied up all the loose ends and I would have loved a sequel!

As you might have guessed, I absolutely loved Away with the Penguins. It deserves to be a huge bestseller because it is completely brilliant and utterly original. If you only buy one book this year, buy this one. I guarantee you will love it too!

*Published as How the Penguins Saved Veronica in the USA

Thank you to Hazel Prior and Bantam Press for my copy of this book, which I requested from NetGalley and reviewed voluntarily.