Fifteen-year-old Morag Narmo really doesn’t want to go to school any more. She and her siblings would rather feed their heads into the waste-disposal unit than “do the academical”. So they are all stunned when their parents whisk them out of school and embark on a home-schooling experiment. But with five children, two unruly pets and some extremely eccentric attitudes, the educational experiment soon descends into chaos…
I’m liking
The Chronicles of Narmo is a is wacky and slightly ridiculous book, and the Narmo family is the kind of family where anything could happen. There are some nice moments of genuine humour and reader may enjoy the quirky family (while feeling relieved that the family is not theirs!).
Things that made me go hmmmm
Caitlin Moran is super-duper famous and, to be honest, this book feels like an attempt to cash in on that. Much is made of the fact that she was 15 when she wrote it, and to be honest, you can tell. The story switches between wandering and lurching and, well, nothing really happens.
The conclusion
If you’re interested in reading some of Moran’s back catalogue, you might find this book interesting… Sure, it’s pretty amazing for a 15 year old but that wasn’t enough to keep me engaged in this book. A strong editorial hand would have helped this story tremendously!
