BOOK TALK: Madcap adventures to entertain young readers in Mayo

‘The Millicent Quibb School of Etiquette for Young Ladies of Mad Science’, by Kate McKinnon, is the sort of book I would love to have read when I was ten years of age. I’m catching up, eventually.
Many will know American actress and Saturday Night Live comedy star Kate McKinnon for her role as Weird Barbie in the film ‘Barbie’. As you might expect, her new book, published by Harper Collins Children’s Books, is a real hoot.
It tells the story of the Porch Sisters – Gertrude, Dee-Dee and Eugenia – who live in the town of Antiquariam. In fact, they are not sisters but adoptees of a so-called aunt and uncle. The only schools that girls can attend in this town are schools of etiquette. At the start of the book, they are attending Mrs Wintermacher’s School of Etiquette for Girls, where one of the lessons involves learning ‘fainting couch postures’.
Gertrude wants so desperately to be a good citizen, helping the people and animals of Antiquariam, but things go horribly wrong with a fainting couch posture when Gertrude uses a live bat, dog leash and mysterious vest to achieve maximum effect.
The three are expelled. To escape the fate of a very strange prison-like school in Austria, which the aunt and uncle threaten to send them too, they seize upon mysterious invitations to a new school that appear in their bags. This is their last chance. And this is how the sisters find themselves under the tutelage of one Millicent Quibb.
Millicent has worms in her hair and oysters in her bath. She teaches them mad science activities, like how to throw a web using a funnel cake spider.
The sisters love Millicent. However, things get a bit madder when they are called upon to save their town from an evil cabal of mad scientists.
The illustrations by Alfredo Cáceres in the book are amazing, and I love the introduction by McKinnon: “Dear librarians/booksellers/teachers/reviewers/general custodians of the sanctity of the written word...”. This book is sure to be a hit with young readers.

A mysterious case
‘The Case of the Vanishing Painting’, by Brian Gallagher, is another favourite of mine. It was published earlier in the year by O’Brien Press, and the story is based in Dublin in 1911, around Broadstone Station in North Dublin, where I myself hail from (albeit a lot later than 1911).
A valuable painting has gone missing on a train from Dublin to Galway. Twins Deirdre and Tim’s father was a guard on that train, and he is under suspicion as the investigation proceeds. However, the twins, along with their friend Joe, decide to do their own research and save the name of their father. Their inspiration is, ‘How might Holmes try to solve this crime?’.
They decide to break into the house of the curator of the gallery from where the painting has gone missing. Taking the law into their own hands, as such, is pretty brave. They also discover information that puts them in further danger.
There is mystery and fun in this lovely book for readers aged ten and over, but there is also wisdom and lessons from that time in history, as well as lessons about how we live together and how we are quick to judge.

Bookshop events
At Tertulia bookshop, we are running some lovely events for kids as part of Westival (Westport’s annual music and arts festival) over the upcoming October Bank Holiday weekend. Join us for ‘Witches and Poetry’ this Saturday, and pop in again on Sunday, when inspirational children’s author Roisín Coyne will read and perform parts of her book, ‘Mystery Behind the Bookshelf’.
There’s also the Tertulia Short Story Competition for ages 7-12, which runs until November 17. Email the bookshop at tertuliabookshop@gmail.com, or ring us on 085 8620158, for more details.

Bríd Conroy and her husband, Neil Paul, run Tertulia bookshop at The Quay, Westport, Co Mayo.