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January 2016

Book Review: A Boy Called Christmas by Matt Haig

By Amazon, Books & Authors, ReviewsNo Comments
a-boy-called-christmas-matt-haig A Boy Called Christmas by Matt Haig is the perfect bedtime story to read to your children in the month of December on the run-up to Christmas. It is beautifully illustrated by Chris Mould.

In A Boy Called Christmas, Nikolas and Joel (his father, the Wood Cutter) are poor. Nikolas has no brothers or sisters and Miika (a mouse) is his only friend. Throughout his life, he has only received two christmas presents: a sleigh and a turnip doll.

That is until Anders – the Hunter comes to recruit Joel on a mission for King Frederick. If Anders, Joel and some other men can prove the existence of Elves to the King, he will reward them handsomely.

This is Joel’s chance to lift Nikolas and himself out of poverty. Joel explains to Nikolas that he has accepted this mission, meaning he will be away for Christmas. But that when he returns, Nikolas and he will be rich. That Nikolas will

no longer need to look in the window of the toyshop window wistfully, but will be able to have all the toys he wants. While Joel is away, Nikolas is to be looked after by his horrible Aunt Carlotta.

Joel leaves and Nikolas waits. Nikolas waits for his father to return for a long time. When Joel still hasn’t returned Nikolas begins to worry. Eventually, Nikolas sets out with Miika to The Far North to find his father. The journey is long and treacherous.

When Nikolas arrives at The Elf Village, accompanied by Father Topo and Little Noosh, it is not at all what he imagined. Little Kip has been kidnapped by Anders, Joel and the other men, who have escaped and are heading to King Frederick. The Welcome Tower has been turned into a Prison. Nikolas is imprisoned with a naughty Truth Pixie that likes to watch people’s heads explode and unpleasant Sebastian the Troll.

Nikolas uses magic and the help of flying reindeer Blitzen to escape the prison. He sets off to find his father, Anders and the other men to put things right. The ending is well thought out, fabulous and explains how after many years Nikolas finds his purpose: being Father Christmas.

Young children will love everything about A Boy Called Christmas, including Nikolas and the other characters- all of which have depth, the pacing and the magical plot. It is a captivating read that can be enjoyed by both younger children and grown-ups together.

The only criticism I have about A Boy Called Christmas is that the release date was too close to Christmas. Haig can’t be blamed for this, but the Publisher can. Still, now that A Boy Called Christmas has been released, it can be enjoyed by the many for years and years to come.

I’ll be giving my copy of A Boy Called Christmas to my older brother, so that he can read it to my nephew on the run-up to next Christmas.

Review soon,

Antony

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Soulmates Excerpt

By Creativity, Happiness & Joy, Inspiration, Thinking2 Comments

Soulmates is my latest short story in the gay romance genre. Here is the synopsis:

In Soulmates Robert and Lucas keep missing each other. In fact, they’ve never met. That is until a disembodied spirit assigns himself Robert’s case. Can this spirit create the perfect opportunity for these two potential Soulmates to finally meet? And if they do meet, how will it go?

Here is an excerpt from Soulmates:

Soulmates-by-Antony-Simpson-Short-Story-Excerpt

Soulmates is just over four thousand words and is yours to enjoy for free. You can download Soulmates here.

Write soon,

Antony



I aim for posts on this blog to be informative, educational and entertaining. If you have found this post useful or enjoyable, please consider making a contribution by Paypal:


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A Tale Of Overcoming Adversity

By Friends & Family, Happiness & Joy, Inspiration, Life, Thinking4 Comments
sun-catcher

My new sun catcher.

I’ve wanted to write this post for a long time. I’ve started it countless times, looking at adversity from many different angles. In the end, I decided that the best way to express what I want to say about adversity and overcoming adversity is through a little tale.

Growing up I had difficulties with reading and writing because of Dyslexia and Dyspraxia. At sixteen years old, I had a reading and comprehension age of fourteen. I remember when I was younger, having to read paragraphs two or three times to get the meaning of the words. The thought of reading a book at this age, was like the thought of climbing a mountain.

I couldn’t write my name until I was ten years old. I understood what we were taught in classes, but just couldn’t write it down on paper in an organised and structured way. I got very good at talking and verbal presentation to compensate.

Fast forward to now. I have overcome adversity in relation to reading and writing. I’m always reading at least ten books at any one time. I read nineteen books last year (see Book List 2015) and I read twenty-eight books the year before that (see Book List 2014). I regularly get sent books by publisher’s publicists to read and review. Thankfully I no longer need to re-read paragraphs two or three times to understand them. I write creatively on a regular basis. I’ve recently published a short story entitled Soulmates and write for The Gay UK.

In addition to the above: I have done well academically. I have been to university twice and about to go back to university to complete a further module. I have gained a HE Diploma in Children’s Nursing and a Honours Degree in Nursing, graded at a 2:1.

The reading, the writing and the university wouldn’t have been possible without overcoming adversity. But what’s really interesting is that I’ve learned some fundamental things that were required in order for me to overcome adversity. These included:

  • Grit or determination. Not giving up. Continuing to read and write, even when I felt like I was banging my head against a brick wall.
  • The support of others. My mum fought the education authorities to get the professional help I needed to learn to read and write. Teachers, Teaching Assistants and Volunteers all spent countless hours teaching me to read and understand what I was reading. My mum fought the health authorities to get the practical support from a brilliant and professional Occupational Therapist. And of course my mum helped and supported me in so many other ways: spending time reading with me, taking me to my Occupational Therapist appointments, just listening when I needed to vent my frustration, etc.
  • Practice. Repetition is the key to learning and the way of getting good at anything. Think of when you learned to ride a bike as a child.
  • Being driven by my love of literature. Even with my difficulties in reading and writing, I used to be captivated by the stories my mum would read to me at bedtime. By how words could ignite my imagination and make me feel very real emotions.
  • People having belief and faith that I could overcome my reading and writing difficulties. This includes both family and friends.
  • Believing in myself, or at least hoping that I could overcome these reading and writing difficulties.

I would imagine that these fundamental things are essential for anyone trying to overcome adversity. I wanted to share these thoughts, for anyone currently struggling with adversity. If you have overcome adversity, how did you do it? What did you need in order to overcome adversity? Leave a comment below.

Blog soon,

Antony

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I aim for posts on this blog to be informative, educational and entertaining. If you have found this post useful or enjoyable, please consider making a contribution by Paypal:


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9 Great NHS Self-Assessment Tools

By Health, The WebNo Comments

The NHS Choices website has some great self-assessment tools. They appear to be well under used, probably because many people don’t know about them. Please use these tools as they were intended: to give you some advice. They do not replace assessment, diagnosis and management by a GP. If you’re concerned about your health – go and visit your GP. Here’s 9 great self-assessment tools:


1. Depression Self-Assessment Tool

Click here to display content from media.nhschoices.nhs.uk


content provided by NHS Choices



2. Mood Self-Assessment Tool

Click here to display content from media.nhschoices.nhs.uk


content provided by NHS Choices



3. BMI Healthy Weight Calculator

Click here to display content from media.nhschoices.nhs.uk


content provided by NHS Choices



4. VTE Self-Assessment Tool

Click here to display content from media.nhschoices.nhs.uk


content provided by NHS Choices



5. Sexual Health Test

Click here to display content from media.nhschoices.nhs.uk


content provided by NHS Choices



6. Type Two Diabetes Self-Assessment Tool

Click here to display content from media.nhschoices.nhs.uk


content provided by NHS Choices



7. Asthma Self-Assessment Tool

Click here to display content from media.nhschoices.nhs.uk


content provided by NHS Choices



8. Kidney Disease Check

Click here to display content from media.nhschoices.nhs.uk


content provided by NHS Choices



9. Long-term Conditions Self-Assessment

Click here to display content from media.nhschoices.nhs.uk


content provided by NHS Choices


Blog soon,

Antony



I aim for posts on this blog to be informative, educational and entertaining. If you have found this post useful or enjoyable, please consider making a contribution by Paypal:


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