'The best books, reviewed with insight and charm, but without compromise.'
- author Jackie French

Thursday 31 December 2009

Review: Madame Pamplemousse and the Time-Travelling Café

Title: Madame Pamplemousse and the Time-Travelling Café

Author: Rupert Kingfisher

Publisher: Bloomsbury, A$19.99

Format: Hardcover with dustjacket

Language: English

ISBN: 9781408800546

For ages: 9-12

Type: Junior Fiction

About: When the young and curious Madeleine is abandoned by her parents, she befriends a curious group of enchanting characters including Monsieur Moutarde and Madame Pamplemousse – the greatest culinary genius the world has ever known.

Madame Pamplemousse (with means ‘grapefruit’ in French) owns a captivating café in the famed Montmartre district of Paris, alongside business partner Moutarde (‘mustard’). Here in this café lies a magnificent coffee machine capable of making an elixir that will transport Madeleine to other times – to Jurassic times, to Scotland in the 1930s, even to the time of the mighty Sphinx.

But when Paris and its historic monuments are marked for descruction by a corrupt Parisian government, Madeleine could never imagine the mind-boggling adventures in store.

Accompanied by gorgeously retro ink illustrations by Sue Hellard, this book is a feat in extraordinary imagination. A truly wonderful tale, in the style of the fabulously historical and nonsensical stories of yore, it will absolutely delight any reader intent on taking an unexpected trip – to fanciful literary satisfaction.

Wonderful stuff.