Tag Archives: Daniel Plainway

20 Books of Summer Challenge

Posted on by
2

I’m taking part in 20 Books of Summer @ 746 Books.

I’m doing quite well, and that probably says more about our lack of summer weather than anything else. I’ve actually read more books than these seven since the 1st of June, but you can see below the ones from my original list that I’ve read so far.

1. An Autumn Sowing by E.F. Benson
2. Nine Coaches Waiting by Mary Stewart
3. Touch Not the Cat by Mary Stewart
4. Madam, Will You Talk by Mary Stewart
5. A View of the Harbour by Elizabeth Taylor
6. A Place to Stand by Anne Bridge
7. The Moon King by Neil Williamson
8. Runyon from First to Last by Damon Runyon
9. Resorting to Murder – Holiday Mysteries edited by Martin Edwards
10.The Suspect L.R. Wright
11. Noble Descents by Gerald Hanley
12. Silence for the Murderer by Freeman Wills Crofts
11. Lament for a Maker by Michael Innes
12. Kim by Rudyard Kipling
13. The Prince Buys the Manor by Elspeth Huxley
14. Headless Angel by Vicki Baum
15. The Weeping Wood by Vicki Baum
16. Justine by Lawrence Durrell
17. Fillets of Plaice by Gerald Durrell
18. Daniel Plainway by Van Reid
19. Love at all Ages by Angela Thirkell
20. A Desert in Bohemia by Jill Paton Walsh

Daniel Plainway by Van Reid

Posted on by
7
Daniel Plainway cover

Daniel Plainway or The Holiday Haunting of the Moosepath League by Van Reid was given to me by Peggy when she came over to Scotland last year to visit us. I think that Van Reid’s books are quite difficult to get in the UK.

The setting is 19th century Maine where the members of The Moosepath League become involved in the search for a young boy which leads them into all sorts of daft adventures.

I haven’t read Dickens’ Pickwick Papers but apparently this series is an homage to Mr Pickwick and company.

My favourite character was the ancient army colonel who is given a new lease of life when he becomes involved in the planning of a snowball fight, making good use of his military knowledge of tactics. You see what I mean by daft!

I wasn’t too sure about this book to begin with but it grew on me. It’s a good blend of silliness combined with lots of likeable and quirky characters. I believe this is the third book in a series though so I’ll be looking out for the first two books.

The author Van Reid is also the manager of a Maine bookshop, his family has lived in that state since the 18th century and he bases his stories around actual places which will be recognisable to people who know the areas.

Some fans of his books apparently travel around visiting the places the members of The Moosepath League frequent. It sounds similar to all those people who visit Edinburgh and go to all the places mentioned in Alexander McCall-Smith’s Scotland Street series. It is nice to be able to imagine the places in books exactly as they are in reality, so I can see why people do it.