Duncan Versus the Googleys

Reading this book was like watching a movie inside my head: vivid and adventurous!
The characters are so alive and kicking!
The writing style is just amazing: fun to read and funny enough to last till the last page!
Ah, and the illustrations in between the pages! Totally got me.
I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. It's fast paced and so satisfied my nerdy senses and I feel it will really go well with the target audience because (just look at that chaotic, nerdy cover!) the content, the story, the characters and the 'tech-y' plot all seem relevant and they will be able to relate to both the characters as well as the plot.
The diversity of the characters as well as their representation is strong and done well. My favourite has to be Ursula. Ah, she just gives me the me vibes. Damn, she reminds me of my embarrassing childhood days (in a good way though, teehee!). There's this spooky element hung around her and I totally get that feeling.
The involvement of the adult characters is strong (which is not so common and done poorly in middle grade/young adult/children's fiction) and done well.
This book gave me all the Dr, Suess and Roald Dahl vibes.
The author nailed it! This book is so fun to read!

Thank you #NetGalley for the book #DuncanVersusTheGoogleys

Duncan has the adventure of his life in this weird, wacky, yet wonderful book! From unpredictable Aunts to monsters living in the walls, Kate Milner has gone above and beyond to create a summer like no other. The book teaches about friendships, trust and helping those in need, as well as how to stick up for yourself. This children’s story is easy to read with a great writing style and splashed with humour in all the right places. Would definitely recommend!

‘Duncan versus the Googleys’ is a fast-paced chapter book ideal for children Year 4 and up.
Duncan is forced to go to Arthritis Hall to spend the summer holidays with his Great Aunt Harriet whilst his parents go away on business. A retirement home run by the formidable Mrs Grunt, Arthritis Hall is not a child-friendly place. Duncan would like to spend his time playing with Gizzmo, his Poo-chi pet, whether this be in real life or in the online world he has created for him, but the old ladies at the retirement home make this rather difficult for him. Mrs Grunt takes Gizzmo away from Duncan as soon as he walks through the door!
It isn’t long before Duncan meets Ursula, a girl who lives at the retirement home with her Dad, who is the caretaker. They stumble across some rather bizarre goings on at Arthritis Hall: voices coming from within the wall; adverts for ‘Googleys’, the latest toy craze; and boxes with ‘Grumpo industries’ written on them. How do all of these things link together and why is there something strange about the Googleys? Ursula and Duncan must work together to find out what is going on, whilst avoiding scheming old ladies and a knitting group made up of local criminals…
I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book and read it over a couple of days! It was fast-paced, action-packed and the chapters were an ideal length for children who perhaps struggle to stick with a chapter book. I thought it was funny and quirky but still kept me guessing about what was going to happen! It is perfect for children who spend a lot of time playing games, whilst hopefully keeping them offline for a while!

A totally brilliant and original concept that I really loved. It reminds us that not all old ladies are kind and smelling of lavender. It is funny, quirky and is going to be a great read for middle grade children. I can see it being a fantastic read for school classes.

While his parents are away, Duncan would rather spend the holidays playing his latest favourite computer game, but instead is sent to stay with his great aunt at her retirement home. Nothing could have prepared him for what awaits: hostile old ladies, a mysterious clanking monster, the most unlikely knitting circle and a sinister plot involving the latest must-have toy. To foil this world-wide criminal plan, Duncan must work with the caretaker’s daughter and online allies.
This is a hilarious and fast moving crime caper, set in the traditional enormous old building, but firmly rooted in the tech-aware society that children are used to. With a cast of eccentric characters and heroes that children can relate to, this is a thoroughly entertaining read, with plenty of menace and slapstick violence tempered by the reassuring tone of the omniscient narrator’s direct addresses to the reader. I am sure that this will have wide appeal to our school library community.

I just loved this book! It’s short enough to read in a day, and I have no doubt readers will.

It’s jam packed with our two brilliant children, fluffy toys, more fluffy toys, evil women, a genius auntie, thieves and a huge monster!

What’s not to love? It’s action packed and just absolutely hilarious!

My thanks to Netgalley and Steerforth Press for the advance copy.

I've found so far that the titles from Pushkin Press are often different from other children's books being published at the moment, and this book is no exception. This book is the very definition of odd and quirky, with this description applying to both the plot and some of the phrases and expressions used in the writing, and there are also some shades of Lemony Snicket's Series of Unfortunate Events in the way that the reader is addressed. I enjoyed the plot which was very original and engrossing, and Ursula was a memorable character. If you're looking for something different, this just might be it!

‘Bad people in chaotic situations are not always very fair’.

Oh my goodness, what a gorgeously topsy turvy and brilliant story from Kate Milner! There is absolutely nothing ordinary or boring about this book – kids will love it.

Meet Ursula who from the very beginning, we realise is not living an ‘ordinary’ life. We learn that she sleeps in a cardboard bed with newspaper blankets and shares only one room with her father, Mr Meager who is the caretaker for the most amazingly named retirement complex ever: Arthritis Hall. Whilst he works, Ursula explores. On the face of it, you’d think Ursula would be rather down in the dumps but there is nothing sad about this story. Ursula, like every other child in this world, covets the latest toy craze – robotic pets called Poo-Chi Pets…

Ursula’s story runs alongside that of Duncan who owns a Poo-Chi pet called Gizzmo. He also has the Poo-Chi Pet app on his phone – Poo-Chi Planet – and he plays it ALL THE TIME along with various other children from around the world: Zhang from Shanghai, coding expert Kobe from Kenya and Ratboy Ryan from Australia. At the start of the story, he is travelling to Arthritis Hall to stay with his Great Aunt Harriet. Harriet is no gentle old lady leading a quiet life. Far from it. She is a rather mad inventor whose previous successes include a mechanical armadillo and a robot postman!

As you may already have worked out, Arthritis Hall (with its executive helipad on the roof) is no ordinary retirement complex. It is managed by the tiny but terrifying Linoleum Grunt (yes, really!) who makes it abundantly clear that children are not welcome. ‘You will be required to stay in one place at all times and make no noise whatsoever’... As well as Linoleum and Harriet, it is also home to Mrs Pettigrew who turns out to be a world class computer game player and Pork Pie the cat.

But things at Arthritis Hall are not destined to just chug along peacefully. A new robotic toy is hitting the shelves. Will Googleys prove more popular than Poo-Chi Pets? There are people out there that will make damn certain of it…

‘Duncan could not help feeling that the whole world was a bit more mad than he could cope with’.

I loved the craziness of this story and read it in one sitting. Stylistically, it is different to any other kid’s book I’ve read and there is so much within it that children today will identify with that they are sure to be sucked in. Highly recommended.

Page count: 224
Age group: 8 - 10 years

I would like to thank both Net Galley and Pushkin Press for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This was a funny and entertaining story. It had similarities to Roald Dahl stories. Creative, vivid characters kept the story alive.

Duncan Versus the Googleys is a Dahlesque treat that feels both modern and timeless. Featuring a technologically advanced criminal conspiracy, outrageous characters with equally outrageous names like “Mrs. Linoleum Grunt,” and a highly suspicious knitting circle, this rollicking story is sure to delight kids who enjoy a good caper. Simultaneously wacky and menacing, the book’s propulsive sense of adventure and wry observations on human nature make it a sophisticated, winning middle grade mystery.

Forced to spend his vacation at the oppressively dusty and boring Arthritis Hall while his parents jaunt off to Japan, Duncan runs into all sorts of trouble. The owner (the aforementioned Mrs. Grunt) detests children and tries to confiscate any of his belongings that might make the summer bearable. His Great Aunt Harriet wants nothing more than to get rid of him, either by locking him in a spare room or by forcing him to stay with the poor caretaker and his feral urchin of a daughter, Ursula. And a horrible monster is roaming the walls, trying to get its claws on anything that moves! As Duncan and Ursula wonder how they’re going to survive the summer, they uncover a mystery that threatens the entire world and realize that they’re the only people who can prevent the calamity.

Debut novelist Kate Milner has a knack for capturing the nasty side of humanity in a hilarious way that can best be described as hopeful pessimism. Roald Dahl’s influence on her writing is obvious, especially in her adult characters, who at best are cowardly and ineffectual and at worst are casual sadists with an irrational hatred of children. (Though, in true Dahl fashion, some of her younger characters aren’t much better.) Her ironic humor keeps the story moving briskly, though, without ever descending into despair.

Any story that relies on technology as heavily as this one does runs the risk of becoming out of touch before it’s even been published. Milner avoids this problem through some kind of alchemy whereby she combines current technological obsessions and worries with a classic storytelling style and a timeless sense of childhood chaos. The lunacy and dark humor of her plot make this high-tech throwback work; the story feels like it should go off the rails at any moment, but it never does. With a riveting narrative, memorable characters, and plenty of ironic wit, Duncan Versus the Googleys is a wild ride and a refreshingly cynical book that announces an intriguing new voice in middle grade fiction.

This was a hit with my nine year old daughter, she said it reminded her of the classic Roald Dahl books she has read time and time again. There was a real quirkiness to the story and that made it stand out from others she has read recently.

Terrific quirky middle grade read.So many great characters kept me entertained turning the pages.A really fun imaginative read,#netgalley#pushkinpress

This reminded me of a Roald Dahl story and I'm here for it! I read it in the hospital and it kept me entertained. Will definitely be buying a copy for my niece and nephew.

I absolutely loved this novel! It is brilliantly topsy-turvy and so different from any other children's book.

The story is so engaging it is impossible not to be drawn into the marvelous mayhem.

A must-read for all ages!

A huge thanks to Pushkin Press & NetGalley for gifting me a copy in return for an open & honest review.

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