Tall Story
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Product Description
Book Description
A warm, funny and moving novel that will have you in fits of laughter one minute and in tears the next.
Product Description
Be careful what you wish for . . .
Andi is short. And she has lots of wishes. She wishes she could play on the school basketball team, she wishes for her own bedroom, but most of all she wishes that her long lost half brother, Bernardo, could come and live in London, where he belongs.
Then Andi's biggest wish comes true and she's minutes away from becoming someone's little sister. As she waits anxiously for Bernardo to arrive from the Philippines, she hopes he'll turn out to be tall and just as mad as she is about basketball. When he finally arrives, he's tall all right. But he's not just tall ... he's a GIANT.
In a novel packed with humour and quirkiness, Gourlay explores a touching sibling relationship and the clash of two very different cultures.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Vine™ Review
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Andi's a 12-year-old basketball fanatic who dreams of playing point guard but is considered too short. Her half-brother Bernardo lives with his aunt and uncle in San Andrea, a small village in the Philippines. Bernardo's waited for years for a visa so he can join his mother, step-father and half-sister in Britain. One day, it finally arrives.
However Bernardo, his aunt and uncle have been keeping a secret from Andi's mum. A big secret. Bernardo is 8 feet tall and his village believes that he's a modern version of Bernardo Carpio - a legendary giant who saved the village from destruction by an earthquake.
Andi's life is turned upside down by Bernardo's arrival, not least when she's moved to a new school - one without a girls' basketball team. Similarly Bernardo's trying to come to terms with life in a strange country and his guilt at leaving his village - including best friend Jabby - behind.
Candy Gourlay's debut novel is a charming tale about accepting differences and superstition. It moves deftly between Bernardo's move to London and his life in San Andrea a small village riddled with superstition and populated with memorable characters, including best friend (and basketball fan) Jabby and the sinister witch Nena. Gourlay portrays the village with affection and what's refreshing is the loyalty that Bernardo has to it - even keeping a horrible Velcro suit specially tailored for him.
Bernardo is sweet-natured - gentle, loving, bewildered by his surroundings and struggling to deal with his condition. The betrayal he feels when Jabby wants him to play a basketball match because a giant will sell tickets is very touching, as are his attempts to reach out to the younger half-sister who he cares deeply for. Gourlay shows the problems that his condition creates - both socially and medically - giving him additional poignancy.
Andi is a firecracker - basketball mad, resentful of her brother's height when she's so short and frustrated by her mum's refusal to take her aspirations seriously. Some of the best scenes are between Andi and her mother - a brilliant creation who chatters constantly but loves and worries about both children.
The story unfolds in a slightly predictable way, but the quality of the writing carries it through. The supernatural element to the story is a delight, with just enough ambiguity to keep you wondering. Gourlay is a talent to watch and I look forward to her next work.
However Bernardo, his aunt and uncle have been keeping a secret from Andi's mum. A big secret. Bernardo is 8 feet tall and his village believes that he's a modern version of Bernardo Carpio - a legendary giant who saved the village from destruction by an earthquake.
Andi's life is turned upside down by Bernardo's arrival, not least when she's moved to a new school - one without a girls' basketball team. Similarly Bernardo's trying to come to terms with life in a strange country and his guilt at leaving his village - including best friend Jabby - behind.
Candy Gourlay's debut novel is a charming tale about accepting differences and superstition. It moves deftly between Bernardo's move to London and his life in San Andrea a small village riddled with superstition and populated with memorable characters, including best friend (and basketball fan) Jabby and the sinister witch Nena. Gourlay portrays the village with affection and what's refreshing is the loyalty that Bernardo has to it - even keeping a horrible Velcro suit specially tailored for him.
Bernardo is sweet-natured - gentle, loving, bewildered by his surroundings and struggling to deal with his condition. The betrayal he feels when Jabby wants him to play a basketball match because a giant will sell tickets is very touching, as are his attempts to reach out to the younger half-sister who he cares deeply for. Gourlay shows the problems that his condition creates - both socially and medically - giving him additional poignancy.
Andi is a firecracker - basketball mad, resentful of her brother's height when she's so short and frustrated by her mum's refusal to take her aspirations seriously. Some of the best scenes are between Andi and her mother - a brilliant creation who chatters constantly but loves and worries about both children.
The story unfolds in a slightly predictable way, but the quality of the writing carries it through. The supernatural element to the story is a delight, with just enough ambiguity to keep you wondering. Gourlay is a talent to watch and I look forward to her next work.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Full disclosure - I'm a friend of Candy Gourlay's, so therefore potentially biased! But I don't have to recommend Tall Story because my friend wrote it, because it stands alone as a beautifully vibrant modern fable. It's a small book about big things - big in the case of Bernardo, the eight-foot-tall hero and equally large in its themes of destiny and responsibility. I'll have to admit to preferring the voice of Andi, Bernardo's wonderfully sparky sister, but the twin perspectives of the story contrast and intertwine wonderfully. The book reaches a tense climax that has one foot in the real world and another in magical realism, an ending that is very appropriate and very satisfying.
This is a book that I can hold up and be proud to say "I know her!" I will be watching Candy's writing career with great interest!
This is a book that I can hold up and be proud to say "I know her!" I will be watching Candy's writing career with great interest!
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
When I started reading Tall Story, I wasn't sure what to expect, as the summary doesn't give much away. What I wasn't ready for was a lovely story of friendship and family, with an emotional twist and characters that I was rooting for from the beginning.
Bernardo is a big friendly giant, who doesn't have a bad bone in his awe-inspiring large body. He's so thoughtful and innocent, and definitely stole the show for me. Between his feelings for his family and his desire to help everyone he can, he really is BFG in every sense of the word. Flashbacks to his younger teen years are used to illustrate his hardships and changes, and they work brilliantly with the present day goings-on. Andi is also a great personality, who evolves as the book progresses. She opens her mind to Bernardo and their familial attachment and, instead of treating him as an outcast, she welcomes him into her life and eventually sees him as a brother.
I know this review doesn't really tell you anything, but I don't want to ruin your reading experience of this book - you just have to go with it and see how it unfolds. While I enjoyed it a lot, I still feel like something was missing, though I'm not sure what. I can't pick anything I didn't particularly like or anything that could have been done better, it just didn't wow me as much as other books have.
Tall Story is a subtle debut from Gourlay, and one that I think will resonate with a lot of readers. I'm interested to see what this author comes up with next, as her ideas are definitely on the thoughtful side of things, and are deserving of the attention they've received so far.
Bernardo is a big friendly giant, who doesn't have a bad bone in his awe-inspiring large body. He's so thoughtful and innocent, and definitely stole the show for me. Between his feelings for his family and his desire to help everyone he can, he really is BFG in every sense of the word. Flashbacks to his younger teen years are used to illustrate his hardships and changes, and they work brilliantly with the present day goings-on. Andi is also a great personality, who evolves as the book progresses. She opens her mind to Bernardo and their familial attachment and, instead of treating him as an outcast, she welcomes him into her life and eventually sees him as a brother.
I know this review doesn't really tell you anything, but I don't want to ruin your reading experience of this book - you just have to go with it and see how it unfolds. While I enjoyed it a lot, I still feel like something was missing, though I'm not sure what. I can't pick anything I didn't particularly like or anything that could have been done better, it just didn't wow me as much as other books have.
Tall Story is a subtle debut from Gourlay, and one that I think will resonate with a lot of readers. I'm interested to see what this author comes up with next, as her ideas are definitely on the thoughtful side of things, and are deserving of the attention they've received so far.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Favourite
One of my favourite books, good story line and enjoyed it hugly. The front cover pic looks nice and good when Bernado falls one the fall and how the author describes it. Read more
Published 1 month ago by Lolly
Courtesy of Teens Read Too
Standing over 8 feet tall with size 22 shoes, Bernardo has always felt like somewhat of an outcast. While his mom, stepfather, and half-sister live in England, Bernardo lives in... Read more
Published 11 months ago by TeensReadToo
A cracker
A really good story - feisty heroine, great emotional hooks of separation/reunion, responsibility/need to escape, limitations/overcoming them. Read more
Published 12 months ago by M. Thexton
A story full of magic and heart
A beautifully constructed book, well-written and full of humour, magic and pathos.
This is storytelling at it's finest. Read more
This is storytelling at it's finest. Read more
Published 15 months ago by N. Schmidt
Humorous and poignant
Tall Story is the tale of two siblings who share a parent but have grown up thousands of miles apart. Read more
Published 17 months ago by L
A short Story about a Tall Bloke
** review by my daughter Katie, aged 14 **
This book was full of un expected surprises, and it makes you wonder how it all happened. Read more
This book was full of un expected surprises, and it makes you wonder how it all happened. Read more
Published 17 months ago by tallpete33
Amazing !!!
This review is by my son who is 8:
Hey! this is the best book I have ever read! I loved both the characters Andi and Bernardo.Andi was the funniest while Bernardo ... Read more
Hey! this is the best book I have ever read! I loved both the characters Andi and Bernardo.Andi was the funniest while Bernardo ... Read more
Published 21 months ago by human
Thought provoking but ultimately heart warming
Being 6ft myself the title Tall Story leapt out at me and the description made me long to read it. I wasn't disappointed! Read more
Published 21 months ago by Rachael
Brilliant!
At first my 12 year old thought this would be 'boring', based purely on the blurb & the cover. In fact it was not long before he was enjoying it so much that, when I tried to... Read more
Published 21 months ago by A Friendly Face
Tall Story
Candy Gourlay truly understands how teenagers think in this all too quick to finish novel about bernardo, an 8ft tall 16 year old from the phillipines, who is finally moving to... Read more
Published 22 months ago by Rubbah
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