Book Review -Don’t eat the glowing bananas by David Hammons.

5 out of 5 stars.

I would like to thank Curiosity Quills Press for providing me with a free ARC of this book in exchange for an open and honest review.

They finally did it! Curiosity Quills Press finally wowed me enough to give one of their books a full star ranking! And… Oh my Goddess this is a FUNNY book!

From the author who wrote ‘Alice takes back Wonderland’ we have a new Alice… well, not really. But just say New Dallas out loud and you might see what I mean – though it doesn’t work as well in an Australian accent! 😉

I LOVED this book! Absorbed it/ read it every opportunity I had and have a MASSIVE book hangover from it now being read to the end and done and dusted. Bravo!

Half way through the book I found myself describing the main character as what would happen if Rincewind (from Terry Pratchett’s Discworld series) and Arthur Dent (from Douglas Adams Hitchhikers series) got together and raised a child in a post-apocalyptic America. Once you get your head around that it is actually a pretty impressive character to have created. And one that is hungry (for food and knowledge), adventurous (but not always brave) and willing to fight for the underdog and wield sarcasm and irony as a weapon. How could you NOT love such a protagonist? I’d have him over for a meal any day! Though being dairy free I would have to do something about the lack of cheese. 😉

Yes I did start out by thinking the book was just a little TOO silly… but then I decided to stop fighting against it with being sensible and just relaxed and let the story sweep me into the fray. Well worth it too. And, yes, it has brought out some silliness in me too – not that I have it hidden too far below the surface at the best of times – but ‘Don’t eat the glowing bananas’ really does encourage you to let that silliness out, embrace it and spend the day being entertained by it.

But the book isn’t JUST silly. It is a fantastic look at the modern world after a nuclear disaster. Rather than the usual doom and gloom with cannibals, vicious dictators and zombies (though they are included) this book shows that life can still go on and exactly how seeking the positive in the worst of situations can help you survive. And I think that’s what I liked the most. I’m one of those sorts who always seeks the positive no matter what you’ve just stepped in – and life has had me step in some NASTY things – and so to see someone keep this mindset after surviving a nuclear holocaust, to me, proves it’s the best attitude to have.

Would I recommend this book to others? Yes I would. In fact, I’m pretty sure I’d recommend David Hammons too. He seems to be the author to read. We may have lost Adams and Pratchett, but their torch is still held high by this young man. Bravo.

Would I buy this book for myself? Oh hell yes! Loved it, messed up a week of strict routine just to read it and have the book hangover to prove it.

In summary – although this is a book set in a dystopian earth post-nuclear disaster, it’s not exactly all doom and gloom. Nor is it so silly it is irreverent to the situation – should it ever happen. It really does show that one should – wait for it –always look on the bright side of life.

Sorry, couldn’t help myself.

Until next time,

Janis. XXOO

P.S. for thos who don’t know what a book hangover is all about…