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MNHQ

Book Giveaway: The Bolds by Julian Clary

30 replies

EmilyMumsnet · 29/06/2015 15:50

Mr and Mrs Bold are just like you and me: they live in a nice house, they have nice jobs and they love to have a bit of a giggle. There's just one slight difference: they're hyenas.
So far, the Bolds have managed to keep things under wraps, even when their children Bobby and Betty were born. But the nosy man next door smells a rat (or a hyena) - is their secret about to be revealed?

Packed with wildly hilarious jokes, eccentric characters and brilliant illustrations, The Bolds is perfect for children aged 7+. Click here to find out more and apply for a free copy.

Don't forget if you're lucky enough to win a free copy we do ask that you tell us what you think about it on the thread below or in our book reviews section.

Got a question for Julian? He'll be joining us for a webchat between 1-2pm on Wed 29 July, post your q's here.

This giveaway is sponsored by Andersen Press

OP posts:

leanne2015x · 29/06/2015 19:11

my little boy would love this

MNHQ

TinaMumsnet · 07/07/2015 17:19

Hello, this giveaway is now closed, we'll be in touch with the winners shortly.

Tina (MNHQ)

AnonymousBird · 09/07/2015 10:18

Ah, thank you Mumsnet. Just got the email. My daughter is going to love this book, I know it!

MarkingMyPlace9 · 13/07/2015 12:21

I was picked by MNHQ to review this book, which I received for free. This review is in my own words and reflects my true opinion.

Thanks for this Prize! Unfortunatly I thought this was for younger Children as my son is only 2! I will start reading this to Him soon, but when I read Him a Bedtime Story atm, we don't read it together, I just read to Him. However, the Book looks very good. Illustrations look good, and I think overall He will enjoy the Story - But not for a few more Years. Thanks!

gingercat12 · 13/07/2015 21:41

Our book has just arrived. Originally I planned to read it to DS, but he has already made a start. He is very excited! We'll report back soon.

gingercat12 · 13/07/2015 21:42

Thank you for our book

pennwood · 14/07/2015 19:40

I was picked by MNHQ to review this book, which I received for free. This review is in my own words and reflects my true opinion.

My young relative read the book & really enjoyed it as it is illustrated well, with a good size print, & the story is not too long.
I've got to admit I read it afterwards too, lol! The cover is well illustrated by David Roberts in vivid eye catching colours. Even the page numbers are in a small animal footprint, & when the Bolds are working at night the pages are black with white print. There are lots of jokes to amuse. The story is charming and holds the attention. I was pleasantly surprised Julian Clary could write such a nice children's book as I am not a fan of his television work. Would recommend The Bolds by Julian Clary.

Wings77 · 15/07/2015 13:04

Thank you for this book, it has just arrived. My children have just started reading it so I will post a review when they have finished.

AnonymousBird · 17/07/2015 09:14

It has arrived, and our faces lit up at the prospect - it is crying out for us to dive into it, a very appealing cover. I think I may have to read it too. Daughter (9 yo) is going to read it in the holidays, and I've told her she needs to provide comments so we will do so soon.

GrouchingTiggerHiddenSomething · 17/07/2015 19:34

Thanks so much for our copy which arrived a couple of days ago. DS (9) has already finished it and really enjoyed it, it was good and funny are his comments so far (think I need to work on his reviewing skills). I'm going to try giving it to DD (6) and see what she makes of it (she's a pretty good reader). Will give you more feedback when I have it but so far a big hit!

rennie1811 · 17/07/2015 21:40

thank you for our copy, I gave it to my 8yo daughter. My daughter finished it in just over a day, she found the book very funny and really liked that it had jokes throughout it. She loved that Mr Bold wrote the jokes for christmas crackers and asked If I had known that! She found the book easy to read and understand and really enjoyed it, straight after finishing it she asked if there were any more books with the Bold's in them ( always a good sign) My daughter has actually recommended the book to her class and suggested I read it to her little sister who can't yet read herself. One I am definitely going to read.

rennie1811 · 17/07/2015 21:45

I was picked by MNHQ to review this book, which I received for free. This review is in my own words and reflects my true opinion. thank you for our copy, I gave it to my 8yo daughter. My daughter finished it in just over a day, she found the book very funny and really liked that it had jokes throughout it. She loved that Mr Bold wrote the jokes for christmas crackers and asked If I had known that! She found the book easy to read and understand and really enjoyed it, straight after finishing it she asked if there were any more books with the Bold's in them ( always a good sign) My daughter has actually recommended the book to her class and suggested I read it to her little sister who can't yet read herself. One I am definitely going to read.

Icyblue · 18/07/2015 18:58

My 10 year old dd read the book herself. She enjoyed the book and found some parts funny but not enough to make her laugh out loud. She liked the the illustrations on the front cover and throughout the book. She found the characters funny and overall it was an enjoyable book but not a book she would find herself re-reading again.

Wings77 · 18/07/2015 19:13

I was picked by MNHQ to review this book, which I received for free. This review is in my own words and reflects my children's opinions. Thank you for a copy. My children really enjoyed this book. It is very easy to read and very funny. They also thought the pictures were really good. My children highly recommend this book.

Jaynebellamy123 · 18/07/2015 22:37

I was picked by MNHQ to review this book, which I received for free. This review is in my own words and reflects my true opinion.
Wow what a fantastic book by the talented Julian Clary, the story has you gripped the whole way through.
A brilliant story whether you are an adult or a child, the illustrations are really good and the presentation is second to none.
Well done Julian and David we look forward to the next book In the series.

shelaghh · 19/07/2015 13:06

I was picked by MNHQ to review this book which received . This review is in my own words and reflects my true opinion.
Having passed the book onto my children the report back by them was that they thoroughly enjoyed the book, liked the illustrations and wanted to know when and if another story is to follow.

Anononooo · 20/07/2015 08:50

Thanks to Andersen Press for the free copy. My 10 year old DD devoured this in one sitting and thought it fabulous. She was especially charmed by the twist at the end. She thought it funny, cute. She found the jokes a bit corny. My 7 year old DS on the other hand loves the jokes, loves the whole book, can't wait for us to read more of it. We are halfway through, reading one chapter to each other in turns. He thinks the story is really intriguing and keeps trying to guess the twist that his sis has hinted at. The illustration we all agree are wonderful and very amusing and complement the book well. Cheers.

Olinguito · 22/07/2015 10:33

Thank you for the free copy to review. This book is really good fun. It looks great, with brilliant and quirky illustrations - we loved the way that the night scenes were printed on black pages and the page numbers in little footprints. The style of writing is witty and interesting, and you can't help but hear Julian Clary's voice in your head when reading it!
A small niggle - there's a bit of gender stereotyping in the characters of the twins (and now I feel like a right old misery for saying that, as the book really is entertaining).

leanneth · 22/07/2015 21:26

I was picked by MNHQ to review this book, which I received for free. This review is in my own words and reflects my child's opinion.

My 10 year old stepson read this book over a few days- it kept his attention really well and he was eager to complete it!

Here is his review:
I love the book because it is funny and unpredictable. My favourite chapter is chapter 14 because of the surprise in it about Mr Mcnumpty. My favourite character is Mr Bold because he tells funny jokes. I would recommend this book for age 7+ If you like humorous books!

MNHQ

TinaMumsnet · 23/07/2015 12:14

Hello everyone, thanks for all the great feedback on The Bolds so far.

The lovely Julian Clary will be at Mumsnet Towers for a webchat between 1-2pm on Wed 29 July. Join us on the day, or if you can't make it, post a question here. He'll try to answer as many as possible.

(Fingers crossed he'll bring his dogs along too, we'll take plenty of pics :) )

casthom · 27/07/2015 07:46

I was picked by MNHQ to receive this book for free and this is my opinion.

Thank you for this book. My seven year old daughter loved it and read it independently over a couple of days. Now I'm reading it to my five year old and so far I'm enjoying it too!
It has a lot of humour and great illustrations.

PeterParkerSays · 27/07/2015 10:31

We won a copy of this, it arrived just before we went on holiday. DS is 6 so I thought he'd love it as a larger book for me to read to him.

He struggled getting into the first chapter, about how the Bolds moved to Teddington, shall we say, and wanted to stop reading it after the first chapter. I had to explain that we had been given it to review so needed to give it a bit more of a chance before he was willing to listen to chapter two. I think that chapter 1 is a bit of a struggle - there's a piece at the start about how the narrator is telling the truth, which we don't need - for me, I think the book would have worked better starting with Chapter 2.

However, DS's enthusiam for the book has grown with each chapter and it's got a good, almost conversational, tone when reading it aloud. He loves the illusrations as well, and the move between the white and black pages.

I can see it being a good one for him to reread for himself when when he's older and a more confident reader.

Anononooo · 02/08/2015 23:12

I have to say this just gets better and better. One criticism, occasionally there are unnecessary recaps of plot details...,but otherwise very cute, clever, fun to read out loud. Love it.

gingercat12 · 03/08/2015 11:00

I was picked by MNHQ to receive this book for free and this is my 7-year-old DS's opinion.
In short he said it was interesting, exciting and shocking (possibly all the adjectives he could think of).

After some probing this is what he had to say about the book:
The story is about a family of laughing hyenas, who pretend to be humans and move to England from Africa. It was fascinating how they learnt English from just watching people.
Their best friend Minnie worked out that they were in fact hyenas, but she was very understanding.
There were more shocking discoveries on the way, and DS altogether enjoyed it.
Although I have to say he finished 2 Horrible Histories and 2 other books simultaneously with this book, so perhaps it did not hold his attention so well.
Personally I liked the little stories he told me about the hyenas and the idea of laughing hyenas made him giggle a lot.

Thank you for our copy.

agnapoop · 03/08/2015 23:19

I was picked by MNHQ to receive this book for free and this is my opinion.
At 5yrs my daughter is just a little to young to read by herself so we would sit down and read a few chapters together. Using an animated telltale voice I found that the book was easy and interesting to read aloud and captured my daughters imagination and attention from the beginning. She couldn't wait to hear what happened next in the story and loved looking at all the pictures. This is a lovely, funny, quirky book that can easily be read privately and both aloud. Would highly recommend.

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