Audience
8 - 18 year olds
8 - 18 year olds
Genre
Mystery, adventure, science-fiction
Pages
123
Recommended For and Similar Reads
Stuck (in Time) is an atmospheric and energetic read perfect for children and teenagers alike! On top of entertaining, this book can and will inspire a love of history in young adults! If you have read and loved Power and Fury by James Erith, Super Doll by Erin Schulz, Armistice Runner by Tom Palmer, A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle, The Book Thief by Markus Zusak, Matilda by Roald Dahl, “A Sound of Thunder” by Ray Bradbury, or seen “Back to the Future” you are bound to love Stuck (in Time)!
Blurb
This standalone novella begins with the Baxter children attending a concert by the most famous pop group of all time; The Beatles. England in the 1960s is a world more familiar to the children than other eras they have visited. However, not everything goes to plan and Robert, James and Lucy discover that Uncle Archie can't help them. Not only that - this time, it's not just their own well being that is at risk!Review: 4/5
This novella is a hard one to judge! The magic of Dave Johnson's Stuck books originate from time periods which the Baxters travel to - places and times we as readers could never imagine ourselves a part of because they were so long ago! Stuck 1966: No Time to Groove takes us back in time like all the Stuck books, but not so far back that the culture of the decade is unmemorable. Although some readers may adore the modern take on time travel and the ability to relate with the Baxters' connection to heroes and musicians they wish they had the opportunity to meet; other readers, including myself, might discover that the tale expressed in this novella is too similar to the stories told by our grandparents. Not that my grandparents had any tales of time travelling to share per se, but that is why Stuck 1966 still deserves four stars! In all respects, this novella is a fantastic and stimulating addition to the series and whether you've read every other Stuck instalment or not, I recommend you give this one a try - I must simply say it wasn't my favourite of the saga!Total Rating: G
Language: G
Adult Content: G
Violence: PG
Per FTC regulations, please know that I received this title for free for review from the original author, the publisher, publicist, or a third party. I am honest in my reviews, meaning the fact I received the book for free does not alter the rating I give it.
Author Information
My first love was art, and at the age of 19 I found myself studying Printed Textiles at Liverpool School of Art, excited to be in the same building than John Lennon once went to, and next door to the school that Paul McCartney & George Harrison went to. I loved Liverpool, and still do, I love the city, the people and the football team! I met my wife at the college, and afterwards we both worked together as freelance textile designers, producing designs mostly for the USA market, using agents based in New York. I combined this with teaching at several colleges and universities, and after moving first to the North East, we settled in the tiny East Midlands county of Rutland.
So, working as a lecturer at Loughborough School of Art & Design (later Loughborough University) for over 20 years, and feeling proud to help so many talented students, I felt it was time for a change and I left.
If I look back to my school years, at RAF Changi Grammar School, (Singapore) the two other subjects I really liked were History and English. If I look at my life, past and present, one thing I have always enjoyed is reading stories to our three children, and now to our grandchildren. So that has pointed the way to my future.
I decided to create adventure stories, the kind of stories that I would have enjoyed as a child. Stories that adults would enjoy too, whether reading it to a child, or listening as an audio book, and the first of these my first novel, Stuck (in time). There are more in the series to come. I hope you enjoy it!
Interview with Author
If you could ask a famous author three questions about their books/inspiration/etc, who would it be and what are the questions?
If Roald Dahl were still alive I would ask him:
1. Who were the people that inspired The Twits - I would love to see a photo of them with their horrible hair with things living in it. Did you know couples like that who were always playing nasty tricks on each other?
2. I read recently that you have 8 rules for writing a book:
Just add chocolate
Adults can be scary
Bad things happen
Revenge is sweet
Keep a wicked sense of humour
Pick perfect pictures
Films are fun...but books are better!
Food is fun!
Are these arranged in order of importance? I wish I had read these rules before I wrote Stuck (in Time) because I should have included chocolate - it was in short supply in WWII in the UK. I mentioned bananas in the book, also in short supply, but I forgot about chocolate!
3. Please can you ask Willy Wonka to invent a chocolate that is good for you? I’ve eaten too much recently!
What was your favourite book when you were a kid?
When I was a kid there were nowhere near the range of exciting, colourful and socially relevant books that are around today. If I think back to when I was around 9 or 10 it would be one of the “Adventure” series by Enid Blyton. Perhaps “The Island of Adventure”. Here’s an interesting thing, Wikipedia states in a section about changes made by publishers, “The once handyman turned villain, Joe, was a black man named Jo-Jo in the original novel. His skin color is mentioned over 30 times. References to his ethnicity have been removed from some newer editions” I don’t remember the story any more, I would have read one of the earlier editions, but I would love to be able to go back and ask my 9-year-old self what I thought about Enid Blyton’s portrayal of a black man! Why can’t I remember the book now? Well, when I moved up to secondary school, at the age of 11, the very first English lesson was such a critical analysis on Enid Blyton’s books, that I never read another from that day.
When I was a kid there were nowhere near the range of exciting, colourful and socially relevant books that are around today. If I think back to when I was around 9 or 10 it would be one of the “Adventure” series by Enid Blyton. Perhaps “The Island of Adventure”. Here’s an interesting thing, Wikipedia states in a section about changes made by publishers, “The once handyman turned villain, Joe, was a black man named Jo-Jo in the original novel. His skin color is mentioned over 30 times. References to his ethnicity have been removed from some newer editions” I don’t remember the story any more, I would have read one of the earlier editions, but I would love to be able to go back and ask my 9-year-old self what I thought about Enid Blyton’s portrayal of a black man! Why can’t I remember the book now? Well, when I moved up to secondary school, at the age of 11, the very first English lesson was such a critical analysis on Enid Blyton’s books, that I never read another from that day.
Do you write for yourself or for your readers?
I haven’t always been a writer, but I’m still the same person. Previously I was a textile designer and the issues are the same. I would produce the kind of designs that I wanted to design, using images and colours that I liked, but at the same time I was aware there was a market, that the designs were intended to be printed onto fabric, made into clothes, and worn by people. So there would be no point designing men’s shirts in pastel pink decorated with rabbits just because I wanted to! In the same way I want to write stories because I find them exciting, but also, I am aware of the audience. So, it’s for both myself and the readers.
I haven’t always been a writer, but I’m still the same person. Previously I was a textile designer and the issues are the same. I would produce the kind of designs that I wanted to design, using images and colours that I liked, but at the same time I was aware there was a market, that the designs were intended to be printed onto fabric, made into clothes, and worn by people. So there would be no point designing men’s shirts in pastel pink decorated with rabbits just because I wanted to! In the same way I want to write stories because I find them exciting, but also, I am aware of the audience. So, it’s for both myself and the readers.
Is there a story you’ve always wanted to write but never have?
The next story in the series is almost ready to publish and is set in the Elizabethan era, but swirling around in my head are ideas for the book after that. I want to set it in 1833, the year in the UK when laws were introduced to ban child labour, and to abolish slavery. So, I would like my characters to leave Britain and travel to Jamaica where I know my ancestors were slaves. There’s quite a bit of research to do before I embark on it, but it could be a positive contribution to Black Lives Matter.
The next story in the series is almost ready to publish and is set in the Elizabethan era, but swirling around in my head are ideas for the book after that. I want to set it in 1833, the year in the UK when laws were introduced to ban child labour, and to abolish slavery. So, I would like my characters to leave Britain and travel to Jamaica where I know my ancestors were slaves. There’s quite a bit of research to do before I embark on it, but it could be a positive contribution to Black Lives Matter.
What is your favourite part of the writing process?
I could say, “Everything except checking the punctuation!” Actually, my favourite part is when I have a scene in my head, almost like a movie playing, and I sit down and type as fast as I can so I don’t forget it. At that stage I have a very rough outline of where I want the plot to go, but I am continually surprised by that journey. Not just surprised, but excited by what is happening on the page. Before, there was nothing, then suddenly we are off on an adventure!
I could say, “Everything except checking the punctuation!” Actually, my favourite part is when I have a scene in my head, almost like a movie playing, and I sit down and type as fast as I can so I don’t forget it. At that stage I have a very rough outline of where I want the plot to go, but I am continually surprised by that journey. Not just surprised, but excited by what is happening on the page. Before, there was nothing, then suddenly we are off on an adventure!
When does a “writer” become an “author”?
Now here’s a question I’ve never thought about before. I spent time writing my book, so at that point technically I was a writer. Then when it was published I became an author. However, I can’t help thinking there is more to it than that! Firstly, a trait of the British, is that they are naturally quite self effacing, it’s considered not good manners to ‘big yourself up’! So, if I had to declare what I did, I would feel much more comfortable describing myself as a writer, than an author. Anyway, we are dealing with labels here, and I am concerned that it might be considered by some that an “author” would have more status than a “writer”. I’m not seeking status so I don’t need to be called an author, even though I am! And if that’s not daft, I don’t know what is!
Now here’s a question I’ve never thought about before. I spent time writing my book, so at that point technically I was a writer. Then when it was published I became an author. However, I can’t help thinking there is more to it than that! Firstly, a trait of the British, is that they are naturally quite self effacing, it’s considered not good manners to ‘big yourself up’! So, if I had to declare what I did, I would feel much more comfortable describing myself as a writer, than an author. Anyway, we are dealing with labels here, and I am concerned that it might be considered by some that an “author” would have more status than a “writer”. I’m not seeking status so I don’t need to be called an author, even though I am! And if that’s not daft, I don’t know what is!
Did you study all of the time periods in the “Stuck” series at the RAF Changi Grammar School or did you conduct new research for the stories?
I am going to tackle this question backwards. The third book in the series is to be set in 1833. I know this, even though I haven’t written one single word. It’s not a period I studied at school at all, I’ve chosen it because I know that laws were passed in the UK restricting child labour, and also abolishing slavery. So hopefully my characters will end up in Jamaica where my great great grandfather was a slave, (there may be another “great” thrown in there - I’ll have to check the family tree). So, I have a lot of research to do - I’ve started by reading Charles Dickens books. He was alive at the time and therefore my characters have to meet him!
The book that is written already, (hopefully we will be starting the audio recording of it soon), is set in Elizabethan times and that was a period I did study at school. My teacher was Tom Hollomby and we are still in contact after all these years, it was a period I very much enjoyed. In fact, I remember more learning about Henry VIII. Everything changed with Henry - if he hadn’t been so paranoid about producing a son, he wouldn’t have had to break away from the catholic church, (so he could divorce Catherine of Aragon and marry Anne Boleyn). Anne was Elizabeth’s mother - he had her executed, married Jane Seymour and eventually had a son, and later three more wives. Ironically, the son died young, and Elizabeth proved to be the long reigning Queen during England’s “Golden Years” Beats “The Game of Thrones”!
Finally, much of Stuck (in Time) is set in 1940. WWII wasn’t a period I remember studying either. However, for me growing up in the 1960s it was much more ingrained in our everyday lives. There were always films about the war on the TV. My father, a Jamaican came over to England during the war and enlisted in the Royal Air Force. He remained in the RAF until he retired. So, we lived on RAF bases, I remember the bomb shelters there. Usually there was a “retired” fighter plane at the gates to the camp. My mother was in the land army - they were volunteers who worked on farms in WWII (two land army girls feature in the book). Compared to looking at 1833 for the next book, creating Stuck (in Time) was more a case of writing about what I already knew.
I am going to tackle this question backwards. The third book in the series is to be set in 1833. I know this, even though I haven’t written one single word. It’s not a period I studied at school at all, I’ve chosen it because I know that laws were passed in the UK restricting child labour, and also abolishing slavery. So hopefully my characters will end up in Jamaica where my great great grandfather was a slave, (there may be another “great” thrown in there - I’ll have to check the family tree). So, I have a lot of research to do - I’ve started by reading Charles Dickens books. He was alive at the time and therefore my characters have to meet him!
The book that is written already, (hopefully we will be starting the audio recording of it soon), is set in Elizabethan times and that was a period I did study at school. My teacher was Tom Hollomby and we are still in contact after all these years, it was a period I very much enjoyed. In fact, I remember more learning about Henry VIII. Everything changed with Henry - if he hadn’t been so paranoid about producing a son, he wouldn’t have had to break away from the catholic church, (so he could divorce Catherine of Aragon and marry Anne Boleyn). Anne was Elizabeth’s mother - he had her executed, married Jane Seymour and eventually had a son, and later three more wives. Ironically, the son died young, and Elizabeth proved to be the long reigning Queen during England’s “Golden Years” Beats “The Game of Thrones”!
Finally, much of Stuck (in Time) is set in 1940. WWII wasn’t a period I remember studying either. However, for me growing up in the 1960s it was much more ingrained in our everyday lives. There were always films about the war on the TV. My father, a Jamaican came over to England during the war and enlisted in the Royal Air Force. He remained in the RAF until he retired. So, we lived on RAF bases, I remember the bomb shelters there. Usually there was a “retired” fighter plane at the gates to the camp. My mother was in the land army - they were volunteers who worked on farms in WWII (two land army girls feature in the book). Compared to looking at 1833 for the next book, creating Stuck (in Time) was more a case of writing about what I already knew.
What was the most shocking thing you learned while writing Stuck (in Time)?
I vaguely knew about Internment Camps by the time I started writing the book. I certainly didn’t know about them when I was a boy. We were brought up to believe that we were “the good guys”, and whilst there wasn’t the brutality seen in the German and Japanese WWII concentration camps, there must have been a lot of psychological suffering for people forced to live in camps, and work on the land, just because they were descended from German and Italian people. The same happened for Japanese Americans in the USA. Stuck (in Time) doesn’t dwell on the plight of people in the camps, but they do feature. There’s a book there too - what’s it like to be locked up, when some people think you are the enemy, and others know you are not? When you may have been an educated professional, but now you have to dig up potatoes! It wasn’t like the camps for migrants, say crossing the English Channel in tiny boats, or crossing the border from Mexico, or arriving in a boat on the Australian coast from Vietnam. These were people already living and working in England, who, when war broke out, were rounded up just because they happened to have the wrong parentage.
I vaguely knew about Internment Camps by the time I started writing the book. I certainly didn’t know about them when I was a boy. We were brought up to believe that we were “the good guys”, and whilst there wasn’t the brutality seen in the German and Japanese WWII concentration camps, there must have been a lot of psychological suffering for people forced to live in camps, and work on the land, just because they were descended from German and Italian people. The same happened for Japanese Americans in the USA. Stuck (in Time) doesn’t dwell on the plight of people in the camps, but they do feature. There’s a book there too - what’s it like to be locked up, when some people think you are the enemy, and others know you are not? When you may have been an educated professional, but now you have to dig up potatoes! It wasn’t like the camps for migrants, say crossing the English Channel in tiny boats, or crossing the border from Mexico, or arriving in a boat on the Australian coast from Vietnam. These were people already living and working in England, who, when war broke out, were rounded up just because they happened to have the wrong parentage.
Other Books by Author
Links
Dave Johnson’s Website: https://www.stuckdave.co.uk/
Elizabeth Newsham’s Website: http://elizabethnewsham.com/
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/20467400.Dave_Johnson
Amazon: https://www.amazon.co.uk/kindle-dbs/entity/author/B089C634H2?_encoding=UTF8&node=266239&offset=0&pageSize=12&searchAlias=stripbooks&sort=author-sidecar-rank&page=1&langFilter=default#formatSelectorHeader
Amazon: https://www.amazon.co.uk/kindle-dbs/entity/author/B089C634H2?_encoding=UTF8&node=266239&offset=0&pageSize=12&searchAlias=stripbooks&sort=author-sidecar-rank&page=1&langFilter=default#formatSelectorHeader
Publication Date: November 8, 2021
