Simon Mayo. You probably know him as a radio DJ and might remember that he took over the flagship Radio One Breakfast Show from Mike Smith back in the 80’s. You might also know him from his great 5Live afternoon show which included his verbal sparring with Mark Kermode debating the relative merits of the latest movies. Perhaps in recent years you’ve heard him as the Drivetime DJ on Radio 2, including the excellent Radio 2 Book Club. Well now he’s written a novel and quite simply it is a revelation.
“Itch” is primarily aimed at the young teen market. Mayo’s hero Itchingham Lofte is a nerdy fourteen year old science geek obsessed with collecting elements from the Periodic Table. Living in Cornwall
This initially started life as a short story to amuse Mayo’s youngest son before spiralling into a 94,000 word novel. However you wouldn’t know that this was his first foray into fiction as it’s a truly assured debut.
Mayo writes with skill and dexterity and seems to have an innate understanding of pace and plot development. He balances a broad range of characters and does a strong line in baddies without resorting to clumsy stereotypes.
Whilst the novel stands on its own without the need for comparisons it is an interesting exercise to compare it with The Philosopher’s Stone, and for me it holds up pretty well. Rowling has the edge on inventiveness and pure fantasy, but Mayo has some great material up his sleeve, and some of it is very dark material indeed. He has also left sufficient loose ends and unresolved plot strands to ensure an incendiary sequel, which he is already writing.
Whilst his target audience is undeniably the young teen market the plot is sufficiently dark to provide an equal appeal to older audiences. Ultimately it’s a story about great responsibility (hold on…that sounds like a tag-line for the new Avengers movie!).
I would have no hesitation in recommending this marvellous novel, whatever your age.
No comments:
Post a Comment