Boo Humbug

Book 49 - Rene Gutteridge - Boo Humbug

And so I reach the end of my visits to Skary, Indiana. Time to say goodbye to all the wonderful characters I have come to know this year.

You know, lockdown has been really hard, really tough for so many people, including the Arbuckles and some very close friends who are practically family. But..if it hadn’t been for lockdown I wouldn’t have started reading a book a week.

I probably wouldn’t have reached for Boo in the first place...way back at Book 7. I wouldn’t have got to know the wonderful people of this made up town. The mad Mayor who at one point in the series is wandering the town in a Hawaiian shirt and shorts...in Winter; the main couple - Wolfe and Ainsley - the heart of the town; show more the elderly Reverend who nearly loses his faith only to see it rekindled and shine out and to Alfred, who arrives in Book 1 as the self-centred greedy editor, who grows to understand what ‘Boo’ now has and the amazing ending which I won’t spoil here but let’s just say I shed a tear or six at the end.

If you are looking into the dark this Christmas remember the Light of the World is shining right back at you. Embrace each other and look forwards...don’t look back to the past...we aren’t going that way… show less

If you haven’t read the other books in this series, you might have a bit of trouble sorting out the characters. However, it won’t take you long to understand their personalities and relationships. Lois is rewriting “A Christmas Carol” to put her own twist on it, but it doesn’t end up quite like she envisioned it. Alfred is in charge of promoting it, but he, too, makes a major blunder. Meanwhile, the two new dads, overwhelmed by their infants and sleep deprived, look to Lois’s play for a bit of rest away from their respective home life. This, too, proved to be unwise. But it’s Christmas, and a miracle might just be waiting in the wings. This charming tale will amuse and entertain you and is quite enjoyable, whether it’s show more Christmas time or not. show less

NCLA REVIEW - With Boo Humbug Rene Gutterson continues to follow the lives and adventures of residents of small-town Skary, Indiana. In this installment, eccentric Lois Stepaphanolopolis decides to stage a production of Dicken’s A Christmas Carol, which she has rewritten to resemble a Halloween play more than a Christmas one. Two of her actors, both new fathers, join the production just to get away from the house for a while—a strategy that backfires miserably. The book, like the play, is a farce from beginning to end, with over-the-top characters in madcap situations, but it's a fun, light-hearted holiday read. Think of it as The Best Christmas Pageant Ever for grown-ups. Rating: 3—AG

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