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#HistFicThursdays - Medical History (specifically thyroids!)

 This week has been a mad one. Close to the start of the Christmas period, we found out that Mum would be having a thyroidectomy on Candlemas (the final day of the Christmas season). Of course, this was not enough to spoil Christmas. As readers of this blog are no doubt aware, Christmas happens in a big way in this house. But when the day finally arrived it was nonetheless met with, if not fear, definite nervousness. I'm pleased to say that the procedure seems to have been a great success! And wouldn't it have been? Thyroid treatment has been developing for over four thousand years. You know me - somewhat obsessed with putting doctors, nurses, physicians and surgeons in my historical fiction - I made a (very brief) wander into the realms of researching the topic. I was surprised by the results. The earliest I could find a reference to treatments for thyroid issues (in this instance a goitre) came in 2697BC, when the legendary Yellow Emperor recorded the use of seaweed in treati...
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Book Review: The Stranger of Wigglesworth - Colby Hess

Blurb:

The arrival of a mysterious stranger in the happy village of Giggleswick causes a schism that disrupts their innocent, carefree existence. A brave, clever, freethinking boy then sets off on a quest to reveal the stranger’s deception and rescue his fellow villagers.


Review:


This is the story of how a stranger appears and starts telling happy, content people that they'll be more happy and content if they live their lives his way. When they refuse, things start going wrong in their joyful little village of Giggleswick. But all is not as it seems... there is a darker force at work!


I thoroughly enjoyed it. To me, it had elements of The Pied Piper of Hamelin by Robert Browning, both in content and style. The story is written in a kind of gentle poetry which is more about rhythm than rhyme and that makes it a wonderful thing to read aloud.

The Stranger of Wigglesworth is a picture book for older children. It states clearly on the cover that it is for Ages 6-11, and it's important to keep this in mind when reading it. There are a lot of words in here which littler children wouldn't understand, and some parts of the story are very dark. The only slight issue I had with it was that, on one single occasion, the illustrations got so dark that I struggled to see what was happening, but that didn't spoil the overall reading experience for me.

This is a book to be read aloud where possible - and definitely one to be shared!

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