Julia Stuart
Hardcover | Pages: 304 pages Rating: 3.58 | 9045 Users | 1753 Reviews
Point Books As The Tower, The Zoo, and The Tortoise
| Original Title: | The Tower, The Zoo, and The Tortoise |
| ISBN: | 0385533284 (ISBN13: 9780385533287) |
| Edition Language: | English |
| Characters: | Balthazar Jones, Hebe Jones, Reverand Septimus Drew |
| Setting: | London, England(United Kingdom) |
Narrative Concering Books The Tower, The Zoo, and The Tortoise
Brimming with charm and whimsy, this exquisite novel set in the Tower of London has the transportive qualities and delightful magic of the contemporary classics Chocolat and Amélie. Balthazar Jones has lived in the Tower of London with his loving wife, Hebe, and his 120-year-old pet tortoise for the past eight years. That’s right, he is a Beefeater (they really do live there). It’s no easy job living and working in the tourist attraction in present-day London. Among the eccentric characters who call the Tower’s maze of ancient buildings and spiral staircases home are the Tower’s Rack & Ruin barmaid, Ruby Dore, who just found out she’s pregnant; portly Valerie Jennings, who is falling for ticket inspector Arthur Catnip; the lifelong bachelor Reverend Septimus Drew, who secretly pens a series of principled erotica; and the philandering Ravenmaster, aiming to avenge the death of one of his insufferable ravens. When Balthazar is tasked with setting up an elaborate menagerie within the Tower walls to house the many exotic animals gifted to the Queen, life at the Tower gets all the more interesting. Penguins escape, giraffes are stolen, and the Komodo dragon sends innocent people running for their lives. Balthazar is in charge and things are not exactly running smoothly. Then Hebe decides to leave him and his beloved tortoise “runs” away. Filled with the humor and heart that calls to mind the delightful novels of Alexander McCall Smith, and the charm and beauty of The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, The Tower, the Zoo, and the Tortoise is a magical, wholly original novel whose irresistible characters will stay with you long after you turn the stunning last page. Published in the UK in August 2010 as Balthazar Jones and the Tower of London Zoo.Specify Out Of Books The Tower, The Zoo, and The Tortoise
| Title | : | The Tower, The Zoo, and The Tortoise |
| Author | : | Julia Stuart |
| Book Format | : | Hardcover |
| Book Edition | : | Anniversary Edition |
| Pages | : | Pages: 304 pages |
| Published | : | August 10th 2010 by Doubleday |
| Categories | : | Fiction. Humor. Historical. Historical Fiction. Animals. European Literature. British Literature |
Rating Out Of Books The Tower, The Zoo, and The Tortoise
Ratings: 3.58 From 9045 Users | 1753 ReviewsWeigh Up Out Of Books The Tower, The Zoo, and The Tortoise
A Beefeater at the Tower of London with an obsessive interest in collecting rain specimens in Egyptian glass bottles is now called upon to look after a new royal menagerie. Foreign dignitaries have at times made presents of exotic animals found in their countries to the Queen of England. They're usually kept at the London Zoo, but following the death of one gift, leading to an offended Ambassador, the Queen decided that it might be better to have these specially gifted animals under closer care,This book made me laugh out loud so many times that my sides began to hurt. Normally I breeze through books quickly, but this one I savored, loving every minute of it. I'd heard that it was slow, and was dreading the slowing down of it, but I found it thoroughly and utterly delightful and so very, very British.There are so many scenes in this book that were perfect, and the characters - man, the characters were fantastic. The scene with the urn arriving at Hebe's workplace, the Erotic Fiction
Retired military officer Balthazar Jones is a Beefeater, working and living with his wife, the unfortunately named Hebe, in the Tower of London. The couple have been trying to cope with the loss of their young son three years ago, but seem unable to move past their grief. Balthazar collects raindrops, perhaps the tears he cannot, himself, shed. While there is an undercurrent of sadness here, it is more than mitigated by a lively cast of eccentrics, and when Balthazar is charged with setting up a
The title of this novel could have been so much longer. Author, Julia Stuart, could have entitled it: The Tower, The Zoo, The Tortoise, The Beefeater, The Quirky, The Son, The Loved, The Lost, The Found, The Reverend, The Ravenmaster, The Hopeful and The Grieving. Yes, that title would have been way too long. So, I understand Ms. Stuarts shortened version. Rather than giving the reader all that information in the title she instead unfolds this material to the reader slowly and gently, using
The Queen has decided to relocate the gift animals she has received from the London Zoo to the Tower of London, thus reinstituting, after a fashion, the Tower Menagerie. The Queen also has decided that Beefeater Balthazar Jones should be the Keeper of the Menagerie, under the theory that he must know something about the care of exotic animals since his family has the care and feeding of a 180+ year old tortoise. And thus starts one of the most charming, funny, delightful stories I have had the
Rating: 2* of five The Publisher Says: Brimming with charm and whimsy, this exquisite novel set in the Tower of London has the transportive qualities and delightful magic of the contemporary classics Chocolat and Amélie. Balthazar Jones has lived in the Tower of London with his loving wife, Hebe, and his 120-year-old pet tortoise for the past eight years. Thats right, he is a Beefeater (they really do live there). Its no easy job living and working in the tourist attraction in present-day
What a lovely surprise this book was! I really enjoyed it. I found it to be funny, sad, quirky and charming in equal measure. What I particularly enjoyed was how the author wove the history of the Tower of London into the story and did so seamlessly. I also really liked the cast of characters, including all of the animals who were just as offbeat as their human counterparts. However, I did have one or two small problems with it which led to me rating it 4 stars instead of 5. The last couple of
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