It took me a while to get into this book, as my first thoughts were that it was very same-y to Ffffforde’s Thursday Next series, down to the newspaper extracts at the top of each chapter and silly names (what is ‘Friedland Chymes’ a pun of, though!?).

However, it very slowly crept up on me, and before I knew it I was hooked. The short chapters encourage the ‘just one more’ mentality, especially when each ends with another piece of the puzzle.

There’s a quote on the back of the book about it not just being funny, but working as a detective novel. I wanted to argue with this: after all, when everything is based around nursery rhymes, you kind of know how things work out, right? Urm… no, actually! I ended up being quite impressed: the first half of the book keeps the suspense by making the questions the mystery, not the answers. Then, just when that smug ‘I know how the nursery rhyme goes’ feeling kicks in, you discover that there’s more here than meets the eye…

Recommended – in fact, I ended up liking this more than Thursday Next in some regards, as it doesn’t rely on knowledge of classic fiction. I know. Dumbing down for the masses!!

I’ve read Jasper Fforde’s Thursday Next series, and had long been meaning to get into the Big Over Easy. As we’re now reading most of these nursery rhymes over again (and again, and again) to our 1+ year old, it seemed even more appropriate. I ran across the audio book in the Winchester library, picked it up, and listened to it over a few weeks on the short drive into work.

What an excellent, excellent book. The audio book is cast perfectly, Jasper Fforde is back with sparkling writing again, for the most part. I’m guessing the little break from the same characters and scenarios he’d done so well over and over again in the Thursday Next series was a major relief for himself, who, by the latest in the series, seemed to have hit a little bit of a rut.

Now this is what I imagined the godawful Gregory Macguire novels could have been. As it was, I struggled through Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister, and don’t think I’ll ever touch another thing written by Greg.

The book is funny, fun, and a great read. Or listen.

This was so funny. As soon as I realised I was nearing the end, I ordered the next in the series off Amazon.

You’ll read fairy tales to your kids with a whole new appreciation for the seamier side of the enchanted forest.