Grandad’s Chair by Michael Price - REVIEW
A book review by Victoria Walsh
Grandad's Chair by Michael Price is a captivating older children's fantasy novel. The story follows 13-year-old MIles Maltborough, who lives in Scarton, a fictional small town in North Yorkshire. It is set in the early 1980s, long before mobile phones and when only four UK TV channels existed.
Miles is an only child living with his dad in a small terrace house. The story starts at the beginning of the summer holidays. Miles is a typical teenager, not particularly interested in school or lessons and definitely not interested in doing his summer project. His usually uneventful life takes on a magical turn when his late grandfather's chair is delivered to his home just days into the summer break.
Anyone who is or knows someone without siblings will recognise Miles. As the child of a single parent, he spends hours alone in his imagination. Grandad's Chair cleverly depicts a time when there was ‘nothing to do’; every child dreaded Sundays, the shops weren’t open, and visiting relatives to eat overcooked food was the norm.
For Miles, the hours of boredom were interrupted by the arrival of Grandad’s Chair. At this point, I want to tell you that while writing this review, I am looking at my own grandad’s chair, which arrived after the kindly old fellow died some 20 years ago. My chair arrived covered in 1970s green velour, which we quickly changed into something more befitting of modern times. It remains my favourite heirloom, not worth anything, but at the same time, precious and valuable.
Back to the book - Miles discovers clues that lead him into a world filled with witches, winged pigs, and a mysterious tropical island. With the help of Grandad's chair, this adventure helps Miles escape his monotonous routine and face thrilling and sometimes dangerous challenges.
Grandad’s Chair is Michael Price’s first novel. Price hails from Scarborough, North Yorkshire, graduating from The University of Leeds with a degree in Zoology in 1977. After completing his degree and teacher training, Price dedicated 13 years to teaching adolescents and young adults in British schools and colleges.
Grandad's Chair is well-written, and you can tell Price is a teacher who has worked with young adults. Price has almost certainly based Mr Glebe, Miles's geography teacher, on himself, and there are smatterings of typical Yorkshire life throughout the book. The dialogue captures authentic Yorkshire life, adding a layer of richness and charm to the setting. While younger readers unfamiliar with regional phrases might find it slightly challenging, it enhances the immersive experience and provides an opportunity to explore a distinct cultural flavour. Price’s narration of the story is completely enthralling, even to a person who is a long way from being a young adult.
Price writes enticingly detailed descriptions, almost certainly based on his experiences in Asia. The Price family moved overseas, and Price taught for 23 years in international schools. At the end of the book, Price talks about his time in Jakarta, Indonesia, which was particularly transformative. It challenged his previously held beliefs and broadened his perspective on cultural conventions.
Price says that his 23 years in Asia greatly influenced his open-mindedness and questioning nature. Price's fascination with the brain's ability to balance experienced truths with new uncertainties has clearly influenced his thinking and writing. He finds young minds especially intriguing; you can see the intrigue in Miles's mind. Grandad's Chair captures a young person's ability to fill in the gaps between the facts they are sure of, the things they think they know and what they would like to be true—known as imagination in the analogue era.
Without giving too much away, Grandad's Chair is a story about challenges, bullying and living up to expectations (or not). The book asks that you don’t judge a book by its cover and a situation by those who present it. With the phrase, ‘What I knew for sure was that just about nothing is simply what it seems to be, except me, of course!’ and ‘People are people all over the world and all through the generations.’ Here, Price delivers some teaching notes to the reader.
The book deserves to be on a school reading list, levelling up to Boy: Tales of Childhood by Roald Dahl. Grandad's Chair is equally articulate and engaging and delivers a compelling tale that will appeal to children 7-11 and in Key Stage 2. Price's writing often explores themes of adventure, self-discovery, and the supernatural. His ability to weave intricate stories has earned him a dedicated readership.
Now retired and living in the Hebrides, Price enjoys a slower pace of life. He writes stories, walks his dogs, and helps with the island's ferry services. With over 60 years of daydreaming and communicating through words, Michael continues to share his humour and experiences through his writing.
I'm confident that there will be a sequel to Grandad's Chair. Miles is an intriguing character, and the era Price writes about captivates children and young adults who enjoy stories from pre-internet times, especially the 1980s. While Price may not focus on the pre-internet world, as most adults over 35 take these times for granted, this possibly unintentional theme is as compelling as the story of Grandad’s Chair itself.
