I have recently read ‘The
Radleys’ by Matt Haig and here are my thoughts on it.
It is the story of a family who seem like everyone else, but
are in fact vampires…
The text is punctuated by extracts from ‘The Abstainer’s
Handbook’ - a fictional manual written by vampires to help other vampires who
do not want to drink blood. The Radley family are abstainers and want to ‘do
your bit for society and ignore those dark desires inside you’; this and the
arrival of the black sheep of the family, Uncle Will, are the main catalysts
for trouble. As a tale of vampires trying to fit in with humans, it is not
particularly original, however, it is an amusing critique of middle-class
village life. I think it is best suited to young people aged 14 - 16.
