Scan barcode
postitsandpens's review
3.0
3.5/5 stars.
Imagine a world where potato chips - or crisps - have their own secret world, where they go on adventures, fight in wars, and travel in space. That is precisely the world that Michael Diack has created with his book, The Super Spud Trilogy. When I was first contacted by Mr. Diack for a possible review, I was really excited because, not only was this the first book I'd ever been asked to review by an actual author, but the synopsis of the book sounded like a lot of fun, and something that would make me laugh. And that's exactly what it was.
Mr. Diack has created a very imaginative world, where Super Spuds (i.e. the bags of chips) live in landfills (or rubbish tips, if you're British, as these crisps are) and have their own communities where they're ruled by kings or queens, come in a multitude of flavors (some of which sounded downright gross, I have to admit), but have the ability to walk and talk just like you and me. There's just one catch: if a human sees them, they die instantly. And boy, is there a lot of death in this book! And the deaths are handled with such an irreverence that the reader can't help but laugh through it all. One thing I learned very quickly in this book was not to get attached to anyone because no one is safe. If they aren't killed by birds, they're caught up in wars between neighboring rubbish tips, or participating in death-defying (or not-so-defying) activities. Let me put it this way: the life of a Super Spud is definitely not boring!
There is also a ton of tongue-in-cheek humor, as well as references to loads of famous movies or shows, from Top Gun to X-Files to Star Wars, just to name a few. You can't turn a page without running into some sort of reference to something else, and it just added to the overall feel of this book. Yes, death is prominent, but the book is really quite lighthearted when it comes down to it. I admit to laughing out loud several times while reading.
The Super Spud Trilogy is an overall enjoyable read, full of many adventures, interesting characters, and loads and loads of humor. It's not deep or thought-provoking, and isn't going to grab hold of your emotions and not let go, but that's not really what the author was going for. If you're looking for something different, and enjoy spotting pop culture references, as well as reading things that make you laugh, then you'd probably enjoy this. I know that I did!
A copy of this book was provided by the author in exchange for an honest review.
Imagine a world where potato chips - or crisps - have their own secret world, where they go on adventures, fight in wars, and travel in space. That is precisely the world that Michael Diack has created with his book, The Super Spud Trilogy. When I was first contacted by Mr. Diack for a possible review, I was really excited because, not only was this the first book I'd ever been asked to review by an actual author, but the synopsis of the book sounded like a lot of fun, and something that would make me laugh. And that's exactly what it was.
Mr. Diack has created a very imaginative world, where Super Spuds (i.e. the bags of chips) live in landfills (or rubbish tips, if you're British, as these crisps are) and have their own communities where they're ruled by kings or queens, come in a multitude of flavors (some of which sounded downright gross, I have to admit), but have the ability to walk and talk just like you and me. There's just one catch: if a human sees them, they die instantly. And boy, is there a lot of death in this book! And the deaths are handled with such an irreverence that the reader can't help but laugh through it all. One thing I learned very quickly in this book was not to get attached to anyone because no one is safe. If they aren't killed by birds, they're caught up in wars between neighboring rubbish tips, or participating in death-defying (or not-so-defying) activities. Let me put it this way: the life of a Super Spud is definitely not boring!
There is also a ton of tongue-in-cheek humor, as well as references to loads of famous movies or shows, from Top Gun to X-Files to Star Wars, just to name a few. You can't turn a page without running into some sort of reference to something else, and it just added to the overall feel of this book. Yes, death is prominent, but the book is really quite lighthearted when it comes down to it. I admit to laughing out loud several times while reading.
The Super Spud Trilogy is an overall enjoyable read, full of many adventures, interesting characters, and loads and loads of humor. It's not deep or thought-provoking, and isn't going to grab hold of your emotions and not let go, but that's not really what the author was going for. If you're looking for something different, and enjoy spotting pop culture references, as well as reading things that make you laugh, then you'd probably enjoy this. I know that I did!
A copy of this book was provided by the author in exchange for an honest review.
liedora's review
4.0
Before anyone else reads this and tells me I didn't pick up on spelling errors, this is because it is written in British English so a few of the spellings and symbols used in its pages are a little different from that which the average American reader might see. However, they aren't anything glaring that would spoil this fun little book, but they are there.
I never knew that the humble potato had so much life in it until I read this super fun little book. So much of their out of sight lives are packed into its 262 pages, it is difficult to write a review on this novella without just packing it full of spoilers.
Each of the ‘Super Spuds’ the reader encounters on their journey through this work, has its own personality and character which seems to be directly related to its flavour. The characters are fun, entertaining and zany beyond belief, and on top of this they have their ‘rules and regulations’ that govern the lives of these spuds.
If you have a sense of humour, enjoy eating crisps and want a wacky ride and adventure, then this is the book for you. I would recommend this to anyone in the above criteria, young and old alike; it will definitely make you chuckle, and possibly never look at a bag of crisps in the same way again.
Originally reviewed on: http://catesbooknuthut.wordpress.com/2013/08/23/review-the-super-spud-trilogy-michael-diack/
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.
I never knew that the humble potato had so much life in it until I read this super fun little book. So much of their out of sight lives are packed into its 262 pages, it is difficult to write a review on this novella without just packing it full of spoilers.
Each of the ‘Super Spuds’ the reader encounters on their journey through this work, has its own personality and character which seems to be directly related to its flavour. The characters are fun, entertaining and zany beyond belief, and on top of this they have their ‘rules and regulations’ that govern the lives of these spuds.
If you have a sense of humour, enjoy eating crisps and want a wacky ride and adventure, then this is the book for you. I would recommend this to anyone in the above criteria, young and old alike; it will definitely make you chuckle, and possibly never look at a bag of crisps in the same way again.
Originally reviewed on: http://catesbooknuthut.wordpress.com/2013/08/23/review-the-super-spud-trilogy-michael-diack/
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.
somarostam's review
4.0
Thoughtful imagination and setting make up this wonderful book. It's a trilogy, three beautifully-told stories of Super Spuds, the tastiest potatoes in the whole world!
Humans got bored of the taste of crisps (chips) so they made new genetically-engineered ones. These spuds (potatoes) are not normal, they are SUPER SPUDS. They begin to live a life of their own if they are not consumed after their use-by date. You should expect the unexpected in this imaginative trilogy!
The first story is The Adventures of Colin,The Super Spud, it's way too short, I personally loved Colin, he was a genuine super spud (grinning <->). The second is The Adventures of Cougar, The Super Spud, whom you will be familiar with in the first story, Cougar is very adventurous, ambitious and cannot stand still for five seconds!.
The third one is The Adventures of King Martin, The Super Spud. King Martin doesn't act like a king at all, which I loved! He is even more adventurous than Cougar. Each story features a huge group of Super Spuds, and the groups are related somehow throughout the book.
The stories are very very enjoyable, you can't help but chuckle and smile through the whole book. The hard work of the author is visible, too. And what I liked most when I read this book is the name of The Super Spuds. Most of them have names derived from human origins, it's so funny and captivating, I loved it! Like G-James, taken from the human James Bond, isn't it wonderful?
Although it's not my type, that's why I didn't give it Five Cupcakes. But if you want an enjoyable and compelling quick read, or if you want your kids to have some fun time and refresh their knowledge, then you should read the exhilarating, Super Spud Trilogy...
Humans got bored of the taste of crisps (chips) so they made new genetically-engineered ones. These spuds (potatoes) are not normal, they are SUPER SPUDS. They begin to live a life of their own if they are not consumed after their use-by date. You should expect the unexpected in this imaginative trilogy!
The first story is The Adventures of Colin,The Super Spud, it's way too short, I personally loved Colin, he was a genuine super spud (grinning <->). The second is The Adventures of Cougar, The Super Spud, whom you will be familiar with in the first story, Cougar is very adventurous, ambitious and cannot stand still for five seconds!.
The third one is The Adventures of King Martin, The Super Spud. King Martin doesn't act like a king at all, which I loved! He is even more adventurous than Cougar. Each story features a huge group of Super Spuds, and the groups are related somehow throughout the book.
The stories are very very enjoyable, you can't help but chuckle and smile through the whole book. The hard work of the author is visible, too. And what I liked most when I read this book is the name of The Super Spuds. Most of them have names derived from human origins, it's so funny and captivating, I loved it! Like G-James, taken from the human James Bond, isn't it wonderful?
Although it's not my type, that's why I didn't give it Five Cupcakes. But if you want an enjoyable and compelling quick read, or if you want your kids to have some fun time and refresh their knowledge, then you should read the exhilarating, Super Spud Trilogy...
matthew_p's review
3.0
Fast, fun, and silly. My only criticism is that the dialogue was a little flat, which killed some of the puns and detracted from the fun.
whatshotblog's review
4.0
This has to be one of the strangest books I've ever read. I'm not really a big fan of comedy in books. I love it when books I'm reading have funny elements, but for some reason, books that are only categorised under 'comedy' do not appeal to me. However, I decided to read The Super Spud Trilogy anyway because I was so intrigued by the book description and I thought my love of potatoes would carry me through it.
I experienced many laugh-out-loud moments whilst reading this. The spuds go off and have so many adventures in the strangest places and the story is just continuous action and humour. I must commend the author for his brilliant imagination because he has created such a strange and unique world that no one else could've possibly thought of.
This book is completely bizarre and you never know what's coming next which keeps you turning pages like crazy. This is a really well written book that's easy to read. It's the sort of book that you could easily flip through in one sitting, but it's also the type of book that you can put down for a while and then pick up again right where you left off.
There's not much point in getting attached to characters in this book because most of them aren't around for very long. It can be a little tiring trying to keep up with who's who and what they're doing because there are just so many different flavours of crisps and characters to keep track of, but I suppose that's all part of the fun.
Whilst this book may seem like a bundle of laughs, not all of the plot strands are happy and frivolous. They are some pretty shocking and heartbreaking ends to some of the spuds and underlying the story of potatoes galavanting across the globe there is also the tale of love and friendship which is a nice touch.
This book is, without a doubt, one of a kind. I've never seen or heard of a book like this before so if you're looking for a funny and refreshing read then this is the book for you. The story may sound like the strangest thing ever, but that's because it is - in a good way. I'd recommend this to anyone who's up for a good, hard laugh.
Many thanks to the author for providing me with a review copy!
I experienced many laugh-out-loud moments whilst reading this. The spuds go off and have so many adventures in the strangest places and the story is just continuous action and humour. I must commend the author for his brilliant imagination because he has created such a strange and unique world that no one else could've possibly thought of.
This book is completely bizarre and you never know what's coming next which keeps you turning pages like crazy. This is a really well written book that's easy to read. It's the sort of book that you could easily flip through in one sitting, but it's also the type of book that you can put down for a while and then pick up again right where you left off.
There's not much point in getting attached to characters in this book because most of them aren't around for very long. It can be a little tiring trying to keep up with who's who and what they're doing because there are just so many different flavours of crisps and characters to keep track of, but I suppose that's all part of the fun.
Whilst this book may seem like a bundle of laughs, not all of the plot strands are happy and frivolous. They are some pretty shocking and heartbreaking ends to some of the spuds and underlying the story of potatoes galavanting across the globe there is also the tale of love and friendship which is a nice touch.
This book is, without a doubt, one of a kind. I've never seen or heard of a book like this before so if you're looking for a funny and refreshing read then this is the book for you. The story may sound like the strangest thing ever, but that's because it is - in a good way. I'd recommend this to anyone who's up for a good, hard laugh.
Many thanks to the author for providing me with a review copy!
very_vero's review
3.0
Super Spuds are genetically modified potato chips that were created to provide the most flavour. But once a Super Spud expires something amazing happens, they take on a life of their own. There are cities filled with them, they have sports tournaments, even wars. The only rules: Don't let the humans see you and don't open the package in any way. Any violation of those rules means instand death.
The world that Michael Diack created was one weird, funny and unique place to spend my days while reading the Super Spud Trilogy. Through our journey we get to meet so many Super Spuds that I can't even begin to mention them. I loved that depending on the flavour every Super Spud had a different personality. And I also loved the world building. The Super Spud cities, the tournaments, the races, the traveling, the wars, everyhting. It was very well structured.
What kind of made me tired were all the deaths. I don't want to spoil anything but some of them...well let's just say, I hoped would not happen. And decause of all those deaths we don't get to meet all the Super Spuds that much, before you know it they are dead. Never to be thought of again.
Anyways, still this book was really well writen and it felt like a thousand short weird stories and not really a trilogy. Each chapter is like a story by itself, but still there is the bigger picture at the background. And don't be dubious about reading the stories of potato chips, after a few chapters you are going to think of them as people, weird and unique people, but people nonetheless.
The world that Michael Diack created was one weird, funny and unique place to spend my days while reading the Super Spud Trilogy. Through our journey we get to meet so many Super Spuds that I can't even begin to mention them. I loved that depending on the flavour every Super Spud had a different personality. And I also loved the world building. The Super Spud cities, the tournaments, the races, the traveling, the wars, everyhting. It was very well structured.
What kind of made me tired were all the deaths. I don't want to spoil anything but some of them...well let's just say, I hoped would not happen. And decause of all those deaths we don't get to meet all the Super Spuds that much, before you know it they are dead. Never to be thought of again.
Anyways, still this book was really well writen and it felt like a thousand short weird stories and not really a trilogy. Each chapter is like a story by itself, but still there is the bigger picture at the background. And don't be dubious about reading the stories of potato chips, after a few chapters you are going to think of them as people, weird and unique people, but people nonetheless.
carolikesbooks's review
3.0
I was really exited to read this book, you see, is the first time the author contacts me to review it. And then, when I read the synopsis, I was even more exited about the book.
This was indeed an original read. The book is full of pop references, to music, to films, to characters everyone loves, recreated with chips. The book is well written in easy to follow, short stories that introduce you to the different characters. Every different flavor has different personalities, you have the "spinach and steak" flavor, they are strong, determined, and part of the military. They will always be ready to take the bullet...or toothpick. The tuna flavors, very smart; the menthol flavors, with...let's say special personalities.
Either way, the spuds will get into this ridiculously funny adventures, running the Grand Prix, saving Christmas and just making friends. My favorite moment was the war between two cities of spuds. You see, war finishes as soon as they reach a limit of casualties, they play a Michael Jackson song, so everyone knows is over, and then the winner is determined according to medals being given away! The whole image was so funny. If it wasn't because of the number of dead characters, I thing it would make a great kid's book
You can read the rest of my review at: http://greenmushroom1up.blogspot.ca/2012/06/super-spud-trilogy-by-michael-diack.html
This was indeed an original read. The book is full of pop references, to music, to films, to characters everyone loves, recreated with chips. The book is well written in easy to follow, short stories that introduce you to the different characters. Every different flavor has different personalities, you have the "spinach and steak" flavor, they are strong, determined, and part of the military. They will always be ready to take the bullet...or toothpick. The tuna flavors, very smart; the menthol flavors, with...let's say special personalities.
Either way, the spuds will get into this ridiculously funny adventures, running the Grand Prix, saving Christmas and just making friends. My favorite moment was the war between two cities of spuds. You see, war finishes as soon as they reach a limit of casualties, they play a Michael Jackson song, so everyone knows is over, and then the winner is determined according to medals being given away! The whole image was so funny. If it wasn't because of the number of dead characters, I thing it would make a great kid's book
You can read the rest of my review at: http://greenmushroom1up.blogspot.ca/2012/06/super-spud-trilogy-by-michael-diack.html
More...