Book picks similar to
Stirred Not Shaken by Ben Trovato


humour
south-african
comic-relief
fiction

Dinner at Mine


Chris Smyth - 2012
    But Rosie is adamant. Four couples, each hosting a dinner party on a different night of the week, with a prize at the end for the best one. It'll be a good laugh, won't it? And a great way for everyone to get to know each other. What could possibly go wrong?What Rosie doesn't anticipate are the lengths her fellow hosts might be prepared to go to in order to claim the prize -- outlandish recipes, rare ingredients sourced from abroad, and a chocolate tart that looks just too good to be homemade… But perhaps she should be more worried about the mounting tension between the guests, as backbiting breaks out over the appetisers and a glass of wine too many leads to indiscreet flirtation. As the pressure in the kitchen rises, relationships begin to crack under strain, high-minded principles collide and the oven gloves come off… But that's all part of the fun. Isn't it?

But Can You Drink the Water? (Droll, witty and utterly British)


Jan Hurst-Nicholson - 2010
    Laugh out loud as they encounter ‘crocodiles’ on the wall, strange African customs and unintelligible Afrikaans accents. Cringe with them as their visiting in-laws embarrass them in front of their new SA friends.If you enjoyed Educating Rita and Shirley Valentine you will recognise Mavis Turner.Set in the 1970s, But Can You Drink The Water? uses subtle observational humour with an underlying pathos to portray the upsets, hurt and changing family dynamics that emigration brings. (The story is based on a 13-part sitcom) ReviewWith a droll, witty, utterly British voice, this manuscript tackles playfully and sincerely the age-old fish out of water tale. What sustains this book, however, is the narrative voice, the dry and self-deprecating humor, and the ability of this author to tell a story simply and well. Publisher’s Weekly reviewer for the ABNA semi-finals.

The Westerners


Zane Grey - 1980
    He wrote more than sixty novels, including the classic Riders of the Purple Sage, but he also produced some of the finest Western short fiction ever written. The stories collected here are shining examples of his best. Included in this volume is "The Ranger," first published in 1929 but never before in the form Grey himself intended. Here is a rare opportunity to experience the short stories of Zane Grey, restored and correct to the original vision, a vision that has remained unmatched for nearly a century!

Be a Flamingo & Stand Out From the Crowd


Sarah Ford - 2017
    She is always the first on the dancefloor and the very last to stop boogying. She has never tried to dress like a Parisian, never followed advice on what not to wear, and certainly has never tried to tone down her natural pinkness; she knows he is perfect just the way she is. And even when life throws Flamingo a curveball, she is always ready to embrace the unknown and jump straight in.A gorgeous little gift book of motivational sayings and hilarious axioms, Be a Flamingo is a perfect pink pick-me-up gift for a friend who needs a confidence boost, or great as an impulse self-purchase when you feel you need to start tooting your own horn a little louder. Because we could all do worse than taking a leaf out of Flamingo's book.

Woman of a Certain Rage


Georgie Hall - 2021
    Eliza is angry. Very angry, and very, very hot.Late for work and dodging traffic, Eliza's still reeling from the latest row with her husband Paddy. Twenty-something years ago their eyes met over the class divide in oh-so-cool Britpop London, but these days their eyes only meet to bicker over the three-seat sofa.Paddy seems content filling his downtime with canal boats and cricket, but Eliza craves the freedom and excitement of her youth. Being fifty feels far too close to pensionable, their three teenage children are growing up fast, and even the dog has upped and died. Something is going to have to change—menopause be damned!Woman of a Certain Rage is a smart and funny novel for all the women who won't be told it's too late to shake things up, and Eliza is a heroine many will recognise. She may sweat a lot and need a wee all the time, but she has something to prove.

Why Me? The Very Important Emails of Bob Servant


Neil Forsyth - 2011
    The economy is collapsing, his health is failing, and around his hometown of Broughty Ferry, Bob is struggling to get the respect he deserves. Fortunately his email junk folder is bursting with offers of assistance from around the world. In these genuine emails, Bob Servant looks to the Internet's worst con merchants and charlatans for answers to his many woes. The author of the bestselling Delete This At Your Peril and the critically acclaimed Radio 4 series The Bob Servant Emails is back with an all-new compilation of emails targeting a fresh batch of email spammers—the false lenders who have bravely stepped into the credit crunch, supposed doctors offering expensive treatments for Bob's ailments, and fake foreign soldiers offering him military advice in his campaign against a local bowling club. They all find a man from Broughty Ferry who is ready and willing to give them his valuable time.

Dutch Courage


Paige Nick - 2016
    So when her sister begs her to take her place as a Rihanna impersonator at a club in Amsterdam, no alarm bells go off … until she finds herself onstage in the city’s famous red-light district with only a pole for support and her knickers in a knot.Thrown into strip-club life, and forced to share an apartment with an exotic troupe of impersonating divas with Lady Gaga-sized egos, Grace has to learn some hard lessons fast. One: living with Marilyn Monroe and Madonna isn’t easy. And two: transformations don’t happen overnight – especially when your bra is determined to sabotage your dance routine.Hilarious and smart with heart, Dutch Courage is Paige Nick’s new comedy about what’s left once your clothes come off.

Arc Of A Shooting Star


Simon Northouse - 2018
    It's a far cry from the heady days when he led his band, The Shooting Tsars, to the top of the charts and sell-out tours and festivals around the world.An unwelcome phone call from his deceitful ex-manager, Chas Dupont, sets in motion a chain of events that seems unstoppable.Can Will get his fractured band back together and rediscover his mojo? Are Chas Dupont's motives purely altruistic? Who are the musical mafia? And are the legendary rumours about the lost "Bloom Tape" true?

Harold Patter and the Worst Child: A Parody of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child


John Marquane - 2016
    K. Rowling but actually is fanfiction written by two writers she found on Craigslist London, featuring a return to the Triwizard Tournament as depicted in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. In this new parody, meant for both children and adults, we finally get the sequel to the epic series: Will Elbows and Scorpio succeed in changing the past? When Scorpio accidentally ends up in an alternate reality where the Dark Lord won, and he's the coolest kid in school, will he go back again to undo what they undid? Or will he stick around, go on a date with Holly Chapstick . . . and decide this new reality is actually pretty dope?

Up to No Good


Marsha Cornelius - 2016
    Because she and her husband, Brian, work together, they have little to talk about. And the heat between the sheets has definitely cooled. Her only diversion these days seems to be the usual neighborhood gossip. She likes to think she's inquisitive. Brian says she's a snoop.Lately, her nosy nature has escalated. She's gotten it into her head that a house down the road might be used to make adult films. Her clues? The blinds are always drawn, and there are never any garbage cans at the curb. She’s determined to get to the bottom of the mystery, but if her snooping keeps uncovering unexpected dirt, it may very well be the last thing she ever does.

Air Mail: Letters From The World's Most Troublesome Passenger


Terry Ravenscroft - 2007
    But are they? He is probably the only man who has ever requested the recipe for an airline’s lasagna or wanted to enjoy his flight with an inflatable rubber woman sat on his knee. Prepare to meet the man who must have his diet of stir-fried mulberry leaves accommodated and the man who left his false teeth on a flight and is sure he recognized them on a later flight—in a flight attendant's mouth. Ravenscroft's correspondence tackles travel annoyances like excess baggage charges alongside more surreal letters, such as the one starting out asking an Australian airline if they offer an authentic Australian experience (for instance, Australian cuisine or in-flight movies) which then moves on to the question of at what age a baby is safe from being swallowed by a dingo.

African Love Poems and Proverbs with Bookmark (Petites)


C.W. Leslau - 1995
    Ranging from joyous to elegiac, verses touch on love’s delights and follies with elliptical eloquence. Lovely to read aloud or reflect on silently. Photos of African artwork accompany the text.My heart is single and cannot be dividedAnd it is fastened on a single hope;Oh, you, who might be the moon!--Somali love song

Sex, Lies & Stellenbosch


Eva Mazza - 2019
    Written as fiction to protect the innocent, the book exposes the explosive dark truths of the Winelands' elite. All is revealed through the eyes of stay at home mom, 49-year-old Jen, who is the wife of John, a renowned wine farmer and businessman. Jen, like many of her privileged friends, lives a charmed life provided by her husband, in exchange for conjugal sex and obligatory wifely gratitude. When Jen stumbles upon her playboy husband in a compromising position with his sexy employee, things fall apart. Jen is forced to choose between leaving her marriage, jeopardising her standing and stability in the community or turning a blind eye to his infidelity. The book follows Jen's passage to self-discovery and self-fulfillment, while other characters' perspectives move the story forward as each is privy to (and eventually reveals) at least one 'truth' or 'lie' which Jen must face. Jen's exposition of her husband's infidelity inadvertently mirrors the underbelly of the patriarchal and often duplicitous community of the seemingly perfect Stellenbosch. Led by prominent wine farmers, international businessmen and renowned academics, business and private interests, even if ethically compromised, are staunchly guarded. The unfolding chapters irreverently explore both the emotional growth of the protagonist, Jen, as well as the moral ambiguities of the other players in the book. Characters like Lee, John's childhood friend and unknown ally to Jen, and marriage wrecker, Patty, blur lines between right and wrong and what is decent and moral. The alluring opulence of the rich and privileged setting of the famed Cape Winelands is complemented by the very real, often funny and indeed relatable crises that Jen is forced to confront. Sex,Lies & Stellenbosch is a page turner - sexy, fast-paced and entertaining.

Of Warriors, Lovers and Prophets: Unusual Stories from South Africa's Past


Max Du Preez - 2004
    Drawing from seven years of historical research, Max du Preez has collected the richest and most extraordinary tales that he found.There's the story of the Khoikhoi chief who was kidnapped and taken to England in 1610. And of King Moshoeshoe's mercy towards the cannibals who had eaten his beloved grandfather, because killing them would defile his grandfather's grave. There's the story of Boer War general Christiaan de Wet and his brother Piet, who joined the British forces and fought his own people. The stories span the centuries, up to recent times, and take in the variety of South Africa's regions and cultures.The result is a fascinating mosaic of our rich historical heritage. There are plenty of academic histories of South Africa, but this is a book that the general reader will enjoy, and it will appeal to tourists too. It's researched with an investigative journalist's thoroughness, and written in the easy, accessible style that has made Max du Preez's writing so popular.

Critical Failures IX (Caverns and Creatures Book 9)


Robert Bevan - 2021