Mr. Toppit

December 20, 2010
After British author Arthur Hayman dies unexpectedly, his children's book series becomes an equally unexpected success, and it's up to his son, Luke, the inspiration for the book's hero, to grow up in the public eye while struggling to keep his family together. Elton's dark comedy is superbly written but finds poor expression in Simon Vance's reading. Vance's overly resonant, excessively vibrant voice for the book feels false and affected, and his narration is prone to a few tics—notably hurtling through the beginnings of sentences, stopping for an instant on a final word or two, before attacking the next sentence in the same way. Elton's book possesses such inherent drama, witty dialogue, and complicated and conflicted characters, it's a pity that the listener can scarcely get beyond the reader's hammy styling and breakneck pace. An Other Press hardcover.

Starred review from August 9, 2010
In this excellent debut, Elton tells the story of a complicated family stretched to its limits by sudden fame and unexpected acquaintances. When we first meet Luke Hayman and his troubled sister, Rachel, they are dealing with the emotional fallout of living their lives in the public eye as the children of Arthur Hayman, posthumously famous author of a universally beloved series of British children's books. (It was only after Arthur was struck and killed by a cement truck that the books took off.) With increasing fame and money, Luke—the obvious inspiration for Arthur's protagonist, Luke Hayseed—struggles to come to terms with his notoriety and keep together his rapidly deteriorating family. Elton skillfully weaves together postwar England and a terrifyingly modern L.A., as well as the hopes and disappointments of frustrated mothers, neglected children, and clandestine lovers. While beautifully written and graced with a unique story line, it is Elton's characters who drive the novel and give it a depth uncommon in debuts.

July 15, 2010

In this debut novel by British TV producer Elton, a peculiar American turns a series of English children's books into international bestsellers, with bad results for the author's family.

Mr. Toppit is the dark, unseen force plaguing Luke, the boy hero of The Hayseed Chronicles, which became wildly popular only after author Arthur Hayman was killed in a London traffic accident. Arthur's son Luke resents "my childhood being ransacked," and his sister Rachel is even more upset about being left out; she's a mentally unstable drug addict. We learn this in the opening pages, then the scene shifts to 1981, when tourist Laurie Clow witnesses Arthur's accident and hears his dying words. The very strange Laurie immediately feels an intense personal bond with Arthur; it's clear little good can come of her worming her way into the shell-shocked household of Luke, Rachel and their mother Martha (who's got plenty of back story to feel guilty about). The novel is more than half over when Laurie begins reading The Hayseed Chronicles on a local California radio show; in no time, she's a celebrity, the books are being published in America and the Haymans are rich. Part Two mostly chronicles a disastrous summer five years later, when first Luke and then Rachel come to stay with Laurie in California. A final scene in 1995 follows Rachel into the woods near the Haymans' home in Dorset, looking for Mr. Toppit. Elton shifts among (too) many points of view, and we never understand why Rachel and Laurie are so damaged, or why Luke has managed to remain relatively sane and decent. That said, he's created some genuinely creepy characters, Laurie in particular, and he has some wicked fun with the entertainment industries.

Skillfully written and oddly haunting: Elton may have even better novels in his future.

(COPYRIGHT (2010) KIRKUS REVIEWS/NIELSEN BUSINESS MEDIA, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.)

October 15, 2010

A chance encounter on a London street between a California tourist and an English children's author in the moments before his death is all it takes to propel The Hayseed Chronicles from obscurity into an international literary sensation. In the days following Arthur Hayman's fatal walk into traffic, Laurie Clow, the host of a radio show for seniors, attaches herself to his family and, in so doing, discovers the books based on his son's explorations into the woods beyond their Dorset home. Back in California, Laurie begins to read the books on the air. The resulting firestorm catapults Laurie to Oprah-like fame and creates a cult following and spin-off industry for the books. Three mysteries lie at the heart of this story--the disappearance of Laurie's father, the death in infancy of the Haymans' first son, and the enigma of Mr. Toppit himself, who appears only in the last sentence of the last book. VERDICT This accomplished first novel chronicles the damaging effect of stratospheric fame on the lives of those who inherit it. Harry Potter enthusiasts will especially be drawn to it.--Barbara Love, Kingston Frontenac P.L., Ont.

Copyright 2010 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.