It is while settling down to watch one of the wildlife documentaries that something changes for Veronica, the programme is about Penguins! It is a moment for our character that changes everything. She can be found either collecting litter from the beach ('people who litter the countryside should be shot'), trying to locate her glasses ('someone must have moved them') or shouting Although these days Veronica is rarely seen by anyone because, at 85, her days are spent mostly at home, alone.

Away with the Penguins- Book Summary - Samy Reads Away with the Penguins- Book Summary - Samy Reads

We have an exclusive extract available for you to read. We also have some discussion questions for your group to use. Away with the Penguins After all, Veronica is almost eighty-six, and has to consider the dispersion of her considerable wealth after she departs this life. Not that there’s any sign of that happening: Veronica is hale and healthy, with an excellent memory, she continues to assure everyone (even if they know otherwise): “My memory is faultless. I can recall dozens of lines of Hamlet from my schooldays.” She will ultimately get to know her grandson, as well, despite that “far from perfect” first meeting!

Retailers:

The two main penguin species on Isla Martillo are the adorable, striped Magellanic penguins, and the slightly bigger, orange-beaked and orange-footed Gentoo penguins. The former was what met us on the beach as we crunched our way across the gravel, in awe of their little waddles. We laughed as they walked, flapping their flightless wings as they went, but marvelled at the speed of those within the water, pointing and gasping as we watched them jump above the surface over and over again before landing on the beach and waddling to shore.

Away with the Penguins by Hazel Prior | Waterstones

Before departing for the island, we stopped at a small museum, Museo Acatushún, on the Harberton Ranch where student volunteers talked us through the impressive skeleton collection on display. You can read more on that here. Meanwhile, on TV the "Earth Matters" show ended and was replaced by "The Plight of Penguins", presented by Robert Saddlebow, an admiring of her (" If Robert Saddlebow cares about the penguins this much, then so do I"). This story will warm your heart. If you didn’t love penguins already, you will after this sweet story. I adored Veronica and the growth I saw in her once she opened up. I think Hazel Prior has written a glorious account of how one can heal at any age, or that it’s never too late to mend fences. And one more: animals can be the catalyst for positive change, just because I have to mention the penguins again!

Book Summary

And thank goodness for that because for all her rough edges, Veronica is actually a lot of fun to hang around with, especially as her cranky old lady persona begins to be ameliorated by an awakening of long-repressed memories and the consequential emotional flood they unleash, and she becomes far more rounded and relatable as a human being. Fiercely independent and impeccably dressed, Veronica has lived an incredible 87 years. Most of them alone, in her huge house by the sea. But with the arrival of brave and resilient Daisy into her life, Veronica finds she has a renewed thirst for adventure - and that they both share a passion for penguins! Away With the Penguins is a gem – it offers up the kind of story that reassures us that while life might seem irredeemably bitter, broken and twisted, that it can be turned around no matter how old you are or entrenched in your ways you are. We are introduced to Veronica McCreedy who is 85 and who is recluse and lives in a large remote house by the sea in Ayrshire, Scotland. Straight away I was drawn to Veronica as there was just something about her. That feeling that she feels that there is still so much to offer the world and that her age and encroaching deafness should not be a barrier to that. It was a short boat ride to Isla Martillo and we were reminded of the rules: don’t get too close to the penguins; don’t feed the penguins; don’t touch the penguins; don’t steal the penguins; don’t take anything from the island. We weren’t permitted to go within three metres of the penguins but, if they came to us, we were to keep whatever distance we could so as not to stress them out. A final quip of “control your emotions” from the boat’s captain was most likely directed at us following our visible joy at seeing a large colony of penguins gathered on the beach as we approached the island. Within minutes, we were standing on the beach with them.

Away with the Penguins by Hazel Prior | Goodreads Away with the Penguins by Hazel Prior | Goodreads

As a keen admirer of your mission to protect the species- and as an advocate of conservation in general - I have decided that, should your work prove to be as invaluable as it currently appears, your research is likely to inherit a considerable sum of money as defined by the terms of my will.") And once she sets her mind on something, well...let's just say there's nothing on this earth powerful enough to stop her. It's been a very long time since I've had an adventure.Oh my gosh. This one was so much fun. She can be found either collecting litter from the beach ('people who litter the countryside should be shot'), trying to locate her glasses ('someone must have moved them') or shouting instructions to her assistant, Eileen ('Eileen, door!').

Veronica doesn’t have family or friends nearby. Not that she knows about, anyway… And she has no idea where she’s going to leave her considerable wealth when she dies.

How the Penguins Saved Veronica - Goodreads How the Penguins Saved Veronica - Goodreads

She also finds most human company irksome, and deplores stupid questions so she pretends to be hard of hearing when it’s suits her. It does with a protagonist who is deliberately positioned as a lot to handle at first but who becomes softer and far more in touch with the very essence of who she is without relinquishing all those parts of her, the good and the bad, that have accumulated over nearly nine decades of life. The only criticism I have to offer regarding How the Penguins Saved Veronica is fairly minor, in nature. And it’s that I think the story would have benefited from Prior fleshing out the secondary characters a bit further, namely the three penguin researchers in Antarctica. All three play important roles in the story and knowing each of them a bit more would’ve further rounded out the novel. Small critique aside, How the Penguins Saved Veronica is a treasure. I feel as if I’ve stumbled upon a pot of gold, for having read it. It’s so wonderful.Thankfully, Prior never allows the book to descend into treacle-y, twee inspirationalism, and while there are copious moments of human warmth and wonder that make reading Away With the Penguins a total joy, Veronica McCreedy is allowed to retain enough rough edges to make her feel like a real, authentic human being. Veronica no longer speaks to her family, and she’s searching for a worthy cause to which she will bequeath her fortune. A documentary about penguins in Antarctica inspires her to visit. Yes, Antarctica! I’d love to visit there, too, by the way. She was a bit unlikable at first and I was....frustrated by her actions but the ending turned things around beautifully for me. There are three types of people in this world, Very. There are those who make the world worse, those who make no difference and those who make the world better. Be one who makes the world better, if you can.”