REVIEW: The Dead Father's Club (Matt Haig)

Book: The Dead Father's Club

Author: Matt Haig

Premise: Philip Noble is an eleven-year-old in crisis. His father has died in a road accident, and his mother is succumbing to the greasy charms of her dead husband's brother, Uncle Alan. The remaining certainties of Philip's life crumble away when his father's ghost appears in the pub, declaring Uncle Alan murdered him and demanding revenge.

This is a modern retelling of Hamlet but with a younger protagonist. The story explores grief and relationships. You wonder if the ghost is real or a figment of Philip's grief. And can the dead be trusted? Are people all good or all evil?

The book is written as if Philip had written it - poor use of punctuation, no fancy language and making important sounding things proper nouns. While this was quite neat, it did mean the dialogue was a bit bland (very much "he said" then "she said"). It's perhaps not my favourite Matt Haig book but it was still enjoyable.