Call of the Penguins is the sequel to Away with the Penguins (one of my all-time favourite books), so when I was offered an early copy I think I may have screamed with excitement! You don't need to have read Away with the Penguins to enjoy this story, but you will get more out of it if you do.

In Call of the Penguins we meet 87-year old Veronica and her much put upon housekeeper Eileen, who are living in Veronica's huge Scottish house along with 9-year-old Daisy, who is recovering from having chemotherapy. To help keep Daisy positive, Veronica has been telling her about her previous adventures in the Antarctica (Away with the Penguins), where she met orphan penguin chick Pip.

When national treasure and documentary filmmaker Sir Robert Saddlebow invites Veronica to co-host a TV programme on seabirds, she is thrilled - even though it means travelling across the world to Australia and the Falkland Islands. However, as Veronica and Daisy set off on their adventure, Veronica's grandson Patrick is heading in the opposite direction, arriving from the Antarctic after falling out with his 'penguinologist' girlfriend Terry. Wondering if irresponsibility is in his genes, Patrick decides to find out more about his father, who abandoned him when he was a baby.

Call of the Penguins is a warm-hearted, witty, thoroughly uplifting story about family, finding your true 'family', and friends who become like family - with all the associated arguments and misunderstandings that go with that! In Veronica's case, her 'family' also includes penguins and she is very passionate about their environment and survival. A reoccurring theme is climate change and the effects of single-use plastic on wildlife. Veronica is a fabulous character, even when (particularly when?) she is being interfering, bossy and/or annoying. I love her!

Thoroughly recommended, particularly if you loved Away with the Penguins and books such as Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine. One of my favourite reads this year.



Thank you to Hazel Prior and Transworld/Penguin Random House for my copy of this book, which I received via the publisher and reviewed voluntarily.

Away with the Penguin fans you are in for a treat - Call of the Penguins is possibly even better! Away with the Penguins captured my heart with its heartwarming story of a gruff old woman who has fallen out with the world, seeking purpose in a trip to Antartica to work with penguins. For me it was a magical formula. I was so excited to find out that a sequel was coming out! And I have to confess to be very curious as to what a follow up story might be like for an octogenarian who has already achieved the unimaginable.

Call of the Penguins begins at home in Scotland with Veronica and her trusted help, Eileen and then there’s Daisy, a loveable 9-year old who is recovering from cancer. Daisy is helping Veronica with her conservation projects, playing games and occasionally dressing Eileen up. It’s light hearted and absolutely delightful. And then Veronica is invited to present some penguin documentaries in the Falklands and Daisy somehow manages to come along too!

This is as joyful and uplfting as the first book with the magical combination of humour and poignancy; beloved characters have all returned and there are lots and lots of penguins. The writing is gentle and light but the topics are deep: Patrick is so deeply affected by his childhood and at risk of drug taking again; there is an imagined pregnancy and worst of all the habitat of the penguins is under great threat. The documentary thread brings in a wondrous seam of facts about all things penguin - the various types of penguins; their habits and their heroism. Pip ‘ has already swum three thousand miles northwest.’ I fell in love with penguins all over again. 

The environmental thread is so timely and beautifully threaded through the story with Veronica considering her green footprint; the research station increasingly affected by climate change and the penguins desperately endangered by human waste. This really was a fictional call for action.

I want to liken the experience of reading this to watching a film like Love Actually which takes us through the whole range of emotions; funny and heartbreaking and the kind of experience which makes you want to punch the air or cry your heart out. Veronica and her penguins and this gorgeous cast of characters has totally stolen my heart…again!!

With thanks to Netgalley and Penguin Books for a digital copy of this beautiful story.

Now back at home in Scotland after her adventure with Pip the penguin on Locket Island, this second installment follows Veronica as she and Sir Robert begin filming for a new wildlife documentary in the Falklands. Joined along the way by nine year old Daisy, grandson Patrick and penguin expert Terry, fiesty octogenarian Veronica is once again on a life changing journey that will help her unravel her past, heal old wounds and bring the people she loves together.

Veronica is a fabulous character, I'm sure many of us would love to be as fiesty and vivacious as she is when we get to our eighties. Her character is perfectly complimented by the addition of Daisy- old and young, wise and innocently naive- she highlights Veronica's softer side. The story is fast paced and relatively light hearted, it's definitely an easy read. I love that the book has also has a strong focus on the environment, particularly littering and single use plastics and their devasting effect on wildlife.

Although it does help to have read the first book to be introduced to the characters, it is by no means necessary as this works perfectly well as a stand alone.

The ending leaves me to believe we're yet to see the end of Veronica's adventures which makes me very happy indeed!

A wonderful return to Veronica McCreedy and her Penguins. I love Veronica’s zest for life and how she can’t help but interfere and give her opinion on everything. Her trip back to the Southern Hemisphere sounded magical and it was lovely reconnecting with Terry and the team.

I must admit when I saw this sequel I had mixed emotions. I adored away with the penguins and would love to revisit the characters but also felt the book had ended in a way that made a sequel difficult.

I should not have worried, this sequel is a triumph! The writing is so good that I was immediately back in the world of Veronica McCreedy, whose voice is so distinctive.

We left Veronica thinking that she had had her last adventure, but it turns out she has room for a bit more!

Daisy gets a starring role in this book, which is perfect, as she is the only one who can counter Veronica’s stubbornness.

The storyline is brilliant, just the right balance of heart-warming, laugh out loud funny, and drama.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for an early review copy.

This is the sequel to Away With The Penguins, and Veronica is thrilled to receive a request, asking her to appear in a wildlife documentary about Penguins.

Aged 87, ready for another adventure, I absolutely adored this book, just like the first one.

I was hooked from the beginning and hope that Hazel will write more about the characters in these books.

Highly Recommend This Book.

Veronica McCreedy is 87 years old and can claim the joy of having visited and come to know the adelie penguins when she visited the Antarctic. One might think that would be enough for her but then she is invited to present some segments of a wildlife documentary on penguins by a famous conservationist. This requires travel to both Australia and the Falkland Islands to perform her duties. During the course of this experience, she learns a lot more about humans as she continues to focus on her love of penguins. Along for the ride are grandson Patrick, nine-year-old cancer patient Daisy, and penguin specialist Terry.

I should begin by pointing out this book is a follow-up to Away with the Penguins and the reader would benefit from reading that first. That said, I believe this is quite readable as a standalone too. Veronica McCreedy is still something of a grouchy old woman but she has mellowed a bit since her visit to the Antarctic and takes some pleasure in helping others. Along with the new adventures with penguins, there are storylines around grandson Patrick and his relationship with Terry, the search for information on long-lost son, Enzo, and that of Daisy. Veronica sticks her nose into all of them, trying to help things along for all.

While I definitely enjoyed this book, it wasn't quite the gem its predecessor was. I suspect that's always the danger in a follow-up book. On the other hand, there was some unfinished business from the earlier story and this book ties up a few loose ends and seems to close the story on Veronica. While it took a bit more time to get into this book, I soon found myself impatient to find out answers to some of the questions that arose. Anyway, it's quite well written and is again full of much information about penguins.

Overall this was another lovely read and I give it 3.5 stars. I would like to thank Netgalley and Random House UK for an advanced reader copy. I provide this review voluntarily.

87 year old Veronica McCreedy is settled back in her Scottish home after her adventure on Lockett Island where she discovered a love of Penguins.
Although she has 8 year old Daisy, recuperating after cancer treatment, staying with her Veronica is beginning to fell her age.
Then she is asked to help front a wildlife documentary with well known conservationist Sir Robert Saddlebow. It will mean her travelling to Australia and on to the Falkland Islands but realising she has to grasp life with both hands she takes the chance and agrees.
Things don't always go smoothly with the filming, but as ever, Veronica finds solace in being with the penguins.
I love feisty, fearless Veronica and Daisy is just amazing. A beautiful, funny, intelligent child who in spite of what she has been through has an insatiable love of life and Penguins! A lovely, lively, heart-warming and at times heart-breaking book with characters that will find their way into your heart and penguin laughs aplenty!

A delightful sequel to Away With The Penguins, Call Of The Penguins sees a return of Veronica McCreedy living at the Ballahays in Ayr living with her faithful assistant (not carer) Eileen.
She also has the full of life Daisy who is the daughter of her grandson Patrick's close friend and recovering from the ordeal of cancer treatment.
The relationship between 87 year old Veronica and 9 year old Daisy is unusual but Veronica helped Daisy cope with her exhausting treatment by distracting Daisy to think about the penguins on Locket Island and especially Pip the Penguin who Veronica helped rescue when she visited Locket Island.
Patrick, although without formal qualifications has settled well with the small research on Locket Island, especially his girlfriend Terry.
Patrick who is quick to temper and paranoid due yo his unsettled upbringing, breaks up with Terry and leaves the team on the next boat out.
Veronica although disappointed by her grandson's departure from the island is determined not to let him sit around and so sends him off to Vancouver to find out about Enzo, Patrick's father and Veronica's son who was born in a nunnery and then taken from Veronica as she was an unmarried mother. They already know that Enzo or Joshua as his adoptive parents knew him has died in a climbing accident, Patrick finds out more and is initially horrified until he manages to track down his fathers best friend and discovers the truth.
Veronica meanwhile has been invited by Sir Robert Saddlebow as a penguin ambassador to travel to different locations to film a documentary about sea birds with Veronica focussing on the penguins,

Daisy forever industrious, writes to a programme that grants wishes to seriously ill children. Her wish ito meet the penguins is granted and meets up with Veronica and Sir Robert in Argentina.
Patrick joins them in Argentina as does Terry with her own secrets. Their time is occasionally terse and complex as all types of relationships can be, but their joint love of penguins and wildlife reunites them somewhat.
Ass well as the complex relationships and revelations, the description of nature and the many types of penguins they encounter is wonderful whilst putting across the damage of plastic pollution and litter, a cause which is very close to my heart.

Full review will appear in my book column for my local newspaper. Beautifully crafted with a careful blend of characters. Highly recommended read.

Wow wow wow. What a beautiful sequel.

I am so in love with Hazel’s writing and her character development. I loved Away with the penguins and was worried how a second book would work… but this was brilliant!

I loved meeting new characters and the concept of Patrick finding out about his dad and the past.

As with the first book, it’s a beautiful story that everyone must read. Who doesn’t love penguins?!

Having read and enjoyed 'Away with the Penguins' I was looking forward to this sequel. Although Veronica McCreedy is still her inimitable self, I felt parts of the book dragged too slowly, waiting to get back to Veronica. A charming read, possibly too sentimental for me, with just a little sparkle missing.

Call of the Penguins is a charming sequel to the delightful Away with the Penguins. In addition to Veronica, Patrick and the other characters from that initial book, we meet Daisy, a little girl whose “Make-a-Wish” wish is to visit penguins in their natural surroundings. There is also Sir Robert Saddlebow who narrates documentaries on wild life. He asks Veronica to join him as co-host on a documentary he is filming on penguins and seabirds in the southern hemisphere and she jumps at the opportunity. While Veronica is once again getting the opportunity to be with her beloved penguins, her grandson Patrick is in Canada trying to find out what he can about his birth father (Veronica’s son.) There is also a very important message about the harm that disposable plastic containers is wreaking on the environment. It is the death of the penguin Petra who is asphyxiated after consuming a plastic wrapper which is the impetus for Veronica to include a message about the dangers of plastic as she concludes her narration for the documentary.

Call of the Penguins spotlights the ups and downs in relationships, such as between Patrick and Terry or between Veronica and Sir Robert. And throughout it all there are some very engaging antics among the penguins. A very enjoyable story.

I’d like to thank Random House UK, Transworld Publishers and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read ‘Call Of The Penguins’ written by Hazel Prior in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.

Veronica McCreedy is in her late eighties and when she’s not out collecting litter with nine-year-old Daisy who’s recovering from chemo she’s drinking Darjeeling tea and conversing with her housekeeper/assistant Eileen. When an acquaintance Sir Robert Saddlebow asks if she’d be interested in joining him in Australia and The Falklands as co-presenter on a programme about wildlife she jumps at the chance to see the penguins, especially her favourite Adelies.

I’d expected to like ‘Call Of The Penguins’ more than I did. The book has been well-written and I enjoyed reading about Veronica and her adventures, but I found the story a bit slow and difficult to get involved in, probably because I hadn’t realised it was a sequel to ‘Away With The Penguins’ which I should have read first. The story gave me a greater understanding of penguins and wildlife in general which I found entertaining especially in these times when the planet needs saving. It was also amusing to read of Veronica and Daisy doing their bit by collecting the litter other people discard as they can’t be bothered to take it home with them. The chapters are narrated by Veronica, her grandson Patrick and his on/off girlfriend Terry, but it was hard to get involved in the characters as I didn’t know their past history. I’m going to now read the first book and then try ‘Call Of The Penguins’ again and hopefully I’ll get more from it.

Fresh from her adventures in Antartica, Veronica McCreedy settles back home in Scotland with her long suffering housekeeper, Eileen and Daisy, a little girl full of energy who is recovering from chemo. Meanwhile, Terry and Patrick are still in Antartica with Pip the penguin and navigating their new relationship. Everything seems settled until an invitation for more penguin adventures beckons Veronica and Patrick decides to delve into his past.

I really enjoyed Away with the Penguins and loved Veronica's grumpy aristocratic character so I snapped up the opportunity to return to her world again. If I were to sum up this sequel in one sentence it would probably be - good but not as charming, funny or captivating as the first book. I still love Veronica and her hilarious turn of phrase - when Daisy is too noisy "Please Daisy, consider the chanderliers!" but I felt her stellar character carried the book. As before, there are chapters narrated by Terry and Patrick but I lost interest with their narration and felt I wanted to skim read to get back to Veronica. Terry and Patrick's storylines felt lacking and not as tightly knitted as before. Important enviromental issues are raised but at some points it felt a bit preachy and therefore off putting. In general, I liked the writing style, if not some aspects of the plot. There was a great twist which I didn't see coming.

I am glad I read it, but its not a book I will rave about and I feel like I'm done with Veronica's world now. I will definitely be adopting the phrase "wetter than an otter's pocket" from now on though!

It'll be a good read for those that enjoyed "Call of the Penguins", readers who like an easy quick read and penguin fans - there is a wealth of information about them.

Thank you to the author, publisher and Netgalley for the opportunity to review an advanced copy of the book in exchange for an honest opinion.

What a lovely surprise this book was!

I hadn't read Away with the Penguins, but it was my first purchase as soon as I finished this one, because I loved the characters and the story and I wanted to go back to know more about them.

In addition to the beautiful writing style, excellent description of landscapes, lovable characters and heartwarming story, this book delivers also a very important and thought provoking message about invironmental issues and wildlife, an added bonus for sure.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Although I liked the style of writing, and having different chapters narrated by different characters, I found this book difficult to get into. I haven’t read the previous book in the series and this book very much follows on from it, it’s not so good as a stand alone novel. The reader will learn a lot about penguins while reading this book, which is an added bonus.

Penguins and People

Call of the Penguins is very much a follow on from Away with the Penguins (also known as How The Penguins Saved Veronica), though can be read as stand alone. This is a wonderful story of penguins and people, acceptance and the need to change.
Veronica, now 87 years old, is invited to co-present a nature programme acting as a penguin ambassador, and so jumps at the chance of meeting penguins in Australia and the Falklands. Patrick, Veronica’s grandson, throws himself into a research project, and Terry wonders how long the Locket Island penguin station can survive. The story is narrated by these 3 characters, who we first met in Away with the Penguins. In addition Veronica is accompanied by 9 year old Daisy who brings a different way of looking at things.
As well as penguins there is relationship drama, communication disasters, mysteries to solve and plenty of interesting details that I found myself googling for more information on. The story flows well, with the 3 narrators blending together well, so the story is easy to follow and always full of charm and wit - plus a few sombre moments.
I really enjoyed catching up with Veronica, and learning more about her and her life. The story was involving, fascinating and a great read. Absolutely wonderful!

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House UK, Transworld Publishers for the opportunity to read this book ahead of publication in return for an honest review.

It was wonderful to catch up with Veronica McCreedy, Patrick and Terry again and get to know some characters first introduced in 'Away with the Penguins', like Daisy and Sir Robert Saddlebow a bit better too, as the Penguin adventures continue.

Although a curmudgeonly character, one can't help becoming rather fond of dear Veronica and this book delves deeper into her life and you begin to understand why she is the way she is. But it's also pleasing that Veronica becomes more self aware and caring of others, the more time she spends in the company of humans as well as penguins.

Without being patronising, this entertaining story still manages to convey very well the fragility of the world's wildlife and in particular the various penguin species around the globe and what we, as individuals ,can do and the changes we can make to protect our vulnerable eco-system.

Well done Hazel Prior for raising awareness through a beautiful story.

So lovely to catch up with Veronica and her family - including the penguin one!
Veronica is asked to do some filming to draw attention to the plight of seabirds across the world and the state of the oceans, so off we go to New Zealand and the Falklands. Woven into her travels is the relationship between her grandson Patrick, and Terry who he met previously. Young Daisy, who we met in the first book, features in this one too.
There's an important and timely message running through the book, about conservation and how plastics are affecting the planet. It's put across well, and makes you think about how you can help. Above all, it's a story about families, of different sorts, and the importance of being open to new experiences. I love how each character has a distinct and different voice, and you really want to find out what happens to them. A wonderful read.