Mr Toppit (Charles Elton)

Mr Toppit

Luke Hayman's father was the author of the bestselling Mr Toppit children's books where Mr Toppit is a sinister character living in the Darkwood and sets tasks for young Luke Hayseed. The books did not achieve fame until after Arthur's death which was witnessed by an American tourist in London. The American, Laurie becomes an ardent fan and hanger on, promoting the books in the USA. Meanwhile, Luke's sister, Rachel, is descending into drugs and despair - while the Mr Toppit books are about Luke Hayseed (a thinly disguised Luke Hayman), Rachel is not present at all. Then there is the overbearing German-born illustrator Lila, who takes nightdress and toothbrush everywhere in the expectation of being asked to stay (when her hosts are trying to get rid of her!). It is the seemingly benevolent and modest Laurie who begins to take over the Mr Toppit brand, finding it a stepping-stone to great fame on her talk-shows and gaining her own (largely dysfunctional) hangers on as her ego inflates. Luke must navigate Laurie's ambition, Lila's interference and his own family's disintegration as he learns whom the Mr Toppit books were really about. Laurie's father also has a dark secret.

Not a bad book, but not brilliant either. The reader becomes party to a number of secrets that the characters keep from each other - infidelities, child molestation - and which could have been used to create so much more tension. Sadly many of the characters, some of whome have clashing egos, remain shallow, rather than fully rounded.