Blog Tour - International Yeti Collective

Hello and welcome. Today is my stop on the blog tour for a wonderful new book, The International Yeti Collective, written by Paul Mason and illustrated by Katy Riddell.  I have my review of the book, and also an autobiographical excerpt from the author.

We’re stronger together than apart. Particularly at times like this, when danger lands at our feet.

Ella is on a yeti-hunting expedition in the Himalayas with her uncle Jack, a celebrity explorer. She’s expecting an amazing trip, but nothing more. Everyone knows that yeti don’t exist.

Tick is a young yeti who can’t help but ask questions. What is beyond the mountain he calls home? Are humans really as bad as everyone says they are?

When Tick’s curiosity sets off a chain of events that threatens the entire yeti community, Ella is swept up in the adventure. Can the unlikely pair work together to protect the yeti before it’s too late?

They’re going to need help. Help from The International Yeti Collective.

There is so much that I loved about this book.  It celebrates the wild parts of our planet, the places we haven't explored and don't fully understand and cryptozoology is something that has always interested me. Whether or not yetis are real, I'm fascinated by the idea that there are still remote mountain ranges like the Himalayas where a whole culture of yetis could be living, completely cut off from mankind.

There's a number of really serious messages tied in with this, about the conservation of our planet and its wild spaces, about the responsibilities we have to take care of the world around us, and about the dangers of becoming too consumed in our quests that we lose track of what is actually important. There's also a lot in the book about the importance of working together, despite often diverse backgrounds and differing beliefs.

It's funny too, which makes it a very easy read despite the serious elements. The naming conventions for yetis had me laughing at regular intervals and Tick the yeti is just adorable. I love Ella's determination and optimism too, and together they work so well.

This is all wrapped up in a thrilling, globe-crossing adventure with significant stakes that had me racing through the book.

On a personal note, The International Yeti Collective is the first time I've had one of my reviews of a book published inside it, which feels like a huge milestone. I couldn't believe it when I saw my own words alongside some of the best bloggers out there, like Scott Evans and Booklover Jo, and two of my favourite authors, Sophie Anderson and Sinéad O'Hart.

I'm giving The International Yeti Collective five moons, for telling an important story with humour and style.


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Now I'm very pleased to bring you an extended biography of author Paul Mason, a truly remarkable journey that perhaps shows where The International Yeti Collective originated.

Thanks to my Dad’s work for the United Nations I was very fortunate to live and grow up in many remarkable places. Our first move was to Thailand when I was about three—those early years in Bangkok left a lasting impression on me (—though sadly I forgot all my Thai.)

Then like global nomads, my family travelled across Asia--so many memories: the glittering Anarkali bazaar at night in Lahore, Pakistan; mist drifting over the Murree hill station, long train journeys across vast plains in India, rickshaw rides by the lakes in Dhaka, Bangladesh, and on. All these places are part of who I am, and I will always be grateful for that.

I went to boarding school up in the foothills of the Himalayas in India, in a town called Mussoorie. Woodstock School is a little ways out of town, the red-roofed buildings spread out over the hillside, surrounded by steep slopes and thick, lush forest as far as you can see.

Looking out of your dorm window, you’d see a swaying of branches, hear a tearing of leaves and know the monkeys weren’t far away. Monkeys were an everyday part of our life, the families of graceful, grey Langur swinging from tree to tree, sometimes sitting on the path blocking your way to school, and the bold Rhesus Macaque’s that burst into the dining hall to steal the toast.

I owe my Woodstock years a great deal. I made close friends from all over the world. I learned to stand on my own feet. I made my first steps as a writer—started to believe it might be possible. Woodstock will always be a special place, not just because of where it sits in the mountains, of the wonderful country India is, or the opportunities it gave me--but because of all the people I was lucky enough to meet.


I was sent a review copy of The International Yeti Collective by the publisher in return for a fair and honest review.

The International Yeti Collective is published on 17th October 2019 by Stripes Books.