'The Lovely Bones' Alice Sebold by Rachel Fagan 9KT

The book I'm reviewing is ‘The Lovely Bones’ by Alice Sebold. It is a sad but heart warming story.

In the book it talks about how Susie was murdered. Furthermore the feelings and emotions of her friends and family members on how they dealt with the news. As a result of that it tells you from two points of view. One from Susie in heaven and one from the family and friends with the events that happen along the years and more importantly how Susie is watching and looking after them along the way.

Overall it was a very good book and made you want to read on, I would recommend it.

'The Hunger Games Trilogy' Suzanne Collins by Tom Day 9JO

I think that the hunger games trilogy is the best set of books and I would recommend it to anyone. In these books you follow Katniss and Peeta in their fight for survival, against all the odds. In this book you follow them every step of the way to becoming the champions and beat the capitol at their own game.

The only down side to these books is that you know in the first two books that they will survive, however we don’t know how they make it therefore making these books more interesting. I would rate this book 9/10 as the books one and two have a predictable ending other than that these books are amazing.

'Alex Rider' Anthony Horowitz by Harry Thomas 9JO

Alex Rider is a book about a boy that becomes a secret agent and always gets into trouble and has to find his way out of trouble. It is a good book because it sort of reminds of James Bond but smaller. The only bad thing is that the start of the book it’s quite slow. Alex Rider is also quite cheeky and always has a twist in the book.

'The Twilight Series' Stephanie Meyer by Rosie Raynsford 9JO

I do not read many books but Twilight has to be one of my favourite, my other favourite books are the rest of the twilight saga (New Moon, Eclipse and Breaking Dawn). I like this book because I enjoy reading what Bella Swan has to say about the gorgeous fictional character Edward Cullen.   

I also like this book because I can compare it to the film and how they are different. In my opinion the book is much better than the films and the only good thing about the film is that you get to stare at Robert Pattinsons face for 2 hours. As you can tell I am Team Edward and am totally against Jacob as I think he is a rude and beggy character.  I am currently on my second time of reading this book because it is really good and I never get bored of it.

'The Hunger Games' Suzanne Collins by Raja 9JO

I read The Hunger Games trilogy. I thought the books were really good because the story line was very captivating. However, the books took me a while to read (I’m not the fastest reader). I read the books after watching the first and second movie.

The genre of the book is action and adventure. It’s about a teenage girl called Katniss Everdeen , from district 12, who has been picked to enter  the annual Hunger Games, along with her love interest Peeta Malark. The Hunger Games are games in with a boy and a girl is picked for each district (1-12) to go to the Capitol and fight until there is only one survivor. They soon spark up a rebellion which results to a war against the Capitol (the people who run the Games).

I would recommend these books to people who are interested in action and adventure, also because I really enjoyed them and personally I think they’re a lot better than the movies!

'The Butterfly Lion' Michael Morpurgo by Pennie Haynes J9O

It is about a boy bunking school and running into an old ladies front garden and she takes him in and tells him the story about her son. He lives in Africa and is not allowed past the gates around his house, but he goes out and finds this white lion cub with no mum. The boy tells his parents but they don’t believe him until he shows them and let the boy keep the lion cub. But a circus leader comes to their house and offers a lot of money for the lion but the boy doesn’t want to lose the lion cub.

It’s good because you get into the book straight away and don’t want to put it down. It is also an easy read.

The negative things about it are that it’s a short book and want it to go on for longer. I would recommend it to anyone.

The Gallagher Girls-Ally Carter (series) Ally Carter by Monica 9JO

This book is about a girl named Cammie and her life in a spy school for girls. It goes through all the normal teenage girl problems but mixes it in with a life of a spy. It’s full of drama, tension and suspense with a twist of romance. If you like books that keep you on the edge of your seat then this is the book for you.

There are six books in the series, starting  with ‘I’d tell you I love you, But then I’d have to kill you,’ which shows Cammie at the beginning of her first year at the school, as the series carries on, the story and drama develops and unfolds and you don’t know who you can trust. By the last book, ‘United We Spy,’ the series has become very dark and has many secrets which have been uncovered.

I strongly recommend this book to anyone but especially to teenage girls, as it is a real page turner and will keep you wanting more. I really love this series and hate that I’m on the end book. I felt that in many parts of this book I have been able to relate to how she felt. Ally Carter describes every scenario so well and in so much detail that I can imagine it and picture myself being there, with the same problems that Cammie has to face. I’d give this book five out of five stars.

'Percy Jackson and the Lightening Thief' Rick Riordan by Josh 9JO

I read the book Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief, the book is the first book out of a series of five.

I liked the book because its genre was an action and adventure; also furthermore the book was really good because I had seen the film it was much easier to follow. Also the book included a lot of Greek mythology so it can teach you about Greek times and myths. The book was good because it had a great story line to it.

I would recommend the book to years 10-14 because it’s not that hard to understand what is happening, but also it tells you more about Greek mythology creatures.

The main characters in the book are Percy, Anabeth, and Grover. The three characters have to go on a quest to save Percy’s mum from Hades lair. Within the book the three have to work together to kill monsters and complete the quest.

Moreover the book is great because it starts off the book in reality then as the book goes on the it becomes more of a fantasy.

 

'Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone' J K Rowling by Janki Patel 9JO

The Harry Potter books are a mysterious series of books to escape into a wonderful world of wizardry. Harry potter and the Philosophers stone is a story about Harry and his two new friends settling down for their first year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft. But they take part in evil without knowing. Harry Potter is a shy and self-doubting and puts up with a lot from his awful aunt Petunia and uncle Vernon and fat cousin Dudley. Unfortunately Harry lost his parents in a car crash, when he was a baby and that’s how he received the strange lightning-shaped scar across his forehead. 

Ever since then he has slept in the cupboard under the stairs at the Dursleys' house in Privet Drive and the thing he has to look forward to is starting at the secondary school next term he will be well away from Dudley who will be going to his father's old, expensive school called the Smeltings. Many people know a lot more about harry more than he does himself. He is about to discover all the friends and enemies he has in a different kind of magical world. Other than the one he was brought up in. This book includes a lot about reality like learning who you can trust and who you can’t, settling into a new school and making friends. 

The good thing about this book is that it is twisted and makes you think and how the story all fits together.

'Billy Bonkers' Giles Andreae by Jack 9JO

My book review is from the book 'Billy Bonkers'

illustrated by Nick Sharratt I like this book because there isn’t a load of words that fill the page and it is therefore easy.

My favourite bit about the book is when Billy won the huge silver cup saying world champion on the side. I like this bit because it is the most interesting bit in this book.

The least interesting bit is at the beginning because it takes a bit of time to get into the story.

I would recommend this book to kids up to the age of 16.

'Horowitz Horror' Anthony Horowitz by Harry Gould 9JO

Horowitz horror is a book with lots of different mini-stories inside written by Anthony Horowitz. My favourite mini-story is Mr Rellik it is a short horror with an unexpected twist at the end. I think it was good because it had an unusual ending that I would never have expected. Overall I think Horowitz horror is a good book because there is a variety of good mini stories inside.

'Twilight' Stephanie Mayer by Fazilah Riasat 9JO

I have read the book Twilight I like this book because it’s about vampires and it has a lot of suspense in it.  It also has some humour in it. The thing that I don’t like about the book is that its long and takes a while to read. I also like the film that is made based in this story and I have seen them all.

'The Tales of Beedle the Bard' J.K Rowling by Alice Wigmore 9JO

This book has five different mini stories that are all related to harry potter in some way. They all have the same feel of being magical and like they can transport you to the wizarding world of Harry Potter. I like how the book is split into different books and that the books are in in the film especially the last book The Tale of the three brothers which is in the last film harry potter and deathly hallows part 2 . 

I think that it is really clever how they have been entered into the films. The only thing that I don’t like about the book is that they might be confusing for younger people who like harry potter because there are some parts you need to be able to think about everything and how it all links altogether .I would recommend this book to whoever loves Harry Potter.

'Don’t Look Back' S.B Hayes by Natasha Acott 9JO

This book is about a girl called Sinead who is constantly tormented by her manipulative older brother, Patrick. Patrick always drags Sinead into his silly little games, but when he goes missing, Sinead’s overwhelming mother insists that she goes out to look for him…When Sinead is on the edge of giving up on the search, clues become more and more mysterious as to where Patrick may be. She is lead to Benedict House – a strange place where time stands still before your eyes, where she meets James in which he is looking for answers of his troubled past. She hates playing his games, and when she finds out the daunting truth, it will leave her wishing she never looked back…

I loved reading this book! One of the best books I have read in a very long time…The tension throughout the book leaves you on the edge of your seat from cover to cover, not to mention to unpredictable twist towards the end of the story which makes you question everything you’ve read already…

I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys suspense novels, and can stand waiting to get to the end without reading the last page first!

'Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone' JK Rowling by David Brehme 9JO

The book starts with Harry as an infant, the child of a wizard and witch. He is suddenly left orphaned after an attack by the evil and powerful wizard Voldemort, a villain so dastardly that most wizards and witches refer to him as Voldemort. Mysteriously, Harry survives and Voldemort, his power apparently broken in his attempt to kill the child, disappears leaving many to think he's gone for good. Also I think Harry Potter was a good book because it had lots of action and adventure (which I like) but it wasn’t so good since there is only three main characters, if there was more then I think it would have been better. Another good thing about Harry Potter is that there are many in a series so the story never ends.

Overall I think that J.K. Rowling’s books are very good in depth adventures.

'The Boy in the Dress' David Walliam by Eloise Crowley 9JO

I really liked this book because it is funny and not like anything I have ever read before. The characters are brilliant. I like Lisa, Darvesh's mum and best of all, Dennis. I think that a boy dressing up as a French girl is a very good and unique idea. I believe this book could encourage people to be who they want to because of the idea of the boy dressing up in the dress and reading magazines live vogue that a girl would normally read. I would defiantly recommend this book for all my friends, boys and girls. This book was a comedy and made me laugh throughout the book. After reading this book I read the rest of the books by the same author and in my opinion this was the best by far.

'The Fault in Our Stars John Green By Katy Burstow 9JO

The Fault in Our Stars is about two cancer rejects, the two of them are called Hazel Grace Lancaster and Augustus Waters.

Hazel’s mother has always tried to get hazel out of the house rather than just reading her favourite book “An Imperial Affliction”, but one day when she goes to her weekly support group meeting she’s meets him, Augustus that is. Throughout the book Hazel and him talk about life, books and there experiences with cancer. However one of them falls gravely ill just before they make the trip of a lifetime to Amsterdam to meet Peter Van Houton the author of “An Imperial Affliction”. But which one is it and will they survive.

  

I like this book because it just so well written and plotted out, the author knows how to keep you hooked and how much tension he needs to build.

I would recommend this book to anyone who wants a good long read, it will keep you hooked all the way through.

'Gone' Michael Grant by James Francis and Shabir Bakhtiar 9FR

The book starts with children in class before all people over the age of 15 vanish without a trace. 

The book slowly transforms into a classic good versus evil. The story starts in the small town of Perdido Beach when Sam's teacher disappears and he and his three friends Quinn, Edilio and Astrid. They leave town where the bullies are in power and go searching for Astrid's autistic little brother Pete and eventually find him at the nuclear power plant where Astrid's dad works. 

When they return four cars arrive and the kids from the Coates Academy (a special school for misfits) get out. The Coates kids are called Caine Soren, Diana Ladris, Drake Merwin and Computer Jack. Caine is their leader and says he wants to work together with the bullies (Orc, Howard and a bunch of others) and anyone else to replace the anarchy with a new society. But soon tempers get frayed and Sam and his friends turn against Caine and a new conflict begins between them.

I'm not going to tell the whole story because that would ruin it. I would recommend this book to anyone who likes action and adventure or just loves a good read.

‘Stay Strong’ Demi Lovato by Megan Warren Figgess 9FR

The book I am reading at the moment is an auto biography by Demi Lovato ‘Stay Strong’.   

 

In this book she has written quotes for each day of the year and month and a message which you’re meant to read one page a day.  

 I really like this book. I am not a big fan of reading, but with this book because you read it a page a day it feels like you get through the book quicker. Also I really like the quotes in the book as the author (Demi Lovato ) has written some of the quotes herself and used quotes from other people's books and songs.

I would recommend this book to others as it is a interesting book to read and it gives out inspirational messages and goals .

'The False Prince' Jennifer A. Nielsen by Mays Alsaad and Zoe Wilson 9FR

The book which I am reviewing is 'The False Prince' by Jennifer A. Nielsen. The book is about a young boy named Sage who lives his life as an orphan while constantly getting into trouble.

One night while robbing from a butcher, a man named Connor caught him and sends him back to the orphanage only to take him with him with 3 other boys to train them to become princes.

But only one of them can officially take prince Jarrods place as prince and future King.

Later on Sage finds out that Connor deliberately killed the King, Queen and Prince. No longer being able to hide his anger he soon reveals himself as the Prince that was supposedly killed by pirates.

Mays Alsaad and Zoe Wilson

'The Boy in Striped Pyjamas' John Boyne by Beth Stamford 9FR

SPOILER ALERT

The book I am reading at the moment is 'The Boy in Striped Pyjamas'. I find this book really interesting because it’s based on a real story and I feel this is good as it can help us image what it was like to be Jewish in the war.  The most interesting part of the book is when Bruno gets taken to the gas chambers as it builds up tension and makes you want to read more and it also captures your imagination. 

Moreover I also find this book interesting as it can give you an idea of the second war without having to look on the internet. 

Furthermore I would recommend this book to others.

'The Ghost Box' Catherine Fisher by Norris Jawad 9FR

I would like to recommend this book as it is the only book that has really never lost my attention. It tells a story of a girl who find this box in her house but doesn’t know what it is. She tries to find a key and when she eventually does, she had no idea what was inside. She needed to find the key for a boy who lost his soul and if she doesn’t, there is a chance that he could be lost forever.

The reason why I chose to read it is because as you read the blurb it engages you and makes you want to read on. There is not one point in the story where you feel like you have lost interest or the storyline has become boring. My favourite part of the story is where she finds the key and she opens the box. But you’d never expect what’s inside the box to be there .

'The Fault In Stars' John Green by Alice, Katie and Dacia 9FR

The book I am reviewing is 'The Fault in Our Stars' by John Green. This is based on a 16 year old girl called ‘Hazel’ who has lung cancer and meets a boy in support group who she falls in love with. 

The book is slightly upsetting and made many people cry. It’s very emotional and memorable. It suits its target audience which is teenagers. I this book because it is interesting, funny and sad. I would recommend this book to anyone who likes a book that will make them laugh and cry. I wouldn’t recommend this book to people who don’t like reading romances. 

Overall, I think this is one of my favourite books, I think it is such a good book to read. You will not put it down until you finish it!

By Alice, Katie & Dacia

'The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas' John Boyne by Rebecca Salter and Ellie Mcnamara and Oran Thomas 9FR

'The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas' is a good book to read but very upsetting as it reveals the true meaning behind the Second World War.

While reading this book we all learnt a lot about conflict between the Jews and Nazis. 

The book is about two young boys, one is a Jew and one is German. It is very upsetting because the two young boys are friends and they do not know the conflict between their parents.

I would like to recommend this book for people who take history because it consists of lots of historical facts and helps us understand the Holocaust.

'The Book Thief' Markus Zusak by Kirsty Smith 9SD

The book thief was written by Markus Zusak and is the story of a young girl named Liesel Meminger who is living in Germany during the Second World War. When she is nine, she is taken away from her mother (who is a communist) after her younger brother dies, and is sent to live with a man and woman on a street called Himmel Street- meaning ‘heaven’ in German. During her time there, she becomes close friends with a boy called Rudi and although she is quiet and cautious at first, she grows to love her foster father and even her thundering foster mother.

    Once Liesel has settled in, a Jewish young man named Max comes to live with them. For two years they hide him in their basement to repay Max’s father for saving Liesel’s foster father’s life many years ago. Liesel becomes very fond of Max and also discovers her love of books after her foster father teaches her to read. As a result of this, she takes a book from a pile of them that are being burnt by the Nazis at a parade and a woman who is the wife of an important member of the Nazi party sees her, therefore, when Liesel delivers laundry to the house of this woman (to help her foster mother who does rich people’s laundry for a job), the woman allows Liesel to read a book from their huge library. However, after a while, the woman’s husband finds out what has been going on and banishes Liesel from their house- and their library. Despite this, Liesel longs to read more books so she decides to ‘borrow’ book after book from their library. This is how she earns herself the name: The Book Thief. One time, when she is doing this, Rudi spots her and gets annoyed that she is keeping it a secret from him so keeps pestering and questioning her on their way home… which leads to Liesel admitting that they are hiding a Jew in their house. Rudi promises not to tell anyone but the Nazis do regular checks of people’s basements and after they nearly discover Max, he decided that he must leave them for their own safety.

    Still reeling from the shock of Max leaving, Liesel cannot believe it when her father is conscripted for the German army and Rudi is told that must leave to do elite training for the army after his fourteenth birthday which is swiftly approaching. Leaving only her and her foster mother at home, Liesel feels as if she is being abandoned, however, she does not have time to dwell on this as there are ever frequent air raids happening when everyone on Himmel Streethas to sleep in a huge shelter in the dark and cold. Liesel’s foster father previously played his beloved accordion during these long nights in the shelter, but there is now an empty space where he used to sit, so during one air raid, Liesel tells a story to everyone in the shelter. In my opinion, this is the part that is the most powerful as it shows how Liesel has grown since she arrived; from not being able to read or write, to memorizing a whole story and using it to relax and comfort dozens of terrified people one night.

    In contrast to these tear-jerking moments of happiness and the lines (particularly between the foster mother and father) that make you laugh out loud, there is an overwhelming sadness at the end of the book when everyone Liesel loves dies one fateful night when the air raid siren doesn’t warn the citizens of Himmel Street of an attack. Following this unbelievable loneliness that Liesel feels- and the unfairness that Rudi didn’t get the chance to tell Liesel he loved her before his untimely death- she finds comfort in the woman who previously let her read books at her house. Years on, she works in their very own bookshop- when Max walks through the door!

    The Book Thief is a story that has the ability to give an insight into German people’s lives during the war because some British people don’t know a lot about what some German people went through; therefore it educates them and tells their side of the story. Furthermore, this book made me think about how people take for granted nowadays as Liesel goes through so much at such a young age. The Book Thief has been made into a film too which I am looking forward to seeing!

'Mockingjay' Suzanne Collins by Bobbie Lee Gover 9WE

Mockingjay is the third book of The Hunger Games series.  After reading the first two books, I wanted to read the final book because it was left on a cliff-hanger. It is set in the near-future.

(Warning: spoiler alert if you haven't read the series - if you don't want to be spoiled do not read the next paragraph)

Katniss survived two Hunger Games, but her home, District 12, has been destroyed. She is now hiding in the forgotten district of District 13. To make things worse, her love interest, Peeta - his memory has been tampered with by the Capitol (where the villain, President Snow, lives) so he doesn't remember her that he loves her, but believes that she caused his family, friends and home to be destroyed; he wants to kill her. Whilst Peeta struggles to remember who Katniss really is and what really happened to them, Katniss has to help District 13 in bringing the Capitol to it's knees.

My favourite part is the Epilogue, but I won't spoil it for anyone who hasn't read it. I'd defiantly recommend this book, so if you're haven't read the Hunger Games, you need to read it. Start with the first book; it'll be very confusing otherwise if you read the ones after it first. Can't wait for the film adaptation.