Hamlet - retold for kids

The book I have just read is called Hamlet and it is a Shakespeare story retold for kids by Andrew Mathews.  

I chose this book because I’ve read other Shakespeare stories like Macbeth, which I liked. Macbeth is also about a king who was murdered. 

The plot of Hamlet explores the themes of death and justice because Hamlet is seeking revenge for his dad, who was murdered.  The problem is made worse because it was Hamlet’s uncle who committed the murder, in order to take his own place on the throne and marry Hamlet's mum.  

I enjoyed reading the dramatic sections of this book, for example where the ghost of Hamlet’s dad tells him to take revenge so he can move on.  

Overall, I have found this book to be interesting and entertaining. I thought it had similarities with the story of Macbeth because Hamlet’s uncle murders the king, and Macbeth also murders King Duncan. Both stories explore the effects that murder can create in a castle setting.   

I believe teenagers would enjoy this book if they like dramatic events and ghosts.

I give it 4 stars out of 5. JH

Weirdo - Hopping Weird!

The book I am currently reading is called Weird - Hopping Weird and is written by the author Ahn Do. It is a fiction text and has 160 pages.

Weirdo’s cheery face is on the cover of the book, so I knew immediately that he is the main character. The plot also centres around Weirdo’s mum, who works at an animal hospital. She looks after the animals to help them get better, and she sometimes even takes them home.

I have found this book to be entertaining and full of humorous events. An example is the boy who dressed up as an animal to help find out what kinds of things the animals eat. 

I believe other young people aged 7-13, who enjoy stories about animals and friendship, should read this book. CE

Bride’s Story

The book Bride’s Story is a graphic novel set in a far away village in a nameless desert where it is very hot. The main character is an assassin-princess whose family and village are all high-ranking assassins. 

The princess runs away from her past and village to a big town where she won’t stand out from the crowd. There she has to hide her real identity and history, and especially the mark on her forehead that marks her as an assassin. She wears a bandanna to cover it.  In the new town, the princess is accepted by a family because she goes out of her way to help them when they are hungry. She hunts animals for their food and shows the young family members how to hunt for themselves. Eventually the family offers her a home and she marries the older brother, who she has fallen in love with.

The story explores the themes of friendship and acceptance.

Overall, I only give it 50/100 because I felt there wasn’t enough action, and it was more of a romantic story. I will, however, read the next book find out if the black figure is a messenger from the assassins.

I think other teenagers who like graphic novels would enjoy this story.

James and the Giant Peach - Roald Dahl

I am currently reading James and the Giant Peach, which is written by the author Roald Dahl. It is a fiction novel.

I chose this book because I have seen the movie and Roald Dahl is one of my favourite authors. 

James and the Giant Peach is about a young boy who escaped a violent, cruel home where he has been living with his two mean aunts. He escapes in a giant magical peach, and travels across the world with his new friends, and discovers the joy of freedom and friendship along the way.

The theme is that it’s not too late for James to make new friends, even though his parents have passed away and his aunts have been cruel and mean to him. He is still willing to make friends that care about him the way his aunts don’t. The story shows his perseverance because he does not give up even though he is in a tough situation.

My rating is 5 out of 5 ✰!

The Babysitter's Club - Claudia and the new girl

The book I am currently reading is called The Baby-Sitters Club and is a graphic novel based on Ann M Martin’s novels. It is a fiction text. 

I chose this book because the cover has bright colours and I liked that it is about two girls my age.

The story is set in a school and at Claudia's house, and explores the themes of friendship. An example of this is when Ashley first comes into the class and Claudia feels a good connection between the two and wants to be good friends with Ashley. 

So far, the complication in the story is that Ashley has to decide and make a decision to go either to art or the BSC meetings with Claudia. I predict that next Ashley will make a decision about letting go of her art career and she will go to the baby-sitter’s club with Claudia. 

Overall, I have found this book to be a great read and I give it 4 stars out of 5.

Weirdo By ANH DO

The book I am currently reading is called Weirdo 8, Really Weird. It is written by the author Anh Do and has 151 pages.

I chose this book because I knew it would be funny and enjoyable because of the picture of the boy on the front cover.  This made me laugh because he is hanging upside down above grandma, and a chicken is laying an egg beside him.

The story follows the life of Anh and tells about the crazy things which happen to him. He asks his crush out and dances with her, but then the light shut down and because he is wearing a fluoro pair of overalls, everyone looks at him and laughs. One of the kids scream out, “I always knew you were the brightest student in the class!” This is a joke because there are two meanings of bright: one means happy and smart, and the other is pointing out his glowing overalls.

One interesting part of the book is when Ahn Do‘s grandma can't pronounce words, so she acts it out instead.  It made me laugh so much because the pictures show her funny stances, for example a crouching crab.

I like this book because it is entertaining and it make me laugh. I give it 100/100! I think this book would be good for teenagers who like comedy. TA

The Giver by Lois Lowry

 The Giver is a novel about a young boy living in a utopian world, there is no war, no struggles, no fear until Jonas find some secrets and uncovers the truth. 

Wolf Girl 2 - Anh Do

The book I am currently reading is called Wolf Girl 2 and it is written by the author Anh Do. It is a fiction text and has 209 pages.

I chose this book because the image of the book is of the wolf girl and this animaI is frightening to me. The blurb on the back got me thinking that this book might be interesting and I have read other books from Ahn Doand I liked them.

The first chapter of the book is about a man who kidnapped a girl and her dog. Then the man pushed her into the truck and left the dog behind. It made the reader want to know more about her and what would happen to her.

The main character is likeable because she has thoughts and feelings in response to the danger around her like a real person would. She has feelings of being scared in a forest, and I can relate to that because I would be scared too.

This book is suited to young teenagers who like action and adventure. I give it a ⅗ because I felt the events in the story don’t entirely link together smoothly from chapter to chapter.

CE

Blue Hair Day

The book I am currently reading is called Blue Hair Day and is written by the author James Moloney. I chose this book because the images on the cover show an old lady laughing and there are also two others who are smiling and I thought it would be humorous to read. 

This story is set in a house. The key characters are Sonya and Margo. One entertaining part of the story is when the girls have their mother and grandmother visit. Margo and Sonya were at home baking a cake but arguing with each other about the icing to put on top. Their grandmother suggested that blue would be a good choice. After this their grandmother fell asleep. The two girls acted mischievously and used the blue food colouring to dye their grandmother’s hair because it was incredibly grey.  When their grandmother woke up she wanted to brush her hair but they would not let her because their mother was cranky.  They told her to get in the car so they could take her to the hairdresser. When they got to the hairdresser everyone there was giggling at her. The hairdresser said that the food colouring would not come out so they would need to dye it a different colour. 

This book is great for kids 10 and under because it is easy to read and also to understand. JM

Haikyu volume 8

       The book I am currently reading is called Haikyu and it is a fictional, manga story written and illustrated by Haruichi Furudate. It has approximately 200 pages.  

I chose this book because I’ve read other books in this same series and I really enjoyed them. The story is set in a school in Tokyo Japan. In this school is a Volleyball Team who plays in lots of competitions. One of the key players in the Volleyball Team is a student called Shoyo. Shoyo is excellent at playing and shows good spirit. The team goes off to compete and the remainder of the book is exciting, because it covers the challenges and excitement of the competition. I won’t tell you who wins the final game but it is really amazing. 

One entertaining part of the book is when Shoyo Hinata and his team are competing in the finals. They are up against another top five team and I really wanted to know who would win. 

I love the topic of the book because it embraces the meaning of playing volleyball. I really like the pictures which show what the characters are feeling whether they win or lose. There are many lessons in this book like how Shoyo Hinata came to be one of the best volleyball players in the world and also some life skills, like getting along with other people and devoting yourself 100% to your team. Another lesson is to never give up on your team. 

Overall I have found this book to be thrilling because the games have a lot of action and the reader gets caught up in the moment at the competitions. The book is also inspiring for beginners who want to start playing volleyball.  It is suitable for 10 years to teenagers. I rate it 10/10!

TN

Deep Water

The book I am reading is called Deep Water and the author is Pauline O'Carolan. It is a fiction book and has 76 pages. I chose this book because the blurb was very dark and creepy and sounded interesting. I also like to read horror stories.

The story is about a family who is forced to move when the father loses his job. The mother’s name is Anna, the father is Rob and they have two children named Alan and Jenny. They move to a house on a farm, near the water. The house belonged to the father’s friend but there were many people who lived around the property.  The family were not aware that a monster lived in the nearby river but when they are made aware, they go to investigate. 

The book is entertaining because a couple of the tradies have straight come from jail and have no jobs. This makes the story  more interesting because the ex-criminal/tradie also is the one who told the family about the monster that lives in the river. 

While Anna investigates, she comes across a hole and reaches in. She feels something pointy like the edge of a narrow box. She tries to lift it up but can’t because of the weight of it. She persists at this and eventually is able to lift the box up, out of the hole. She chooses not to look in the box and decides to bury it so that nobody can find it. I find that interesting because I think I would be tempted to look inside it, even if it was creepy. 

After she finishes burying the box, Anna goes to sleep, but while she was sleeping someone stumbles across the box, from the small gap in the ground, and takes everything inside including some guns. 

I predict that Anna will try and look for the person who took the guns from inside the box. They might keep hiding from her and may even threaten to kill her and the children if she continues to try and find them. 

Overall, I have found this book to be interesting and simple to read. It is slow-paced but can be very dramatic. I recommend this book to people who like action and drama. It is appropriate for ages 12 and up. I give this book 3½ out of 5. JH

Wolf girl by Anh Do

The book I am currently reading is called Wolf Girl and is written by the author Anh Do. It is a fiction book. I chose this book because of the picture on the front cover and the title of the book, which made me wonder why she was a wolf girl. The story is set in the wild/the forest. 

The theme of this book is survival. Gwen has to run away from her house because there is a mysterious disaster, and her mum tells her to run to safety. Gwen is the key character and loses her parents in the disaster. The major complication arises because Gwen is lost in the wild. She is missing her parents and wondering if they are okay. 

I predict that next Gwen and the dogs who take care of her will try to find a way out of the forest and maybe Gwen will see her family. I predict this because of the new subheading “Running with the dogs” and all the other information I have read throughout the text. 

Overall, I have found this book to be very interesting and thrilling because of the drama of Gwen's situation. Gwen is strong and brave because she is surviving in the forest alone with only puppies to help her. She accepts their help and is a likeable character because she perseveres during tough situations. 

This book is suited to children and young teenagers who like survival-themed adventure books.

MD

Spider-Man Battle Files

The book I am reading is a Marvel book, Spider-Man Battle Flies. It's an action book and tells the story of a teenager called Peter Parker and his life as a superhero. His superpower is that he can do anything a spider can do, only better, for example climbing walls and swinging off webs. He uses his power for good and he loves to help people by defeating their enemies. 

Peter really wants to tell the school and the boy who bullies him who he really is, but he knows what will happen if everyone knows his identity, so he keeps it a secret. 

In the book Peter fights villains like Kraven and Sandman and Lizard - he is always brave even though life is hard on him, especially when the bully throws food at him. His strongest  opponent is Sandman who is made out of sand, which is hard to hit. Sandman can build himself up with sand to make himself stronger, so to defeat him and save his school from attack, Peter uses a hose and wets Sandman. Sandman is defeated because when you put water on sand it becomes weak and muddy.

I liked the ending because it was funny and Sandman got what he deserved.

I believe that this book is enjoyable for young kids or even older children who love superheroes. I enjoyed reading this book because I like superheroes! TA

Malala- my story for standing up for girls rights- Malala Yousafzai

 I chose this book because the title and the front cover really stood out to me. The front cover has a girl next to a microphone which made me wonder what this book is about. That author that created this book was Malala Yousafzai. This book is going to be about a girl standing up for women rights. 

This book is an autobiography because Malala is talking about what happened to her. This book has some challenging words but also some words I understand. This book is about standing up for your own rights. What I like about this book is that it taught me to be confident and speak up for my rights.

I recommend this book for year 5-12 because it is a very interesting book and it teaches us a lot. I rate this book a 9/10.

GoodNight Mister Tom by Michelle Magorian

 The book that I have chosen to read is Goodnight Mister Tom, the author is Michelle Magorian. The reason why I chose this book is because I like books that have war in it. The front over of the book has a man, little kid and a dog running away because there are war aeroplanes heading to their area.

The genre of book is a war book mostly talking about the Second World War. The people in the book were Thomas Oakley and Willie. I haven't read too much of the book yet, but from what I have read of this book, I predict that Tom will take good care of Willie while the war is happening in London. 

I recommend to people who are interested into war type books. I personally think people who are ages 12+ should read this book. I rate this book 8/10

"After Tomorrow" by Gillian Cross

This novel is about a society run by criminals. The story is based on a family that live in a tragic environment. Matt and Taco are the main characters whose lives changes due to getting robbed. They are in a situation where they face life or death. They have the option to escape or stay.

The main themes of the story are about survival, victims and justice. It's about living in a bad society without laws. It is not that hard to read, and you can look up definitions of the words you don't understand. I should try to use some of the words in my everyday conversations but some of these words are hard to use everyday.

 I haven't finished reading the book but I think they will end up leaving if the same situation happens again.

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