Stormbreaker, Anthony Horowitz

•June 17, 2009 • 3 Comments

Alex Rider has a perfectly normal life apart from the fact that he lives with his uncle as his parents died when he was younger. Until the day his uncle dies in a car crash as he wasn’t wearing a seat belt. This surprise’s Alex as his Uncle was always strict about wearing a seat belt and he would never go through a round about unless Alex had a seat belt on. At Ian Rider’s funeral, Alex meet’s many people he doesn’t know and he spot’s a man with a gun! Confused, Alex returns home to find a van parked outside his Uncles home and his uncles study empty. He finds the address written on the side of the van and goes to explore. There, he finds a junk yard and his Uncles BMW. Nearly crushed to death, Alex manages to escape the place and when he returns home, he get’s a call from the Royal & General Bank, where his Uncle previously worked, and is told something that will change his life forever.

Herod Sayle is a Billionaire who invented a computer called the Stormbreaker. M16 are positive that he is up to no good. Herod Sayle is planning to give every school in England a Stormbreaker as a gift and the government are over the moon. As the government do nothing, M16 take action sending Alex to explore under the disguise of a competition winner, Felix Lester. Armed with a couple of gadgets, Alex must find a way to discover the billionaire’s evil plot and save England from a terrible fate.

I really enjoyed this book and I recommend it to anyone who wants a book that makes them grip their seat tightly, and get transported to a completely different world. That’s how I felt when I read this book. When you look up from the pages you think ‘ Oh right, school. Shucks I wish I was true though I wouldn’t want to be Alex Rider right now!’ I love the way Anthony Horowitz adds humour with adventure; to me, that’s a great recipe for the perfect story.
I hope you decide to read this and if you do, well, GET READING!!!!!!!

Skulduggery Pleasant, Derek Landy

•May 24, 2009 • Leave a Comment

skulduggery_pleasantStephenie Edgley has quite a normal life until her uncle, Gordon, dies. In his will, he gives Stephanie all his estates and a mysterious man named Skulduggery Pleasant a simple saying. The next night, Stephenie and her mum go to visit the estates and the car breaks down. Stephenie stays at the mansion while her mum goes to fix the car when a man knocks on her window asking to come in. When Stephenie disagrees, the man breaks the window and enters the house. Unexpectedly, a man comes to Stephenie’s rescue and hurls fireballs towards the other man. When Stephenie’s rescuer defeats the man and introduces himself as Skulduggery Pleasant, Stephenie gets shocked as he is well and truly a skeleton. As Stephenie becomes more acquainted with Skulduggery, she learns that there’s a whole world of magicians living on Earth. Skullduggery’s a wizard-detective who believes Gordon was murdered and did not die of a heart attack. So, Stephenie and Skullduggery set off on a journey to find out who killed Gordon and why.

Skulduggery Pleasant is an extremely funny book. I find it is well written and very original as a story. Derek Landy thinks of every thing and puts it together so well that when he mentions something you say” Oh yeah” or” That’s incredible!”. I have read the first three books of the series and they all carry the same style of writing. Humoristic and full of action.

The Black Stallions Filly, Walter Farley

•May 18, 2009 • 4 Comments

JacketBlack Minx is a filly with a mind of her own which is why she gets along quite well Henry Dailey, the trainer of the two greatest horses ever to step on a race track, the Black and Satan. She was bred by the Black himself and a lovely mare named Elf. When Henry buys her to train with Alec Ramsay, she has had terrible life and has earned a stumped tail because of it. She has bad manners and unlike her great sire, she hates to run. However, Henry is certain he can make a Kentucky Derby horse out of her. With a couple of old handy tricks up his sleeve, he and Alec begin the impossible task of training a half mad, little black filly to become a Derby filly to be remembered in years to come. But Black Minx has a few tricks of her own..

I’ve read this book twice and really have enjoyed it. Walter Farley describes the feeling and scenery of a race track it’s almost impossible to stop reading! Walter Farley has written many stories about the Black Stallion and his adventure books about Alec Ramsay and the Black are very good although I very much prefer it when the books are based on horse races. Walter Farleys books have received many positive comments and all in all, they are exceptionally well written books.

Twilight, Stephenie Meyer

•May 3, 2009 • 1 Comment

twilight1Bella Swan’s mother remarried a baseball player, so, Bella decides to go stay with her father in Forks, Washington where she joins high school. There, she finds out about the Cullens, a mysterious family who keep to themselves. Alice, Jasper, Emmett, Rosalie and Edward are all drop-dead gorgeous. Bella quickly falls in love with Edward. Of course, as Jessica, one of Bella’s new friends puts it, the girls at school aren’t good enough for any of them.
During biology, Bella has to sit next to Edward Cullen where he acts as if he’s suffocating, gripping the table. Hard. Then, she catches him trying to change his biology class to another period. As soon as he sees her he walks out. Confused, Bella decides to ask him what what was wrong the next day. Unfortunately, he’s not there. Nor the day after that.
The next week he returns and introduces himself to her. Bella spots that his eyes have changed from black to gold.
The day after that, a sheet of ice spreads over Forks. When Bella gets to school, she sees Edward Cullen standing by his shiny volvo four cars down. Bella also notices that Charlie, her dad, has added snow chains on her truck. She inspects them carefully oblivious to the fact that a van has skidded on the ice and is heading towards her. As she stands up, she sees the van skidding towards her and is frozen in terror. Suddenly, Edward appears out of nowhere, pushing her out of the way and stopping the truck with his hand. Now, Bella is sure that Edward is not human. He got to her so fast and he stopped a car with his hand!

She soon finds out that her guess was correct as the Cullens are vampires. As Bella says: About three things I was absolutely positive. First Edward was a vampire. Second, there was a part of him- and I didn’t know how dominent that part might be- that thirsted for my blood. And third, I was unconditionally and irrevocably in love with him.

I really enjoyed this book, as Amazon said,” Best Book of the Decade… so far”. It encouraged me to read the rest of the saga. Though I think the book is better than the film, I am eager to watch New Moon, the second book in the saga. I agree to the fact that this is a girlie book although parts of it do involve adventure. For example, Bella’s best friend, Jacob Black, who turns out to be a werewolf. The vampires James and Victoria who want to kill Bella and the Volturi’s Guard ready to kill Bella (once again) if she does not become a vampire herself.

The book definately deserves 10/10 for romance, suspence and fantasy and 8/10 for action. Well done to Stephenie Meyer!

My friend Walter, Michael Morpurgo

•March 28, 2009 • Leave a Comment

51yyyyr50sl_sl500_aa240_Bess’ family receives an invitation to a family reunion but Bess is the only one who can go as her parents and her brother have other things to do. So, her mum arranges that she goes with her aunt. At the reunion, Bess meets a strange man who tells her she is related to Sir Walter Raleigh. So, Bess decides to visit the tower where Walter Raleigh was imprisoned for many years to see if she finds, well, anything to do with her family. While she searches, she finds, believe it or not, at the end of Raleigh walk, the ghost of Walter Raleigh.

Micheal Morpurgo is a brilliant author; he manages to get into the characters thoughts in such a manner that really makes you think that such a fantasy could just be true. For example , the way Walter Raleigh speaks and acts, he uses old language and acts as if Bess is Queen Elizabeth I, yeah, all the bowing down low and kissing hands; even taking off his cape and placing it over a puddle for Bess to walk over!

This book would probably get 8/10 rating. Why, Because the book didn’t strike me like other books have done. It was definately not dull, but then again, it wasn’t exactly fabulous. I would recomend this book to people who enjoy reading any type of books.

Dragon Slippers, Jessica Day George

•March 11, 2009 • 2 Comments

125071Creel Carlbrun’s family is too poor to feed her so her aunt decides to sacrifice her to the Carlieff town dragon. Only a lord could save her from the dragon’s clutches. Hagen, Creel’s brother says that he has shouted at the dragons cave many times, so he’s sure there is no such thing as the dragon of Carlieff town, but when the day comes and a dragon does appear, Hagen is shocked. But, as a bargain goes, Creel is taken in by the dragon, Theoradus, and it isn’t long before the lord’s son comes riding the hill. Theoradus is 670 years old and after being hidden from humans for such a long time, he doesn’t fancy having to fight a knight for a person who he has absolutly nothing to do with. So, Creel bargains with the dragon: She tells the lord that there is no dragon, in return, the dragon gives Creel a piece of gold from his hoard. Unfortunately, Creel finds out that dragons do not sleep on gold and that those are fairy tales. Instead of gold, she receives a pair of shoes which contain a lot more history than Creel thinks.

After that, Creel heads off to the Kings Seat, the biggest city in all of Feravel, not knowing what her lords have left her to wander in.

I LOVED this book. The way Creel meets a dragon and finds out that he has a completely different lifestyle to what she expects, it’s all just stunning. I give this book definately a 10/10 for it’s beautifully plotted story and the exact amount of humour to make the writing perfect, it’s just amazing!

Dairy of a Wimpy Kid, Jeff Kinney

•March 11, 2009 • 3 Comments

images1_Dairy of a wimpy kid is ridiculously funny. The main character, Greg Heffley, reminds me a lot of my brother as my brother always says he will grow rich and famous one day. Greg, ‘The only reason I agreed to do this at all is because I figure that later on when I’m rich and famous ,I’ll have better things to do than answer people’s stupid questions all day long.’
Diary of a wimpy kid is written from Greg Heffley’s point of view.
Greg’s just entered middle school with his friend Rowley and doesn’t seem to be enjoying it much as the kids there are taller, meaner, and already shaving, how bad can it get? This diary explains what happens during Gregs first couple years.

I liked the book because Greg is hilarious. No doubt about it. The only reason it’s not on my favorite’s list is because I don’t extremely like gruesome story’s and Diary of a Wimpy Kid is definately under that list, so if you’re the type who likes disgusting books, perfect choice!

The Little Nicholas, Rene Goscinny

•March 9, 2009 • 3 Comments

14621214Nicholas, a 9 year old boy, is always up to something that is not always very smart. He has a great gang: Rufus, Alec, Geoffrey, Matthew, Eddie and Jeremy. Their favorite games are to tease Cuthbert, the teacher’s pet, as well as punching each other on the nose.
I liked this book as the short stories are easy to read and the endings are always hilarious. I’ve read the book both in French and English and prefer the way it’s written in French for two reasons. One: The way it’s written is funnier, the jokes in English are not the same and not as effective as when it’s read in French. Two: The names of the characters are better in French. If you speak French, try to read both the French and English book, that way, you can see what I mean.

Dragonsdale, Salamanda Drake

•February 25, 2009 • Leave a Comment

dragonsdaleFar away, on the Isles of Bresal, live creatures which we’ve always classified as fairy tale creatures. The Dragons.
Cara and Breena are best friends, the only difference is that Breena is a dragon rider.Cara has wanted to ride a dragon for as long as she can remember, the only thing that is stopping her is her Da. Cara’s mother died while riding a dragon so Cara’s Da has strictly forbidden her to fly any dragon which is hard for Cara as she spends her days on a stud farm mucking out dragons stable’s and watching younger kids fly. Luckily there’s Sky Dancer, Cara’s favorite dragon, a golden brow, the rarest dragon breed in all the isles. Sky Dancer was found next to his dead mother and was taken in to the dragonsdale. Ever since, no rider has been able to ride him, but Cara knows she can. She knows that she could beat every dragon in the Island Championships. It’s just that she isn’t given a chance.
Then there’s Hortense, the selfish daughter of the ruler of the isles. She mistreats every dragon she rides and enjoys teasing Cara and Breena, which is why, that when she finds out that Sky Dancer is Cara’s favorite dragon she does anything in her power to get her father to buy him. Huw, Cara’s Da and the Dragonmaster of Dragonsdale, needs the money and Skydancer is just an extra dragon to feed as no one can ride him. If Hortense agrees to buy Sky Dancer, the dragon is sold. But Cara reacts before that and runs away with Sky Dancer.
Will they ever return? If they do, what will happen to Sky Dancer?
This book was an easy read but at the same time, extremely gripping. Not in the sense that you really want to know what will happen next but in a way that it enchants you. I sort of wanted to live the story while I was reading it. I would give it a 10/10 rating as the book is very nice to read as a soothing story, something to read before you go to bed.

How to Cheat a Dragon’s Curse, Cressida Cowell

•February 24, 2009 • 4 Comments

dragonCan Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III come and be the hero yet again? This time, a Venomous Vorpent has stung Hiccups best friend, Fishlegs. The symptoms: fever, runny nose and worst of all, episodes of madness. Fishlegs has charged down a mountain on skis towards the craziest of all Viking tribes: the Hysterics. To save him, Hiccup had to fire an arrow in Norbert the Nutjob’s (The chief of the Hysterics tribe) bottom! Fishlegs also shouted some very rude words to Hiccups dad, Stoick the Vast, chief of the Hairy Hooligan tribe. This disease is fatal and Fishlegs could die in less than 24 hours.

The only possible cure to this sickness is the vegetable- no-one-dares-name, in other words, the potato. This is a lot harder than you think as America is the first continent to grow potatoes and we are in the Viking times. Conclusion: America has not been discovered yet. According to the Vikings, the world is as flat as a pancake, if you sail too far east or west, well, lets just say that’s a bad idea. Luckily, Norbert the Nutjobs father, Bigjob, has been to America and brought back the potato as proof of being there, the only problem is that Hiccup is probably not one of Norbert’s best friends at the moment, as he had to shoot him in the bottom. Fortunately, Camicazi, Hiccups friend from the Bog-Burglar tribe has enthusiastically agreed to come with Hiccup on his quest for the potato.

Will Hiccup and Camikazi manage to find the potato before they are discovered? Will Norbert accept to give them the potato? They don’t even know what the potato looks like. How are they supposed to find the right thing? I found this book quite hard to get into as I’m used to reading books that drag you into the story immediately. From my point of view, this book doesn’t grab the reader’s attention until further in the story, but once I had started reading it, I did not put the book down until I was finished. The book itself is fun to read, as the illustrations are quite funny. The writing is also a bit silly along with the title. This book deserves 9/10. I took away one mark as in the story, an object is found and Cressida Cowell doesn’t fully explain what the object is. But in general, this is an astonishingly well-written book.