Review: Murtagh

Christopher Paolini has returned with a new novel following on from the events of his previous best selling Inheritance Cycle books. Murtagh follows the lives of Murtagh and his dragon Thorn, outcast from society following their previous actions.

Having devoured the Inheritance Cycle repeatedly as a child, it brings me great joy to revisit the world that brought me so much childhood wonder. Despite being set in the same world, following the events of the previous Inheritance Cycle books, it felt fresh and exciting, particularly due to the change of protagonist.

The book is well-paced, easily digestible and the prose is simple and suitable for young fantasy readers. 

Review: Hedgehugs: Horace and Hattiepillar

Horace and Hattie are the best of friends. They do absolutely everything together, from watching blossoms fall from trees to playing hide and seek. They are absolutely inseparable!

When Horace and Hattie find something small and shiny under a leaf, they watch, in suspense, as it grows.

What it becomes astounds them and they are inspired to become just like it!

Review: On a Small Island

This book is a beautiful and unique story about Ari who lives on a small island in a gigantic sea. Ari loves to collect materials he finds washed up on the beach. He can see other islands on the horizon and can see large ships pass by, but they never stop at his island.

One day, a ship does stop by and Ari is told all about the wonderful land on the horizon and how they always stop there.

When they leave, Ari becomes upset, as his land is not as wonderful. He longs to see the land on the horizon, and feels alone and sad, but when a mysterious object washes up on the shore, Ari has an idea.

Review: Make Art with Your Hands and Feet!

Make art with your hands and feet is a fun book for all ages. It encourages children to be creative, using their hands, feet, toes and fingers to create art.

There are guidelines given but lots of room is left for children to be creative.

Kids can create penguins with their feet, crocodile jaws with their fingers and butterflies with their hands.

Review: The Wombats Go on Camp

The Wombats Go on Camp is an engaging and exciting book about a group of students and their teachers going on camp. The characters tell us in first person all about their experiences, and their favourite or least favourite parts.

It begins with one character, who may mention something about another, leading to another point of view. They tell us about their adventures on the road, at camp, in the kitchen and in the process of preparing a class play.

Review: Don't Look Now! #1

Don’t Look Now! Falling For It is one of those books that you never get bored of. I could just read it over and over again!

The bright colours on the cover and the exciting and engaging illustrations just pull you in. The combination of illustrations and text make it a book that anyone aged 7 and over can enjoy.

Review: Olivia and the Fairy Princesses

‘Olivia likes to stand out. She marches to the beat of her own drum. She wants to do more than just fit in. So how will Olivia do that?’

Olivia is back! And she’s even better than before. Everyone loves Olivia.

In this book, Olivia is very upset as she is having an identity crisis. Who does she want to be? Everyone else wants to be pretty pink fairy princesses. Why can’t everyone be different? Why pink? Why not an Indian or Chinese princess?

Review: I Scream, Ice Cream

‘What do I scream and ice cream have in common? Nothing - besides that fact that they sound the same!’

Well, unless of course you are a 2-year-old and are screaming because you are desperate for ice cream!

I Scream, Ice Cream is a very witty book. It showcases many ‘wordles’. Wordles are groups of words that sound the same, but are totally different in meaning.

Review: The Hunger Games

Sixteen year old Katniss Everdeen lives in District 12. She lives with her mother and her younger sister, Primrose or 'Prim'. Every year, the Capitol chooses two children, one boy and one girl, from Districts 1 through 12 to go to the Hunger Games. This is to remind the districts of their power over them.

Out of all the twenty-four tributes, only one comes back . . .

This book starts off on the day of the reaping, and Katniss has her name entered twenty times. Up on the stage is the Mayor of District 12, Effie Trinket, Haymitch (one of district 12’s only Hunger Games winners) and two round glass balls - one for the boys, and one for the girls.

Review: Let's Make Some Great Fingerprint Art

Bees, elephants, buildings, pyramids, flags and more - all with fingers and ink! How amazing?

Let’s Make Some Great Fingerprint Art by Marion Deuchars is a colourful and exciting book filled with many activities. It demonstrates many different pieces of art and gives you space to recreate them.

It is packed with wonderful activities so that you never get bored. I know what I am going to do these holidays! (No, seriously, I actually am.)

The activities in this book are not only phenomenal, but they are beautiful too. The book suits everyone from younger children who love getting a bit messy to anyone above.

Review: My Band

Did you know that the saxophone belongs to the woodwind family? Or that you can make your very own oboe with a plastic drinking straw? My Band by Elizabeth Lea and Chantal Stewart is a really engaging book that teaches everyone about musical instruments at the same time.

My Band teaches children many different types of instruments, how they are played and what family they belong to. This book includes 10 different instruments of all shapes and sizes, and to top it all off, lift-the-flaps to open, making it fun and exciting!

Review: Diary of a Wimpy Kid - Cabin Fever

Rowley and Greg are at it again. They put up posters for their Christmas bazaar and the rain stains it onto the school walls. Greg is being considered the main culprit but he insists he's innocent.

Then, a miracle happens. The Heffley family get stuck inside the house in an angry blizzard. Greg begins to wonder if his punishment for the school vandalism crime could ever be worse than spending the winter holidays stuck inside with his family.

Review: Wonder Struck

Ben is half deaf. His mother has died and he feels all alone, even though he is living at his aunt’s house. One stormy night, he sneaks out . . . and eighty three steps away is his house. The one he and his mother shared before the funeral.

There he finds a book called Wonder Struck with red ink inside the front cover. It reads for Danny, Love M. Ben also finds a book mark with a phone number on it and he wonders if it might be a link to his long lost dad, who he never knew.

Review: When You Reach Me

If you return five minutes before you leave, you would see yourself arrive, right?

I’m confused.

Miranda has been best friends with Sal since she was a kid. They do everything together. They walk home together, they even went to day care together.

When Sal gets punched by the new kid, he starts to ignore Miranda, leaving her to walk home alone by the garage boys and the laughing man who sleeps under a mailbox.

Review: Dragon Keeper

Outstanding author, Carole Wilkinson has captured every detail in her three amazing books, Dragon Keeper, The Garden of The Purple Dragon and Dragon Moon.

A slave girl is sold as a child to master Han, the keeper of one of the emperor's palaces. She then escapes and journeys to the so called ‘ocean’ with two true friends, and finds who she truly is.

She meets a few friends and enemies along the way and becomes the target of some of the most famous and powerful people is China.

Review: Daredevil Book for Cats

What cats really think!

Nick Griffiths has captivated the life of a cat in one hilarious book. The Daredevil Book for Cats has hilarious small stories written by a cat called Prince Cuddles - but…he prefers Al.

The book includes instructions on things for cats to build, the truth about famous cats, like the Lion King, games cats can play, and the ten cat commandments - my favourite being the tenth one - there is only one god. And that is you, my good friend.

Review: Surface Tension

“The Day I was born, they drowned my town.”

Cassie, from New Lower Grange is born the day her old town is covered in 15,000 swimming pools' worth of water.

As the city's Centenary comes near and the lake levels drop, Cassie and Liam go swimming in the forbidden part of the lake, piecing together the mystery of the ‘Atlantis’ city.

Why is Liam’s father petrified of the colour red? Why did Cassie's old home that she never lived in get flushed away?

Cassie slowly uncovers these secrets hidden from the least suspicious person of all.

This mysterious book will make you think twice and want to read on.

- this review by Ella, 11

Title: Surface Tension
Author: Meg McKinlay
Publisher: Walker Books, $15.95 RRP
Publication Date: March 2011
Format: Paperback
ISBN: 9781921720284
For ages: 8+
Type: Novel

Review: Blaze and the Dark Rider

This review by: Ella (9)

What is the book called? Blaze and the Dark Rider

Who is the author? Stacy Gregg

Who is the publisher? HarperCollins

ISBN: 978 0 00 724517 8

What is this story about? It’s about a girl named Izzie who gets a new horse named Blaze and then she finds out that it belongs to the El Caballo Danza Magnifico – The Magnificent Dancing Horses. A trainer tells her from a DNA test that Blaze belongs to her ponies, but then near the end of the book, the training got a call from the Protection League for Horses about how Blaze should stay with Izzie. So Izzie could keep Blaze.

Who are the main characters? Isadora Brown, Mrs Brown and Tom Avery who used to work for El Caballo.

What problems or challenges do these characters face? Izzie faces the challenge of losing her horse that she had before – Mystic, a dappled grey who died when hit by a truck. And then losing Blaze – until she finds out that she can keep her. I felt really sad when Mystic died.

What is the climax of the story? Probably at the end when Izzie gets to keep Blaze.

Were there any surprises? There was a surprise when Izzie got to keep Blaze.

What was your favourite part in this book? When Izzie rides the Interclub Gold Shield and her team wins. It was my favourite part because I was barracking for her and hoping she would win.

Is there anything you didn’t like about this book? No, not really. I love the whole series.

Teacher's Notes

Author website: www.stacygregg.co.uk

This book is available online:

Booktopia AU$8.75
The Nile AU$8.99
QBD AU$9.99

Review: Dear Dumb Diary

This review by: Ella (8)

What is the book called? Dear Dumb Diary

Who is the author? Jim Benton

Who is the illustrator? Jim Benton

Who is the publisher? Scholastic

ISBN: 0 439 62908 X

What is this story about? It’s about Jamie Kelly – it’s her diary. And it’s about where Angeline, her enemy, raises some money for charity. Then her friend Isabella goes crazy and buys contact lenses and now is probably blind. The was a jumprope-a-thon coming up to raise money for charity, so they did the jumprope-a-thon but Jamie and Isabella had to sit down and count how many skips everybody did, then they had to have their turn last. It was Angeline’s turn. Jamie always talks about how Angeline is so stupid, how she hates her, and then Angeline said “I need to speak in private before my go” and then she tells Jamie she can’t jump rope. Jamie is just really happy that she is better than Angeline at something.

Who are the main characters? Jamie, Angeline and Isabella.

What problems or challenges do these characters face? Jamie faces a problem where she tries to raise more money than Angeline. Jamie was having a garage sale and Angeline walked past in the walkathon and saw all her stuff like the duck tshirt with big splotches of pudding on it, so she was really embarrassed.

What is the climax of the story, when things get the most problematic or exciting? When they both raise money against each other and they try to raise the most money. I thought the bit where Isabella bought contact lenses using all the money they had raised was really funny.

Were there any shocks, twists, turns or surprises? What were they? Well, there was a shock when Angeline said that she couldn’t jump rope and that she could only jump rope if someone was holding the rope for her.

Can you describe the illustrations? They are good; they’re not that detailed but they’re really really good. I really like them. And there are funny illustrations of Angeline, funny stuff like the times when Isabella yells. They’re in a plain style but more cartoon. They have writing to go with the pictures and sometimes charts like when Jamie has an angry face, then an angrier face, then an angrier face.

What do you like about the illustrations? I like that they’re just simple and they’re neat, they’re not all scribbly. I’m used to cartoons and when they have cartoons, it actually makes it more funny. I also like when Isabella colours in her contact lenses while they’re in her eyes.

What was your favourite part in this book? My favourite part was when they went up against each other to raise money.

Is there anything you didn’t like about this book? No.

Did you learn anything new from this story? I learned to not colour in your contact lenses in your eyes, especially when you’re wearing them. Or not to wear them when you’re eight years old.

Review: Mummy Laid An Egg

What is this story about? It's about a mum and a dad who don't know about how babies are made, and they tell their children how babies are made... like out of tubes and plants. They are actually wrong - and the children don't believe them, so the children tell the parents how babies are made.

Who are the main characters? The parents and the children.