08.27.09
Dear Readers
Hello, I’m Eilidh, the recently elusive creator of The Book Blog. This post is an apology, an apology for forgetting about what was and still is a great project. I have no real excuse, to be perfectly honest with you all. School has been more challenging certainly, but I have still found time to get online. Past reasons behind me, I’d like to breathe some fresh life in to The Book Blog.
So, this post is also a note to say “Start reading again!”, because you guys are the reason I’m doing this. It makes me so happy to see lovely comments waiting to be approved, it makes me smile when I see how many views we’re getting.
My first review will be of Rubies in The Orchard by Lynda Resnick. This review should’ve been written a long time ago, when I was so kindly sent a free copy. I did read and enjoy it, but unfortunately… yeah, insert an excuse here.
So hopefully you’re looking forward to this new dawn for The Book Blog, I know I am.
02.27.09
The Escape – Robert Muchamore
The Escape is the first book in the Henderson’s Boys series, a spin-off of Muchamore’s fantastic spy series CHERUB, exploring the origins of CHERUB during the Second World War. Two more books, Eagle Day and Secret Army have been confirmed over the next two years.
Charles Henderson, a British spy, returns to his house during Germany’s invasion of French in 1940 to find an orphan named Marc Kilgour who has been badly beaten up by German soldiers who believed the boy was aware of the spy’s whereabouts. Henderson and Marc then race across the country, braving the enemy forces, in order to rescue the children (Paul and Rosie Clarke) of one of his fellow spies (Digby Clarke). The story ends on a huge cliffhanger as the ferry Paul and Rosie are on sinks and Rosie is left wondering about whether or not Paul survived.
A gripping start to the series that thrusts the reader directly into the horror and ruthlessness of the Nazi invasion of France and the no-nonsense brutal ends that people were willing to go to to survive.
The Escape – Robert Muchamore ****
By Tom.
Necropolis – Anthony Horowitz
Necropolis is the fourth and penultimate book in prolific teenage fiction author Anthony Horowitz’s Power of Five series. The series tells of five magical children known as “The Five” who have to gather together in order to defeat evil itself, the “Old Ones”. Necropolis is Horowitz’s first book containing a full-fledged female protagonist.
Scarlett Adams disappears through a door in St Meredith’s church on a school trip. She narrowly avoids capture by an army of unhinged monks and then refuses to describe what happened to the police. This story is published in the newspapers and Matt Freeman realises that he has found the last of the Five. Unfortunately, the Old Ones know that too. Throughout the book, Matt desperately tries to reach Scarlett in order to bring the Five together to fight the final great war that will banish the Old Ones but is continuously thwarted by the evil forces against them. The book ends with the Five split apart after scrambling into one of the many magic doors designed for them; separation leaving them vulnerable for the Old Ones to take action.
This is quite possibly the strongest book in the series. Despite his inexperience in heroines, Horowitz develops the character of Scarlett brilliantly, showing us exactly what is going on inside the girl’s head as she struggles with her true destiny and power. The huge amount of twists in the fantastically dense plot constantly keep the reader interested throughout. I am now gutted that it will probably be several years before we get to see the conclusion of this outstanding saga.
Necropolis – Anthony Horowitz *****
By Tom.
The Mighty Book Of Boosh – Julian Barratt & Noel Fielding
The Mighty Book Of Boosh is the latest project by the team behind the surreal comedy show. The Mighty Boosh has earned itself a cult following after a radio series, three TV series and two sell-out UK tours featuring their menagerie of engaging and often outrageous characters including the polo-eyed Hitcher and Bob Fossil, the retarded American zoo owner/erotic dancer.
The entire book continues with the surreal form that fans of the show are familiar with and contains a huge variety of Boosh goodies. There are short stories written in character by several of the stars, lyrics to the songs from the show and a tonne of behind the scenes photos as well as loads of other miscellaneous stuff.
Even taking into account its size, the book doesn’t take very long to read, but I guarantee that any Boosh fan would be laughing all the way through it. If you have never seen the TV show, you probably won’t get it, so should definitely watch that first. I thought that some of the content was absolutely amazing and almost every page had me in absolute hysterics. Brilliant!
The Mighty Book Of Boosh – Julian Barratt & Noel Fielding *****
By Tom.
Breaking Dawn – Stephenie Meyer
The fourth book in Stephenie Meyer’s spellbinding supernatural love saga shows Bella Swan’s struggle to continue life with her vampire partner Edward Cullen and put up with the constant advances of her werewolf best friend Jacob Black.
The story starts, as with the rest of the series, from Bella’s point of view and deals with telling of her marriage to Edward and their subsequent honeymoon during which the couple finally have sex. Soon after, Bella suspects that she has fallen preganant, a fact that Carlisle then confirms. After this, the story switches to Jacob’s perspective as Bella’s baby grows at an accelerated rate. He is forced to split from the main wolf pack in order to prevent them from tracking down and killing the child. Bella eventually has the child, whom Jacob then imprints on, but is almost killed in the process and Edward is forced to finally grant her wish of changing her into a vampire. The final part of the book switches back to Bella who is just adjusting to her new life as a vampire when Renesmee (her child) is spotted by another vampire who assumes that she is an “immortal child”, a race forbidden by the Volturi. The whole Volturi force is then sent to destroy the Cullens who assemble an army of witnesses who can prove that Renesmee is a half-breed and not one of the forbidden children. The Volturi eventually are forced to accept this truth and leave the family in peace without bloodshed.
I loved this entire book besides the incredibly anticlimactic ending, the ending being the only thing preventing it receiving five stars. The change in perspective works incredibly well and the entire plotline is ingenious. A fitting end to one of the best series of books in recent years.
Braking Dawn – Stephenie Meyer ****
By Tom.
02.26.09
Bog Child – Siobhan Dowd
Siobhan Dowd’s new novel, Bog Child, is a twisting tale that takes us from Drumleash, in 1981, right back to 80 AD. In this inspiring story about first love, politics and family bonds, we follow the lives of 18-year-old Fergus, and Mel, the child he discovers hidden in a bog. Mel troubles Fergus’ dreams, and as Fergus’ own story unfolds, we learn more about Mel’s troubled life.
The book also looks deeply into Irish politics in the 1980s. Fergus’ brother Joey is a political prisoner, and joins the hunger strikes at the time. The author’s moving story examines moral issues behind the strikes, and as Fergus’ becomes more involved in political activities, and as tension between the North and South increases, Fergus has to choose between his beliefs, and his brother.
I’m giving this book *****. The first star is for the beautiful words of the author, who never misplaces a metaphor, and never wastes a word. The second is for the humorous and comic exchanges between Fergus and his friends, their attitudes and expressions make the book thoroughly enjoyable for any teenage reader. The third star is awarded for the feel-good vibe that seeps from the pages. Despite the hardships and troubles that weigh down Fergus’ life, the book will leave you with a smile. The fourth and fifth stars go to the moving and emotional perspective on right and wrong, life and death, and truth. I gave that two stars, because it was especially awesome.
I’d recommend this story to any teenage reader. Whether you like romance, action or any other genre, Bog Child will have you hooked till the last word.
12.12.08
The Bailey Game – Celia Rees
This is another of the books that has been recommended to me by my school librarian that is a contender for a book awards taking place in my city.
The Bailey Game tells the story of Alex, a girl who is still haunted by the terrible events that happened due to “The Bailey Game”, a game that involved the systematic bullying of a boy named Michael Bailey. She deeply regrets her part in this game and, when a new student comes to the school, she sees that the game is starting again and that only she can stop the terrible events from unfolding all over again.
I enjoyed the storyline of this book and it was a very powerful account of the terrible effects that bullying can have on people and how it can be dealt with. However, the plot did get confusing at times due to all of the flashbacks of the past and changing of viewpoints. A good idea that was slightly let down by the style of the writing.
The Bailey Game – Celia Rees ***
By Tom.
We’re British, Innit: An Irreverent A to Z of All Things British – Ian Aitch
I spotted this in one of my local bookshops and was intrigued by the amazing definition of the word “Innit” that was located on the book cover.
This book takes some of the most famous aspects of Britishness, including tea, crumpets and Queen Elizabeth II and describes them in a hilarious yet strangely informative way. It is one of the few books I have ever read that has made me laugh audibly in a public place (on the bus).
This hilarious journey through Britain is amazingly written by a very intelligent man who has a unique gift for being able to provide some very interesting information, but also be incredibly funny in the process. I would recommend this to anyone who has had enough of depressing fiction and needs a book that makes them giggle. It would also make an ideal Christmas gift.
We’re British, Innit: An Irreverent A to Z of All Things British – Ian Aitch *****
By Tom.
11.23.08
Life On The Refrigerator Door – Alice Kuipers
I read this book after it was recommended to me by my school librarian.
It tells the story of Claire and her mother who have very few opportunities to see each other due to her mum’s busy job. To compensate, they leave notes for each other, as the title suggests, on the refrigerator door. To begin with, the notes are normal mother-daughter conversation about shopping, allowance and boys, but one note the mother leaves turns the story totally on its head. She has found a lump on her breast. At first, both of them show a naivety to the situation, but it slowly dawns on both of them that this problem is very serious indeed and the mother’s health deteriorates, culminating in her death. After the mother dies, Claire leaves two more heartfelt notes that involve massive outpourings of emotion. She leaves them on the refrigerator door of the empty house, knowing that her mother will never read them.
The note format of the story means that you can read all of it in an hour, but the length does not decrease the amount of emotion the plot conjures up. This writer has an amazing way of portraying so much emotion in notes that, on average, only cover half a page. You would have to have a heart of stone not to be touched by the story and I actually found myself close to tears reading Claire’s final notes. An amazing short read!
Life On The Refrigerator Door – Alice Kuipers *****
By Tom.
11.11.08
The Colour Of Magic – Terry Pratchett
This exciting novel is the first journey we take into Terry Pratchett’s bizarre Discworld series. With over 20 books in the series, each one is as thrilling, witty and laugh-out-loud as the next. The book follows the odd travels of the even odder companions Rincewind and Twoflower.
Rincewind is the wizard who just couldn’t who was flung out of the Unseen University after learning just one spell, which just so happened to be one of the Eight Great spells, which could unravel the very basis of the universe. When Rincewind meets the tourist Twoflower, his life just starts to get interesting – if only he was the adventurous type!
With a travelling Luggage with legs, a world resting on top of a turtle and a group of Gods who play with Fate, what can possibly go wrong?
I’d give this book a glowing ***** rating. It was hard to get into at first, but the entertaining and witty pace of the novel takes you through to the Edge!
By Eilidh
