The following books were kindly reviewed by pupils at Pate’s Grammar School


THE SEEiNG STONE (THE aRTHUR TRiLOGY, 1), by Kevin Crossley-Holland Published by Phoenix This book is set in Caldicot, Wales in 1199 and is about a boy named Arthur, the son of a medieval Knight. He is given an Obsidian stone by a mysterious man, Merlin and sees in it his namesake, King Arthur! I would recommend it to anyone who has an interest in history or Arthurian


legend. It is the first in a series. The next books being, At the crossing-place and King of the Middle March.


Reviewed by Sam, age 11


This is a retelling of the stories of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table. It tells the story of a young boy, Arthur, who has a seeing stone that allows him to view things that happened to the real King Arthur. Arthur wants to become a Knight and be just like his namesake. I really enjoyed reading it because it was exciting and although it is not fast-moving or fast-paced it really gives you a feel of how things were when the story is set. It has lots of exciting parts, one or two funny bits, but it isn’t really scary, it wasn’t designed to be a thriller. I would recommend it to both boys and girls around the ages of 11-14, but not for people looking for horror and humour.


Reviewed by Carla, age 12


The following books were kindly reviewed by pupils at Henry Cavendish Primary School


RiFT, by Beverley Birch Published by Egmont This is a real-life drama about kids on a school journey in Chromalaya. The main plot is that they get lost with the police trying to find them. A major conflict in the book is when the District Commissioner Meshani and Elisa Strutton do not agree. This is because DC Meshani believes that Matt, Joe and Anna are good kids, whereas Mrs. Strutton disagrees. I thought the happiest part was when Silowa (who lives in


Chromalaya) was awarded an education bursary by the National Archaeology Foundation to help him become a palaeontologist. I liked this because it was a chance for him to get on in life. I don’t think this book would appeal to boys because there is not a lot of action in it, so overall, the plot was confusing and it was quite dull. I would give this novel a rating of three stars.


Reviewed by Jordan, age 10


CORYDON aND THE FaLL OF aTLaNTiS, by Tobias Druitt Published by Simon & Schuster This book is about four friends – and a very annoying Hydra – going to Atlantis. During the journey, they face some horrendous truths and challenging tasks and when they get there, they face some deadly wraiths. I enjoyed reading this book because the author uses descriptive words and the plot was well thought-out. The most exciting part of this story was the fight between a God and a Titan (giant, green


monster). It teaches you that all monsters are not evil and sometimes the heroes are ‘no-gooders’. I recommend this book to all myth lovers under 15 and rate it five stars.


Reviewed by Connor, age 10


THE SPELLGRiNDER’S aPPRENTiCE, by N. M. Browne Published by Bloomsbury This book is a fantasy story. It seems to have two plots that eventually merge into one. The first plot is about the adventures of a boy (Tommo) meeting a girl (Akena) whilst running away from the slavery of being a Spellgrinder’s Apprentice. The second plot is about a King and Queen trying to catch special birds with magic powers. There are many threats along the way involving diseases and capture by these birds. The most nerve-wracking part of the story was when Akena’s dad captured them and brought them to their hide-out, threatening to kill them. Overall, I found this story


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gripping and never boring. I recommend this book to boys and girls aged from 9-14 and I rate it four stars.


Reviewed by Jack, age 10


THE DRaGON’S EYE, by Dugald a. Steer Published by Templar This is a fantasy story about young Daniel and Beatrice Cook. We meet an eccentric Doctor Drake and begin to learn about a world they never knew existed – the world of dragons! I mostly enjoyed reading this. It was exciting with colourful characters and it was interesting to learn ‘facts’ about dragons. However, it was confusing in some places and not everyone would have liked it as it was quite old- fashioned. But it was mostly a good book and boys and girls, aged eight to twelve, would like it.


FRaNKENSTEiN, by Mary Shelley Published by Bloomsbury This is a classic story about a scientist and the tragic consequences of his experiments, reprinted in a special edition for teenagers. I really enjoyed this book. It was an exciting and chilling story full of ideas about science and creation and the facts included in this edition about Mary Shelley and the early nineteenth century were interesting. The language was difficult to understand, so I would recommend it to older teenagers who enjoy a challenge.


Reviewed by Rosemary


This is about a man travelling in Russia who finds another man frozen on the ice. He brings him aboard the ship, when the man tells his incredible story about a monster he has created. It is written as letters and monologues by the rescued man and his monster. The language is quite challenging, e.g. ‘Daemon! For thy evils, I can never pardon thee. Fly now!’, but most competent readers of eleven or twelve should be able to tackle it.


Reviewed by Sam, age 12


The following books were kindly reviewed by pupils at Camps Hill Primary School


UPPER FOURTH aT MaLORY TOWERS, by Enid Blyton Published by Egmont I thought this was a really great story. It made me want to read it over and over again and read all the time. My favourite bit of the book was when Darrell took Connie and Ruth to Malory Towers and when Darrell got home, the girl’s mother was annoyed because Darrell had left them on their own at Malory Towers! I would recommend this book to all ages and would expect that other people that read it would like it too. Reviewed by Leanne, age 10


ROTTEN SCHOOL - THE GREaT SMELLiNG BEE, by R. L. Stine Published by HarperCollins This book was great because I liked all the events in it. I would recommend it to all those R. L. Stine fans. One of the events I liked was when Sherman Oaks was hiding a pet in his room but when Sherman came into the room, the pet poohed on the visitors!


Reviewed by Tom


aRTEMiS FOWL aND THE OPaL DECEPTiON, by Eoin Colfer Published by Puffin This was a fantastic book. I couldn’t put it down. I read it in two weeks. I liked it when Artemis Fowl used all his gadgets to get the Fairy Thief (a painting) out of the bank and it was supposed to be the most secure bank in the world! I think Eoin Colfer writes extremely good books and I am going to read Artemis Fowl, The Arctic Incident and The Eternity Code and then I will look for more books by him. I recommend people to read this book and it would change their perspective on reading. People aged nine and over would like it and I give it ten out of ten.


BROOMSTiCK RESCUES, by ann Jungman Published by Happy Cat When I first started to read this I decided I was going to shut the book, but then I kept on going! I enjoyed this book because of the amusing lines and funny characters, and one of them has the same last name as me! I like the phrase "Big grins spread over Ethel and Mabel’s faces." I recommend this book for seven to nine year olds because the text is not too easy, but not too hard either.


Reviewed by Molly


Reviewed by Rosemary


Reviewed by Adam


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