Yes, there’s a halcyon quality to The Dangerous Book for Boys, after all, in the main, children hardly learn history these days, grow up mostly without a well rounded education that includes Latin and grammar, don’t know how to make a…
Category: Young Adult reviews
A review of The Goldseekers by Greg Bastian
Although there is drama and some dark moments in the story, The Goldseekers is never overwhelmed by them. This is a novel which a good reader as young as six (my six year old enjoyed it greatly) would enjoy and gain from,…
A review of Gladiss and The Alien by Warren Thurston
Suspense is built slowly and effectively, as the reader is caught up in Sally’s desperate search for her horse, and the complications of storm and the bad guys. The question of how Gladiss became a mooer instead of a neigher…
A review of The Penultimate Peril (Book the Twelfth) by Lemony Snicket
The plot is very good, taking unexpected turns in every chapter. The most appealing thing for me though, is that the main characters, despite their young age, are heroic, and manage some very difficult tasks, getting into some situations that…
A review of Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince by J.K. Rowling
The latest Harry Potter book is over 650 pages but it gets interesting right from the first page, and flies by. You’ll be sad when it’s finished, not only because sad things happen, but because you won’t want to leave…
A review of Worm Story by Morris Gleitzman
Gleitzman has done his research, and this story will teach children about the inner workings of their body, to respect themselves, and to view life in all its layers and diversities from a number of different perspectives. The respect for…
A review of Blueback by Tim Winton
Winton called this novel a contemporary fable, and there is certainly a clear and obvious moral with a positive answer to the question of how can we live in the modern world with our morality and respect for the environment…
A review of Asterix and the Class Act by Rene Goscinny
Originally created in 1959 and published in the French comics magazine Pilote, Asterix ultimately became a cult hero and French household name. The series is set in the year 50 B.C in the area which is today’s France, primarily Brittony.…
A review of Terry Denton’s Storymaze Series
So what’s Denton’s secret? First of all, the book contains a quirky narrative interspersed with cartoons. These aren’t the pretty pastel pictures they got with their preschool books though. Denton’s cartoons are only slightly more sedate than Robert Crumb’s Mr…
A review of Where in the World by Simon French
This is an engrossing and sensitive story. The subtlety of the narrative structure is one which French handles in a way that makes it clear and easy for young readers to handle, while still complex enough to keep the interest.…