Reviews

Wrecking ball by Jeff Kinney

Diary of a wimpy kid book 14. Puffin, 2019, ISBN: 9780143796053. 217p.
(Age: 8+) Signalling hilarious new social lows, the image of a bathroom drain clogged with human hair greets readers of Greg Heffley's 14th lined journal. Indeed, plumbing and home improvement themes are pervasive AFTER Greg deals with his 'collection' of junk, holds a garage sale, designs HIS dream house, contemplates the elusiveness of fame and most surprisingly extolls the usefulness of childrens' books for bibliotherapy.
Greg's main Spring misadventure begins with his family missing his Great Aunt Ruth's funeral. Nevertheless, his mother inherits enough money to renovate their house. Nothing goes to plan. The workmen and their messes are upsetting the neighbours MORE than Greg's fear of the grout monster, school or life in general. A serious construction error means they decide to move to a new neighbourhood. Sidekick Rawley is miserable but of course Mum, Dad, Rodrick and Manny feature prominently in endless accidents, emergencies and misunderstandings . . . oh, and Becky is still playing hard to get.
The neverending twists and turns in Wimpy Kid's daydreams and misadventures include the cascading impact of not wanting the workmen using the toilet, which makes Greg trigger a smoke alarm, which forces Manny to jettison his soft toys out the window onto the lawn so he can leap for dear life! Fans of Wimpy Kid certainly won't be disappointed in a new season of maniacal menace from America's favourite stick boy. Follow the thread about the book tour and other brand news on Jeff Kinney's website.
Deborah Robins

A Tale of Magic by Chris Colfer

Little Brown Books for Young Readers, 2019. ISBN: 9781510202115. 448pp. hbk.
(Age: Teens) Highly recommended. This is a story about a time when magic was seen to be a bad thing, where people were punished for doing magic, depending on where you lived depended on the punishment you received.
Brystal is not aware of her magic abilities, she just has a profound love of books and reading but unfortunately she lives in a place where girls are not allowed to read, only boys learn to read and go to school. Brystal manages to get herself the best job she could imagine, being the maid cleaning the local library, each night when she finishes cleaning the library she spends some time reading the books in the library. One night when she has finished cleaning she notices a book on a high shelf that she had not seen previously, when she reaches up to pull this book from the shelf it will not budge, with a bit of effort the book opens a secret door behind the book shelf where Brystal finds a collection of forbidden books, and this discovery will change her life forever. One night while she is reading one of the forbidden books The Truth about Magic she learns that she is a Fairy. When she is discovered doing magic her life takes a turn for the worst.
Brystal ends up in the Bootstrap Correctional Facility for Troubled Young Women. She has never been so cold in her life, but a ray of kindness finds her with one of the other girls bringing her extra blankets during the night, and they build up a friendship which makes the place more bearable.
One day Madame Weatherberry arrives at the facility and takes Brystal away to become a student at her school for magic. Brystal is unsure about this to begin with but begins to enjoy the new adventure and meets some new friends who are in similar situations to her.
Through Madame Weatherberry's kindness Brystal starts to learn to use her magic. But there is something mysterious going on at the school and their teacher is not telling them the whole truth. When Madame Weatherberry does not return to the academy Brystal tells her classmates about what is happening and together they are determined to save Madame Weatherberry.
In the end Brystal learns the truth and has to make a choice about how she is going to handle the information she had learnt. Brystal was determined that the tale of magic would have a happy ending.
This book is aimed at teen readers.
I highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a bit of magic and mystery.
Karen Colliver

Respect by Rachel Brian

Wren and Rook, 2020. ISBN: 9781526362216. hbk., 54pp.
(Age: 5-12) Highly recommended. Subtitled, Consent, boundaries and being in charge of YOU, this little volume of humorous illustrations and helpful information is sure to be a winner in any library, classroom or home. Right from the front cover, where a stick figure wearing a crown, declares "I'm the ruler of my own body" to the Help! section at the back of the book, Rachel Brian has produced a fabulous and very timely self-help book that clearly shows readers many examples of just what consent means.
The quirky illustrations are even part of the "What's inside" (Contents Page) and readers know right from the start that they will learn: "What's consent?" "Ways to set a boundary", "How to support your friends", "Do you get to change your mind?" "Is getting hurt by people/badgers OK?" and "What makes a friendship healthy".
I particularly liked the section titled "Does someone's outfit tell you if they consent" where a figure is dressed in a swimsuit, but has no intention of going swimming. The advice is "Don't assume you know why someone is dressed in a particular way". Another section that caught my eye was the mini comic on tickling, when one friend did not want to be tickled and eventually his friend thought of something else fun to do.
This is an engaging and very clever way of bringing a very serious topic out into the open and giving readers strategies for setting boundaries. There is a trailer from Blue Seat Studios on Vimeo.
Pat Pledger

What's the point of Maths? by DK Publishing

DK Children, 2020. ISBN: 9780241343524.
(Age: 8-Adult) Highly recommended. What a well-produced, easy to understand book! After reading this, or even dipping into it, readers will come away with a greater understanding of the important place that Maths has in daily lives.
Like all good reference books, this has an excellent Contents page. An introduction gives an illustrated overview of the importance of Maths - telling time, navigating Earth, growing crops, creating art, making music, designing and building, making money, saving lives, computing, and all will grab the reader's attention and pull them into the book. It is then divided into the following headings: What's the point of numbers and counting; What's the point of shapes and measuring; What's the point of patterns and sequences; What the point of data and statistics; What's the point of probability and logic?
Intriguing headings in 'What's the point of numbers and counting?' like How to count with your nose, How to be negative, How to know the unknown, will fascinate the reader. Information given has an historical base and is very interesting to both people fascinated by Maths or those who have always found it difficult and challenging. A glossary and an index round up this excellent book.
I was intrigued by the How to escape prison in the 'What's the point of probability and logic?' section and found the historical facts really interesting. Each page is brightly illustrated with often amusing pictures, and the diagrams and simple steps help the reader to understand the explanations of the mathematical concepts. There are worked examples to show readers how to solve mathematical problems.
Pat Pledger

The Fowl twins by Eoin Colfer

Harper Collins, 2019. ISBN: 9780008324827.
(Age: 9-13+) Recommended. Eleven year old fraternal twins Myles and Beckett Fowl are complete opposites. The twins live on the Irish Dalkey Island with their family, under the ever-watchful eye of NANNI (The Nano Artificial Neural Network Intelligence), a complex security system devised by Artemis and to a degree, young Myles. Myles is debonair, controlled and focused purely on the scientific and technological aspects of life. He is responsible for helping to create much of the family's idyllic island fortress and thinks deeply before acting. His brother Beckett on the other hand is impulsive, untidy and full of energy and he jumps into situations without any thought of the possible consequences. The brothers though, are inseparable, and complement each other in surviving their many dangerous escapades.
The story begins with an unexpected visit from The Baddie: Lord Teddy Bleedham-Drye, The Duke of Sicily. The first chapter is wholly devoted to explaining this character whose life work has been dedicated to finding the elixir of youth. Hence the visit to Dalkey Island where a miniature troll with possible live-forever venom is sighted leading to complicated and wildly exciting adventures for the twins. Beckett finds the troll and names it Whistle Blower and when the twins are whisked away (aka kidnapped) by Sister Jeronima, the nunterrogator, the real trouble begins. Governments are funding Sr Jeromina to torture and cross-examine the twins for their own nefarious reasons and they find themselves in all sorts of trouble. Throw in a fairy, Lazuli, invisible to most but not to Myles and the excitement and confusion reigns.
Fans of all ages will enjoy this next book from Eoin Colfer. Fowl twins is a humorous and action packed spin off from the Artemis Fowl series and an enjoyable fast-paced read. As the novel mentions past characters and aspects from the Artemis Fowl series it is not necessary to have pre-read Artemis Fowl. Themes: Humour, Adventure, Twins, Family, Villains, Fantasy, Technology.
Kathryn Beilby

Eight princesses and a magic mirror by Natasha Farrant

Illus. by Lydia Corry. Zephyr, 2019. ISBN: 9781788541152. 209pp., hbk.
Mirror, mirror on the wall . . . what makes a princess excellent?' The enchantress's mirror travels through time, from east to west, to find the answer. Reflected in it are princesses who refuse to be pretty, polite or obedient. These are girls determined to do the rescuing themselves. The Arabian princess of the desert protects her people from the king with the black and gold banner; Latin American Princess, Tica, takes a crocodile for a pet; a Scottish princess explores the high seas; African Princess, Abayome, puts empathy and kindness above being royal; and in a tower-block, a Princess saves her precious community garden from the hands of greedy urban developers.
While the traditional princesses of familiar fairy tales still remain popular with many girls, others are demanding stories about those who are not helpless and dreaming of the handsome prince to rescue them and live happily ever after. So this collection of original stories about princesses who are bold, empowered, full of curiosity, adventure and determined to be true to themselves will appeal to those ready to move beyond Cinderella, Snow White, Aurora and company. With its relatively short meaty stories and full colour illustrations, it is perfect for newly independent readers and with the magic mirror connecting the stories throughout it has a continuity that encourages them to keep reading each new adventure.
Something different to entice readers into the library for a new year of reading adventures or to suggest to parents looking for something a bit different to share at bedtime.
Barbara Braxton

Westwind by Ian Rankin

Orion, 2019 (c1990). ISBN: 9781409196051. 320pp.
(Age: Senior/adult) Recommended. Westwind was originally published in 1990 and was forgotten by most. But Rankin did hear from readers on occasion, who liked Westwind and so made a decision to revise and reissue.
Westwind is a thriller set in the 1990s when satellite and computer technology are still a little mysterious to most. Martin Hepton works in a tracking facility, with its latest target Zephyr a British satellite. It has been successfully launched from the shuttle Argos, but Argos has come down with loss of all but one life, the only Brit in the crew.
This is a time when, as now the political situation is unsettled. The Americans want out of Europe, however there are many both in Britain, Europe and the US who think the move fool hardy.
Hepton and another of the trackers, Paul Vincent, think there is something odd when they loose contact for longer than is normal with Zephyr. Hepton's sense of unease grows when Vincent is suddenly taken ill and removed to a hospital.
Dreyfuss, the lone survivor from the shuttle finds himself in an American hospital isolated, drugged and fearful for his future. He hopes for some help from the British Embassy, but it seems a long time coming.
Add to the mix a rather beautiful assassin, MI5, MI6 and US intelligence and the odd body the action ramps up as does the intrigue about what is happening and who is behind it all.
Westwind in the end is a reasonably satisfying spy come tech thriller. Those geeks into the latest technology may find it a bit lame, but for a Luddite like me it was fine. This is not a Rebus novel, Edinburgh is not its setting, but I can see why there was a push to reissue. There are parallels to situations now in the UK and Europe so perhaps a timely reminder of what may happen when politics goes wobbly. Themes: Thriller, Crime, Spies.
Mark Knight

Peppa Pig : George and the Dinosaur

Penguin Random House UK, 2020. ISBN: 9780241392478.
(Age: Preschool) Recommended for fans of Peppa Pig series. Another one in the very popular series, this time the focus is on George who absolutely loves dinosaurs. With his friends Richard and Edmond, he digs in the playground and in the garden, hoping to find the bones of a dinosaur. Then Mummy Pig takes the children to the beach, where Miss Rabbits tells them about fossils. Little did anyone believe that George would discover a huge dinosaur fossils hidden in a big rock. What a stunning find!
As always, the book is illustrated in lovely bright colours and fans will love the sight of George dressed in khaki, carrying a magnifying glass and looking very professional as he searches for dinosaur bones. Children will learn about fossils and the different names of dinosaurs as Miss Rabbit takes the children along the beach, and they will have lots of fun making up a name for the dinosaur fossil that George has found.
A good choice for a read aloud, children will love the connection to the TV characters.
Pat Pledger

The year we fell from space by Amy Sarig King

Text, 2019. ISBN: 9781922268853. 272pp.
(Age: 12+) Highly recommended. This deeply emotional narrative is told by Liberty, who draws us into her life as her family seems to her to be crumbling. When her father decides to leave his family, his two daughters are devastated. His wife seems to accept his choice as an expected one, and he assures them that his decision is for the best. It would be a wonderful book for both adolescent readers and adults, particularly parents and indeed for those who teach them, and is highly recommended for its beautiful writing and compelling sense of the important things in the world.
We learn about the world as perceived by Liberty, and we are drawn into her significantly intellectual rationalisation of their situation as she shares her world with the planets, the moon and stars, and most interestingly, with a meteorite that she found when it fell to earth. The wisdom that she grasps from this other world, and that she draws on from unexpected sources, helps Liberty to understand her situation and to cope with the changes.
Liberty's shining intelligence adds a special glow to the narrative, and as she relates the events, we are privileged to read about her daily life that is perceived through her astonishing level of understanding of the universe. Quirky personal statements that only Liberty can hear, by a star, or a planet, or the moon, or even ordinary objects, imbue this work with a certain something that lifts it out of the ordinary. Through her devotion to our planet, that is at the heart of her world and this narrative, her love and fascination with the universe, and her love of the environment, we realise that she is determined to make sense of her new situation. Glittering with emotions, both positive and negative, this exceptional story is as entertaining, evocative and brilliant as the world of stars itself. Teacher's notes are available.
Elizabeth Bondar

How to write a great story by Caroline Lawrence

Piccadilly Press, 2019. ISBN: 9781848128149. pbk., 177 pgs.
(Age: 9+) I personally think this would be a great secondary and adult guide to writing too. I actually feel like writing a story now, so I will have this on my shelf in class so kids and I can use it as a reference. Bet it would get kids writing and enjoy doing so. I think every classroom should have a copy. I think it would get reluctant writers writing.
Caroline Lawrence visits school events and workshops talking to children and encouraging them to write. She has now managed to share her best tips in this illustrated guide to creative writing and storytelling for readers and writers aged 9+ and personally anyone at any age. I would recommend this for secondary and adult writers.
So loved reading Caroline Lawrence's guide to writing that I managed to read it in one sitting. Ok, ok a sitting and a half. It was very easy to read and enjoyable. Illustrations from Linzie Hunter in black and white were lively and added humour to the book.
I really enjoyed how Caroline wrote and pulled apart all kinds of stories and movies that the everyday person knows and relate to like Harry Potter, The Hunger Games, The Incredibles, Star Wars just to name a few. Oh yeah, and lots about ancient Greek and Roman mythology.
She explores every aspect of writing, from brainstorming a setting, to creating an opponent and choosing your hero's greatest weakness, like an Achilles' heel. She teaches you about your left and right brain and she uses it. If you want to be a writer there is great advice in this book.
Caroline does mention her books in this guide and how she got ideas for the stories. I am so tempted to read the Roman Mysteries now and then watch the TV series they were made into.
How to write a great story is a must in every library and classroom. Bet it would get anyone writing.
Maria Komninos

The dragon in the library by Louie Stowell

Nosy Crow, 2019. 224pp., pbk. ISBN: 9781788000260.
Kit can't stand reading. She'd much rather be outside, playing games and getting muddy, than stuck inside being quiet with a book. But when she's dragged along to the local library at the start of the school holiday by her two best friends, she makes an incredible discovery: the local library is run by wizards . . . and she's one too! The youngest wizard ever, in fact.
But someone is threatening to tear down the library and disturb the powerful magical forces living beneath it. And now it's up to Kit and her friends to save the library . . . and the world.
The first book in an exciting, imaginative and brilliantly funny new series, which Miss 8 curled up with on Christmas afternoon when it was too hot to be outside. Full of illustrations and written in short manageable chapters, it is a fast-paced story with the perfect mix of reality and fantasy to capture her imagination. It also captured mine and it sheds a new light on the value of both libraries and reading for those who think neither has anything of value for them.
This is the perfect book to recommend to teachers as the first read-aloud for the new school year to encourage students to investigate the magic in your school library.
Barbara Braxton

The space we're in by Katya Balen

Illus. by Laura Carlin. Bloomsbury, 2019. ISBN: 9781526610942.
(Age: Mid upper primary +) Highly recommended. Katya Balen's The Space We're In is a moving story about autism. The behaviours and the situations experienced by Max and his family members are perceptively painted. It would be a hard-hearted reader who could remain unmoved.
Autism is grounded in the life and world, universe and cosmos. It is a book about love, acceptance and joy. It's about where we all fit in and how love binds us together - that we are all made of stardust - and somehow everything makes sense like the existence of the Golden Ratio.
The story is told from the perspective of ten year old Frank. He is initially embarrassed by and ashamed of his brother, five year old autistic Max. He loves and protects Max but (before he learns to be proud) he joins others who deride Max. As if life isn't hard enough, his family is knocked for six with further tragedy. Somehow love prevails through time and the care of steadfast friends, family and community.
I want to lend this book to friends with autistic children. I want teachers to read this book to classes to build an empathy for disability and the lived experiences of families. It's a searingly sad but uplifting book. It helps us to understand our own part in community.
There is a lot a teacher could do with this book. Frank has an affinity for numbers. Code permeates the book. When deciphered, it forms chapter headings, which make a lot of sense e.g. meltdown, sorry, joy, fury, magic, wild, fight, treasure. A wordle created from the vocabulary would capture the essence of living with disability. Text to text background reading for children and teachers are Maurice Sendak's Where the Wild Things Are and Michael Rosen's We're Going on a Bear Hunt.
The illustrations by Laura Carlin, including quirky fonts and layouts, are in themselves, a soft and subtle visual journey that travels with the storyline.
Wendy Jeffery

The end and other beginnings: Stories from the future Veronica Roth

Harper Collins Children's Books, 2019. ISBN: 9780008347765.
(Age: 14+) Highly recommended. Veronica Roth is amazing! Her Divergent series was hugely successful and her youthful understanding of young people is again demonstrated in this collection of short stories set in future worlds and imagined scenarios of beginnings and ends. This book contains six short stories that are equally compelling and potent in their exploration of what might be expected in the future. The scenarios are set in an array of different earth or space-inspired locations, all with some similarities to our present world but with a variety of warped situations or circumstances or technological advancements. The characters though are all battling recognisable challenges or internal conflicts, and the short story genre gives a relatively quick (but certainly not saccharine) resolution to each complication. This is a brilliant short story collection to recommend to lovers of science fiction or dystopian fiction and the skill of Veronica Roth in creating new Sci-fi vernacular or possibilities is note-worthy. Despite the genre implications of 'new worlds', there is something very familiar about the young teen characters who contend with the internal challenges in the world of the future.
This is certainly something to recommend to younger readers, but the Short Story genre is well handled by an author who is creative and sometimes unnerving in her view of what the future could look like. I am sure there will be many readers who wish that Roth had extended each story into a longer novel.
Highly recommended for readers aged 14+ and for lovers of sci-fi and short stories. Themes: Short stories; Futuristic fantasy; Science Fiction; Dystopian worlds; Extra Terrestrials.
Carolyn Hull

An unwanted guest by Shari Lapena

Transworld, 2019. ISBN: 9780552174879. 320pp.
(Age: Adult) Recommended. What a thrill to try and work out 'who dunnit' in this nod to the locked room mystery genre. Instead of a room, Lapena has put a group of guests who don't know each other into a luxurious boutique hotel in a remote forested area. Then a blizzard causes all roads into the hotel to be closed and the electricity is cut off, and it becomes totally isolated from the outside world. Suspense and tension grows as the guests begin to be murdered, one by one, suspicion falling in turn on each one of the guests, leaving the reader desperately trying to figure out who has committed the crimes among a myriad of red herrings and alarming back stories of the guests.
Easy to read in one or two sittings, Lapena has developed her guests so well that the reader feels that they know them and their fears and feelings. It is very difficult to work out just who could be the murderer as each character has strengths and flaws which Lapena skilfully describes as the body count grows. Each murder has different characteristics - a fall down the stairs, a drug overdose, and a bashed head, all of which makes it hard to know if there is more than one person on a killing spree or a stranger lurking in the hotel picking off the guests. And that twist at the end! What a well-constructed and satisfying finale to a great read.
I really enjoyed this book and will be sure to pick up other books by this best-selling author. Fans of Adrian McKinty and Ruth Ware may enjoy this book.
Pat Pledger

Nine Elms by Robert Bryndza