Good Reads: Cwmtawe Comprehensive School
Chosen by Year 9 (13/14 year old) pupils of Cwmtawe Comprehensive School, Swansea.
Thanks to Maria Boyce, English teacher, and Meinir Howells, Librarian.
Goodnight Mister Tom
Michelle Magorian, Puffin, 0 14 031541 1271, £5.99 pbk
Goodnight Mister Tom is a very interesting and touching story. It is about a young boy called William who has to go and stay with a grumpy old man called Tom in World War II. William is happy, but then he has to return to his mum who is violent and suffers from a mental illness. Eventually Tom has to rescue William. I don’t have a favourite character, there were so many and they are all important to the story.
The plot is very good; it is based on the events of the Second World War. I would recommend this book because I think most people would enjoy it. Most people will know the story because it has also been made into a film. It touches on subjects like evacuees, suicide, death and violence, which makes it realistic. I’d give the book 8 out of 10 because it is very good.
Heidi Ormerod
The Twits
Roald Dahl, Puffin, 0 14 031406 7, £4.99 pbk
Mr and Mrs Twit are always playing tricks on each other like when Mr Twit puts a frog in Mrs Twit’s bed and when Mrs Twit puts her glass eye in Mr Twit’s beer. Mr Twit used to own a monkey circus but now the monkeys are in the back yard in a cage. Then the roly-poly bird has a plan and all the animals stick everything on the ceiling while Mr and Mrs Twit are out and Mr and Mrs Twit end up shrinking to nothing.
My favourite character is Mrs Twit because she is funny but very ugly. I’d recommend this book to anyone really because it’s hilarious and exciting.
Natasha Jones
Matilda
Roald Dahl, Puffin, 0 14 032759 2, £5.99 pbk
My favourite character in this book has to be Matilda. I like her because she is funny and very magical. She is brought up in a horrible family, her brother is always nasty to her and her father is always in work, selling dangerous cars for high prices. She is always left on her own during the day, her mother doesn’t care about her. She is always out playing bingo. Matilda is six and goes to school. Her mother and father don’t even know how old she is. Matilda goes to a horrible, dark school. Her friends at school are Heather and Amanda. She has a headmistress called Miss Trunchbull who picks on all the kids.
Matilda has secret powers. She can make things move when she tries to. I would recommend this book because it is funny and very exciting.
Sarah Bolsh
The Winter King
Bernard Cornwell, Penguin, 0 14 023186 2, £7.99 pbk
King Uther has a son called Mordred. He is heir to the throne of Dumonia but when Uther dies Mordred is only a baby and needs to be protected. Arthur turns up. Mordred turns out to be a really spoilt brat. Guinevere cheats on Arthur and it destroys his world. Meanwhile Merlin and his priestess, Nimue, want to slit Arthur and Guinevere’s son, Gwydres’s, throat to bring back the gods of Britain. I think it is a good plot because it keeps you interested; they are either having affairs or fighting. My favourite character is Derfel. He is the narrator/warrior. He is a good warrior and tells the story very well.
I would recommend this book to someone who likes battles but who has a lot of time because there are two follow-up books.
Louisa Cooper
