Good Reads: Hull Collegiate Prep School
Chosen by Year 5 and 6 (9-11 year-old) pupils from Hull Collegiate Prep School.
Thanks to Anne Nicholls, Prep Literacy Coordinator.
Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland
Lewis Carroll, ill. Helen Oxenbury, Walker, 978 0 7445 8267 3, £9.99 pbk, amongst many editions
Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll is a fantastic and classic novel about an extremely curious child, who goes on an adventure to a weird but wonderful land where everything is nonsense. She follows a little white rabbit, who seems to be late for something quite important. She meets a Cheshire Cat, plays croquet with The Queen of Hearts, has a tea party with The Mad Hatter, The March Hare and a dormouse and joins in a Caucus-Race directed by a Dodo!
Lewis Carroll wrote a number of popular books including Through the Looking Glass and The Hunting of the Snark. His real name was actually Charles Lutwidge Dodgson. However, when he decided to give up photography and become an author, he changed his name to Lewis Carroll.
I think this enchanting book is a real Fairytale. Trouble and excitement hide around every corner as Alice tries to get into a beautiful garden but is either too big or too small because of things she’s eating. Join Alice as this marvellous book pulls you into an extra-ordinary place where every thing is Back-to-front or Front-to-back, Inside-out or Outside-in. ‘Things just get curiouser and curiouser.’ If you want to know more… read the book!
Olivia Collier, Year 6
The Story of Tracy Beaker
Jacqueline Wilson, ill. Nick Sharratt, Corgi Yearling, 978 0 440 86757 9, £5.99 pbk
This book is a ‘Mixed Emotion’ book because there are sad parts (like when Tracy is talking about her mum; everybody says it’s all lies) and happy parts (when Tracy was finally taken to McDonald’s) and funny parts (I’ll talk about that later!) I chose this book because I am a Tracy Beaker fan (I watch the series every day!) and I have seen the movie of this book.
The book comes alive for me a lot. Here’s an example why: ‘Imagine a Mars bar the size of this bed. Imagine licking it, gnawing away at a corner, scooping out the soft part with both fists. Imagine the wonderful chocolaty smell.’ This part is the part I think is described the best because I can actually feel the soft part on my fists and I can smell the smell of chocolate.
Tracy Beaker is a girl who was raised in care. She had serious behaviour problems, which caused all the other children to not get on with her. She doesn’t really have friends except Peter.
Chido Gidiri, Year 5
River Boy
Tim Bowler, Oxford, 978 0 19 275444 8, £5.99 pbk
River Boy is an emotional book about Jess and her grandpa. Grandpa is dying and Jess is heart-broken. Grandpa has started a painting called the River Boy. Jess and her mum find it weird that he has given it a name! He has never given his paintings a name before. But the funniest thing is – there is no boy!
Grandpa wants to go back to the place he grew up and it is a long drive. But the thing that Jess loves the most about going is that there is a river next to the cottage. Jess loves swimming!! Jess has gone swimming and because grandpa is getting very close to death she is crying. A mysterious boy came up to Jess and she doesn’t know who it is!! Jess is bursting to find out!
I would recommend this book to anyone and everyone because the detail is fantastic and it really does paint a picture in your head! It is a brilliant book and you will have to read this book to get the real feel of it!!
Rebecca Clark, Year 6
River Boy
Tim Bowler, Oxford, 978 0 19 275444 8, £5.99 pbk
River Boy has won the Carnegie award for taking the reader on a journey of life and almost changing the person at the end of the book. River Boy is a book of dilemmas, tragedies and sad but peaceful ending. If this is your kind of genre then this is the book for you.
Jessica’s Grandpa, who is an artist, is gravely ill. He wants to visit his childhood home in Devon; therefore, the whole family go with him there on holiday. Grandpa is worried he will not finish his last painting (which is very strange) in time before he dies. When Jessica meets the river boy (a mysterious boy who turns up when Jessica is on holiday) and hears about his challenge, which is to swim the length of the river, Jessica doesn’t know what to do. Should she swim the length of the river? Or stay with Grandpa?
I really wanted to find out the ending and yet not for it to end! This book is quite emotional and I think it is for girls and boys aged 10 or over due to the complexity of the story.
Emily Heaton, Year 6
