Pretty Little Liars

by Sara Shepard

‘Pretty little liars’ is a well-written and definitely intense book in the way it throws new complications at the reader, making it difficult to put down. It hits a bullseye with the dramas of every teenager’s life; major twists that makes you want to be in the book. Not only is it quite laughable, but really smart. The antagonist’s identity is unknown making you suspect each and every character until something happens to either clear up their name or make them an even larger suspect. Overall, ‘Pretty little liars’ will always have you wanting more, it definitely left me wanting it all.

Reviewed by Stephen V. of  year 9

Battlefield

by Alan Tucker

This is a true story and one of the best you will read -it’s about a father and son. The dad tries to teach the son how to fire a gun. As you start reading it you will really get into the story. Alan Tucker has written a great war story for boys. When the enemy charges the boy is not scared. I think this story is about not getting scared about anything.

When dad was teaching his son how shoot he heard something in the bushes. The dad told him to stay low but when the son faced the gun toward the bushes they heard laughing and they knew that it was the son’s friend. So I think this story has humour and a good message for the reader.

Reviewed by Nathan S. of  7C18

Spookiest Stories

by Paul Jennings

Once you start reading the first two pages you will never put this down. The book is full of the scariest stories Paul Jennings has ever written.  This book has short stories that you will never stop reading including Skeleton on the Dunny, Without a Shirt, Grandad’s Gifts and Lighthouse Blues; these are just some of the stories in this book. Most of the stories are adventurous, crime and more.

The thing that is great about this book is that it also features mysteries. If any story has a mystery then that book is great book for people to read. For example: the second story: Skeleton on the Dunny, is a hysterical adventure story. In this story there is a boy named Bob. When he was fourteen his parents died so he had to live with Aunt Flo. In her house it was like a library, it was so quiet.

The one thing that Bob did not like was the toilet. It had spiders and cobwebs everywhere. Not just that but also a skeleton. One-day Bob had to go to the toilet. He saw a ghost and was very scared. He shattered his tooth and the tooth fell down the toilet. Then he got a plate for his tooth, but that fell down as well. So he went looking for the plate and found it.

It turns out that the ghost was old Ned. Old Ned was a man who looked after the painting while Aunt Flo was gone. But old Ned stole this really precious painting and died in the dunny. On a windy day the painting was found on top of the dunny.

As I said a million times this book will be the greatest spooky book you will read!

Reviewed by Kirishoth K. of 7C12

Boy Overboard

By Morris Gleitzman

This is a great book for a person who wants to know about different cultural backgrounds. Jamal and Bibi are trying to escape an evil government and landmines in Afghanistan. They need a safe place so they go to Australia. The story has a lot of ups and downs with adventure in their trip. I really liked this book and I hope you will like it too.

Reviewed by Tej K. of 7C18

Amulet, the Stone Keepers Curse

By Kazu Kabishi

The Stone keepers curse is the second instalment of a 3 book series. The book was very interesting because of the elements of fantasy. This book includes many fascinating creatures. It has an almost dingo dog creature which accompanies the stone keeper on her journey. This creature will also be the one which helps the stone keeper control her powers .The stone comes with all different abilities but the most used one is an ability to get rid of enemies and survive.

The curse that comes with the Amulet stone is that if you use the stone too much it will gain power over you and send you mental. When this stone takes over your body you become basically a slave to it, using your body to work its own magic. Luckily in the story this crisis was averted and they used the stone for them and not against them. In the end good rose over evil and the stone keeper along with the moving house earned the reward they wanted.

By Richard B. c15 yr 7

Then…

By  Morris Gleizman

Then. A wonderful heart-warming story set back in the year of 1942. If you didn’t already know, 1942 was in the middle of a terrible time period called the holocaust. The holocaust was a period of time where the Jewish race were being scapegoated and murdered all because of one man by the name of Adolf Hitler. Then is the second  book of a three part series. It’s about 2 children named Felix and Zelda. Felix is a Jew, innocent and kind, and Zelda, a funny child not Jewish but catholic. Zelda, for the protection of Felix pretends she’s Jewish. If you have read book number one Once, you see that Felix and Zelda both escape from a moving train going straight to a Concentration or more commonly known death camp. But in Then, they stumble across a nice lady who cares and protects them, even through she knew she is in grave danger for hiding a Jew. The story then escalates from there. People start to investigate who the children are. Then Felix experiences the shock of a lifetime…      

Review By Mohak I. 7C18

The lord of the rings: two towers

By John Ronald Reuel Tolkien

Lord of the rings: the two towers is a wonderful story that was published in November 11, 1954.  It was also made into a movie in 2002, preceded the Lord of the rings: the fellowship of the ring. This book is strongly in the fantasy genre . It is about Frodo Baggins going to Mordor with his best friend Samwise Gamgee, while Aragon Legolas and Gimli are fighting the Orcs, Dragon and horse riders. They are also looking for Pippin and Mary.  As Frodo gets closer to Mordor he gets hurt. He wants to put in the ring to his finger but if he does the Orcs will find him and kill him.

By Luis S. 7c14       

And now for the Weather

by Pauline Clayton

If you are concerned about Climate Change or spectacular weather events this book is for you. Despite the look of a book printed on the cheap this is a comprehensive coverage of the mundane, the unusual and the controversial. Maps, storms, drought and El Nino are explained.The contribution of significant weathermen is discussed. The impact of the sun and moon on our atmosphere is thoughtful. The "what have we learnt" response to each of the BIG weather events is particularly powerful. We are now in a position to add our own coverage of Superstorm Sally's impact on the Pacific coast of the USA.

A great read for Geographers and all affected by the weather.

Reviewed by Mr Kim C.

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

By J.K. Rowling

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets written by J.K. Rowling, tells the story of a young boy by the name of Harry Potter who is in his second year of schooling at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Locked away at the home of Vernon and Petunia Dursley, he is confronted by a house elf named Dobby who warns him of dark things that are to happen at Hogwarts this year. Despite these warnings he still returns to Hogwarts for his second year. The Chamber of Secrets is opened and horrible things begin to happen. Muggle-born after Muggle-born are petrified and after several circumstances where Harry displays some evil qualities about himself, he is placed at the centre of these tragedies. Will Harry discover the truth behind all of these occurrences? Will he put a stop to all these attacks? Will he find the Chamber of Secrets?

Personally, I really enjoyed reading this book because there is never a dull moment. This book always leaves you intrigued and eager for more. I give this book 8 out of 10.

Reviewed by Jacob. B of B6

The Hunger Games

by Suzanne Collins

In the shattered ruins of a post apocalyptic America, Collins takes us through the dark remains and to Katniss Everdeen. She is forced to compete in the 74^th annual Hunger Games, a game where the only rule is to kill, or be killed. Katnisss joins with eleven other girls from across Panem, the remains of America and twelve boys from all of the 12 districts. Her courageous fight, use of manipulation and the hardships of surviving a world fallen apart, is described in a continuously suspenseful mood. The detail that is put into characters and their personalities is awesome and varies from the bulky and erudite Peeta, to the hidden and stealthy Fox-Face. No character is flat or boring and almost all are unique.

This is sure to please everyone in the teenage range, with romance and a love triangle for the girls, whilst action will take over for the boys. In short, The Hunger Games is one of the best books I’ve ever read and not only does it give you the sense of a post apocalyptic world, but makes you relive it, each page an awesome read.

The Hunger Games has a reason for being a best selling book. But this is just the first book… 
Reviewed by Christos F 8D19

Fromelles

By Carole Wilkinson

In 2011 we hear too regularly of Australian soldiers being killed in Afghanistan (24 deaths in 2 years) but most of us are unaware of the horror of July 19, 1916 when 5000 Ausssies were killed, wounded or taken prisoner at Fromelles in France. Wilkinson’s 180 page book is an easy and engrossing read. Through the eyes of recruit Walter McAlister and Gallipoli veteran Sergeant Frank Crawford (no relation!) we relive the hopelessness, stupidity, bravery and pain of this day. Excerpts from diaries and letters, photos, maps and posters authenticate the unfolding debacle and asks what was the point of this bloody battle. Vocabulary development is a feature of her text and her chronology is very personal – Adolph Hitler was a despatch runner in his Bavarian (German) unit. The Fromelles legacy is contemporary with the recent (2009) archaeological research of the site, the exhumation of mass graves and the final identification of many Aussie sons. A great read about a little known tragedy that has, for too long, been eclipsed by the Anzac legend of Gallipoli.

Reviewed by Mr Kim C.

The Key to Rondo

By Emily Rodda. Leo finds an old music box containing strict rules, never to be broken. “Turn the Key three times only. Never turn the key while the music is playing. Never pick up the box while the music is playing. Never close the lid until the music has stopped.” For these are the rules for that should never been broken. The box had been passed down to Leo from his Grandfather. Leo was fond of it due the great art work displayed. It depicted forests and towns with everything in such little detail. He obeyed the rules and he was proud of himself but all this changed when his cousin arrived. Mimi was an annoying child with the worst case of fashion and unfortunately for Leo, Mimi broke the rules. It seemed that nothing had happened except blue butterflies flying out, then a woman appeared - she was the Blue Queen. Mimi’s dog Mutt kidnapped by the Blue Queen, and the tow cousins chased after her. What does the future hold for Mimi and Leo in this world of magic and adventure? Reviewed by Johnathan I. of YR 9

Its not about the bike

by Lance Armstrong When Lance Armstrong was informed that he had cancer the initial shock hadn’t hit him yet. He thought he might just lose his job and that’s it. It was only later that he really thought his job was also his life. Lance Armstrong’s cancer had spread aggressively to the rest of his body including some of major organs such as the lungs and brains. His chances of survival were lower than 10%; many people thought he was going to die. Lance Armstrong then went on one of the most rigorous forms of chemotherapy. While he lie in a hospital bed, his body being slowly destroyed, losing muscles, skin cells and white blood cells he wondered do the cancer cells die off, or does this diesease conquer Lance Armstrong? This book will show that even in your darkest hour if you have hope you will have a chance to survive. Reviewed by Michael K. of Year 9

Scott Pilgrim’s precious little life

by Bryan Lee O’Malley Scott Pilgrim is at a pretty good stage of his life - he’s in a rock band, dating a high school girl and shares an apartment with his roommate Wallace. Everything is great until one day when he goes to the library with his girlfriend and he sees a delivery girl. This girl starts getting into his dreams until he finally meets her at a party and finds out her name, Ramona Flowers. The next day he goes to amazon.com and buys something cool but cheap (to impress Ramona the delivery girl). When she delivers the package Scott is so happy that he doesn’t want her to leave so he doesn’t sign it and persuades her to go on a date with him. Things take a turn for the worse as he finds that he has to fight her seven evil ex boyfriends. The question is can Scott find true happiness with Ramona or will he get defeated by the bad guys?

reviewed by Shayne G. of year 9

Scary! 2 More stories to make you scream!

by: Phillip Pullman

This book is full of short stories. I only had time to read one of them so I read VIDEO NASTY.

Video Nasty is about three friends called Martin, Kevin and David who hire a really gruesome, Japanese killing video called Snuff Park. Their parents then go out to dinner so the friends decide to watch it before their parents came back. A boy that none of them knew walked in through the front door and asked to watch the video with them. This boy knew a lot about Snuff Park. Martin, Kevin and David didn’t believe him. During the movie the three friends were seriously scared but the stranger didn’t seem to be scared at all. The boys were astonished at the fact that the stranger wasn’t scared.
Close to the end of the movie the boys snapped and started to scream loudly. The stranger was annoyed and started to leave. As soon as the stranger left the movie ended and the boys dashed for the lights. As you can tell the boys were really scared.

I hated this book, it was long winded and boring.

4/10 rating

REVIEWED BY: Jacob F. in Year 7

The Lisa Book

BY: Mat Groening
I absolutely loved this book when I first saw that it was a part of the Simpson series. This book explained about Lisa’s life long ambitions. It also had written in it about Lisa’s rejected catchphrases, which I would like to point out to everyone reading this book. Although it’s not very funny it makes you wonder about Lisa’s life.

Other reviewers have commented “This has obviously been a labour of love for the creators of the Simpsons, it is extremely detailed and pretty funny. The illustrations are perfect and the whole book is definitely of high quality.”

REVIEW BY: Gregory K. of year 7

Artemis Fowl

by Eoin Colfer
Artemis Fowl is the first of an eight part series so far, and is a great read. It tells the story of a young man who is trying to protect his family the only way he knows how, being a criminal. With help from his protector, ironically named Butler, he kidnaps a fairy named Holly and holds her for ransom to protect his family business from going into debt.

Of course this is only a tiny portion of Artemis’ adventures and I recommend this book to anyone who loves a good storyline filled with unexpected twists.

This book definitely deserves 10 out of 10.

Reviewed by Peter H. of Year 10

InuYasha

By Rumiko Takahashi

InuYasha is a Japanese adventure, romance, sword and sorcery and Supernatural type novel; it is based on the TV series of the anime. The story is by Japan’s famous writer Rumiko Takahashi.
It is based on a modern Japanese girl who falls down the ancient well in their shrine and enters the feudal Japan, 500 years ago. There she meets a half-demon named InuYasha who had shattered the Shiko No Tama (the jewel of four souls). This could increase the power of the user by at least double and so they both decide to look for the jewel shards together. On their journey they come across a monk called Miroku, Shippo the fox demon and the demon slayer named Sango and together they try and find the shards of the Shiko No Tama.
Reviewed by: Bavneet S.
Year: 8

There is money in Toilets!!

By Robert Greenberg
Haaaaa….. I was laughing like mad when I was reading the beginning of the story…..
“Fire in the hole!!” is what it started with “I felt cold while death was only seconds away. My friend and me in a hole a hundred miles deep and a bomb coming our way….” This is how the story started but…. later…...after a huge amount of time….. it ended like this…. “ok, I admit it… I lied to you (it says this in the story!) my friend wasn’t actually saying “fire in the hole” he was actually saying something very different!” But I wasn’t lying about the dying …you’ll be in the edge of life and death. Well that’s it about the funny start. But the story is about two boys searching for treasure in their school’s yard because it was built on an ancient dump.
Review by: Amogh G. Year 8

The Girl from Botany Bay

By Carolly Erickson
For students of Australian History this is an engrossing saga based on the life of convict Mary Broad. Her story comes to life and readers get a real insight into life in 18th century London, on board the first fleet and in the infant colony. Perhaps the best feature of Erickson’s writing is how she merges historical sources (ship’s logs, diaries, court records) with her description of life, love and longing as Mary Broad battles for survival and freedom. Very highly recommended.
Mr Kim C.