Book review: Secrets and Lies

Sweetness and Lies

Author: Karen McCombie

Publisher: Barrington Stoke

Price: £ 5.99

ISBN: 9781781121993

*Dyslexia friendly*

 

KRB rating: 8/10

Recommended age: +10

Reviewer: Ebba

Looking at the cover of Karen McCombie’s Sweetness and Lies, with its’ glittery letters, purple back ground and three girls on the front, I did not think that I would like it. Glitter and three girls looking a bit like the Spice Girls or The Sugar Babes does not normally bode well and the oversized sticker saying ‘dyslexia friendly’ does not help the appearance of the book either. The content of the book though I did like.

The main character, Tilly, is BFFA (Best Friend Forever –Already) with Mia. Tilly was feeling a bit lost and worried when starting her new school, and Mia made her giggle. In fact, since meeting Mia, she has not stopped giggling, but Mia’s jokes are always at the expense of someone, sometimes even Tilly.

When Amber starts school one week later than everyone, because a hurricane canceled her flight from Barbados where she was visiting her granny, Tilly recognises her anxiety and apprehension as similar as her own. But Mia says Amber is lying. She says Amber does not have a granny in Barbados and that all the other things she has told them are lies too. Tilly is trapped between two girls, one of whom is liar, and she has to listen to her inner voice to find out which.

This is a tale of something we all have to do in life; learning to listen to our inner voice, stand up for ourselves and dare to question, and is not a problem exclusive to 13-year-old girls. This book puts it in terms that any 25- or 50- year old can understand. 

The dyslexia friendly aspect of the book I like (apart from the sticker). Having dyslexia myself and remembering my main problems as, among other things, finding it hard to navigate the page, and when failing to do so, feeling inadequate and stupid, Barrington Stoke has taken the navigational problems into account. For some it will no doubt be strange to read a book on yellow paper, though, this yellow makes it easier to distinguish the letters as the stand out more than against a white background. It is helping the reading experience to become less charged.

Furthermore, the problem of confusing lines, getting stuck on the same line over and over, is helped by clear spacing and paragraphing which makes the page easier to navigate. Thicker paper has also been used, I think, for the same reason. If it is already hard to read and navigate the page, a lot of focus will go to that and it takes longer to notice if you accidentally skip one page. All in all, I really like the dyslexia friendliness, which I would perhaps just call clarity. It is a format to encourage as many readers as possible to stay on track, continue reading and not giving up.

Book review: The Crystal Mirror

Faerie Tribes: The Crystal Mirror

Written by Paula Harrison

Publisher: Nosy Crow

ISBN: 9780857632012

Price: £6.99

 

KRB rating: 8/10

Recommended age: 8-12

Reviewer: Krissie

 

The Crystal Mirror is a very difficult book to place. Firstly, there’s the cover (shadowy fairy girl with pink wings and lots of sparkles) and the title (also with pink faerie wings), both of which might suggest to your average potential reader that the story within is pretty, girly, and perfect for those just a bit too old for the Rainbow Magic series, but with basically the same interests.

 

However, the story is not like that at all. Being a bit further past the Rainbow Magic stage myself, I wasn’t really looking forward to reading this one, but I was pleasantly surprised. From the very beginning, when Laney Rivers discovers that strange things are happening around her, especially when she is near water, The Crystal Mirror reads more like Days of Blood and Starlight, or even Twilight, but for younger girls and without the love interest.

 

Laney discovers that not only is she a water faerie, but that her village is full of faeries of the different tribes; however, her own powers seem weak and her tribe is convinced that she is fulfilling an ancient prophecy and will bring bad luck. She is also ostracised for being friends with faeries of other tribes. It is only in fighting the shadow faerie that she can prove her true worth.

 

This story combines magic, horror, local politics and adventure in a way that offers a perfect link from children’s to YA books, considering themes such as social exclusion and the sometimes frightening power of adults over children, alongside a good, interesting story. I look forward to reading more from the series, but I do beg Nosy Crow to consider rebranding this one – I think many readers who would really enjoy it will be put off by the unnecessarily girly cover.

Book review: Dead Romantic

Dead Romantic

Author: C. J. Skuse

Publisher: Chicken House

Price: £ 7.99

ISBN: 9781908435415

 

KRB rating: 5/10

Recommended age: +12

Reviewer: Ebba

Camille is alone. She does have two friends but they have grown apart more and more. She is the weird one, fascinated by death, and increasingly finds herself left outside when the other two try to impress boys. Amidst this loneliness and abandonment she meets Zoe, who is digging in a grave yard. An (un)likely friendship starts to take place, built on the foundation of creating Camille’s perfect boyfriend. Creating him in true Frankenstein-spirit.

The first 150 pages of Dead Romantic are tedious work; I felt little for any of the characters and I felt as if the plot was standing still. If you keep reading it does get better. That is, until you reach the end – a cliffhanger. Skuse is clearly writing at least a second book, though I can with ease see it turning in to a Twilight-ese trilogy.

The comparison to Twilight is not out of line. In fact, there are more things Dead Romantic has in common with it, such as the lonely and socially inept heroine and I am predicting an Edward/Jacob drama. This would be played out between the character Louis and SDB (Sexy Dead Boy), where the temptation and forbidden fruit is SDB, and Louis represents life and love. Now this is all speculation and I am doing this as the book is nothing special. Speculation give us some intrigue.

I do not look forward to the next book in the Dead Romantic series., not as I did with the Hunger Games or Harry Potter, and I believe this is due to predictable plot and predicable characters. The only character who surprised me was the notorious bully, thief and sex addict Damian de Jager. Perhaps Skuse narration does get better in the next book and dazzle it with complex characters and an exciting plot. If this does not pick up, I strongly doubt that I will pick the second Dead Romantic book up from a bookshop.

Book review: From What I Remember

From What I Remember

Authors: Stacey Kramer and Valerie Thomas

Publisher: Electric Monkey

ISBN: 978-1405264112

 

KRB rating: 8/10

Recommended age: 12+

Reviewed by: Aimee-Paige

I really enjoyed reading this new novel as it is written in first person and each chapter is a different character’s thoughts. It is quite action packed and makes you want to read on.

Kylie Flores is the main character and is due to give the most important speech of her life at her graduation, but somehow she wakes up in a strange bed in Mexico, wearing a wedding ring.  With her parents worrying about her safety has good girl Kylie ran away or has she been taken? Can her gay best friend, Will, save the day?

As you read the book, you begin to see the characters change for the better as they try to get out of trouble and graduate in time. At the start of each chapter there is a famous movie quote that may relate to the chapter. HURRY AND READ THIS BOOK, THE CLOCK IS TICKING!

I think a lot of people will enjoy this book as it is a mix between growing up, adventure, danger, action, love and friendship. I really enjoyed it so I hope you do too!

Book review: The Book of Doom

The Book of Doom

Author: Barry Hutchison

Publisher: Harper Collins

Price: £6.99

ISBN: 9780007440917

 

KRB rating: 9/10

Recommended age: 11+

Reviewer: Krissie

I have said on these pages before that I generally don’t review sequels. A quick perusal of my reviews, though, shows that I have lied. Sorry about that. I do review sequels, of course I do, because if I love a book, I can’t wait to find out what happens next. So, with no apologies at all, I picked up The Book of Doom with pen in hand, waiting to find out what happens after one of my top three (and definitely the funniest) books of last year, Barry Hutchison’s The 13^th Horseman.

Ironically, though, it turned out not to be a sequel at all, really. Billed as part of the Afterworlds “sequence” (press release speak…), The Book of Doom looks at death from a totally different perspective from the first book, and the characters (on the whole) are a totally new set. Fifteen-year-old Zac is a petty criminal, right up to the moment that he is shot dead by a monk and sent to retrieve the missing Book of Doom from Hell in exchange for, er, not going to Hell now that he’s dead. With me so far?

Zac is accompanied on his trip around the underworlds by half-blood Angelo, who believes he is half-human, half-angel, right up to the point where a confrontation with dead, but still-vicious Vikings in Valhalla, proves that this isn’t actually the case. The two boys finally reach Hell, only to find out that neither angels nor demons are quite as they seem, and that God certainly turns up in some unexpected places.

The Book of Doom is a worthy follow-up to The Thirteenth Horseman, with Hutchison’s ability to create a ludicrously unlikely situation and make it funny as hell intact. The characters are brilliantly written, especially Argus, who almost makes up for the general lack of Pestilence in this one, while some of the bit-part characters (Steropes springs to mind) make it worth reading all by themselves. Highly recommended, can’t wait for the next one from one of the funniest writers for kids around today.

 

See our interview with Barry Hutchison at https://kidsreadbooks.wordpress.com/2012/04/27/interview-with-barry-hutchison-writer-of-invisible-fiends-and-the-13th-horseman/

Book review: Operation Eiffel Tower

Operation Eiffel Tower

Author: Elen Caldecott

Publisher: Bloomsbury

Price: £ 5.99

ISBN: 9781408805732

 

KRB rating: 7/10

Recommended age: +9

Reviewer: Ebba

Operation Eiffel Tower is a lovely portrayal of a family experiencing some severe changes. The four siblings – Lauren, Jack, Ruby and Billy (who is mostly eating on his teddy) – are in caught in the middle of their parents’ cracking marriage. The marriage is in a place where the main character Jack can neither stand their silence nor their talk as they always end up fighting and shouting. What else is there to do but to plan a romantic trip to Paris for his parents?

The siblings spend their summer trying to make money to send their parents to France. But money is hard to find, and when the open golf tournament does not go according to plan, Operation Eiffel Tower has to change. However, the family is starting to break; the pressure is taking its toll on everyone. Accident, minor crime and a feeling of being lost are the cornerstones of their summer, but so are care, love and sibling connectedness.

The front cover of the books states that it is ‘perfect for Jacqueline Wilson fans’. The reference to Willson is, in my opinion, this book’s selling point and curse. It does open the book up a wide and established readership, but it also, in a sense, makes it hard for Caldecott to stand on her own. I do think the book has the ambition to, and can, stand on its own, but because of the story and its similarities to Wilson’s books, it is it hard to not compare Caldecott’s book to Wilson’s.

If I leave the question of author and authorship out of the calculation, this book is a nice read. I particularity enjoy the role the siblings play in each other’s lives in terms of support, love and a good tease.

Red House seeks talented young writers for 2013 Yearbook!

Do you know a budding writer, poet, or journalist?

If so, the Red House Young Writer’s Yearbook needs YOU…

We want aspiring young writers from around the country to enter the 2013 Red House Young Writers’ Yearbook competition and win the chance to see their stories or poems published in a stunningly produced and designed book.
To enter the competition, children should be aged between 7 and 17. They can submit a story, poem or article and it’s up to the individual what subject they choose to write about. This year the competition entries will be divided into four age categories: 7+, 9+, 11+ and 13+. The deadline is 31st July 2013.

As well as becoming a published author, the winners will also earn the opportunity to attend a Red House Young Writers’ Workshop, with a high-profile children’s author, held – for the first time ever- as part of the celebrated Imagine Children’s Festival at London’s Southbank Centre. The workshop will provide participants with a unique, fun and stimulating opportunity to help them hone their skills and provide lots of feedback to encourage and inspire!

So, both winners and authors get a great deal out of involvement in the Red House Young Writers competition – but you have to be in it to win it! And to enter simply email us with your piece of work along with your name, email address, date of birth, age range (7+, 9+, 11+, 13+), your parent/guardian email address and your address to youngwriters@redhouse.co.uk, with a subject of “Red House Young Writers’ Yearbook 2013 Competition”.

For more information please contact Dominic Kingston – dominic.kingston@thebookpeople.co.uk

Book review: Dear Scarlett

Dear Scarlett

Written by Fleur Hitchcock

Publisher: Nosy Crow

ISBN: 9780857631503

Price: £6.99

 

KRB rating: 7/10

Recommended age: 8+

Reviewer: Krissie

 

I was a bit concerned when I first picked this one up – it sounded so much like Red House Book Awards-nominated Eight Keys by Suzanne LaFleur that the press release could have been describing the same book. Thankfully, the similarity is only a passing one, and Scarlett’s story is very much her own.

Soon after her 11^th birthday, Scarlett receives a box of bits and pieces that had belonged to her dead father, who had spent much of her life in prison. However, the random objects seem to have their own story to tell, and have attracted the close attention of the local mayoress and her chauffer, who suddenly seem to be everywhere the girls go. Scarlett and her new friend Ellie follow the clues, making a few false starts including a heist at the local sweetshop and an incident involving penguins that lands them in trouble, but the search soon takes on a more sinister turn.

Scarlett’s search is about more than just following clues, however, as she learns about family, friendship and the father she never really knew along the way. Fleur Hitchcock’s story is quirky, funny and tense by turn, and Scarlett is an engagingly scatty heroine. A good read for girls of 8-plus.

 

NEWS: WATERSTONES CHILDREN’S BOOK PRIZE WINNER ANNOUNCED!

Annabel Pitcher has won the Waterstones Children’s Book Prize 2013 with her second novel, Ketchup Clouds.

Pitcher was also nominated for last year’s award for her debut book, My Sister Lives on the Mantelpiece.

Ketchup Clouds is the story of a teenage girl who reveals a terrible secret through a series of letters written to a murderer on death row.

Pitcher was the winner of the teenage category in addition to her overall prize, with RJ Palacio’s Wonder named winner of the 5-12s category, and Rebecca Cobb winning the picture book category for her story Lunchtime.

Competition: win RHCBA13 books!

In honour of last weekend’s annual Red House Children’s Book Awards, we have three books to give away:

Eight Keys by Suzanne LaFleur

The Power of Six by Pittacus Lore

The Medusa Project Hit Squad by Sophie McKenzie

To win one of these great prizes, answer the following question:

Who was the overall winner of the Red House Children’s Book Awards in 2013?

Answers to me at kristina.west@btopenworld.com no later than Friday 8th March.

Good luck!