Ousedale Shadow Chasers

Wolf Siren
This book was decent. I didn't particularly enjoy it probably because I am above the age category that it's recommended for. But it was still quite good. I enjoyed the thrill and adventure but disliked the amount of fairytale, it felt quite heavy on the fantasy side. I feel that 7-12 year olds will enjoy this, 13+ won't really as much. But if you like fantasy and fairytales with a twist, maybe this is a good read for you!

Isla

Birdie
I definitely underestimated this book, it was better than I thought it would be. I found the plot interesting and fast paced. But I didn't really connect with the characters. The struggling-to-breathe scene in the coal mine confused me, at first, but after looking up the canary tests, it made sense. The book features some post-war experience, since the story is set in 1952 and the ending is bittersweet. I recommend this book for 9+ and animal/historical fiction lovers.

Isla

Ghostlines 
I enjoyed this book, especially the setting of Ayrie. The characters were lovable and easy to understand. The plot was very good as well. I recommend this book for 9+, it was very good.

Isla

Popcorn
This book was very good! Being a reader of Diary of a Wimpy Kid a few years ago, it brought me back and it felt like that style of book with the odd picture, which was very funny. There was lots of content which I could relate to, especially with anxiety and school photos. I really liked the character of Andrew and it’s kind of funny to see it getting worse… and worse… and worse. I also loved the message I got from the book; it doesn’t matter how you look in a photo, as long as you are happy :)

Isla

Chronicles of a Lizard Nobody
This book was quite funny but certainly aimed at the younger age group. I feel this book is definitely something i would have read when i was, like, 9. The bullying felt a bit unrealistic (like how pellicarnassuss started picking on Zeke pretty much out of the blue). However, I did like how the author incorporated important topics in a way younger readers can understand, like the black dog for Zeke's mum's depression or the lizards sticking together because they were different and the odd ones out. Also, I found France being on Zeke's knee very funny. I did find that the teachers were, almost dumbified, with them not giving out proper punishment or the really mean teacher. However, I would still recommend to someone of the younger age group (7-10)

Emma

The Boy I Love
This book was a beautiful, fascinating, yet heartbreaking story of love, loss and hidden identity. It was absolutely amazing and I loved it from the start right until the end. Other reviews have said that it was slow-burn but I honestly found it quite quick. If anything I found the relationship between the 2 soldiers very fast. Especially considering they had to hide their identity and they were suffering in a deadly war, it was perhaps a little too quick. Nonetheless, it was such a heart-rending and important story.

Emma

Chronicles of a Lizard Nobody
I really enjoyed the wacky unpredictability of this book. It was a nice read with occasionally serious themes mix in with fun.

Euan

Not Going To Plan
This is probably one of my favourite Carnegie books so far, I really enjoyed it. I was anticipating for the book itself to be quite a long read, taking me a week or so, but I finished this in a few days. If you want a quick read, this may be for you. The story focuses on two main characters; Marnie and Zed. Marnie is a new student, who's just been expelled from her previous school, hoping to find good in her new school. Zed is a smart, charismatic character, hoping to use his knowledge of Physics to help him. Both students have their GCSE's coming up, but when Marnie gets pregnant, it wasn't going to plan. The story shows her mental and physical health, and the pressure weighing on Zed. It also shows, empathy, consent and teenage pregnancy. The plot was understandable and easy to follow at time. I also loved the style of the story using the words themselves as illustrations, I found it fascinating. I highly recommend this book to Year 9+, it was such a good read!

Isla

Chronicles of a Lizard Nobody
This book was, well, crazy. But I love crazy fiction! Chronicles Of A Lizard Nobody was one of those books where its an easy plot but you do sometimes have to read over things a couple of times, because they're just so INSANE. Especially the bits about the main character, Zeke, having the entire nation of France minimized on his knee - and the story behind it - , and the ending itself. I enjoyed the fact that many elements of the book could be viewed as metaphors for issues that many children - and their families- face. For example, Zeke's mother having a black dog follow her around ever since his Father passed away could easily be seen as a metaphor for depression, and I think it's a good way to explain things like that to smaller children, because those children are the target audience. Overall, a good book! Loved the ending too. Have I mentioned I liked the ending before?

Klaudia J

Popcorn
The Author did a really good job at portraying anxiety in this book. At one point, the main character, Andrew, suffers from a panic attack due to all the pressure of needing to look good for the school photos being taken (but everything messing his appearance up, which also stresses him out because he's a massive germaphobe and potentially suffers from OCD), his grandmother - who has alzheimers disease - going on a "Walk", which meant she basically went missing for a while, and his best friend and him having a mild fall-out, and I especially liked that segment for the use of stains/ink blots being printed on the page further exagerrating how the panic attack felt to him. It reads a little like Diary Of A Wimpy Kid in the sense that it uses tons of pictures to add to the story, which does admitedly feel a tiny bit childish for me (I'm not quite the target audience, ha, ha) but overall it is a nice read! At the end there's also been placed some resources like books and websites to help kids understand/cope with anxiety and relatives suffering from Alzheimer's, which I feel is a nice touch. Popcorn explores a ton of different topics and many are executed in an understandable way. It's a nice book and I'd reccomend it lots!

Klaudia

Chronicles of a Lizard Nobody
This book was very enjoyable, particularly since I underestimated how good it would be. I could see a plot and structure and at times it was funny. It also featured mental health and depression awareness (black dog). The story was well worded and I wouldn’t recommend it as much for 13+ like me, but 7-11 would enjoy it more than I did.

Isla

Ghostlines 
An amazing story about friendship and inclusion. I liked the magic and exploration in it and the desire for Albie to stay at this small island. The end was amazing and I would recommend for 7+ years.

Alyss

The Boy I Love
I really enjoyed The Boy I Love, it looked back in lots of events during the First World War and trench warfare. It is set in 1916 France on the run up to The Battle Of The Somme and reflects Lieutenant Wraxall’s encounter of Private McCormick, a new recruit. It was fast paced and a great read, I loved seeing Danny’s and Stephen’s relationship grow in such a horrible time. I also enjoyed the epilogue, it was lovely to see how Danny and Stephen were doing after the war. I highly recommend this book to 12-13 +.

Isla

Chronicles of a Lizard Nobody
This book was quite good. It had strong characters and it had some metaphors which I thought were put across in a way even 8 year olds can understand. It was very childlike and it was quite nice to read. Would recommend for 7-10 year olds. It is also amazingly funny.

Alyss

The Boy I Love
This book was amazing! Although I had to reread some of the pages as it didn't make sense, it had depth and was really interesting. The two boys from different backstories and different ranks but only 6 months apart made a perfect couple. The ending shocked me a bit as I thought that maybe one of them might die but I was grateful and happy to see they both lived. It was a good read and I enjoyed it a lot. I would definitely recommend for 12-16 year olds.

Alyss

Wolf Siren
This book is a quick and easy read and it was enjoyable. I particularly enjoyed the connections to little red riding hood and that sometimes we don't see everything so we just fill the rest in as best as we can. People from all age ranges can enjoy this but I think its mostly aimed towards 9-12 year olds. Red is a great character who sees things differently to everyone and deeply cares for her family. I also really like the magic involved in the story and the pure determination and courage shown in the book.

Alyss