Cottingham High School
Popcorn
I did not finish this book as I thought the theme was a bit weird I get it if you have anxiety and all but I don't so I don't find this book very relatable. It's got a good idea but I just didn't enjoy it. Some people say (about random books) "I just couldn't put it down!" But I couldn't pick it up. I thought that the pictures were a bit overused. Overall, this book is the worst one I've read. No offence Rob. Sorry!
claudia and poppy
Birdie
it was decent... i would recommend to my sister the setting was random because she was walking in an field for forever overall not my favourite .
poppy and claudia
Wolf Siren
I liked how Red has to navigate the world and the mythology about wolf woman
Beatrice
Ghostlines
I liked the secrets of both islands, all the adventures you could have on them but my favourite bit was the Puffin Night
Beatrice
Birdie
My favourite book, I loved Mr Duke and thought it was written very well
Beatrice
The Boy I Love
I liked the twists and turns in their romance and the context surrounding their relationship and the time period
Beatrice
Chronicles of a Lizard Nobody
I enjoyed it, it was really funny. My favourite character was Miel but I liked the fact Zeke has France on his knee
Beatrice
Birdie
I quite liked the storyline but it took me a while to get into it.
Matilda
Wolf Siren
this book was very good and was spooky i loved how it came together would highly recommend
poppy
Birdie
I enjoyed the book because of the links to animals. I didn't really understand some of the language because of the period in time it is set in, it obviously uses different language. Overall, I wouldn't normally read books like this but I really enjoyed this one. My favourite character was Mr. Duke obviously!
Claudia
The Boy I Love
i loved this book and it was inspired by an real story but it did have some sad moments defiantly would recommend
poppy
The Boy I Love
I liked it but took me a while to get into. I would recommend it but it isn't a book I would usually read.
Matilda
Birdie
Birdie is an inspiring tale. I really like how bold and headstrong Birdie is as a character, and I think you can really see her personality shine through. Her friendship with Mr Duke was really heart warming and it was refreshing to see how adventurous and brave she was. I think it was hectic, and there were son many unexpected death scares that it got a bit convoluted. I found Birdie and Julie's friendship to be very touching and I really enjoyed watching Brian change for the better. However, I feel like the ending was quite rushed and all the action happened at the end. I also think Mr Duke had too many close calls and at some point it got a bit annoying.
Elliora
Wolf Siren
It’s a good book with a new spin on the classic fairytale Little Red Riding Hood. However, I found that towards the end of the book there was a lot of events all at once, so it was quite full with Red’s sister’s death, the welcoming of the wolves, the locking up the murderer and the epilogue with a 4-year jump. It was very moving at times especially with the death/funeral bringing together the whole village community.
Iyesha
Birdie
Birdie is an amazing story about change, acceptance and empathy. The story was well written and kept me hooked throughout the story. Definitely a must read (especially if you love animals)!
Archie
Ghostlines
I liked it very much with the mystery of who Rowan was and I would definitely recommend .
poppy
Ghostlines
I really liked the book. I am into books like that. It has been my favourite so far. I would recommend it to people. The characters, I loved. What a great book!
Matilda
Chronicles of a Lizard Nobody
I liked the book but it was very weird . it is not my favourite but I would recommend to younger children and people with humour.
poppy
Chronicles of a Lizard Nobody
I enjoyed the book. I thought that it was quite crazy. It wasn't my favourite but i would recommend it to people that might like humour books or younger children.
Matilda
Twenty Four Seconds from Now
I quite enjoyed this book due to its portrayal of love through the older generation talking and teaching about love and the small things that mean so much when it’s real. Also, I personally associated with the loss of Neon’s grandfather as I lost mine and I think that it portrayed the loss in a realistic way of how in grief you’re thinking about all the little things that they did or said.
Iyesha
Not Going To Plan
Personally, I like the verse style layout of the book and the dual narrative that occurs alongside each other rather than chapters changing for each character. I also like the pictures created from the words that relate to its action and/or the character’s fears.
I think that this book shows a wide range of issues that some teens may face such as homophobia, not ‘fitting in’, judging for beliefs and the possibility of teen pregnancy and the decisions that come with it. However, I do believe this book occasionally followed classic tropes such as the friend group consisting of the problematic one, someone part of LGBTQ+, the smart one and the other one who contradicts and/or sporty – this isn’t a bad thing it’s just a basis that many authors follow.
I also agree with what Marnie and Rakel were saying about ‘We’re damned if we do/damned if we don’t,’ because within society women/girls are judged for wanting or not wanting intimacy and/or sexual engagement and for the expectation to be both pure and not ‘frigid’. Typically, men/boys aren’t as criticised within the same category for their own choice.
Obviously, the topic of abortion is a large part of this story and I believe it shows a range of viewpoints such as Rakel’s religious viewpoint, the protests we’re told are outside the clinic and Zed’s logical thoughts on it as abortion can go against moral and/or religious conscience and it’s hard to determine what counts as ‘murder’ when it comes to that, but ultimately, in my opinion, it relies on the choice of the mother and her capability at that time to be able to look after a baby and hopefully she has the support of family and friends.
Iyesha