Southmoor Storywriters
Play
Play was a slightly confusing book to read, as the various characters made it quite hard to determine who was talking about what. Additionally, several themes in the book didn't seem to connect greatly with the main plot of the book, if there could be said to be one. The book follows a very cyclical structure, with similar events happening to characters to attempt to insert drama. However, Play does talk about important topics that affect today's society, and it does so quite well, not making them glorified and keeping them realistically dark.
James
Treacle Town
Very engaging and touches on some very important and interesting topics
Joseph
The Things We Leave Behind
I quite like the book overall. It had a very nice storyline but I didn't like the ending. I feel like it could have gone a little differently like her or Jonas could have managed to connect again . I also don't like how she was hallucinating some of the characters and they died before the story even started or didn't even exist in the first place. Except for that, I really enjoyed reading this book.
Tiphany
The Things We Leave Behind
I really liked the book but the ending could have been better. I didn’t like how she was hallucinating half of the time.
Tiphany
King of Nothing
In my opinion, this book is excellent. I like how the words match the area the story is set, and what Anton thinks about the Happy Campers, and how his opinions slowly change.
I think even though Matthew is quite annoying, he is a good character and he goes along with Anton quite well, even if they didn't really know each other at first. I like how they made Kehinde a very unlikable character and that led into the end of the book. The storyline is very good, and I quite like Anton's Gran as she is a good character and quite funny. I like how the story is all about change and even though the Happy Campers are annoying, they are all good people, and that's what helps Anton change.
Noah
The Final Year
Reading the Final Year was an interesting experience, I enjoyed the latter half of the book's plot however I feel it did feel a bit bland in the first half. However, once you pass the key plot thresholds in the book, The Final Year becomes a wholesome tale of siblings, grief and the transition from Year 6 to Year 7. While having gone through the experience, I believe that it may be slightly overdramatised, however I do believe that one of the best plot points in the book was the reoccurring point of ‘The Beast’.
James
The Final Year
This book is about a boy called Nate in his last year of primary school. He falls out with his friend and things seem to be going wrong for him and his family. I liked how the book was quite interesting towards the end but I disliked how it took quite a while to get to the interesting part of the book. I feel that some readers might lose interest due to waiting a while for the twist in the book.
Ruby
The Final Year
The final year is a book showing family strength in the hardest moments. Whilst the main character is in year 6 his brother goes in to hospital and he has to pick up the pieces and do SATS whilst his mum looks after Dylan
Thomas
All That It Ever Meant
While the characters in the book acted reasonably, the ghostly figure and the death plot line was quite confusing to follow, as there wasn’t any foreshadowing at least in the book that I picked up on. Finally, I did lightly enjoy reading the book, but I think it could have benefitted from more length.
James
Treacle Town
Overall this was a good a good book however the plot was quite hard to get into until the the last quarter. Even though it was quite slow, it showed a good use of emotion and had some good characters
Thomas
Treacle Town
I really enjoyed this book. From the very first page there was an impact and there were very few times where I was bored as the plot was always evolving. It also shows real life deep topics that are happening everyday and the struggles that people in the UK face day in day out. This book is a 9/10.
Abby
All That It Ever Meant
This book is actually quite good, but I personally wouldn't choose to read it. Other people would probably really like this book, but it's not for me. The way it was written really confused me, especially about who Caroline turns out to be. I didn't really understand Meticais until the end. The twist at the end about the death was a bit confusing as the story was written from Matt's view, even though she was never even there. I liked how their dad showed emotion and Tana and Chichi's relationship with each other and Mati. Overall, it's an Ok book, but it is quite confusing for me.
Noah
King of Nothing
The plot of this book is quite enjoyable, with the characters interactions with each other being quite fun to read. However, the characters at times seem to not act realistically, as they appear to have been overexaggerated, with their dialogue and actions towards one another not really reflecting real life. Additionally, I did not understand the pop culture references scattered throughout the book, but I understand this is subjective. However, overall I did enjoy this book.
James
King of Nothing
King of Nothing tells the story of a boy called Anton who has made a couple of wrong decisions in his life. However, after the quiet kid in the class saved his life the most unlikely of friendships begin as Anton turns his life around.
Thomas
Treacle Town
Treacle Town is a superbly written book with a multi faceted plot and complex characters. Con is written as a traditional ‘gang’ character who has a complex relationship with his gym obsessed father, but is transported into the world of slam poetry almost by chance, but for the better. The death of Biscuit, while not seen in the book, remains a topical plot point throughout the entire book, being juxtaposed at the end by the death of another character, leading to the book having an almost cyclical structure. While the characters are extremely well written, it can sometimes be a bit difficult to keep up with their dialogue and the different plot lines, but Treacle Town is still a good read in my opinion.
James
Glasgow Boys
The layout of the book is brilliant with it swapping the point of view to the two main characters. Banjo and Finlay's backstory is excellent. They are both alone, but their lives get better when they end up knowing each other. The mix of happiness and depression is perfect. Banjo's parents set the base of his life, but he manages to be better than them. No one in the story is perfect and that's what makes it good.
Noah
Glasgow Boys
Glasgow Boys is a book that helps readers to truly empathise, whether with themselves, the characters in the book, or other people in their lives. It helps people do this by displaying a grounded and realistic story, with situations that slightly older readers of around university or college age will find very empathetic. However, even younger or older readers will still find ways to empathise with the book’s message that contact between us (whether physical or verbal) is an important part to all of us.
James
Treacle Town
This book is one of the best I've ever read. It's definitely for older people (because of the swear words) and it has a lot of dark turns. The poetry is quite nice and the idea of Con's mum committing suicide adds more to the story. The fighting, murder and bloodshed in the book is perfectly balanced with the poetry and the characters being nice to each other. Overall, an excellent read with a brilliant storyline.
Noah