Willow Book Whispers
Chronicles of a Lizard Nobody
The Chronicles of lizard nobody was a good book it was funny but unfortunately i think it was a bit childish.
⭐⭐⭐✨ 3 and a half stars
✨=half star
Keval
Wolf Siren
It was a very good book.
I liked the story line, and the growth of the characters bravery and the break of joy and rush when a character dies, and a dull hush settles over every single characters, the antagonist aswell as the reader.
It was a good book to read, although it was not as gripping as it could have been.
Elizabeth
Freedom Braids
This book is very unique as it starts with a map of braiding patterns to help slaves escape from plantations along the underground railroad. The illustrations are very intriguing as they are cold and sharp but by the end when they are free, the illustrations are warm and welcoming.
Ernie
Lord of the Flies: The Graphic Novel
I enjoyed the Lord of the flies as a graphic novel more than the actual novel. I found it much more entertaining and I loved the style of illustration; it was a very quick but enjoyable read.
Nell
Twenty Four Seconds from Now
This is a very interesting read, that requires a certain level of maturity.
Though I can recommend it to a certain person *cough cough*
I like the development of the characters throughout the story line, and the ending. One thing I liked about the book is the way that Neon and Aria always stayed together and Neon knew Aria's favorite food.
Gabriele
The Boy I Love
I'll keep it short and simple: I loved this book, it's the same genre I've read thousands of times remastered, a nice slow-burn that kept you hanging on each sentence, captivating each moment and kept me on edge waiting for them to make a move. :]
Lucas
Ghostlines
I really enjoyed this book as it involved lots of plot twists, which was my favourite part, but there are some confusing bits. Those parts wasn't really clear for me. Another thing I liked was how the main character's friendship gradually strengthens.
Olivia
Lord of the Flies: The Graphic Novel
Lord of the flies was incredible to read and a true masterpiece of illustrations mixed with a classic story I also love the moral of the story that we are all animals deep down.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 5 stars
Keval
Popcorn
I think this book was a solid read, the story is nothing amazing but not bad either, and I think the way this book slips anxiety into what it calls the "Anxiety files" is quite unique. The main plot of this book is that an overly anxious kid named Andrew has to go to middle school on picture day. His day involves bullies, ketchup rockets, and a terrible panic attack. The way this book is written really makes it feel like this kid has anxiety.
Ernie
Wiggling Words
Wiggling words was a joy to read. I loved the fact it was dyslexia friendly paper and font also the way it presents the neurodiversity. As well as educating people about how dyslexia appears in different people, it was very creative in terms of the illustrations.
4 stars ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Keval
Wolf Siren
I really liked the ending and how they made it bittersweet. The thing I also really liked about Red - the main character - is how they gave her an unusual trait, her vision impairment, because I feel like not a lot of characters have memorable traits like that. The world building was also really good; I like how they explored the social problems of societal fear and patriarchy.
Zofia
Lord of the Flies: The Graphic Novel
I really like the book, it was very nice, the art style was good, and I enjoy how it shows that even the best people can lose their mind and do bad things when there's nobody there to enforce rules and morality. The book really held me attention the whole time.
Zofia
The Paper Bridge
I honestly think it was supposed to symbolize something like segregation, with how the paper people and forest/wood people didn't know about each other and had no way to connect with each other until one of the paper people decided to ask everyone to help make a bridge to go see the other forest/wood people.
Zofia
The Endless Sea
Personally, I think they showed the stress of when they were nearly drowned really well, and the panic of when they thought that the ship was going to abandon them - I also like how they showed the mum's panic over having to help her child get a better life.
Zofia
The Playdate
I found the contrast between the blond haired-blue eyed kid and the black-haired little girl really cool, I think it's supposed to symbolize how the traditionally "good" boy, with blond hair and blue eyes is living a good life, but the other child, the girl, who stole the robot is traditionally less good in media.
Zofia
Wiggling Words
I think they represented dyslexia very well by making the letters all over the place, I also really like how they showed the author being less self-conscious over their dyslexia by making the author start using the letters to create images.
Zofia
The Sleeper Train
I personally found it really calming. I'm not sure if there was any symbolism or not, but there was something oddly comforting about how they made it sound childlike, by using relatively childish wording, which was cool since the main character was a child.
Zofia
Wildful
I really enjoyed this book despite having little words so little to actually read, its illustrations captured a stunning side of nature full of live thriving and growing. It follows the story of a curious girl when her dog runs off under a fence chasing a fox into forest, where she meets a boy and falls in love with the pants, animals and peace away from the stress of her grieving mother. Her new friend helps her opens her eyes to the true beauty of the natural world and the beautifully details really capture heartfelt emotions and curiosity. I would really recommend this book to those would like a little break of and action-packed book.
Nina
Ghostlines
I really enjoyed Ghostlines. It was a fun and light-hearted but also touched on serious matters at the same time. Like birdie, it reminded me of the Emma Carol books that I used to read when I was in year six. Honestly, I would recommend it to anyone but most likely to someone in the younger years.
Again, all the characters were really realistic and the topics it touched on I thought quite easily happen to a lot of children.
Nell
Not Going To Plan
I really, really enjoyed reading this book as it was unlike anything I have ever really read in many ways. The layout of the book was very clever and unusual, and I do think it related to the theme of the book in many ways. I enjoyed how it explored topics other writers wouldn't, the array of characters and the beliefs they held.
At first, it was very unusual (because of the poem styled lay-out) helped with getting the emotions across. The characters felt like real people and a real group of friends going through a tough time. Marnie and Zed becoming friends was a happy surprise, however I did not understand how Luca and Rakel came into the friendship group. The book overall was a very enjoyable read that I would recommend to the higher end of KS3- not year 7.
Nell
Twenty Four Seconds from Now
24 second from now has been my favourite book yet. It was really funny, realistic and generally a nice book to read. It was similar to the style of book I usually read, and I enjoyed the personalities of all the characters -especially aria and neon.
Unlike the previous books I have read from the Carnegie I was immediately invested in the plot and found the characters very realistic.
I loved the style the author wrote in and how it had a lot of sub contexts in it.
Nell
Birdie
I really enjoyed birdie as it reminded me of the Emma Carrol books that I used to read. I loved the post-war theme and the innocence of the character Birdie and her relationship with the pony Mr duke.
I liked how the racism was not actually called racism but was very much the main topic of the book.
It took a while for me to get into, but when I did I really started to enjoy it. I think the author wrote amazingly and very well about racism and I over all loved it.
Nell
Wiggling Words
Wiggling words was not only an educational read, but also a learning experience to better understand dyslexia as a disorder and how it can act in different people. This goes to show just how underground some people are, and this book will help to understand these people better. After reading, I feel more rejuvenated and confident in understanding dyslexia. C:
Lucas
Wildful
This book, although mostly quiet, had a captivating storyline of friendship and adventure - but also taught me that silence can be more than gold - it can be understanding. It taught me to understand and appreciate wildlife, while we still have time.
Lucas
Ghostlines
In my opinion it was a book that I really good that I enjoyed. My favourite part was when the Albie didn't like the island but then Tilda decided to try to change Albies mind about the island they live on. But the part that kind of breaks my heart is that Tilda is so determined to persuade Albie she canoes through a storm to the forbidden island just to save him from the storm.
Gabriele
Wildful
I thought the general illustration was pretty satisfying and I thought the general moral of the story was pretty good. there wasn’t a lot of dialogue and that fit the scenery pretty well, but the entire thing was in black and white which just in a way rely on dialed down the feel to the book so overall, I would give it a 3/5.
Freddie
Lord of the Flies: The Graphic Novel
The illustration was great and the story (although from a different book) was impeccable and I loved it. I think the moral and aspect of human society was quite interesting and got me thinking about things like this. There were so many other things I could say but because of you probably loosing focus I just want to say that the book really captured the lushness of the forest and I would give it it a 4.8/5
Freddie
Chronicles of a Lizard Nobody
I found this book pretty interesting because it challenges a lot about stereotypes of different races and these races are represented by different species of animals. I found this interesting because the main character himself is challenged because he is expected to be smaller and more cold-blooded acting (because he is a lizard and for some reason has France on his knee and it has been passed down the generations of his family.)
Another thing I like is this book has a metaphor of his mother's sickness- a black dog- this dog stops her getting out of bed, making food and living her daily life and I quite like this metaphor as it feels like we can see this sickness as something more than just another obstacle in a story.
Now moving on to the topic of the story I feal like the characters have good character behind them, the story isn't to rushed but absolutely packed with interestingness and ballistically funny but the end seems a bit out of the blue and almost like the author wanted to get it over with so they could do something else. Overall, it has to definitely be a 4.78/5 because this book fresh compared to all the almost identical school stories out there today.
Freddie
Birdie
This is a good book. It was about a girl who met a coal mining horse.
I liked the horse. Very cool horse. He saves people, and I learnt that horses can swim.
I did not like how it was the first single book that was not in a series, but I was satisfied with the ending
I would recommend it to someone else who like horse power *super cool*
Ellie
Ghostlines
I liked this book because it was a beautiful story about growing used to things out of your control, and I loved the twist at the end with the ghost lights, and the amazing daft dog ;3
I did not like how some of the chapters where only 2 pages long.
I would recommend it to someone who likes adventure, twists, and ghosts.
Ellie
Wildful
I loved it because it had a greyhound, who looked like my nans greyhound Donny, minus the white splotches. I also liked how the different bird song was portrayed.
I disliked how I could not follow the plots every so often, but that happens to me and picture books.
I would recommend it to anyone who likes dogs and animals and picture books.
Ellie
Wiggling Words
I like the different words, and how she changed them into different animals.
I did not like how short it was, but it is a children's book so oh well.
I would recommend it to my little sister, as it explores different points of views.
Ellie
Freedom Braids
I think that the book ‘Freedom Braids’ is a good book that explores key themes throughout the book. It links to the Transatlantic Slave Trade, where the author/illustrator have shown beautiful imagery and detail in their work. I felt understanding as I read this book and saw the journey they had to take to get to freedom. It is very intriguing that they made braids in their hair to plan out routes of escape. The illustrations were fantastic, showing key elements of preciseness, as well as incredible toning and lighting. They have created a beautiful, peaceful atmosphere through their work, while they are braiding. I think this book was targeted at 5–6-year-olds but has a clear message of meaning for all ages.
Anna
Popcorn
I think that the book ‘Popcorn’ was a very good book targeted at audiences from around 8-11. It explores the theme of anxiety and other issues throughout the story. There is a clear storyline that takes place in one packed day for the protagonist, Andrew. In my opinion, Rob Harrell has shown a unique writing style, that keeps you ‘guessing’ and ‘picking up clues’ as your reading, which is a great way to hook readers into the book. I liked this book because it showed a unique topic, portrayed in a comedic way. The extended metaphor of ‘popcorn’ being like Andrew’s anxiety really helped to picture the story, creating a familiar atmosphere for readers. I would recommend this book.
Anna
Twenty Four Seconds from Now
I believe that this book is a unique and interesting story style that successfully explores key themes of romance. I particularly liked the structure of going back in time as it added interest to how the couple have got to this point in their relationship. In my opinion, Jason Reynolds has an intriguing writing style, where he describes everything with key detail and stories and it really helps to capture the characters thoughts. I liked this book because the author has shown a variety of different language techniques, including a poetic rhythm throughout the book. I would recommend this book for 13+ and I would rate it 4/5 stars.
Anna
Ghostlines
I think that the book ‘Ghostlines’ was a great book which I deeply enjoyed throughout reading. It has a very moving message and uses symbolism (the puffins) to show how something can go but also come back which I really loved. The storyline is really nice, and I loved how the protagonist (Tilda) is represented and her knowledge grows throughout the book. Katya Balen clearly goes into a lot of detail about Ayrie and the characters thoughts which helped me to understand how they were feeling. I really enjoyed this book; it was my favourite read so far.
Anna