East Renfrewshire ~ Book Blog

Creech: Heartbeat

Heart Beat was an interesting but funny book and we enjoyed reading about a girl named Annie. Annie has a hobby which is part of her life really, it’s running and she enjoys her hobby with her best friend Max.
Annie tells us about her life as a child and when big changes happen in Annie’s life she has to adjust to these in a way she doesn’t really like.

We thought this book by Sharon Creech was an understandable book to read but it was very heart rendering at some points to see Annie get into some uncomfortable positions. On an overall basis this book is brilliant to read and we highly recommend you take then time to read it.

BY
Rebecca and Zakiah (Woodfarm High School)

Wonderland

Wonderland
by
Karen McCombie

I enjoyed reading “Wonderland” by Karen McCombie because it told you what was happening at every point of the story and I could not get lost from where I was.

The only bad thing about the story, is that I could not get into the book properly and I think that was because there was too much going on at one time.
E.g. It would go from the main girl character Jude at a party and then jump to her and her mum Helen in their home. It was just a little bit confusing to follow.

This book was mainly about a girl called Jude’s life, it tells you that her dad leaves the family and her mum does not want to be called mum anymore, she wants to be called by her first name which is Helen.

My favourite part of the story is when she goes to find her dad. She goes and sits outside a house for 1 hour and it turns out she is in the wrong street. So eventually when she gets to the right house, to her surprise she finds….

In conclusion, I would only recommend this book to someone who likes to sit in the quiet and read for a while. Because like I said it was a bit hard to follow.

By Demi (St. Ninians High School)

Wolf Brother

Wolf Brother
by Michelle Paver

I liked “Wolf Brother” because it had a gripping story line.
At the end of each chapter it always ends that you want to read on.

This Book is about a boy called Torak whose father gets killed by a bear but it is no ordinary bear inside it is a demon.

Torak has to now survive on his own in the forest and his only ally is an orphaned wolf cub.

Along the way torak finds something strange about himself. That thing is that he is the….

Jordan (St. Ninians High School)

Ness: The Kniife of Never Letting Go

The Knife of Never Letting Go
By Patrick Ness
Recently I read the book ‘Knife of never letting go’ by Patrick Ness.

The book is about a boy called Todd Hewitt who like all other men can speak just by thinking of it. The story starts with Todd being told out of the blue that he must leave immediately by his guardian Ben. He leaves reluctantly and on his way meets a girl, which is surprising to Todd as all the girls and women were killed shortly after he was born. Todd and Viola are then hunted down by the Prentiss town army only escaping narrowly each time they meet.
The story, however, is full of grief as Todd lost his mum when he was only a child and his dog Manchee is killed along the way by an evil man named Aaron (the preacher of Prentiss town and Todd’s sacrifice so he can become a man). Also Viola, when arriving on new world her family crashed and every one was killed except her. During the book Todd and Viola go through many strange and wonderful places but in the end are trapped by the Prentiss town army in Haven the place they believed to be safe but this is where the story ends and the next one begins.

I liked this book as there was always something happening and the main characters were not made out as superheroes who always win.

By Connor (St Ninians High School) 

The General

The General
By Robert Muchamore

I recently read a book by Robert Muchamore called the general. It’s part of the cherub series and is the 10th book. Cherub is a secret organisation which sends kids aged 10-17 on missions. At the start one of the main characters called James Adams, is sent on a mission to exploit a group who wants to become a terrorist organisation. Afterwards he returns to campus and celebrates Christmas; he’s told that all his friends are going on a trip to Las Vegas for 2 days then to a place called Fort Reagan to take part in a massive war game with American troops. During this he plants laxative in the Americans water supply they find out he done so for his safety he leaves. On his way home his supervisor (who also got kicked out) plans to cheat casinos by using cameras to card count. When he returns to England (with £20,000) things return to normal.
I enjoyed this book because it’s exciting and I never wanted to put it down.
 
By Jack H (St. Ninians High School)

Zephaniah: Refugee Boy

Refugee Boy
By Benjamin Zephaniah

The book I have been reading is refugee boy by Benjamin Zephaniah . I really enjoyed   it as kept you reading because you didn’t know what was going to happen .In the story a young boy (Alem kelo) and his father Have left Ethiopia because there is a lot of fighting . Then one morning Alem wakes up and his father is gone , he is confused to where his father has got to but then is told the news  that he has gone back to try and find Alem’s mother who had stayed in Ethiopia . Then social workers come and tell him that is he is going to go to foster parents so he does and he is really enjoying it but just when everything was good he is told that he has to go to court and could be sent home to his country again .

By Daniel B (St. Ninians High School)

The Passion Flower

The Passion flower Massacre
Nicola Morgan.

I liked “The Passion Flower Massacre” by Nicola Morgan because it had a very interesting story line. I couldn’t put the book down.
It was about a girl who works on a fruit farm. She feels lonely until she is asked for her help at the big house on top of the hill. The people who work and live I the house are all part of a religious cult who draw Matilda to eventually join them. The man with the long, flowing “Jesus hair” is like their messiah. The worship him until the end when he tries to mass murder them all by burning them to death when he sets the fruit fields alight with explosives.
The thing I liked about the book was that it was different – It wasn’t a happy ending.

Kayleigh W (St. Ninians High School)

Breslin: The Nostradamus Prophecy

A book which I have recently read and found to be a very interesting and enjoyable book was “The Nostradamus Prophecy” By Theresa Breslin.

The story is about a young girl called Mélisande. She lives in Paris with her father and her older sister Chantelle they live in the court of Catherine de’Medici, Queen Regent of France. Mélisande and her father are both talented musicians, her sister is very good at making dresses. At the start the story is mostly about how Mélisande’s older sister is getting married but on her wedding day she gets killed by her fiancé’s uncle, a man called The Count de Ferignay. He tries to kill Mélisande but does not succeed. Mélisande meets a boy who lives in the castle called Melchior he looks after a leopard called Paladin. He helps her escape where she goes dressed as a servant boy to find the house where Nostradamus lives. When she gets there she is treated like a member if the family and helps in the apothecary shop with a man called Giorgio, who later betrays her in the story. She learns many things from Giorgio and she becomes his assistant. During the story there is parade in the town where Nostradamus lives she has to go and run an errand but when she is going she gets stopped by a man who is a spy for he Duke of Marcy and he tells her to bow down as it is a holy parade she doesn’t and runs into a church where he cannot hurt her the Duke of Marcy tries to, but kills a priest who is trying to protect Mélisande, she runs of and find Giorgio and tells him what happened. She also meets a man called Lord Thierry who she goes to live with after Master Nostradamus dies. He leaves her his last prophecy and tells her that she has to save the King. She cannot go back to Paris as she is still wanted but she marries Lord Thierry but he dies trying to defend his castle and Giorgio helps her escape. They get to Paris and Mélisande finds out that Giorgio is working for Queen Catherine de’Medici. She finds Melchior and he helps her escape but his leopard dies trying to save them from The Count de Ferignay. They escape and she finds her father and King Henri and she must save him from the killing and fighting that is happening in Paris.
Katie McG ( St Ninians High School)

Pullman: Northern lights

A book I recently read and enjoyed was The Northern Lights by Philip Pullman it is the first book in his “Dark Materials Trilogy” it has also been made into a film “The Golden Compass.”

The story is about a young girl called Lyra Belacqua who lived in Jordan Collage in Oxford after she was told her parents were killed in an airship accident. She had lived in Oxford for most of her life and had lots of friends. Then children up and down the country started to disappear then her best friend Roger was kidnapped as well then a woman called Mrs Coulter visited Oxford and asked Lyra if could help her with an expedition to go north. She wanted to and reluctantly the Master agreed to let her go and that night gave her an alethiometer a device like a compass that allowed the user to find out about almost anything they wanted to. This however is just the start of her epic journey north. Along the way she would meet and befriend Gyptians, Armoured Bears, witches and discover the dark secrets of Bolvangar.

Packed with adventure and excitement I would recommend it to almost anyone.

By Colm D (St Ninians High School)

Necropolis

NECROPOLIS
By Anthony Horowitz

Recently, I have read a very enjoyable book called “Necropolis”, which is the fourth book in Anthony Horowitz’s series, The Power of Five.

The book is about a girl called Scarlett Adams, who, at the age of thirteen, is almost killed by a speeding truck, and was saved by a stranger. Two years later, her mother and father have split and she goes on a school trip to Shoreditch while studying the Blitz. On the trip, Scarlett goes through a door in a church and ends up in a completely different place, where monks capture her. She is told by a monk called Father Gregory that she is in Ukraine and that she is in the Monastery of the Cry for Mercy. She is then told that she has lived before as one of Gatekeepers that defeated the devils, known as the Old Ones, ten thousand years ago. She later escapes and manages to go back through the door and back into London, where she has been gone eighteen hours and everyone has gone into a frenzy over her disappearance. Believing herself to have imagined that such a thing happened to her, and realising that no one would believe her, she refuses to tell anyone what happened to her. In Peru, one of other Gatekeepers, Matt Freeman realises who Scarlett really is, one of the old Gatekeepers, Scar, and he and his three companions Richard, Pedro, Jamie and Scott set out to find her. Chaos insures as Scarlett travels to Hong Kong to see her father…and is put in serious danger.

I enjoyed this book as it was very interesting and there was always something exciting happening. Also, it captured a real atmosphere of Hong Kong. It explained its characters in great detail too, but overall, it told a great story.
MARK (St Ninians High School)