September reviews from Albert Park

The brilliant world of Tom Gates by L. Pichon - reviewed by Emma

About a boy at school, his friends and the people he doesn’t like. It’s funny and I like that it’s about an average person.

Rated:  3.5/5  

How to train your dragon by Cressida Cowell - reviewed by Alex W.

I think it is based on a movie but the book is better. Hiccup, the main character, trains dragons, the rest of his tribe thinks he is useless. It started off a bit boring but later became a bit more exciting.

Rated:  4/5

The 13-storey treehouse by Andy Griffiths - reviewed by Jo

Lots of funny things happen in this book. There are man-eating sharks, an anti-gravity tank, an ATM (Automatic Tattoo Machine). I liked the characters because they are crazy and funny and have weird ideas.

Rated:  4.000000001/5 - Not my favourite book but I liked it.

Matilda by Roald Dahl - reviewed by Alex G.

Matilda is a genius, but her mum and dad ignore her.  At the end of the book she has a new life.

Rated:  4½/5 - It was good – okay.

The mysterious Benedict Society by Trenton Lee Stuart - reviewed by Emma G.

About a boy who has to pass a series of tests which he passes. Then he and some others have to go on a quest.

Rated:  4½/5

The name of this book is secret by Pseudonymous Bosch - reviewed by Maddie

It has mystery/adventure/comedy. It is funny at the start and I like that it’s told in the third person – not sure of the identity but I think it’s a girl. It has twists and turns and lots of the unexpected. There is something in it called a 'symphony of smells' – it’s a box full of smells.

Rated:  5/5 - Storyline is interesting – the characters had funny backgrounds. The book was funny.

The dangerous days of Daniel X by James Patterson - reviewed by Henry

Daniel X’s parents have died, they were killed by aliens. He has to find a secret gem that will get rid of the aliens. But the gem is inside a dragon’s stomach. Aliens are half-rhino and one of them sticks a horn up Daniel X’s bottom. I like the stupid and funny bits.

Rated:  3.99 – good, not great.

Horse mad academy by Kathy Helidoniotis - reviewed by Jess

A girl goes to cross-country trials and wins a scholarship. I like horses and the book is not too long and it’s quick to read.

Rated:  4/5

Ophelia by Lisa Klein - reviewed by Ella

It is based on Shakespheare’s Hamlet. Hamlet and Ophelia are in love but Hamlet is a prince and Ophelia is from a lower class background. Hamlet’s father is murdered and Hamlet knows who the murderer is. The ending is very sad … it was joyful and happy at first but the ending was depressing.

Rated:  4.5/5 – It was really good and well written.

Everything amazing (sort of) by L. Pichon - reviewed by Vincent

About a boy at school … I’ve read the first two in the series (this is the third one) and this one isn’t as good as them but still good. There are lots of disasters and problems which he ignores.

Rated:  4/5

Fablehaven: grip of the shadow plague by Brandon Mull - reviewed by Annabelle

This book is about two people and they go to a place called 'the preserve', it’s a place where animals live. Something is wrong because some of the animals have turned ‘dark’ (literally) because they have become bad and are fighting the ‘light’ creatures. I think this book has the right balance of action and detail. It is fun to read because the battle plans are intricate.

Rated:  5/5

September reviews from St Kilda

The fellowship of the ring : Lord of the rings, part 1 by J.R.R. Tolkien - reviewed by Cassidy

It's about a hobbit called Frodo Baggins who finds a ring. The ring belongs to the dark lord Sauron. They go to the Weathertop Hill, the dark riders from Sauron try to get them but they escape to Rivendell and then they go to the Mines of Moria and they fight trolls and orks.

Rated:  4 reallys

20,000 leagues under the sea by Jules Verne - reviewed by Jack

I got really stuck into it and I’m enjoying it. The main character is a guy called Professor Aronaxx. It is based in 1891. The sea is a dangerous place to travel at that time because there is a monster rumoured.

The professor goes on a sea voyage on board the Abraham Lincoln. The professor and the servant fall overboard onto the monster but it turns out to be a submarine.

Rated:  4.5 reallys

The adventures of Tintin : the shooting star by Herge - reviewed by Elsa

It is night, Tintin sees a really big star and wonders what it is, so he goes to the observatory and they don’t know what it is, but they think the world is going to end, but it doesn’t because they wake up in the morning. In the end there is a meteor and a gangster who wants to stop Tintin and his crew from reaching the meteor. Who can get there first?

Rated:  5 reallys

The magic faraway tree by Enid Blyton - reviewed by Mikhala

A story about Jo-Beth and Franny, they are the main characters. They move house from city to country. One day they get a day all to themselves. They go out exploring and find this ditch and they jump over it to get to the other side. They found this place and it was an enchanted wood. They take one step into the wood and mushrooms start to grow. Huge mushrooms with a white spot on each one, and little people start growing out of each one and they look a bit weird. Franny starts laughting very loudly so that the little men run and hide in the same bush. They freak out and they disappear.

Rated:  5 reallys

The invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick - reviewed by Linus

About a boy and his father who is killed in the museum by a fire. His father was working in the attic. He finds part of an automaton after the fire. He goes off to live with his uncle who lives in a house full of clocks. Throughout the story he steals this mans work to help build the automaton. He has one of his dad's notebooks to help him. A man catches Hugo in the act of stealing and the man gets his notebook but Hugo finishes building the automaton.

The story is really exciting.

Rated:  5 reallys

Holes by Louis Sacher - reviewed by Georgia

It's about this boy called Stanley Yelnats (Yelnats is Stanley backwards). One day he is walking back from school and a pair of shoes fall from the sky. They belong to the famous basketball player Clyde Livingston who had given them to a homeless shelter and so people thought Stanley, who now had them, had stolen them, so he gets sent to Camp Greenlake for punishment where they dig holes 5 feet deep and 5 feet wide every day. If they find anything they have to report it, then Stanley finds something….

Rated:  4.9 reallys

Jake and Lily by Jerry Spinelli - reviewed by Lily

About the twins Jake and Lily and it’s summer. They always know what they are each thinking. Lily has an enemy called Bump and Jake becomes friends with Bump. It gets so Lily and Jake can’t tell what each is thinking anymore. I really liked how it was written. The story alternates between each of their points of view.

Rated:  4.9 reallys

A new writing competition for Spring!

As part of the Spring school holiday program the library is running a new writing competition! What do you need to do? Just begin your story with the question:

Send your entry, with your name, phone number and date of birth to library@portphillip.vic.gov.au or drop it in to your nearest library branch.

Winners will be notified Monday 29 October and winning entries will be published on the Lightning Readers blog!