June reviews from Albert Park

Malory Towers: first term by Enid Blyton - reviewed by Zoe

Darrell Rivers goes to boarding school for the first time and she is nervous about starting there. She also has a bit of a bad temper. She makes some friends but not a good friend until she meets Sally. Sally seems a bit odd originally but turns out she isn’t. There are some spiteful tricks that happen in her class as well.

Rated:  4.87/5 - "I’m learning decimals at school and I liked the book because of that."

Auggie and me by R.J. Palacio - reviewed by Georgia

This book is the sequel to Wonder. It is divided into 3 parts. It is from the point of view of the 3 main characters. First it is from Julian who is a bully. The second point of view is from Christopher who is August’s ex-best friend. And the third part of the story is told by Charlotte who is August’s friend. I had to start reading this book because the movie is coming out soon so I need to know what happens. August (Auggie) is a little boy who was born with a facial deformity so all the characters have something to do with him.

Rated:  5/5 - "Really interesting."

Geronimo and the gold medal mystery by Geronimo Stilton - reviewed by Cole

Geronimo Stilton is a mouse. His brother wakes him up early and takes him to watch the Olympics. When they are there they realise someone is cheating with a special machine. Geronimo saves the day!

Rated:  4.99/5 - "Interesting!"

Geek Girl: forever geek by Holly Smale - reviewed by Emma

Harriet Manners is such a geek that she even reads fact books in the toilet! Her good friend loves fashion and they go to a fashion event where Harriet is spotted by a model agent. She becomes a model and during the summer holidays she goes to Japan for a fashion shoot. There she meets a male model named Nick. She really likes him but because she is very sensible she tells him she can’t see him because she has exams.

Later she meets Jasper and they go to Australia and doesn’t think she will meet Nick there. During a fashion shoot she nearly drowns and is saved by Nick who is now a lifeguard. This is all very awkward as she is now going out with Jasper.

Harriet gets a phone call and mis-hears that Nick’s auntie is sick. It turns out that it was actually her own grandmother. Her grandma dies and Nick shows up at the funeral. They kiss and fall in love again (Jasper is very nice about all this).

Rated:  4.9/5 - "Very exciting but it’s funny that she can be a geek when she is pretty. I recommend this book for 9-12 year olds."

Dog man unleashed by Dav Pilkey - reviewed by Flynn

This is about a flat cat named Petey who is made from paper. He was made by a real cat named Petey who made Flat Petey to fool the cops because the real Petey has been in jail 8 times (a real lot!). Dog Man has to get them as they are both evil. Dog Man has to try to catch them as the cats are really smart. Flat Petey is even more evil than Real Petey.

Rated:  4.9/5 - "pretty good – but not very good. I liked it."

May reviews from St Kilda

See you in the Cosmos by Jack Cheng - reviewed by Spike 

It’s about a boy called Alex Petroski. He’s eleven years old and he lives in the US. He has a dog named after his hero, Carl Sagan. He wants to launch his ipod into space with a series of audio recordings. He calls it the golden ipod because he’s fascinated with space and because of the golden record. It will show other lifeforms what his earth is really like, but he has a long dead dad, a troubled mother and a mostly not around brother. So life is really hard. He goes to a rocket festival in New Mexico. He lives in Colorado, and travels there by himself, without his mum or anybody. He makes adult friends and drives around the US trying to find the answers to questions he has about his mysterious family.

Rated:  5/5 Reallys - “It’s serious, fun and sad all at the same time.”

The bad guys ; bk. 5, Intergalactic gas by Aaron Blabey - reviewed by Mackenzie 

This is the fifth book in the series. They go to the moon to stop Marmalade the alien guinea pig, who has this weapon called the cutezilla ray. They destroy the cutezilla ray and leave Marmalade out in space to float around. There’s also a shark, a snake, two foxes and a burrito eating piranha.

Rated:  5/5 Reallys - “I liked that it’s really happy and then really sad and then really happy again, it leaves you thinking what is going to happen next?!”

The Alchemyst : secrets of the immortal Nicholas Flamel by Michael Scott - reviewed by Jaxon 

It’s about this 2,600 year old man named Nicholas Flamel, who is in the first Harry Potter book. Well, in this book, he actually talks about the philosopher’s stone, which makes the elixir of life. He created the stone itself, with a little help from Albus Dumbledore. Alchemy is all about turning stones into precious jewels and elixirs.

So there’s this guy called Dr John Dee, who was Flamel’s apprentice, what Nicholas didn’t know at that time was that Dee was going to try and steal the codex where he learnt alchemy in the first place. He manages to get the codex, but a twelve year old boy, Josh managed to keep a fistful of pages, the most important, final pages known as The Summoning. Without them he will never have a chance of being as powerful as Flamel. Without them, the book is useless. He’s trying to get them, but so far he has failed.

Rated:  5/5 Reallys - “I haven’t finished it yet but it’s really good so far, it still holds the mystery.”

Watch this space by Colin Thompson - reviewed by Ollie

Radius, a billionaire TV show producer, wants to create a reality TV called Watch This Space, where they have auditions, and take one family up into space to live there. The successful family hire a stranger to be their granny and they take their dogs. Radius gives his assistant Fiona one of his everlasting credit cards. Fiona buys granny Mavis some clothes she is like “do I have to wear this?!” Granny Mavis has a history of lighting up other Grannie’s jackets if she finds them fashionably offensive. The rocket is being built by highly trained engineers, or trainee engineers who know nothing about engineering. They fix the rocket ship with “intergalactic gaffer tape” and “space foil.”

Rated:  5/5 Reallys - “I’m about half way through so far, it’s really good. There is mystery around what sort of show Radius is really intending to air… and there is an inventing robot.”

The Sorceress by Michael Scott - reviewed by Yuanquan 

It’s about Nicholas Flamel, who is immortal. His wife Perenelle has been kidnapped and sent to Alcatraz, a prison owned by Dr John Dee. However she has escaped and is now sort of running the place. Sophie has been awakened by Elder Hecate. In the Sorceress they are trying to find someone to teach them the power of water. On the run from Doctor Dee, they escape Paris to London and meet up with Palamedes, who is friends with Sophie’s fire teacher Comte Saint Germain. He saves them in a taxi cab and takes them to this castle made out of cars. He owns the properties all around them. They get attacked by John Dee and his dark elder followers. They destroy the palace, but can’t manage to reach and kill everyone because of fire. Dr John Dee tries to put it out with the sword of ice, Excalibur, but Josh wields the sword of fire. With Dee on their trail they run away and find a mad old King, the only one who can teach him the power of water…

Rated:  4.9/5 Reallys

Lottie and Lisa by Erich Kästner - reviewed by Emese 

If you have seen The Parent Trap this will sound familiar, it’s the original version, there was a German translation first. I read it in Hungarian. It’s about these two girls who live in separate towns. Lisa just has a dad and Lottie a mum. They meet at a Summer Camp and immediately dislike each other. Lisa thinks that Lottie has stolen her look…

The girls go through lots of dilemmas regarding who they are and their families and come up with a crazy plan to switch places…

Rated:  5/5 Reallys - “It’s actually really different to the English version of The Parent Trap, there is a lot more backstory and insight into who people are.”

Middle school by James Patterson – reviewed by Hope 

It’s about this boy who is very naughty and wants to break every school rule. He has this big brother called Rio who he gets on with sometimes. In the middle of the book there is a section where he has to score a certain amount of points to keep going with his mission. He gets expelled, but then they have to take him back because no other school will accept him. The teachers are not happy. There are lots of smaller stories throughout it, as well as pictures.

Rated:  5/5 Reallys - “I like all of the trouble he causes, it’s one of those books that you find hard to stop reading.”

May reviews from Albert Park

Four mice deep in the jungle by Geronimo Stilton - reviewed by Gabriel (aged 7)

Geronimo is scared of lots of things so he goes to visit the doctor. After that his nephew brings him to the airport. Trap (Geronimo’s nephew) falls in love with a lady at the airport who turns out to be the doctor’s niece. The doctor’s niece sends Geronimo to the jungle so he can forget his fears.

In the jungle Geronimo learns to see which snake is poisonous and which one is not. By the end he is not afraid of snakes but is still scared of cats (he is a mouse after all).

Rated:  5/5 - "I like Geronimo Stilton!"

Really Weird ; WeirDo, bk. 8 by Anh Do - reviewed by Flynn (9)

Anh Do’s class are going to have a barn dance so he tries to pass on a note to a girl he has a crush on. Instead it ends up with the wrong person – luckily she wants to go with someone else and Anh Do gets to dance with the girl he has a crush on.

Rated:  3/5 - "I liked it, but not loved it."

Gorilla City ; The amazing adventures of Charlie Small (400) ; notebook 1 by Charlie Small (i.e. Nick Ward) - reviewed by Cole (9)

This is about an 8 year old boy, Charlie Small, and his adventures. His diary is found and in it there are stories of how he is on a raft that gets swept away by a river and attacked by a crocodile. He is taken in by gorillas and then they get attacked by baboons.

Rated:  4/5 – "It’s written like a diary that looks messy but still nice."

Jump Start ; EJ12 girl hero, bk. 2 by Susannah McFarlane - reviewed by Moa (7)

EJ12 is a spy. She saves the world from the Shadow (a bad team). She needs to go to the jungle because the Shadow are doing something really bad. I’ve read some of the books already but not all of them yet.

Rated:  5/5 – "I really like them."

When Hitler Stole the Pink Rabbit by Judith Kerr - reviewed by Emma (10)

I finished this book yesterday. Anna and her father (a famous writer) live in Germany when Hitler is elected to power. The day before he wins they flee to France. The police come to take their passports but they have already gone. There are wanted posters issued for Anna’s father.

They decide to take a holiday to Switzerland and they board a train that they are told is going there. They realise it is actually going to Germany and they jump off just in time.

They go to Switzerland and make some new friends but the parents of the children say they can’t play with Anna and her family because they are Jews.

The reason it is called When Hitler Stole the Pink Rabbit is because when Anna fled she left her toys including her pink rabbit thinking they would be back soon. Anna and her dad joke that Hitler sleeps with her pink rabbit.

Rated:  4.7/5 – "I’ve been reading heaps of Jackie French and my mum told me to read it. It is a bit different form the usual things I read in teens or spy stuff."

Out to Lunch ; Zoe and Chloe, bk. 2 by Sue Limb - reviewed by Zoe (10)

Zoe and Chloe are best friends and do everything together. They want to go on holiday to New Quay together but need to save money and convince their mums to let them go. Zoe also has an older sister named Tamsin who is going out with a married man named Ed (I think her sister is 25!).

Zoe and Chloe get a job at a farm at the same place where a boy Chloe likes named Oliver also works. She later decides he is lazy and rude and doesn’t like him anymore.

If they save enough money for the holiday at New Quay they can get to stay at a flat owned by Ed (when I think of Ed I think of an old and bald person). Unfortunately Tamsin and Ed split up. Then Zoe blackmails Tamsin into coming on holiday with them because they need an older person to go with them. Zoe tells Tamsin that she will tell their mum about Ed if she doesn’t go with them to New Quay.

Rated:  5/5 – "I like all the action."

Charlie and the War Against the Grannies by Alan Brough - reviewed by Georgia (10)

This is about a little boy named Charlie who has a best friend called Hydie who loves talking about war and wants to join the army. Charlie really wants to do a paper round but two grannies are already doing a paper round in his area. Charlie and Hydie decide to start a war to take the paper round off the grannies.

Rated:  5/5 EXPLODING EYEBALLS!!!!!

March reviews from Albert Park

Imagining the future by Simon Torok and Paul Holper - reviewed by Harry

There are a lot of futuristic ideas in this book, for example things such as hoverboards replacing scooters. I would highly recommend this book for people who do a lot of reading. This book is also for people who like architecture, science, chemistry and imagination. This book is published by the CSIRO so it is based on fact. There are even scientists working on a bag that turns into a glider like Despicable Me 2.

Rated:  4.5/5 - "I'm a science-y type of guy so I kind of like this sort of book. It would be even better if it had some kids' suggestions and ideas."

Dork Diaries: Puppy love by Rachel Renee Russell - reviewed by Georgia

The Dork Diaries series is about Nikki Maxwell and her dorky friends and her arch-enemy MacKenzie Hollister. MacKenzie has changed schools and Nikki is very happy. She has a crush on Brandon, he asks her to look after some puppies, there's a big crisis ... blah, blah, blah. All her year level are going to different schools and Nikki ends up at the same school as MacKenzie.

Rated:  4.5/5

The wishing spell ; The land of stories, bk. 1 by Chris Colfer - reviewed by Miranda

This book is about some twins, Alex and Connor. It's their birthday and their grandmother gives them her book of stories called the Land of Stories. The book sometimes starts glowing and then some of Alex's things start disappearing from her room. She also starts wishing she could go into the book. One day the twins fall into the book and have an adventure trying to get back out again. Snow White's stepmother wants to get to the wishing spell to save her boyfriend, which the twins also need, to get out of the book.

Rated:  MAXIMUM/5 - "It is just the sort of book I like ... I felt like Alex, I really got into the book."

Dirty Bertie: Germs! by David Roberts - reviewed by Cole

About a kid who's REALLY dirty - he even throws his teacher in the bin! One day his sister is sick and doesn't go to school and he is really angry at her because he would like to not go too. So the book is all about all the things he tries to do to avoid going to school.

Rated:  4.5/5 - "Pretty interesting and funny."

Garfield - Light of my life by Jim Davis - reviewed by Hannah

I'm reading the most boring book in the world. It's a comic about a cat called Garfield and his life. He bosses his owner and dog around. He's fat (actually obese), he does a lot of jokes and some are funny ... most are not.

Rated:  2.5/5 - "Not that funny."

World Domination : Glenn Maxwell, bk. 4 by Patrick Loughlin - reviewed by Flynn

Glenn Maxwell travels to England and gets to play teams like Pakistan, India, South Africa and the West Indies. The games are 20 overs (a bit like the Big Bash). He has to work hard on his batting and bowling. He wins against England in the grand final.

Rated:  4/5 - "I wish there were more games in the book, it's more about his life."

March 2017 reviews from St Kilda

Mission Fox: Panda Chase by Justin D’Ath - review by Mackenzie

There are these two boys and they are part of an agency which is called Mission Fox. They go downstairs in their house and find yabbies in their bath! They have to take them away to this place, but they change their minds and go to the old quarry instead. It’s all fenced up but one time when they were following a cat, it led them to a hole in the fence. They tip the yabbies into the old crater which remains of the quarry. Then they leave and start walking and see a car crash. They pull a driver out. One of them helps him while the other goes to get help. The woman sitting next to the driver was a nurse. When she got out the guy passed out. Then they come back with help and they go look for their dog. When they find him, they see evidence of Pingwu, the giant Panda. Back they go to the old quarry, and find bamboo crunched up. And their dog can smell something strange…

Rated:  5/5 reallys - "I like this series because there is always a quest, something missing that needs to be found."

Iris and the tiger by Leanne Hall - review by Sophia

It’s about this 12 year-old girl Iris. Her great uncle James is this really famous artist and he painted a picture of Iris and the tiger. But it wasn’t actually of the girl Iris, but of his wife Iris, who she was named after. The 12 year-old Iris viewed the painting and couldn’t see any tigers in it, but thought it must be called that for a reason. So she sets off on a journey to find out about the tiger mystery. She goes to Spain to visit her great aunt Ursula, whose property “The Forest of Clouds” is a magical place. Iris’s parents want her to bond with Aunt Ursula, and secure the property as their inheritance. There she meets magical creatures, tennis playing sunflowers and a five-legged shadow hound. Also Aunt Ursula is very old but she doesn’t look it. She forgets about her parents' property quest, because she is so focussed on her tiger hunt. She does find it in the end, but it’s not at all what she imagined… 

Rated:  5/5 reallys - "It’s a really interesting book if you like mysteries."

The Highlanders : The Brotherhood of Thieves, bk. 2 by Stuart Daly - review by Yuanquan

It’s about Caspan, Roland, Sara, Lachlan and Kilt. They have to pass two fiendishly difficult tests to pass into the Brotherhood. It’s vital that they pass because the Brotherhood needs them. The Kingdom they reside in is called Andalon and is split into three sections. The most fortified city there is Daromir which Lachlan and Caspan had defended just scarce months ago but has fallen to a Caledonian army in less than a few hours. Now they must go on a quest to Caledon to get this really powerful Drey artefact, which is like a very powerful king weapon. They go to retrieve it from the Egyptian burial mound, assuming that it will be unoccupied. But when they arrive they find out it has been surrounded by a big fort of Caledonian troops which are using the area as a rallying ground before they march and destroy Lochinbar. Lachlan, Roland and Caspan, equipped with terrible fake Caledonian accents, decide to infiltrate the army and put a stop to the war…

Rated:  5/5 reallys - "Has some funny moments, like when Lachlan plays the bagpipes to the despair of the entire army."

The Son of Neptune : The Heroes of Olympus, bk. 2 by Rick Riordan - review by Ollie

At the start, Percy can’t remember anything, but he’s fighting these snake haired ladies called Gorgons. They should have died, I think it was three days ago, when he dropped a whole bunch of bowling balls on their heads. They died then but for some reason they keep on re-forming. He finds an old woman who is actually a goddess in disguise and carries her to the camp. Then he goes to the river Tiber, the river that surrounds the city of Rome. So the gorgons don’t reform, Percy has to throw them into the water, but in doing so he loses his invulnerability. He starts moving into camp Jupiter where they play the war games. Because they have Ambrosia nectar they can heal terrible wounds. They go on a quest to free the god Thanatos, the god of death and save the world from the clutches of earth goddess Gaea.

Rated:  5/5 reallys - "Really good!"

Withering-by-Sea: A Stella Montgomery Intrigue by Judith Rossell - review by Emese

It’s about this girl called Stella, who lives with her three horrid aunts. They are always travelling to different fancy hotels because they are so ugly and old. They think that the change in scenery, fresh air and light will improve their looks. The book is set during their stay in the Hotel Majestic, where Stella sleeps in her aunt’s walk-in closet. It’s set in the past before telephones and they wear big, structured dresses. Her aunts are posh French ladies and make her learn French. The Majestic has healthy, foul tasting water. One night when she can’t sleep she goes downstairs and hears a strange noise coming from the conservatory. She loves going there and pretending she’s in the jungle. She creeps in undercover to investigate. She sees another customer from the hotel being questioned about a package. He directs them somewhere else and then they stab him. When they leave Stella goes to him and he gives her a box and begs her to hide it as he dies…

Rated:  2/5 reallys - "It’s good until the mystery is over (in the first chapter), I would have rated it more highly but there is lots of boring detail about walking to destinations, opening doors etc."

My little book of weather by Claudia Martin - review by Sartak

I learnt that the atmosphere is like a blanket of air. It tells you about how far we can go. Like an aeroplane can go 10 km up and a spacecraft can go 500 km up. If you want to go into real space it’s about 10,000 km from earth. My favourite part of the book was learning about different instruments for measuring sea level.

Rated:  5/5 reallys - "I really like reading about Space, my favourite planet is Jupiter, because it’s the biggest planet in the solar system."

Black powder by Ally Sherrick - review by Spike

It’s about a boy called Tom who lives in England in 1605. Catholics were hunted down at this time and at the start of the story Tom has to go somewhere and he meets his cousin and his great aunt. His great aunt is really strict and is harbouring a Catholic. Tom leaves with a mysterious man called The Falcon. He only lets Tom go because he says he will help him. When they get to their destination, he reveals his plan to kidnap a man called Robert Cecil who is the person who apparently started all the Catholic hating. The Falcon travels with a man named Harry Brown and he’s really mean to Tom and doesn’t like him tagging along. Tom is motivated because his parents are being threatened with execution after his father has been found to be harbouring a priest.

Rated:  5/5 reallys - "There are twists and I liked that it’s set in the past with factual details."

The Magic faraway tree by Enid Blyton - review by Hope 

It’s about these three children who find this mysterious tree and then discover lots of different characters who live in it and changing lands to visit at its top. One of their friends, Moon Face, lives near the top and has a slide you can ride all the way to the bottom named the Slipper Slip. The children have all sorts of adventures featuring the tree. The top of the ladder is like a portal into other worlds. My favourite world is The Land of Dame Snap. I like it because you’re always wondering what’s going to happen and how they’re going to get out of it.

Rated:  5/5 reallys - "It’s a really good, descriptive book."

February 2017 reviews from Albert Park

Alice-Miranda at school by Jacqueline Harvey - reviewed by Emma (aged 10)

Alice-Miranda is the smallest and youngest girl going to boarding school. She has to prove herself to stay at the school by completing a series of impossible tests.There is a mean girl trying to stop her doing her tasks and being at the school. When she went sailing the mean girl cheated by bumping Alice-Miranda. During the camping task, they find a lost man who is the headmistress's long lost husband, which makes the headmistress very happy.

"I rate it 4/5. I recommend it for those 9-11 years old. Its fun but intense, the plot goes quickly." 

A Snicker of magic by Natalie Lloyd - reviewed by Georgia (aged 10) 

Felicity's mum is a traveller. When it rains they move to a different city. She has a sister. They go back to the town where her mother grew up. It used to be "magical", but it is now drained of its magical abilities because of a curse. Felicity meets a new friend, Jonah, who is in a wheelchair. He does kind things and helps her find out about the town. She meets Oliver and Ponder, who run an ice-cream shop with unusual ice-creams. Different flavours make you do something, e.g. lemonade flavour makes you happy, chocolate makes you remember.

"I would rate it 3.75 ice-creams. It's for kids with a creative mind." 

The little white horse by Elizabeth Goudge - reviewed by Miranda (aged 9) 

Maria Merryweather is a teenage orphan. She goes to live with her new guardian, her cousin, in the best place in the world, a paradise called Moonacre Manor. Lots of tragedy happens, no women have stepped inside the manor for 20 years. There is an air of mystery and magic. The first hint of something happening is that they are not allowed to go to the beach. I don't want to say anymore and leave the story open-ended for anyone wanting to read it.

"I rate it infinity out of 5. I didn't understand the words at the beginning. Not really recommended for any particular age group as it is a classic book." 

Weirdo #5: Totally Weird! by Anh Doh - reviewed by Flynn (aged 8) 

Weir Do is going to Camp Kangaroo. A new kid, who is on the blue team, is perfect at everything. Weir Do is on the red team and they have to compete against each other. There are 5 events - 1: setting up of tent..blue team wins; 2: hole digging.. blue team wins again; 3: red team wins on the obstacle course; 4: canoe racing.. red team wins. That makes it two each. Final event is a song contest,which the red team wins. Weir Do wins and gets a trophy!

"I rate it 4/5. I recommend it for ages 8-12. It's a funny book and easy to read. It's a quick read before I go to cricket." 

The Witches by Roald Dahl - reviewed by Charlie (aged 9) 

This is about a boy whose parents die and he goes to live with his grandmother. She tells him stories about witches and how to recognise them, so he can be safe from them. The grandmother and boy go on holiday to a fancy hotel. She gives him two mice to train, but the hotel manager does not like them. There is a group of witches gathering at the hotel for their yearly meeting. The boy turns into a mouse from a potion they have invented. He then puts it in the witches' food and they all turn into mice!.

"I rate it 5/5. It's a good read for ages 8+. I've also seen the movie, which is great." 

Sure signs of crazy by Karen Harrington - reviewed by Hannah (aged 10)

This is the story of 12 year old Sarah and her life is really bad. Her mother, in a fit of crazy, tried to drown her and her twin brother when they were two. He died. Her father is an alcoholic and her mum is in prison. She talks about her feelings and worries she might end up crazy like her mother. She keeps a diary and writes what is really happening and what she wishes would happen, like getting an "A" for maths.

"I have not finished the book yet, so I give it a 4/5 so far. I would recommend this for older children 11+".

February 2017 reviews from St Kilda

Harry Potter and The Chamber of Secrets by J.K. Rowling - reviewed by Hope

In the break before school begins Dobby the house elf tries to warn Harry that he shouldn’t return to Hogwarts because of all the dangers that await him. He doesn’t listen, and when he returns he works out that there is a hidden chamber of secrets that he must uncover…

Rated:  4/5 reallys - "It’s good but it’s not the best book in the series."

Escape from Wolfhaven Castle : bk. 1, The Impossible Quest by Kate Forsyth - reviewed by Ollie

The Impossible Quest is a series of twelve books. Wolfhaven Castle is under siege by the mysterious “Bog men.” Basically, how it begins is that the wolves smell danger on the wind. Then a wild man tries to tell anyone, even Tom, the pot boy who is collecting mushrooms for his mother who is the chef, to warn the king, but he can’t get anyone to listen to him. One of the players in the royal game, made up of servants, butlers and little people like pot boys, versus the princes and princesses visiting the kingdom gets knocked out because it is a very rough game. He wants to take a substitute for the team, Tom the pot boy steps in and wins the game for the team, because he is quick and can easily duck past the best players. One of the best players, Sebastian, doesn’t like this and chases him through the castle, up winding staircases, narrow passages and tunnels. Eventually Tom stumbles upon a tiny secret door. He opens it and walks into Lady Elanor’s room - the princess of the kingdom…

Rated:  5/5 reallys

The Tournament at Gorlan : bk 1, Ranger’s Apprentice: The Early Years by John Flanagan - reviewed by Yuanquan

In this book, one ranger Crowley and one rightful King of Hibernia, Halt are travelling together to try and reform the ranger corps, which were torn apart by this evil Baron called Morgarath. Morgarath wishes to take control of the kingdom by killing the king, destroying the ranger corps, the king’s staunchest allies and by making Prince Duncan lose the people’s trust.

Halt and Crowley kidnap a messenger and discover the names of different rangers who have been dismissed, as well as where Prince Duncan is being held prisoner. So they go and recruit all the different rangers and then they go to the baron most likely to sympathize with their cause, Baron Arald. Arald is the current champion of the tournament at Gorlan. In the tournament barons and knights fight each other either until one is unhorsed or to the death. So then at the tournament Morgarath’s followers are trying to disable as many of Baron Arald’s followers as possible so that they can win when he shows his true colours. But Halt and Crowley rescue the Prince, who takes out a group of twelve men who threaten to destroy all of Arald’s followers. Then Morgarath attacks…

Rated:  5/5 - "Medieval adventure genre. This is a prequel to the Ranger's Apprentice series, so it doesn’t repeat all of the characters that you already know."

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by J.K. Rowling - reviewed by Jaxon

The story begins with Lord Voldemort and the old caretaker of the Riddle house. He is talking to the unregistered animagus Peter Pettigrew. Being unregistered means you have a very big chance of being sent to Azkaban. Back to the Riddle House, the caretaker found the room where Voldemort was and was listening at the door and a giant snake called Nagini slithered right past him into the room and since Voldemort can speak Parseltongue, she tells him that he is outside. So Harry, who is actually in a dream, and is soon to find out that his scar is hurting, is sleeping at his aunt Petunia and uncle Vernon Dursley’s house. They treat him horribly. They hate that he is a wizard, they treat him like he’s not even there.

Rated: 5/5 reallys - "It was an excellent book, it uses lots of expression and it really explains the characters' feelings."

Harry Potter and The Philosopher’s Stone by J.K. Rowling - reviewed by Gabriel

In the beginning, Harry Potter is living with his horrible aunt and uncle. Within a day, he begins to make strange things happen. Visiting the Zoo with his cousin Dudley, Harry makes the glass disappear on a snake exhibit, and Dudley falls in! He doesn’t realize it, but he spoke to the snake in its own language. The snake makes its escape as Petunia and Vernon Dursley scream and Dudley bangs on the glass. At home, Vernon punishes Dudley, pulling his hair and throwing in the cupboard under the stairs. Later, when Harry collects the mail, he finds a letter addressed to him from “Hogwarts”. Dudley snatches it and then Vernon rips it up. The next day, an owl delivers more letters, and the next and the next, however many Vernon manages to rip and burn, they keep coming. He goes a bit mad and they travel to a faraway shack on an island. At night they hear a knock, knock, knock…

Rated:  5/5 reallys - "This book is really awesome!"

Aesop's The Lion and the Mouse - reviewed by Sarthak

It’s about when a lion sleeps one day in a jungle and he dreams of something good to eat, like fleshy animals. Then he wakes to find a mouse who always eats cheese. In the story the lion wants to eat the mouse but in the end they become friends.

Rated:  5/5 reallys - "I like to read and write stories about animals."

Harry Potter and The Goblet of Fire by J.K. Rowling - review by Emese

It all starts when Harry wakes up from an awful dream about Voldemort. His scar has started hurting and he wants to tell his godfather Sirius Black. The Goblet of Fire is a cup used in the Triwizard Tournament, a game that used to be played instead of Quidditch, but too many people died so they stopped playing it, until now. You have to be a certain age to get in, Harry is underage so isn’t qualified to enter. The three magical schools, Hogwarts, Durmstrang and Beauxbatons will compete for the cup and the honour of their school. Harry is as surprised as anybody when his name is drawn from the cup…

Rated:  5/5 reallys - "I love that you get to see more of the world of the house elves in this book, like how Winky is dealing with her freedom after she is accused of creating the dark mark in the sky. He doesn’t react to her freedom as positively as Dobby. She is freaking out, crying and drinking butter beer. My favourite bit was when Dobby gave Harry the socks that he knitted. Full of dragons, wizards, mazes and death!"

An Eagle in the Snow by Michael Morpurgo - reviewed by Spike

This story is set in WWI and WWII. It’s about the person who decided not to kill Hitler. He did what he thought was right choice at the time and it ended up being the wrong choice - he didn't know Adolf Hitler was going to be a giant war figure. The narrator tells the story to Barney and his mother who live in England, as they hide on a train in a tunnel as bombs are dropped around them. They’re on a train to stay with their aunt in the countryside.

Rated:  5/5 reallys - "It’s based on a true story. I liked this book, I chose it because I like reading stories based during WWII."

How to Train Your Dragon by Cressida Cowell - reviewed by Mackenzie 

Hiccup and some of his other friends want to join the hooligan tribe. So they go with Gobba to this place with a cave and they are going to try and catch their first dragon. Hiccup is leading them. The others don’t want him to lead. They try to capture the dragons up on the mountain, but one of them wakes up a sleeping dragon. When it screeches, they all wake up and they have to escape…

Rated:  5/5 reallys - "All the characters are funny and it’s just a great book."

December reviews from Albert Park

Rattled! : Maxx Rumble Cricket, bk. 1 by Michael Wagner - reviewed by Flynn (aged 8)

The book is about a boy named Maxx Rumble and he is a tremendously good cricket player. He plays against a fantastic team and they have a superstar whose name is Happy. Happy is amazing at everything but Maxx Rumble hits him for a six, but it was lucky because then he drops the catch on the boundary, it is not an easy catch.

"I rate it a whopping FIVE out of FIVE because it is exciting and tense so that is why I rate it five out of five."

(And for the last book club for the year we enjoyed the yummiest lemon slice treats that Flynn and his dad made. Thanks Flynn!)

Katy by Jacqueline Wilson - reviewed by Zoe (aged 10)

It's about a 12 year old girl and her life. She is the eldest of six. Elsie, her stepsister and Katy quarrel all the time and she also argues with her stepmother Izzi. Halfway through the book Katy loses the use of her legs on a rope swing that collapses. Because of this Katy is not able to go to Wales. Finally, Katy is supposed to go to Springfield for high school but is unable to go for a while because she is in a wheelchair and they do not have a lift. Once she is at high school she is so disappointed because she is not in her friend Caroline's (Cecy) class and almost stops being her friend. She does have another friend she met in hospital named Dexter. But in the end she goes to Springfield and everything ends up okay.

"I rate it Five out of Five wheelchairs because it was interesting."

A waltz for Matilda by Jackie French - reviewed by Emma (aged 10)

This is about a girl who lives in the city with her mum and aunt but they both die. She goes to live with her father in the country, when she gets there her dad is surprised to see her. The owner of the land next door called Drinkwater (which is huge) wants their land. Mr Drinkwater tells them to get off the land but the father said he would rather die and jumps into the lake and gets caught in weeds and drowns.

People tell Matilda to sell her land but she says never and hires someone to help her. Mr Drinkwater's son James comes along and they fall in love but he goes off to war and dies. She has a friend called Tommy who is jealous of James. I have not finished the book yet ...

Rated: 5/5 - "Intriguing! Romantic and people die a lot."

Once upon a dork : Dork diaries, bk. 8 by Rachel Renee Russell - reviewed by Georgia (aged 10)

Nikki Maxwell has an enemy named MacKenzie Hollister who absolutely hates her. One day they play dodge ball for PE and MacKenzie decides to slam the ball on her face. When she wakes up she is surrounded by munchkins. Aaaaaagh! All her original friends turn into fairytale characters. She has to find a way to get back to normal. She finally finds a way out and everything returns to normal. MacKenzie gets detention and has to clean the toilets (for slamming the ball).

Rated: 4/5 - "It's okay because they copied the Wizard of Oz, Cinderella and pretty much everything else."