Itch

 

Itch by Simon Mayo

Published March 1 2012 Doubleday

 

"The explosive adventures of an element hunter."

 

Wow. Lets just take a moment to appreciate THAT cover! POW! Such an attractive design that will grab JF-YA readers of both genders. Their first question (and mine): What is an element hunter?

 

Itchingham Lofte is science obsessed. When he is not causing small explosions in his bedroom, he is tracking down elements from the periodic table. So far his growing collection has been stored under his bed but after losing his eyebrows in an 'experiment', Mum insists it is all bound for the shed.

 

After accidentally poisoning his class at school, Itch thinks it might be time to take a break from his elements but then something comes to him that changes everything...he buys a rock. A very special, highly-prized RADIOACTIVE rock.

 

The rock takes Itch and his cousin Jack on a race against time culminating in a fight for their lives.

 

An interesting, action packed, edge-of-your-seat, pulse-raising read. Science in fiction? Brilliant!

 

If you loved this, the adventures of Itchington Lofte continue in Itch Rocks! - out now.

 



Songs of Willow Frost

 

Songs of Willow Frost by Jamie Ford

*PROOF*

Published 13 September 2013 Allison & Busby

 

WARNING: You may need tissues when reading this book

 

William Eng was left at the Sacred Heart Orphanage in Seattle when he was seven years old. As a Chinese-American boy in the 1930s, he had no hope of adoption but plenty of memories of his mother; his ah-ma.

 

On a birthday trip to the movies, William sees on screen a beautiful Chinese actress named Willow Frost and is convinced she is his mother. Determined to find her, William runs away.

 

Ford deftly weaves the past and present together to form a very touching, poignant novel about love, loss and family. It is a wonderful portrayal of life for Chinese immigrants and Chinese-Americans at this time.

 

Songs of Willow Frost is a very special novel.   

The Absolutist

 

The Absolutist by John Boyne

Published 5 July 2012 by Black Swan

 

I like to read historical fiction and John Boyne has produced a stunning First World War novel encompassing the horrors of war and the fragility of humanity.

 

Tristan Sandler travels to Norwich to deliver a pack of letters to Marion Bancroft, sister to his comrade Will. The year is 1919.

 

In 1917, Will Bancroft laid down his gun in the trenches of Northern France and declared himself not just a conscientious objector to the war, but an absolutist. He was shot at dawn.

 

This novel is fierce and powerful, heart-wrenching and tragic. A must read.

Whisper

 

Whisper by Chrissie Keighery

Published 1 July 2012 Templar

 

Whisper is a YA coming-of-age novel with a difference.

 

Demi contracts meningitis as a teenager. She recovers but she is left profoundly deaf. Her life is changed forever.

 

The novel focuses on how Demi learns to communicate again, to cope with a new school and make friends in a silent world. Alongside witnessing Demi's struggle, we see the affect of this life changing event on her family and friends.

 

Chrissie is Australian and a few Aussie expressions do creep into the novel which brought back afternoons of Home & Away! I felt it helped with the setting and the character's voice. I felt an emotional tie with Demi as I read her story.

 

Whisper is a very readable novel. I would recommend this book for a leisure read but it would also work well as a PHSE tie-in in the classroom.

Lockwood & Co: The Screaming Staircase

"Hauntings are our business..."

 

Lockwood & Co: The Screaming Staircase

*PROOF*

Published 29 August 2013 Doubleday

 

I have two confessions...

 

1) I have NEVER read a Jonathan Stroud book before. I am aware this is a shocking error and shall have to be rectified before I end up in library purgatory.

 

2) I am a complete scaredy cat and do not read ghost stories.

 

So, when I received a review copy of Lockwood I was...unsure to say the least, but I thought give it a go - expand your reading horizons, and I am SO glad I did.

 

Ghosts are real. The Problem is widespread with many reports of Visitors and fatal cases of ghost-touch. In order to deal with The Problem, agencies started springing up, staffed by...well...children to assist the haunted. One such agency is Lockwood & Co. The book follows the Lockwood team on several of their cases.

 

I loved loved loved this book! It is exciting and unputdownable. The writing is utterly brilliant and so engaging I was drawn into the story from the start. The characters are fab, each with their own talents and strengths and equally needed to succeed as a team. I particularly like the charismatic Lockwood who I see as a young Cumberbatch!

 

The book was scary, with several scenes that left me wincing with quite vivid mental pictures - but as I said, I'm a big softy. I cannot wait to read more in this series, Lockwood is one of my best books of the year.

 

Thank you for the review copy, I'm off now to seek out Bartimaeus!

 



 



Langdown Manor

 

Langdown Manor by Sue Reid

Published 6 September 2012 Scholastic

 

After Penelope's mother dies, her father sends her away from India to stay with relatives in England.

 

Terribly homesick, Penelope soon realises only her small cousin Clemmie is keen to know her. Her aunt is cold and cousin Arabella is spiteful. Penelope finds solace in riding her horse, Starshine and soon finds herself falling for groomsman Fred.

 

Set in alternating chapters - one for the upstairs goings on and one for the downstairs servants, this historical Downton-esque teen fiction is a good read and shows well the social difference between the family and staff, the rich and the poor.

 

I look forward to reading what happens next. 

America Pacifica

 

 

America Pacifica by Anna North

Published 4 August 2011 Virago

 

A new ice age has come.

 

The world is freezing.

 

People are dying.

 

A new island is discovered hundreds of miles off America's coast, unaffected by the freezing conditions gripping the planet.

 

Ships set sail, making for the island of America Pacifica and a new life there under the governorship of Tyson, but not everything is how it was imagined in this dystopian thriller.

 

Darcy's mother, her protector in this harsh world, is missing. Will Darcy find out what happened? Will she find her mother? Or will Darcy be forced to face life on America Pacifica alone?

 

I really enjoyed reading America Pacifica and hope there will be a continuation to this gripping novel. A terrific debut from Anna North.