War Horse by Michael Morpurgo

Everyone should read…. War horse By Michael Morpurgo

It is about a boy and who’s father buys a horse called Joey but he was taken from the boy and was taken to war against the Nazi’s he goes through so much with several different riders including a Nazi officer and a young girl. In the end he is returned to his beloved owner (the boy) after he came home from the trenches!

Everyone should read this book because it is so well written and very thrilling and intense!
By horsayluvaz :)

Cherry Crush by Cathy Cassidy

It is about a girl called Cherry who lives in Glasgow but is moving down to Somerset with her Dad. She is meeting her new step family for the first time! When she meets the oldest of the Tanberry sisters she can’t help thinking that Honey dislikes her. Then she meets Shay and can’t help but like him but then she finds out that he is Honey’s boyfriend!

You should read this book, because its a really interesting and it's good for teenagers. Its one of those books that you can’t stop turning the pages!

by Bookworms

Mtrs. Wilson says - watch the book trailer here or read an extract here

Tribes By Catherine MacPhail

'Tribes' is a book about a boy called Kevin and he moves house, where he moves to there are a lot of gangs. Kevin is persuaded to join one of the gangs and this gets him into trouble with his parents and also at school. Kevin’s sister wants to be one of the gang too but there are no girls allowed in the gang.

Everyone should read Tribes because it never gets boring and it is a good book most people will be able to put themselves in Kevin’s shoes.

by Anon

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J.K.Rowling

It is about a boy named Harry Potter who discovers a diary containing powers leading to the dangerous and powerful voldemort, the most terrifing wizard of all time.

We recommend this book because its thrilling and makes you want to read more.

By Daisy and Buttercup

Kung Fu Trip by Benjamin Zephaniah

A young man looking to be a kung fu champion! He Takes a trip to China to fulfil his destiny he meets a lot of strange people on the way but will he be able to live and get to Shalion Temple?

Everyone should read Kung Fu Trip because it is like a diary he writes but it is explaining his whole journey.

By Muffin boys.

Celebrate Movember!

It's Movember and to celebrate we've put a moustache display up outside the library.

Why not read a moustached author this month!

Kurt Vonnegut - Slaughter-House-Five

Shakespeare

Ernest Hemingway - The Old Man and the Sea

Gustave Flaubert - Madame Bovary

Charles Dickens

Arthur Conan Doyle - The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes

Mark Twain - The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn

Rudyard Kipling - The Jungle Book

Gabriel Garcia Marquez - Love in the Time of Cholera

Geroge Orwell - Nineteen Eighty-Four

Print off your own moustache here!

Find out more at the official Movember website

The Hairy Truth about the Moustache

Source: datavisualized.tumblr.com via Movember on Pinterest

How to Train Your Dragon By Cressida Cowell

In the book Vikings get dragons at a young age, this is to make them a part of the tribe. But the chief’s son is very wimpy, but he ends up a hero.

 It’s very good and funny, if you like that sort of thing this book is for you!!!

By NEWO MULAC

CHERUB Series by Robert Muchamore

YOU SHOULD READ: ROBERT MUCHAMORE'S CHERUB

CHERUB is a great book/series that is about a secret organisation of kids without parents to become an agent. In the first book we are introduced to the main characters; James and Lauren. Their mother dies in her sleep and James was taken into care as his step dad only wanted Lauren. James is then drugged and taken into CHERUB were he spends his teenage years doing missions most of the time to track down criminals.

It is a great series that has great variety and comedy.

by guitarfret22

“The fallen” By Thomas.E.Sniegoski

Everyone should read “The Fallen” By Thomas.E.Sniegoski. It is about an 18 year old boy who finds his true meaning rather than ‘just a boy from Lynn’ he hits puberty for a second time when he finds his ‘wings’. Everyone should read this because Sniegoski has use brilliant world bending expressions and its just so hard to put down once you stop.

by Kreid67

John Green 'The Fault In Our Stars'

Everyone should read.. John Green The Fault In Our Stars. It’s about a girl called Hazel and she has cancer, her mum makes her go to a support group where she meets Augustus Waters.

It was really good and I now want to read some of the other books John Green has written.
by ghdugh

Mrs. Wilson says - have a look at John Green himself reading the first chapter.

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

The hunger games are set in the near future in a place called Panem (America). The main character is called Katniss Everdeen. She volunteers to take part in the games to save her little sister Primrose. In the hunger games it can end two ways, if you win you are famous if you lose it means death. The other tribute Peeta Mellark joins her in the games. Only one can survive in the arena!

 I have read all three books and they are great, when i finished one book I had to get the next one the next day. Every ending was a cliff-hanger. – owlninja1

I have read the first book and I want to read the other two books. It is very exciting and every chapter ends in a cliff-hanger. It is my type of book because it has adventure, death, love and comedy. I highly recommend it. – redangrybird10

The Hunger games is a book about a girl that’s sister is chosen to fight to the death in games. There is a boy and a girl that are chosen to fight in the games for their districts, there are 12 districts. The girl is called Katniss Everdeen and she volunteers to take her younger sister’s place. Katniss and the other boy have to fight to death in an arena. This book is a really good book we highly recommend this book.
By Gary and Jacko

The Hunger Games is about 12 districts that every year have to give a male and a female tribute to fight in an arena last person standing. The story is about a girl called Katniss Everdeen. She goes to the games does well in training and has a good shot at winning. But will she win? 
You should read this book if you’re interested in action, adventure and survival. It is a page turning thriller that you can’t put down. The reason we thing you should read this book is its exciting fun and interesting. It has a very good storyline and is well structured. So we’d advise you to read it!
by Guess Who

You should read... The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins.
What is it about? A young girl and a young boy, Katnis and Peeta are put forward to fight in the annual hunger games but they are facing certain death.
Why should you read it? This book is a fantastic read and I would recommend it to anyone that loves constant suspense and hates putting the book down.
 By Conzah

Suzanne Collins wrote the book 'The Hunger Games'. It is an adventure type book and full of action. It’s about 12 districts that have been separated from the Capitol (the city) and made to work and every year a boy and girl from every district gets taken into a battle field to fight for their lives against each other. Everyone from the ages 12 to 18 get their names drawn from random to join in on the Hunger Games. They have to get people to like them before hand called sponsors so they get gifts from them that they need to survive like medical equipment. During this the boy and girl from district 12 form a close bond. But only one can survive, who will live, and who will die? 
We think you should read this book because it draws you in to keep on reading and it is very well written. There are also some tear jerkers. 
 By Sona

Armistice Day Reading Ideas

Armistice Day (Remberence Day is the same date) is on 11 November and commemorates the signing of an agreement to end the First World War in 1918.  Known at the time as 'The Great War' it was the first global war and resulted in the death of more than 37 million people - mostly young men. There are lots of excellent teen books written about the time including:

War Horse by Michael Morpurgo
Rememberence by Teresa Breslin
War Boy by Michael Foreman

Or read some of the adult ficiton  -
All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque (written by a German vetran of World War 1)
Testament of Youth by Vera Brittain (a biography of a teenage girl and her part in the World War 1)
Birdsong by Sebastian Faulks (a love story that follows the hero in his journey in the trenches)

For more ideas try the JYHS Library recommendations on Pinterest

Bond, James Bond.

 With the release of Skyfall this week in cinemas we've decided to go back to the source and read Ian Flemings original books. Lucky for us then that the library has a full set of the books and audio CDs!

The book cover art is by Michael Gillette - which one do you like best?

Happy Hallowe'en

Looking for a spooky read? Why not try some classics (which you can get as a free e-book downloads)

Grimm's Fairy Tales by Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm

(if you haven't read the original tales you really need to give them a go, much darker and scarier than the Disney versions)

The Legend of Sleepy Hollow by Washington Irving

(an American classic - a headless horseman haunts a small town) 

Dracula by Bram Stoker

(the original vampire story - read the primary source for the modern tales)

The Works of Edgar Allan Poe

(try the Tell-Tale Heart - in The Simpsons, Lisa made a diaorama of this. Or go have a read of his classic poem The Raven - Bart and Homer performed a verison of that)

Frankenstein by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley

(caught Frankenweenie in the cinema? Check out the orginal reanimated monster)

Happy National Poetry Day

This year the theme is 'stars' so here is my favourite star related poem.

 She walks in Beauty
 by George Gordon Byron, Lord Byron. (1788–1824)

She walks in beauty, like the night
Of cloudless climes and starry skies;
And all that 's best of dark and bright
Meet in her aspect and her eyes:
Thus mellow'd to that tender light
Which heaven to gaudy day denies.

One shade the more, one ray the less,
Had half impair'd the nameless grace
Which waves in every raven tress,
 Or softly lightens o'er her face;
Where thoughts serenely sweet express
 How pure, how dear their dwelling-place.

And on that cheek, and o'er that brow,
So soft, so calm, yet eloquent,
The smiles that win, the tints that glow,
But tell of days in goodness spent,
A mind at peace with all below,
A heart whose love is innocent!

Want to read some more star poems check out the official National Poetry Day site and the Scottish Poetry Library site

You can also treat yourself to the iF Poetry App An interactive anthology it features 270 poems with readings by Helena Bonham Carter, Bill Nighy, Harry Enfield and Tom Hiddleston, and illustrations by Natasha Law

Question - What books have you loved and which ones just disappointed?

 Question - What books have you loved and which ones just disappointed?

I'm going to share with you five books I felt had a rubbish ending and five that despite not looking great from the cover or blurb were in fact brilliant.

 [Warning Spoilers Ahead]

 

5 Books Not Worth Finishing

It was the best of starts.
It was the worst of ends.
All of these suffered from exactly the same problem - very enjoyable till the last few chapter/s.  

1. The Lovely Bones by Alice Seabold Murdered girl looks down from afterlife and sees how family are coping after her death - ok. Murdered girl takes possession of living girl so can sleep with 'first love' - not ok (my issue was simply that it was ridiculous wish fulfilment and I didn't like the moral questions it raised about having sex while using someone else's body either).

 2. The Desperate Journey by Kathleen Fidler Family flee highland clearances - ok. Entire rest of lives fitted into a single chapter - not ok (I have an imagination, I can think about what happens. You want to tell me the rest of their lives write another book, otherwise leave it to my imagination).  

3. Bubbles all the Way by Sarah Strohmeyer Hairdresser come reporter solves crimes - ok. She is actually European princess and everyone around her are bodyguards etc. - not ok. (Really, really not ok - it wasn't even a 'well now you mention it there were all those clues in the text'. Nope it was out of the blue, incongruous and just downright infuriating.)  

4. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling Boy wizard fights to save the world - ok. Last chapter tells rest of life - not ok (I have an imagination... wait did I already have this rant?)  

5. Vampire Diaries: Dark Reunion by L.J. Smith Girl in love with Vampires fights evil - ok. Girl having been killed comes back to life - not ok (I know it doesn't sound so bad but it was a seriously lame explanation, just man up and accept you killed her off and it's a tragic ending.)

 

5 Books Worth Reading

It was the poorest of pitches.
It was the best of reads.
For this selection I'm opting for books that I was hesitant to read but turned out to be very enjoyable.

1. Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier Girl meets handsome rich guy, marries him, returns to his place and finds everything still under the influence of his previous wife - Rebecca. It was great, totally worth reading and nowhere near as worthy as I feared.  

2. Heartburn by Nora Ephron The story of a woman deciding if she should leave her husband after he cheats on her while she’s pregnant doesn't sound like a load of fun. Yet it reads like you are chatting to a friend and was a joy to read.  

3. The Specialist by Charles Sale A short book about a man who makes outdoor toilets. It is wonderful, you should totally read it.  

4. Adolf Hilter: My part in his downfall by Spike Milligan A short biography full of funny stories and wit. Since it's about Milligan being called up to fight in WWII, and his training before deployment, there are some heart tugging moments (not as much as the sequel - you should read that as well).

5. Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry by Mildred D. Taylor A black girl grows up and begins to realise that not all is equal in 1933 Mississippi. It's an enjoyable and thought provoking read that I can't believe took me so long to crack open.

Sugar and Spice and All Things Nice...

Looking for a girly read? try -

The Princess Trap by Kirsten Boie

Withering Tights by Louise Rennison

Miss Understanding: My Year in Agony by T.S.Easton

My Scary Fairy Godmother by Rose Impey

Pink by Lili Wilkinson

Guyaholic by Carolyn Mackler

Mel Beeby Agent Angel: Feeling the Vibes by Anne Dalton

Angel Cake by Cathy Cassidy

Feed your brain - zombies are starving!

Looking for Zombie reads? Check out the JYHS Library recommended read list over on Pinterest

The display featured:

Draco Malfoy from the Harry Potter Series by J.K.Rowling

Prince Caspian from the Narnia Series by C.S.Lewis

Jasper Hale from the Twilight Series by Stephanie Meyer

Clark Kent from the Superman DC Comics

Peter Parker from the Spiderman Marvel Comics

Alex Rider from the series by Anthony Horowitz

Legolas from Lord of the Rings by J.R.R.Tolkien

Atticus Finch from To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

Claudio and Benedict from Much Ado About Nothing by Shakespeare

Mo from Inkheart by Cornelia Funke

Jon Snow from Game of Thrones by  George R.R.Martin

Horatio Hornblower from the series by C.S.Forester

Robbie in the Georgia Nicolson series by Louise Rennison 

Westley from the Princess Bride by William Goldman

John Watson from the Sherlock Holmes series by Arthur Conan Doyle 

Rochester from Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë

Mr. Darcy from  Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

Damon Salvatore from the Vampire Diaries series by L.J.Smith  
Lord Asriel from Northern Lights by Philip Pullman