Sunday 28 April 2013

Year Six favourite books and book characters

Favourite characters

At number 10, Katniss from The Hunger Games.

At number 9, Michael from Kensuke's Kingdom.

At number 8, Matilda.

At number 7, Greg from Diary Of A Wimpy Kid.

At number 6, Jack Slater (Monster Investigator).

At number 5, Joe from Billionaire Boy.

At number 4, Harry Potter.

At number 3, Horrid Henry.

At number 2, Tom Gates.

At number 1, Jim, the headlouse from Niteracy Hour!


Favourite Books

At number 10, Kensuke's Kingdom.

At number 9, Mr Stink.

At number 8, Zom-B.

At number 7, The Thornthwaite Inheritance.

At number 6, One Dog And His Boy.

At number 5, The Hunger Games.

At number 4, Horrible Histories.

At number 3, Diary Of A Wimpy Kid.

At number 2, Tom Gates.

At number 1, Niteracy Hour!

by Alisha.

Wednesday 24 April 2013

Interview with John Dougherty

When John visited West Earlham Junior School last week as our first ever Patron of Reading, he was interviewed by the school Book Club.

Hello John. Did you enjoy reading when you were at school?
Yes, I loved it. I had my nose in a book all the time. When I was reading I felt like I was in another world. Actually, it was really hard to get me to stop reading.
  
When you were a boy, what did you want to do when you grew up?
It would depend on the book I was reading at the time. If I was reading a book about a shoemaker, I would want to be a shoemaker. If I was reading a book about a spaceman, I would want to be a spaceman. I never believed that I could be a writer.
  
What three tips would you give to someone who wanted to be a writer?
Hmmm. I think tip one would be read. Tip two would be read some more. And tip three would be read, read and keep reading.
  
If you weren't an author, what would you be?
Probably still a grumpy teacher! Or maybe a singer and songwriter.
  
Do you ever pinch ideas from other authors?
No I don't, but I love reading books by other writers.
  
Are any of your books based on your real experiences?
Not particularly, although sometimes I will take experiences from the lives of my friends and family, and exaggerate them for a book. In a way, I guess a lot of my books are inspired by real events but not really based on them. I do try to make my books seem the same as real life but I haven't yet met any Greek gods or talking headlice!
  
Do you always like a certain type of book?
I think it is really important to read (and write) different types of book. My mum always says read the first few pages of a book before you decide about it.
  
Can you tell us anything about your next book?
I can tell you that it is called Stink Bomb And Ketchup Face And The Badness Of Badgers. And I can also tell you that it is out in January next year!
  

Thanks John. We loved doing the interview and are already looking forward to the next book.

Thursday 18 April 2013

Dougherty-mania hits WEJS!

We had an absolutely amazing day yesterday when John Dougherty, our Patron Of Reading, came to visit the school, and are already getting excited about the next visit! More details will follow, including some brilliant photos.

Tuesday 16 April 2013

Too many zombie books...

I realised today that I have read a ridiculous number of books about zombies over the past few months!
 
So far the list includes:
The Passage by Justin Cronin (an adult book)
The Walking Dead graphic novels
ZOM-B by Darren Shan
ZOM-B Underground by Darren Shan
The Enemy by Charlie Higgins
The Dead by Charlie Higgins
The Fear by Charlie Higgins
Death Bringer (Skulduggery Pleasant) by Derek Landy
Blood Of The Zombies by Ian Livingstone
 
I think I need to widen the range of books that I'm reading...or I could go for the 'Person who has read the most number of books about zombies in one year' world record. Any suggestions for my list?

Mr Biddle

Friday 12 April 2013

New Tom Palmer book out soon!

Do you remember last year when Tom wrote the beginning of a spooky story for us and we had a writing competition to continue it? It was about a haunted football stadium, and we had some absolutely fantastic entries.
 
Well, now Tom has finished the story himself. Ghost Stadium is out in June!
 
The advertising blurb says:
A thrilling ghost story. Lucas, Irfan and Jack want to mark the beginning of their summer holidays in style! Tricking their parents with a camping cover story, the boys sneak into the old abandoned football stadium to spend the night. Are the rumours about it being haunted true? They're about to find out!
 
 
This sounds great, and I can't wait to read it. What other books are coming out soon that you are really excited about? The next Darren Shan Zom-B book is out in a few weeks, and it can't be long until the eighth Skulduggery book. There's also a new Spooks book out soon I believe, which will hopefully be as good as the last few.