Our visit from John Dougherty by Megan and Madison

John Dougherty is our Patron of Reading. When he came to see us last week, it was the best day of the year. He sang silly songs and made our day much happier. It was a real treat for us to work with him as he made us laugh so much. We wanted his visit to last forever.

He came and did an assembly first of all and read us some of his new book which is called Stinkbomb & Ketchup-Face and the Badness of Badgers. It was very funny. He then sang us some songs and talked to us about which books he liked. He told us a poem too but I can't remember that so well.

He then went to all the classes and talked to them about reading. He knows lots of famous authors like Helena Pieilichaty who is our class author of the term. He said he was very proud to be our Patron of Reading. When he was in 4JB he sang a song about pants. My face went red when he sang it.

The next day he did another funny assembly and sang a song about needing to go to the toilet. Some parents came to watch the assembly and they laughed at his songs too. He then said why everybody should read lots of books. He gave out prizes for the Spooky Story competition and also for the John Dougherty Reading Trophy. There were two winners, a girl from Year Three and a girl from Year Five. We had 150 people vote on who they thought should win it. Lots of the teachers nominated children too.

After that he did some selling books and signing them in the library. We could choose what colour pen we wanted him to use. When John had to leave it was an awful sight and we nearly cried because of it. We want him to come again soon.

Here are some quotes from some adults:

"It was a fantastic experience for the children to work with a real author. They loved it!" Mr Edge

"John Dougherty was the best author I have ever seen in a school!" Mr Arden

'I am not a Loser' series by Barry Loser- spelling and punctuation by Jim Smith

My name is Madison. I love reading and here is my first book review.

Barry Loser is a boy who really hates his surname. Everyone at school calls him loser. Barry likes to say 'keel' instead of 'cool' because he thinks it sounds better. He's usually nice although sometimes he can do something mean, but not often.

These are the funniest books ever to be written in the whole wide world. The books are so funny, if you read them you will huff and puff with laughing afterwards and they will lift your heart. They really are that funny. I love these and you could too if you tried them, so have a go and read them. Be careful though because you might not stop laughing.

If you like Wimpy Kid and Tom Gates books, well stop reading them NOW because these are funnier.

Stinkbomb & Ketchup-Face and the Quest for the Magic Porcupine by John Dougherty

We have just finished reading 'Stinkbomb & Ketchup-Face and the Quest for the Magic Porcupine' in class 4JB. It is written by our Patron of Reading, John Dougherty. We are really lucky to have read it, as it is not for sale in the shops yet.

This is what we thought:

I liked it when everybody kept landing on Malcolm the cat's tail and he kept saying 'Ouch!'. William

My favourite bit was when Stinkbomb and Ketchup-Face waited for ages at the traffic lights. This book is mad! Thomas

I liked it when the badgers threw them in the river. Molly

I love it when they have to sing the library song and make it up at the last moment, it was awesome. Megan

Dear John Dougherty, I hope you are pleased with yourself. I laughed on the bus for two days and couldn't even go to sleep. I really enjoyed it. Jodie

I loved it when the badgers kept passing notes saying 'Pretend you're a badger'. Elise

I was not expecting the badgers to be in disguise as raccoons. Don't ever trust the badgers! Jaya

My favourite bit is when they are at the traffic lights for about fifty chapters. Mollie

The library song that they had to make up was really good. The Magic Porcupine wasn't really much good at magic. Oliver

My face was hurting at playtime because I was smiling so much. Kayley

Definitely the best bit was at the traffic lights. They were there for ages. I liked it. Andrew

This book was so funny that I literally exploded. Tamzin

This book was so funny that I almost exploded. Lauren

This book was so funny but I didn't explode. Gemma

I loved the library song, my face went bright red when my teacher sang it. Jersie

How can they wait at the traffic lights for 37 chapters in a book? You'll have to find out. Tyler

Fabulous, spectacular and amazing. Madison

I loved it when Malcolm had his tail stood on all the time. Kristopher

Definitely better than David Walliams. Mr Arden

The Secret Message by John Townsend

The Secret Message by John Townsend

Well, it starts with a boy called Sam and a photograph of another boy. The boy and the photograph look like twins so it's very mysterious. When the picture was first taken, it was in the olden days. Maybe Sam and the person in the photo are related? There is also a strange diary. Freddy was a soldier in the First World War and he is an interesting person. There is a secret message that you have to work out but there is a moon alphabet to help you decode the secret message.

As well, there's extra things at the end which are good as well. One of them is called Secrets of the Moon which if you're stuck cracking the code, it's in the Secrets of the Moon. I think that's a little bit cheating, but if you're very stuck it's OK just to look at it for some help with cracking the code.

This a great book, recommended for ages 8+, and if you like war and army books this is definitely the book for you. My favourite part was when I had to crack the code, because it took a whole day for me to work it out. My favourite chapter was Sam's amazing discovery of the secret message.

This is a great year for The Secret Message to come out because it is exactly 100 years from the start of the First World War. It is good for people who don't know much about it to learn more, because it is such an important war.

Tyler Peel

Some of the brave soldiers from the war

Ten Word Book Reviews

We have written some ten word book reviews of books that we enjoyed over the Christmas holidays. It's a lot harder than it looks!

The Invisible Boy by Sally Gardner: Boy goes to the moon. Parents get gold letter. Great.

Jiggy McCue by Michael Lawrence: This book is the most epic book I have read.

Tom Gates by Liz Pichon: Funny, makes me laugh, lots of cool doodles. Amazing. Imaginative.

You're A Bad Man Mr Gum by Andy Stanton: I think writing a review in ten words is really.
 
How To Train Your Dragon by Cressida Cowell: It is the best book. I like it loads. Awesome.

Demon Dentist by David Walliams: Funny. Silly. Teeth falling out. Revolting. Does it end happily?

Dog Star by Jenny Nimmo: Capturing, dog, emotional, lovely, sweet, star, gold, sparkle, adorable, light.

Funniest Stories by Paul Jennings: Weird, unique, funny. Stupid. Some of them are just great.

Dork Diaries by Rachel Russell: It is really good because it is silly and fun. 
 
Stinkbomb & Ketchup-Face And The Badness Of Badgers by John Dougherty: Funny. Silly songs. Blueberry jam. Very naughty badgers. Quite hilarious.

Dragon Rider by Cornelia Funke: Fierce dragons, fun to read, scary plans, rainbows and fire.

Crash Dive by John Townsend: Tense, full of action. Barney Jones. Fast. A great read.

Gangsta Granny by David Walliams: Nanny robber. Boy helping her. Queen and guards involved. Silly.

Heard It In The Playground by Allan Ahlberg: Poems, lovely songs, children awesome, funny, sad, the best book.

Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney: Hilarious, shouty, silly, anxious, furious, mostly at school. So funny.
 
Little Animal Ark, The Midnight Mouse by Lucy Daniels: All about friendship. If you love animals, you'll love this.