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Why we love reading in 4JB

Our first class book of the year

In 4JB, the first book that we're reading as our class story is Fortunately The Milk by Neil Gaiman. It's brilliant. So far it has included spaceships, aliens, pirates, dinosaurs and a carton of milk. We can't wait to hear about the vampires!

After we finish it, we are then going to read Stinkbomb & Ketchup-Face by John Dougherty. What are you reading in your class? We'd love to know.

Punctuation by User Design

Normally I read stories and poems but my teacher said because I was a really good writer, would I read a book all about punctuation? I did and I enjoyed reading it. Did you know that there are 21 punctuation signs? Most of them I knew (full stops, question marks, apostrophes and lots more) but there were some I didn't know. The one that I didn't know but I liked the best was called the pilcrow. You could use it when you start a new paragraph. It looks like a backwards P.

This is called a pilcrow

I also learned about curly brackets, square brackets and a few more. There is also a difference between a dash and a hyphen. This book is the book to read if you want to know about how to get better at using punctuation. It is not too tricky to understand (although some bits are) and the pictures are quite weird but funny to look at. It was a lot more interesting than I thought it might be.

Thank you for reading my review. If you have any questions about this book you can ask me on the book blog. You can also find out more about the book at www.userdesign.co.uk.

Megan

Mr Biddle's holiday reading

I don't think I've ever read as many books in a month before (apart from, perhaps, when I was seven and discovered The Famous Five series by Enid Blyton for the first time). My pile of books to read became a shelf of books to read, and was seriously in danger of becoming a room of books to read, so some serious hours needed to be put in to try and clear the backlog. There won't be detailed reviews of each book, but here's what I've read recently:

The Foreshadowing by Marcus Sedgwick
This is the first book I've read by Marcus Sedgwick. He was such an engaging speaker at the Norfolk Children's Book Festival that I thought I had better try out a couple of his books. Delighted to find out that he writes equally engagingly. Set in the First World War, about a girl who sees deaths before they happen. With her brothers heading off to the front line, this can only lead to trouble!

Shiverton Hall by Emerald Funnell
If you are in Year 5 or 6 and love a good ghost story, then this is definitely the book for you! I believe the second book in the series is out soon.

Auslander by Paul Dowswell
A great historical story, set in World War Two. A young Polish orphan is sent to live with a powerful German family. Just a pleasure to read, from start to finish (although quite harrowing in places). Because I enjoyed this so much, I've ordered the Powder Monkey series by the same author, which tells of the adventures of a boy on a 19th century ship.

Another Me by Cathy MacPhail
This is a genuinely creepy book! A girl is being haunted...by herself. All of Cathy MacPhail's books are enjoyable and this is no exception. A film version is being released, but currently only in Spanish.

The Fallen by Charlie Higson
The fifth book in this brilliant series about zombies. Not my favourite of the series, but still a great read.

Noughts & Crosses and Knife Edge by Malorie Blackman
I really do think every child should read this series by the Children's Laureate before they leave school. Every book is just wonderful and carries such a powerful message. I'm now reading them for the third time (there are four books altogether in the series, plus a few short stories).

 
Young Samurai by Chris Bradford
I would have loved to have discovered these books a few years ago as I know I have taught several pupils who would have adored them. So far, I've only read the first in the series but will be keeping an eye out for the others.

The Maze Runner by James Dashner
A bit like The Hunger Games. But only a bit. A group of children trapped in an enormous maze have to try and escape (there's obviously far more too it than that!). Quite violent and disturbing in places.

 
Last Stand Of Dead Men by Derek Landy
Book 8 out of 9. I will genuinely be quite sad when this series ends, as I have enjoyed the Skulduggery Pleasant books more than almost anything else over the last couple of years. Delighted to see Tanith Low back too! About time.

I've also been catching up with a few books for adults recently:

The Memoirs Of An Invisible Man by HF Saint
When I was at school, everyone was reading this book (teachers included). I read it again recently, for the first time in about twenty years, and it was just as good as I remember. The author, Harry Saint, made so much money from this that he never wrote another book and gradually disappeared from public life. I guess he became invisible...Never watch the film by the way, it's awful! Truly.

 

The Road by Cormac McCarthy
Bleak. Depressing. Heart-breaking. And unputdownable.

The Ocean At The End Of The Lane by Neil Gaiman
It's by Neil Gaiman. It's therefore brilliant. Although not as brilliant as some of his other stuff.

Next on the pile is the A Dance With Dragons, the fifth book in the Game of Thrones series by George RR Martin (who apparently stole his middle initials from the author of The Hobbit, JRR Tolkien). I've also got Itch Rocks by Simon Mayo to read and then after that, who knows...

Actually I know, because I've got a big order with Amazon ready to be delivered!

Our summer reading by West Earlham Junior School

Lots of children in the school are planning to take part in the Summer Reading Challenge. We are going to be reading thousands of wonderful books over the holiday, so here are a few that we are particularly looking forward to (including some of the staff picks).

Tamzin- The Chronicles of Narnia by CS Lewis

Jaya- Dork Diaries series by Rachel Renee Russell

Mr Hodder- Demon Dentist by David Walliams

Mr Arden- Young Bond series by Charlie Higson

Michael- Journey To A Different Dimension by Demian Schatt and Stan Schatt

Miss Delaney- On The Road by Jack Kerouac

Oliver- World Of Norm: May Need Rebooting by Jonathan Meres

Megan- Another Me by Cathy MacPhail & Chitty Chitty Bang Bang: Over The Moon by Frank Cottrell Boyce

Mrs Peel- The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

Kayley- Tom Gates: Genius Ideas by Liz Pichon & Diary Of A Wimpy Kid: Cabin Fever by Jeff Kinney

Connor- Percy Jackson series by Rick Riordan

Mrs Holmes- A book about cross-stitching

Gemma- Koala Calamity by Jonathan Meres

Miss Etheridge- Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert & Life After Life by Kate Atkinson

Jersie- Girls FC series by Helena Pielichaty

Mr Biddle- The Bunker Diary by Kevin Brooks & Auslander by Paul Dowswell

Casey- The Magic Faraway Tree by Enid Blyton

Young Werewolf by Cornelia Funke

You should really read Young Werewolf, it is such a good book. Me and Jersie absolutely love it, we think it is the best.

Here is the blurb... When Matt and his best friend Lisa encounter a strange beast in a dark alley, Matt's life changes forever. As the moon rises, Matt looks in the mirror and sees flashing yellow eyes and a lot of hair. His voice is now a growl and his breath stinks. Even Lisa doesn't have an answer for this crisis. And as full as the moon approaches, the wolf inside grows wilder and wilder.

Reviewed by Honey.