Christmas Books

Did anyone receive any books for Christmas? I was really pleased with the ones I was given (see the list below). Now I just need to find the time to read them. If you were lucky enough to get any, why not tell us what you got in the comments box (or if you bought a book for anyone as a present!).

Mr Biddle


My Christmas Books

The Printer's Devil by Paul Bajoria

The Thornthwaite Inheritance by Gareth Jones

A Greyhound Of  A Girl by Roddy Doyle

One Dog And His Boy by Eva Ibbotson

The Passage by Justin Cronin (This is a book for adults. It is set in the future, when the world has been overrun by zombie-vampires. My favourite kind of book!)

Batman: Arkham Asylum (This is a graphic novel and it is very, very scary!)

Billionaire Boy, Mr Stink and Gangsta Granny by David Walliams

I have read all three of these over the last few weeks and I have enjoyed every single one. My favourite was probably Billionaire Boy, because it was absolutely hilarious. Mr Stink and Gangsta Granny were also funny, but had some sad moments in too.

Billionaire Boy is about a boy who's father is (not surprisingly) a billionaire. He became rich by inventing an incredible new type of toilet roll (wet on one side and dry on the other). The boy has absolutely everything he wants in his life, except friends. He is bullied by his classmates at his posh school, so moves to the local school. A new girl soon joins the school and is very keen to become his friend. However, all is not as it seems...I loved the fact that this book makes you think carefully about what is really important in your life- is it having lots of money, or is it being happy with good friends?

Gangsta Granny tells us the story of a boy called Ben, whose life is extremely boring and predictable. Every Friday after school he has to go and visit his granny, who just wants to play Scrabble and make him eat cabbage pie. He hates going and never has anything to say to her. One day he finds out that his granny used to be a famous jewel thief, and together they plan a daring raid to steal the Crown Jewels from the Queen. Unfortunately (and predictably) it all goes horribly wrong. Ben soon realises that his granny is far more interesting than he ever thought and realises how mean he has been to her.

Did anyone watch Mr Stink on TV over Christmas? The book is just as good!

If you haven't yet tried a David Walliams book, I would suggest you get down to the library and get one out NOW. Once you have read one, you'll definitely want to read all the rest! If anyone has read any of these, I would be really interested in hearing what you think in the comments box below.

I'm now about to start reading One Dog And His Boy by Eva Ibbotson. I normally enjoy her books so I am really looking forward to this one. Sadly, it was the last book that she had published while she was still alive.

Mr Biddle

Mud, Sweat And Tears by Bear Grylls

Reviewed by Ben H.

This book is an autobiography of the famous survival expert Bear Grylls. In this book you will learn how Bear Grylls became what he is today. This book is really interesting and it is jampacked full of important survival tips.

I would recommend that you read this book. My favourite part is when he climbs where nobody's climbed before. Then later in his life he joins the SAS, before the big twist in his life. This book is great if you ask me.

For ages 10-15.

The World Of Norm (May Contain Nuts) by Jonathan Meres

The World Of Norm is the funniest book I have ever read! If you like Harry Hill then you would like this book because it is as funny as Harry Hill. This book this book is about a kid called Norm who's life dosen't go too well and to make it worse, his brothers keep annoying him. It is really funny so if you like funny books then I think you would LOVE this book!!!!

Bumageddon by Andy Griffiths

Reviewed by Reece, year 6

This book is amazingly gross. I really loved reading this book so if you're horrible and gross remember to look for this book. The only thing I don't like about this book is that its chapters are very short (often about one page long). This book is all about White bums who try to wipe out the Bum Fighting academy. I do really like this book this is funny and gross, my most favourite things.

Farm Boy by Michael Morpurgo

Reviewed by Laura, Year 6.

Farm Boy

Farm Boy is the sequel to the book War Horse by Michael Morpurgo. It is all about this boy (Albert's son) who visits his grandfather. While he is there his grandfather reveals his shameful secret, which is that he cannot read or write. So, the grandson agrees to dedicate a few months to teaching his grandfather, but he has to learn fast because the boy was planning to go to Australia for a few months. After the few months had gone by he was able to do it thanks to the long hours he put in.

 

When the boy is on the way to Australia he finds a letter in his bag written by his grandfather. The letter was talking about how he won the tractor. It all started when the grandfather and his son, Albert, were riding on their beloved horses. Stopping them in their tracks was Harry Medlicott, one of the citizens in the town, telling them how useless their horses were and how they should trade them for tractors. Albert, who was very defensive towards his horses, made a bet that if the tractor won in a ploughing race Mr Medlicott would get their best hay, but if he won he would come home with the tractor. Mr Medlicott agreed to this contest as well as find it quite amusing because surely two, old horses could not beat a brand, new tractor.

 

When the day came Albert prepared Joey and Zoey, the two horses, and were off. At first Mr. Medlicott was racing through, but after they had their lunch break Mr Medlicott's tractor would not start. This gave Albert a great advantage. Once he was rows and rows of fields ahead the tractor started again. Despite the delay quite shortly Mr Medlicott was in the lead. Eventually Albert could carry on no longer and his father had to finish the race. Just when were all going to lose hope, the tractor got stuck in mud. Quickly the grandfather (or now father) rushed through as many rows as possible when the judge ordered the race to be stopped. They counted up the rows and Albert and his father won! Just by one row! They went home and had the tractor ever since.

The World Of Norm (May Contain Nuts) by Jonathan Meres

Diary Of A Wimpy Kid, Tom Gates, Dork Diaries, and now The World Of Norm. This book by Jonathan Meres has recently been nominated for the Red House Children's Award, alongside Gangsta Granny and Operation Eiffel Tower. The school Book Club have just borrowed six copies of it from West Earlham Library to read over the next few weeks, so I thought I would have a look.

On the first page of the book, Norm is caught trying to use his dad's wardrobe as a toilet, and things go downhill rapidly from there. The family have recently moved house, due to Norm's dad losing his job, and Norm is not coping well with the change. Unfortunately nobody seems to notice, as they are all too worried about Norm's younger brothers.

While performing stunts on his bike, Norm's best friend, Mikey, accidentally breaks a valuable tea set that used to belong to Norm's grandmother. Very generously, Mikey's father gives Norm £100 in order to replace it. However, Norm has a far better plan, and he decides to 'pimp his bike' instead...

This book is funny from the very first line. However, later in the story, Norm becomes quite a sad and lonely figure, being blackmailed by a girl from his street. You almost feel sorry for him, but because he makes such bad decisions, a lot of his problems are self-inflicted. The books is quite long, but is an absolute pleasure to read. Apparently a sequel (The World Of Norm-May Produce Gas) is due very soon!

Mr Biddle