Book Reviews

Waterstones Synopsis:

During her lonely childhood in Shanghai, Adeline Yen Mah wrote adventure stories to escape from her terrible step-mother and cruel siblings. The characters she created often became more real to her than her own family. In Chinese Cinderella and the Secret Dragon Society, Adeline tells the story of Chinese Cinderella, a young girl who, after being thrown out of her home, has no choice but to go out and seek her own destiny. Soon she meets up with a group of children, all orphaned but each from a different background, who live with an old lady called Grandma Wu. Chinese Cinderella, or CC for short, decides her future after consulting an ancient book which helps to show her the way forward. And her choice takes her on a mission to save the lives of others. Based on a true-life incident during World War II. CC and the others bravely rescue a group of American pilots whose plane crashed after a bombing raid on Japan. Although her father is looking for her, CC knows that she can never go back to live with her cruel stepmother, and now there is no turning back.

This book follows CC, a girl whose step-mother makes her life miserable and whose father never seems happy. She frequently finds comfort in visiting Big Aunt, but she has to return to her home to care for a sick elderly lady. CC is lost, and by chance stumbles upon a circus act. One of the performers hands her his business card and the following day she seeks this group out. What she finds is The Secret Dragon Society – masters of kung fu and lending a helping hand. With intense lessons and training, CC is about to enter a whole new world: one where she ends up helping American soldiers hide from the Japanese.

This is a children’s book, but I enjoyed reading it. It didn’t take long to end and the story was engaging. I liked CC and her perseverance, and I liked Grandma Wu. She was wise, but comforting and loving. The family she had formed from the orphans was lovely to read about.

This is a book full of imagination and action. The description of the kung fu is wonderful, and just reading it I was left in awe. It seems to take such talent and Yen Mah caught the essence well. I liked that she explored how kung fu was more than fighting, and looked at the mental aspects of the skill as well.

It seemed that a lot of research went into this book. There are fairly long sections explaining things such as Buddhism, and the how The Society functions and makes decisions.  These were important to the book but I did sometimes feel a bit bored reading them after a while. I thought they were perhaps a bit too long-winded.

Overall, this is not a bad read. Even though it is a children’s book I think adults will enjoy it too. There is adventure and action in this book, as well as family love and friendship. It was not a hard read and I enjoyed it.

3/5

Waterstone’s Synopsis:

The most loved of all the Chronicles, this wonderful tale can be enjoyed again and again. Lucy steps into the Professor’s wardrobe but steps out again into a snowy forest. She’s stumbled upon the magical world of Narnia, land of unicorns, centaurs, fauns! and the wicked White Witch, who terrorises all. Lucy soon realises that Narnia, and in particular Aslan, the great Lion, needs her help if the country’s creatures are ever going to be free again.

This is the second book in the Narnia series, and my personal favourite. This is the first time the children: Peter, Susan, Edmund and Lucy enter Narnia. Awaiting them are many adventures, including running through the countryside with the Beavers, and fighting alongside Aslan.

I loved this book. It is a children’s book but fully enjoyable for an adult. Lewis is a wonderful writer. He pulled me in and made me want to follow the story. It did not matter that I already knew this story, it was fun to read it again. Lewis is descriptive and writes wonderful adventures and amazing characters.

It is hard to pick a favourite character. I think the Beavers probably win. I found it highly amusing that Mrs. Beaver wanted to take things like a portable oven with her as she fled from the White Witch. On the other side, I really didn’t like the White Witch. She was rude, short-tempered and deceptive. I loved that Lewis wrote her so well that I had such strong feelings towards her.

It is clear that this book is based on Christianity and the Resurrection of Christ, but this did not spoil the book for me and I thought that Aslan was a great character.

Even for adults, this is an amazing story. For children, I think they will love it.

5/5

Amazon synopsis:

The Wonderful Adventure of Uncle Wizard is a fun-packed adventure story for children under the age of 10. It features over 40 fantastic illustrations of Uncle Wizard’s adventures, from mixing spells in his wigwam in Happy Apple Lane, to facing the Thunder Troll in the Land of Forever.

Uncle Wizard is the not the greatest wizard in the world. In fact, when it comes to magic it’s fair to say Uncle Wizard has his problems. His spells always go disastrously wrong. He’s turned his television into a penguin, accidentally sucked all the clouds out of the sky with an enchanted vacuum cleaner, and no one has ever quite recovered from his unfortunate ‘turnip’ spell. But, when the most evil wizard to ever live, Grim Wizard, kidnaps all the Great Wizards and captures Wizard HQ, only Uncle Wizard can save the world.

Together with his trusty friend, Bob the Pigeon, Uncle Wizard sets off to the Land of Forever in search of the only spell that can defeat Grim Wizard. There he encounters hoardes of hideously fanged creatures; Water Dragons and the Ghost Giant of Haunted Hill, and a host of magical delights; Moon Camels, the Waddling Rocks of Boom Mountain, and a beautiful witch…

Can Uncle Wizard find the spell to defeat Grim Wizard and save the world? Find out in The Wonderful Adventure of Uncle Wizard.

This is a novel written by Richard Anderson and illustrated by his brother. With over 40 illustrations the book is neatly broken up and being a children’s book this adds to the magic and imagination.

The star of this book is Uncle Wizard – a wizard who is not very good at magic. He reminded me a lot of Rincewind out of the Discworld books. His sidekick is a pie-loving pigeon called Bob. When the Grim Wizard defeats the Great Wizards it is down to Uncle Wizard and Bob to save the day, with the help of the Witch and the Land of Forever.

There are a lot of adventures in this book, which I found a quick and easy read. There is excitement and some amazing characters. Anderson has a wonderful imagination and this is very visible throughout the book. This is a children’s book and that is obvious as you read it, but for those under the age of 7 or 8 I would read it first; I thought there were parts which would scare younger children.

I thought this was well written – descriptive and gripping. The writing is simple and perfect for children. For those of an older age they will love this book. There are some amazing characters in the book, such as the moving rock. There were also some amusing movements, like when Uncle Wizard turned the river into an ice slide and went skating.

I did however find Bob the pigeon irritating. His trademark is his love for pies, but I found that annoying me after a while. That said, this was an alright book and I think children will enjoy it.

7/10

Publisher: Rules Review Publishing Limited

Website: http://www.unclewizard.co.uk/#

RRP: £5.99

Synopsis from Amazon:

When Kendra Tamale returns to England from Australia she rents a room from Kyle, a divorced father of two, and begins a new job. She’s looking forward to a fresh start and simple life. Kyle’s five-year-old twins, Summer and Jaxon, have other ideas and quickly adopt Kendra as their new mother – mainly because she lets them eat marshmallows for breakfast. Kendra eventually becomes a part of their lives, even though she’s hiding a painful secret that makes her keep everyone – especially children – at arm’s length. Then Kendra bumps into the man who shares her awful secret, and things fall apart: she can’t sleep, she can’t eat, she’s suspended from work, and the kids are taken away by their mother. The only way to fix things is to confess to the terrible mistake she made all those years ago. But that’s something she swore never to do …

This is a truly beautiful book which touched a whole range of emotions. This is chick-lit, but with hard issues that add amazing depth to this book. Kendra is good at running away. Something bad happened to her when she was twenty. It changed her. She became someone who didn’t really feel, she became jumpy and she locked away her feelings. When a chance to leave England arose, she leapt at the chance, and off to Australia she went. But she fell in love over there, with someone who she couldn’t have. So she returned to England when she could, and move into the studio in the Gadsborough’s back garden. She has the shock of her life when she wakes up on the first morning to see Summer and Jaxon, six year old twins standing in her flat. She soon grows attached to them, as she realises their life is falling apart because their parents are getting a divorce. For someone who wanted to keep away from children, she quickly becomes their “other mumma”, and can’t live without them. So when their mum kidnaps them she is distraught. alongside that, she has to face up to what happened to her when she was young, and the reason why she left Australia.

There is so much addressed in this book. Ashlyn, the twins mother is an alcoholic, there is attempted suicide, rape and divorce. Brave issues to tackle in a novel, but Koomson handled all of them well, and she brought believable and realistic conclusions to each issue. She dedicates sections and memories to each issue and storyline so they are thoroughly examined. This in effect means Koomson can look into these issues properly, but it also allows the characters to develop in their own right.

I loved the characters, and Koomson writes in such a way that I was completely in tune with them. When the twins were upset or scared my heart broke for them; when they went missing I felt Kendra’s pain and anguish – this is just a well written novel. I loved the twins. They were easily my favourite characters. They were so vulnerable and so easy to love. They were just gorgeous children.

I really enjoyed this book. It was a gripping book that I didn’t want to put down. Well worth reading even if chick-lit is not a genre you usually enjoy.

9/10

Synopsis from Amazon:

Book five in the Chronicles of Narnia sees the intrepid Edmund and Lucy returning to Narnia–with their beastly cousin Eustace in tow–on the ship The Dawn Treader where their old friend Prince Caspian is searching for lost friends of his father’s. As the children take to the Eastern Seas in their hunt for the friends they find themselves embroiled in a dangerous adventure that leads them once again into the arms of Aslan the lion.

This is the fifth book in the reading order of The Chronicles of Narnia. In this book we only see two of the childern – Edmund and Lucy, as they go on their final journey through Narnia. The adventure starts in their Aunty’s house in Cambridge, in a room with a picture of a boat hanging up. On careful examination they discover the boat is Narnian, and all of a sudden they are in the sea, and not alone, they have their hideous cousin Eustace with them! They are rescued by Caspian and set sail in search of seven friends of Caspian’s father, who had been out-lawed by his evil uncle. Their adventures lead them to pirates, dragons, sea people and of course, Aslan. They travel to the end of the world, and see all sorts of magic, goodness and evil.

I enjoyed this book. Not my favourite of the series but still enjoyable. This book is full of fantasy, with the dragons and sea creatures, and all sorts of other magical beings. It was a good book, I had fun reading through it.

I was a bit disappointed it was only Edmund and Lucy this time, but I was aware that would be the case. I liked having Caspian in the book though, for a bit more consistency. We only really get fleeting glances at Aslan, but he is always there to teach them a lesson and help them out. I didn’t really have a favourite character this time round.

Overall, I found this book to be enjoyable like the others but not the best. I think both adults and children will like this story. It was easy to read and had its fair share of adventure and fantasy.

7/10

Synopsis from Google Books:

Synopsis:

An orphaned boy and a kidnapped horse gallop for Narnia… and freedom.

Narnia, where horses talk and hermits like company, where evil men turn into donkeys, where boys go into battle, and where the adventure begins.

During the Golden Age of Narnia, when Peter is High King, a boy named Shasta discovers he is not the son of Arsheesh, the Calormene fisherman, and decides to run far away to the north – to Narnia. When he is mistaken for another runaway, Shasta is led to discover who he really is and even finds his real father.

This is the third book in the Narnia series – if read in chronological order. This is a fun children’s book that takes us back to the wonderful land of Narnia. Peter is still on the throne and Aslan is around. Shasta is an orphan, running away from a fisherman’s life, helped by Bree, a horse from Narnia, also running away. On their adventures they are pushed together with Aravis and her horse and they see all types of adventure on their bid to get to Narnia – including lions, deserts and war.

I really enjoyed this book. Lewis is a great writer, engaging his audience. This is a book primarily aimed at children, and it is easy to see why they are popular, however as an adult I also enjoyed this book, and recommend it to adults too.

The characters were great. Aslan is still based loosely on God and this could be seen through the way he guided the children and his other actions. He is still my favourite character, however I loved Aravis, a strong willed girl who took no nonsense and Shasta as he grew up and became noble.

The whole book was engaging and fun. It was exciting and easy to get into. Short and sweet, a book well worth reading.

8/10

Synopsis:

It was Friday night. Mr and Mrs Darling were dining out. Nana had been tied up in the backyard. The poor dog was barking, for she could smell danger. And she was right – this was the night that Peter Pan would take the Darling children on the most breath-taking adventure of their lives, to a place called Neverland, a strange country where the lost boys live and never grow up, a land with mermaids, fairies and pirates – and of course the terrible, evil, Captain Hook. Peter Pan is undoubtedly one of the most famous and best-loved stories for children, an unforgettable, magical fantasy which has been enjoyed by generations.

This book started off with much promise. We meet Peter Pan, the boy who never grows up and his companion, the moody fairy, Tinkerbell. After coming to the Darling’s nursery and taking Wendy, John and Michael, we are taken into the magical world of Neverland, with the Redskins, the Never Bird, pirates, including Captain Hook and Mermaids. There is deceit, fun, love, adventure and battles.

This book didn’t quite live up to my expectations however. This maybe because I am very familiar with the Disney version; yet Pan was arrogant, and not very likable, and Tinkerbell wasn’t friendly either. There were wars, and actually several deaths, which surprised me as this is a children’s book.

Barrie’s writing was a novelty at first. He writes like we are there with him watching the events unfold. He communicates like we are having a conversation with him about what we are watching. However, by the end of the book I was a bit annoyed by this.

The fairy tale wore off as I was reading too, and by the last 60 pages I was just wanting to finish the book. I had high expectations for this book, and sadly they were not met.

6/10

Synopsis from Amazon:

‘You’ve never heard of The Tales of Beedle the Bard?’ said Ron incredulously. ‘You’re kidding, right?’ (From Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows) Published by the Children’s High Level Group in association with Bloomsbury Publishing Plc, The Tales of Beedle the Bard is the first new book from J. K. Rowling since the publication of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. The Tales of Beedle the Bard played a crucial role in assisting Harry, with his friends Ron and Hermione, to finally defeat Lord Voldemort. Fans will be thrilled to have this opportunity to read the tales in full. An exciting addition to the canon of Harry Potter, the tales reveal the wonderful versatility of the author, as she tackles with relish the structure and varying tones of a classic fairy tale. There are five tales: ‘The Tale of the Three Brothers’, recounted in Deathly Hallows, plus ‘The Fountain of Fair Fortune’, ‘The Warlock’s Hairy Heart’, ‘The Wizard and the Hopping Pot’, and ‘Babbitty Rabbitty and her Cackling Stump’. Each has its own magical character and will bring delight, laughter and the thrill of mortal peril. Translated from the original runes by Hermione Granger, the tales are introduced and illustrated by J. K. Rowling. Also included are notes by Professor Albus Dumbledore, which appear by kind permission of the Hogwarts Headmasters’ Archive. CHLG is a charity co-founded by J. K. Rowling and Emma Nicholson MEP and campaigns to protect and promote children’s rights and make life better for vulnerable young people. The Children’s High Level Group is a charity established under English law. Registered Charity Number: 1112575.

If you are a Harry Potter fan, this book is for you. It contains five wizard fairytales, and notes made by the Professor Albus Dumbledore. Like with Muggle fairytales, they contain moral messages and words of wisdom to the budding wizard. They are short and thoroughly enjoyable. The notes made by Dumbledore had me chuckling – what a great character! I loved how the books linked back to the Harry Potter series, making the book a must-have for Potter fans.

My favourite Tale was “Babbitty Rabbitty and her Cackling Stump“- very funny. A great washer woman. A fiery character who taught a valuable lesson and had a genius laugh.

As ever, Rowling writes in an engaging and fun way, and although this is predominantly a child’s book, adults will appreciate the book too, with some subtle adult humour and comments. This was a gripping and fun book to read, and I loved the illustrations, done by Rowling herself. This is a great companion to the much-loved Harry Potter books, and I highly recommend this little gem.

10/10

This was an interesting book to read, and as I sit here writing this book I’m still trying to decide what I make of it. Here is the synopsis from Amazon:

Celia is the struggling single mother of an exceptionally, angelically beautiful child: nine-year-old Rachel. All too aware of the precarious balance of the life she has built for the two of them, she worries about her daughter’s longing for the father she has never met. When Rachel disappears one summer night during a blackout, Celia is stricken with guilt and terror about what her choices might now mean for her daughter’s fate. The media coverage of the abduction is tremendous, running nationwide. Closely monitoring events is Ron, an appliance repairman who lives in the neighbourhood. Though Rachel is a stranger to him, he convinces himself that she is his responsibility. His feelings for her are at once tender, misguided and chillingly possessive. Tapping into the fears that lie just beneath the surface of modern urban life, HELPLESS is a haunting and provocative story of heart-stopping suspense.

The beginning of the book had me gripped and I got half way through the book quickly, however my interest started to wain around then and it was a bit of a struggle to finish the book.

Gowdy addresses some difficult issues – single parenting, child abduction and paedophiles. I felt she looked at these issues well, there was nothing offensive or heavy about how she dealt with these. I felt it was good to write a book about these things as they are a real threat in our society.

I have mixed feelings about the characters. I liked how Gowdy looked in depth at the Rachel, who went missing and Ron, the man who felt responsible for Rachel. However, others key characters such as Celia the mother and Mika the landlord and trusted friend lacked a little depth and I felt I did not know them as well.

This isn’t a long book, and was quite a good read. I didn’t like the ending, I do not think it was realistic. There were many other ways Gowdy could have ended the book, I just wasn’t convinced by it.

6/10