Boy kills Man, Matt Wyham

In the streets of Columbia, the poverty is so high that rich gang leaders can hire kids to do their ‘dirty work’. And they do just so, getting kids to kill and paying them next to nothing.

            Alberto and ‘Shorty’ have known each other since they can remember, and the two kids have all day to kill in the streets of Medellín. But when Alberto comes home with a wad of cash and a new jacket, Shorty is suspicious, and obviously asks questions. Questions Alberto won’t answer. And then, Shorty gets a glimpse at Alberto’s gun.

            A great book, about love and hate, with an ending just as shocking as the subject itself. Matt Wyham obviously put a lot of thought into this book, as the Shorty’s feeling are described in such a way that you feel he thinks he’s right, but you also have doubts about the way he considers his surroundings. 8/10

The book Thief, Markus Zusak

It’s WWII Germany, and young Liesel has been moved from the comfort of her house, never to see her mother again. Instead, she adapts to her surroundings, and makes friends with the many people she lives with. And, she steals. She steals books.

            Another interesting point, maybe a reminder to Zusak’s creativity, is who narrates the story. Death narrates the book, and keeps a sense of humour into who he is. He describes young Liesel’s life, and what happened when the bombs came.

            An extremely gripping book once you get into it, despite a loose entry into the story. Death sometimes overdoes his point, in such places as his description of colours, when Death could go straight into the story. Also a book with very poignant moments, which makes the reader think of the consequences of war. 8/10

The life of Pi, Yann Martel

Pi is a sixteen year old Indian boy, whose father manages a small zoo. The family is rather successful, and Pi, being the open boy he is, submits himself to all the religions possible. Soon, however, their harmonious life is spoilt; they have to go to America and continue the zoo there.

            The boat they are on sinks, and Pi is the only one lucky enough to survive. One small problem is that the lifeboat he is on is also occupied by some other passengers: a hyena, a zebra, an orang utan and a tiger. Once the tiger disposes of the others, Pi finds himself alone with the dominating animal, securing a strong friendship, and ensuring a few good laughs along the way.

            The life of Pi is such a well written novel that it sticks to reader’s heart, and could very well pass for a true story… It shows a human’s decision to live, despite little hope of survival, and the bond two creatures can make. 9½/10

Does My Head Look Big In This?, Randa Abdel-Fattah

A great read for boys and girls alike, ‘Does my Head Look Big in This?’ describes the life of a 16 year old Muslim girl’s school year, when she decides to wear a Hijab to her private school in Australia for the first time. Relying on her four best friends, faith in Allah and hope that she can still attract the school’s cutest boy, she has more than your average school life…

            Personally, I really liked the book as it gives you a good insight of what it’s like to be a Muslim girl in some parts of the world, when people think it’s your fault for all the terrorism and attacks… It also tells you how Muslims feel throughout Ramadan, and the problems of living in a terrorist fearing country.

            A point that the writer wasn’t trying to hit, was the act of stubbornness created around the girl; she wants to wear her hijab and goes through complications because of it when she hadn’t worn it for all of her previous school years.

            But this book shows that a good topic and a sense of humour is a winner. 7½/10

           

Northern Lights (The Golden Compass), Phillip Pullman

Lyra lives in Jordan collage, and loves it; the regular hordes of gypsies, the large, towering gates, the stone walls, the roofs, and the irregular visits from her uncle, Lord Asriel. So when the Master of Jordan tells her it’s time to go, Lyra is shocked and is ready to stand her ground. But, learning that she is going to the North with a kind lady she met the day before, Lyra’s fighting spirit deserts her.

            There have been rumours of ‘gobblers’, creatures which take children, and the rumours are conveniently backed up by children disappearing. And it’s up to Lyra to find a way to stop them…

            An awesome book, well worth the read, and definitely a future classic. There was a film made based on the book in 2007, and the producers obviously knew a winner when they saw one. I could go on about how good this book is; I read it in three days. 9/10.

Man vs Beast, Robert Muchamore

If humans and animals are equal, wouldn’t be okay to murder one human if such and action would save many animals? That is what the AFM, Animal Freedom Militia is asking, and without an answer, proceeds into harming the many workers at one of the biggest testing factories in the world. Even Mac, an animal rights fighter and the chairman of Cherub, thinks that the AFM has stepped over the line. So three agents are sent in to take action.

            Another branch of Animal rights fighters is Zebra84, a group which has decided to bark but not bite; a group which would harness no violence and would instead stage protests in front of animal labs and such. Cherubs are used to eating meat and wearing leather, so being banned from that and not allowed to eat foods such as egg and milk is a real shock.

            Another great book, and a real gripper. More feeling is inserted, as Lauren states how useless she feels as the other agents make incredible progress, and she shows heart towards people who were injured by the AFM. 8/10.

The Recruit, Robert Muchamore

James Adams is used to a life of luxury: every Christmas, he would write down everything he wanted and his mum would steal it for him. Yes, steal. She was a thief. But one day, James gets into a fight with a girl, and she ends up with three stitches down her cheek. Her big brother comes to beat James up, and James can’t find a good explanation to tell his mum why he’s coming home with a black eye. He won’t have to explain to her…

Cherub is a spy division which recruits orphans with no family bonds, trains them to the limit, and puts them in missions adults would have no chance of solving. Because they’re kids. And no one suspects them. Basic training is supposed to be the hundred worst days of your life: you train till you’re close to tears, and then train some more. And if James survives that, there’s an even bigger surprise waiting…

A great start to a great series. 8/10.

The Sleepwalker, Robert Muchamore

 

When an Anglo-Irish Airliner crashes in the sea, all 345 passengers are killed. Police investigating can only draw a big blank, so when a boy calls the boy with supposed information, only to draw back at the last moment, it’s added to the piles of useless information drawn from the crash hotline. But Cherub thinks differently. They are ready to send in two agents, but for one drawback; psychiatrist reports state that the boy has a history of problems and only wants to draw attention to himself. But it’s the only lead and Cherub send in Lauren and Jake. Anyone who has read previous Cherubs will know that that’s a bad couple. That’s because the two kids hate each other bad. Because all Cherub agents are kids. Spy Kid, buffed up.

            This book was worth the wait, and great, but the story holds no real change to the Cherub community, as some other books have. Muchamore has, however, shown that not everyone gets in Cherub, a thought some readers may have thought when reading previous books. The book has some funny twists to it; a math whiz working in ‘chicken delight fast food’ with his ex… (hint hint!) And the mission is a deep one, unlike the rather disappointing ‘Dark Sun’.

            Another up, for cherub fans, is that Mac comes back, and, don’t miss the official website: www.cherubcampus.com ! Another Cherub book, another standard raiser! 8 ½ out of 10.

Truckers, Terry Pratchet

 

Truckers is an exciting story of gnomes trying to find their world, their star of freedom. There are many characters, and I can’t really classify them, but the most exciting gnome is Angalo, a gnome always eager to try new things. My favourite character, however, is Masklin, seeing as his speeches are so revealing and teaching.

            Masklin also makes parodies of famous speeches, such as Neil Armstrong’s “it’s a small step for a man, but a huge leap for gnomekind!”

            He also says things we can use in our everyday lives: “The way to deal with an impossible task is to chop it down into a number of merely very difficult tasks, and break each one of them into a goup of horribly hard tasks, and break each one of those into tricky jobs, and each one of them…”

            Though this book is typical Terry Pratchet (so worth reading), it may be a bit of a bound if you are used to reading Artemis Fowl or books similar to that.

The Master of Go, Yasunari Kawabata

Go is a strategic game in which two players must place their stones on a Go board in such a way that they surround the enemy stones, and eliminate them.

Cast of characters:

The reporter: he tells this true story and writes for a newspaper named Nichinichi Shimbun.

 

The Master of Go: the master of Go. Respected by all other players in spite of his low health.

 

Otaké: The Master of Go’s final opponent, and a player of the seventh rank.

 

The story begins in the 1930s and ends in 1940, when the master dies. It is not in chronological order because of the fact that the story begins when the match ends, goes to the master’s death, then ‘resumes’ to the beginning of the match, only then gradually advancing to the end. I was told by ‘Dizzy’ that the story actually is only 6 months long; I’m not sure, but i think it is very likely. I will only give a 5/10 star rating for this book because it completely lacked in action: I’m not the kind of person to like this book. And so the book was ‘boring’: an average verse would look something like this:

 

“Fierce”, said Otaké, wiping his forehead and hair with a small towel. “And Go is fierce too.”

            “Up to Hokoné we’ve come, we’ve come, the steepest of them all…”

With time out for lunch, Otaké took three hours and thirty five minutes to play black59.