Book Review :: The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas by John Boyne

The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas by John Boyne
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I read this in a single sitting - kind of got engrossed in it. I had seen many recommendations that it was one of those books that ought to be read, and yes, I agree.

I thought it would be interesting to see how a child interpreted this book compared to an adult. There was lots of unspoken messages which I think an adult would pick up, and likewise, knowing what we most know about history, it was perhaps clear where the book was going to end once Bruno made the decision he made. I could forsee the inevitable, and in some respects I did forsee the decision he made, because of the friendship he had made.

I suppose I have one slightly nagging doubt - in reality would a child have been so niave? So unknowing about what was happening? Especially the Father's Commandant position...I understand how it works as a story (and it works beautifully) but... I dunno, perhaps it was just an era where you didn't question your parents like today's 9 years old do (or at least I did as a 9 year old)?.


Overall though I thought the book was a wonderful portrayal of innocence and friendship and would recommend it to anyone.


View all my reviews

Book Review :: Disconnected by Sherry Ashworth

Disconnected by Sherry Ashworth
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I have to admit that I don't tend to read YA books. When I was a teen 20 years ago I'm not sure this genre was as big as it is now. Yeh we had Judy Blume or Sweet Valley High but it seemed there were less YA books than there are now...praps it's just me? Anyway, I digress - I don't tend to read YA because I sort of feel I have "been there, done that" and now it's time to move on. But, out of curiosity and giving things a go I decided I'd take a look at my local library.

I picked a couple of YA books, this included. What appealed was that it wasn't about fairies, Vamps, wizards and the paranormal. Just not my thing but seems to be very popular.

This book is about 'real' teen life, although it didn't portray my life! I liked the way the book was written - the lead was essentially writing letters back to all the people who were involved in a particular period of her life when she (in modern parlance) was discovering herself. She was studious but sat in class and realised it was all too constricting. At a party she happened to meet a lad who was also discovering his identity and who he was. They hooked up and hung out, although it wasn't quite as simple as boyfriend / girlfriend. Hanging out with him introduced her to a new set of friends and one girl particularly, but she had issues.

The story reveals the main characters relationships with the other characters and discovery that they all had secrets to hide. The ending was a little "safe" but I suspect this might be due to the market.

Whilst I thought the book ok it was full of teen angst and like I say "have been there, done that" so it became a little, not exactly irritating but like I was glad the book was short and with big writing!







View all my reviews

Taking the Pledge

:: The E4 promo shot ::

Not I'm not joining a Sorority...much as they look fun from the recent E4 programme...

:: CILT logo ::

 I took a pledge to read the printed word. As the site says, e-books etc are fine but it's important we keep reading "real" books and "real" newspapers. I stopped for a while to do a little Kindle-ing but then I realised, because my budget is severally limited, that I was missing out on recent releases. So I revisit the local library...and was pleased with what I found.

So that sounds like I'm just using libraries for selfish reasons but actually I would hate to see libraries (and bookshops) disappear. My local libraries are the hub of the community. I know I have spent many a happy hour looking through the shelves. It can be a refuge. I have also spent  a lot of time working in libraries. The peace and quiet are great to get some work finished.

But libraries are also there to send  a message to kids which says "reading is cool" and not something just for clever people. I have worked with children with literacy issues who didn't like reading and saw no value in it. But progress could be made if a topic grabbed them. Then they wanted to know more and the library (as well as the internet, TV etc) was a really good starting point. When they recognise that there are books on a range of issues and interests then they seem less afraid of reading.

Afternoon indulgence

Just visited the local library. Not been for 3+ months due to kindle adoption. But I decided to visit because I keep hearing so much about Suzanne Collins' The Hunger Games so thought I should read it. I expected there to be at least one copy but instead there was a 30 person waiting list across my County library system.

So I had to choose some alternatives. More on that later when I have my laptop in front of me. But before I go...here's one of my guilty pleasures. Costa hot chocolate, plain not cream. Did a take away as I needed to get out of. the carpark in time. Liking the Christmassy cups.