Have you ever wondered what squirrel poetry is like? Well neither had site member esmethesleepycat before they wrote a marvellous review of the squirrel-centric comic book Flora and Ulysses by Kate DiCamillo. This story follows Flora who tries to stop her mum from hoovering up Ulysses the squirrel.
"Before I read this book I had never thought about squirrel poetry or what it would be like … I think that my favourite bit in the story was the moment when Ulysses the squirrel saved himself … Often it it a boy who is the main character but in this book it's different; the main person is an intelligent and caring girl who really loves comics. By the way, squirrel poetry is really good and so is this book!"
More anthromophic elements feature in our next book, a fantastic review by family reviewers Marie, Cleo and Cayman of The Adventures of Mr Toad by Tom Moorhouse. This twist on classic children's book characters follows Mr Toad as he embarks on new adventures with Badger, Ratty and Mole.
"What a delightfully written story. Mr Toad sings a lot through this book and it was enjoyable to read to my children using various voices and expressions. Beautiful colourful pages kept the children enthralled … [the book] reminded me of my own childhood reading Mr Toad's adventures."
Then, to steal a phrase from lifeissweetinbooks, we moving on to an amazingtremendouslyfantastic review of The 5th Wave by Rick Yancey. In this dystopian future, Cassie is on the run from beings who look human and have scattered Earth's last survivors.
"Cassie is such an inspiration to read about, she lets nothing get in her way of achieving what she wants and she is also a great sister to her brother Sam. I also love Evan, he has many layers, his story is very intriguing and interesting, why can't he be a real person? … Overall the book has everything you would need in a book. Rick Yancey thank you for writing this book. I highly recommend this to all booklovers and if you haven't read it – well you should be ashamed."
Continuing the dystopian theme, Maddy from our Bookaholics reading group wrote a brilliant review of Runners by Ann Kelley. In this novel, as mankind struggles to rebuild society following devastation by climate change and overpopulation, Sid and his sister Lo are on the run from the government, who have outlawed their very lives.
"This book was good, however it lacked a big focus point as there were a few things that surprised you but there was nothing that stood out. This book had a good story line and it had enough information to keep you a little bit interested to finish it but it needed more shocking moments. The characters in this book were the kind that made you want to step inside the book and help them out, so from this point of view it was well written. For this book I rate it an 8/10."
Another critic from our Bookaholics reading group, Hetty, penned a superb review of Alone by Robert J Crane. This book follows 17-year-old Sienna Nealon who runs away from a mother who keeps her captive only to discover she has mysterious powers and is wanted by a shadowy agency called the Directorate.
"This book is definitely at the top of my list of favourite books. I would say that this book is aimed at girls aged 12-17 and I would rate it 10/10. If you read this book and fall in love with it, don't worry as there are 9 more books in the series!"
Finally, we end this week's roundup with a terrific review by Rosa.Reader of Harper Lee's classic novel, To Kill a Mockingbird. Set in early twentieth century America, this story follows a lawyer defending a black man on the charge of assaulting a white girl.
"This is a book which you will always end up reading. Whether you're forced into it by your parents, you read it for school or you just want to see what the hype is (basically me). Whatever the reason, it's just a book that you will always end up experiencing. So what exactly is so amazing about this book? To be honest it took me a while to find out … The ending of the book was quite surprising too, when a character I'd almost forgotten made his long-awaited appearance. Though I found my mind wandering off at points so I had no idea what I'd just read, I did quite enjoy this book, and thought it truly was very clever."
That's it for our roundup this week. A big thank you to our reviewers for writing such outstanding reviews (like always!) If your review has been featured above, be sure to email the Book Elves and we will send you some free books in the post!
