Review | Riddle of the Runes by Janina Ramirez

Riddle of the Runes

by Janina Ramirez

My Rating: 

Alva rushes through the trees in the dead of night with her sniffer wolf, Fen. Being out alone when there's a kidnapper on the loose is reckless, but if she ever wants to be an investigator like her Uncle Magnus, she'll need to be first to the crime scene. But what Alva discovers raises more questions than it answers, drawing her into a dangerous search for truth, and for treasure.

Amazon | Book Depository | Waterstones | Wordery | Oxford University Press

I received a copy of Riddle of the Runes from Oxford University Press in exchange for an honest review.

I'm a big fan of Janina Ramirez, she's such an enthusiastic historian and her documentaries are always excellent, so when I heard she'd turned her hand to fiction to take the fun and fascination of history to a younger audience I knew I had to see for myself what it was like. I got in touch with Oxford University Press and they very kindly sent a copy out to me to review.

Riddle of the Runes is set in the 8th century, I believe in Denmark, and follows twelve year old Alva who longs to solve mysteries like her Uncle Magnus. In her Viking community justice can be brutal, but Alva's uncle preaches a justice system that involves seeking clues and proof, even if it goes against what appears to be a sign from one of the Norse gods, and Alva is eager to learn from her uncle in her beloved father's absence. When some mysterious Englishmen appear, claiming to have lost precious treasure that seems to have ties to Alva's missing father, only to then go missing themselves, it's up to Alva and her uncle to solve the mystery.

More than anything this book is a fantastic introduction to the Viking era, particularly for children (though I imagine a lot of adults could learn a thing or two, too) and I appreciated that while Ramirez didn't shy away from how brutal these communities could be, she didn't look at them through the eyes of someone from the 21st century who would consider them brutal. We see this community and culture through Alva's eyes, it's her community and her culture, so while it's very different to how we live now it's never treated as wrong or degraded in any way. I could see this book sparking a real interest in this era of history for a lot of children, and I hope schools up and down the country put it in their libraries.

Having said that I do think Ramirez is still finding her feet as a novelist, which is to be expected when this is her debut. Teaching children a lesson or encouraging their interest in history is brilliant, but I think there were times when the writing and the story suffered so Ramirez could fit in a fact; she's still learning how to balance the fact with the fiction.

My only real complaint would be that I would have liked more of Alva's mother, Brianna. I thought it was strange that she was referred to as Brianna throughout the novel when, though it is in third person, the story is from Alva's point of view. She referred to her as 'mother' when she spoke, so why not refer to her as 'mother' in the description, too? Children aren't idiots, they'd be able to figure out who she was - especially as there's a character list with accompanying illustrations at the beginning of the book, so they wouldn't be confused if Alva referred to her as 'mother' while Magnus called her by her name.

I was also surprised to discover that Alva's mother was Irish, thus Alva's red hair, and that she was once an Irish princess who left Ireland to be with Alva's father. I understand this is a children's book and I'm probably just being a history snob, but I guess we're just going to gloss over the fact that many Irish princesses were taken as slaves against their will during this era? Alva's mother and father clearly love each other so there doesn't seem to be anything sinister going on, but I'm surprised this was a choice Ramirez chose to make to perhaps bring up the Vikings' ties to Ireland.

All that aside, this is a very sweet debut with a lot of heart. Ramirez is clearly passionate about her subject and I look forward to seeing what Alva does next.

Review | The Two Princesses of Bamarre by Gail Carson Levine

The Two Princesses of Bamarre

by Gail Carson Levine

My Rating: 

When plague strikes Bamarre, Princess Addie must fulfill an ancient prophecy.

Brave and adventurous, Princess Meryl dreams of fighting dragons and protecting the kingdom of Bamarre. Shy and fearful, Princess Addie is content to stay within the safety of the castle walls. The one thing that the sisters share is their unwavering love for each other.

The tables are turned, however, when the Gray Death leaves Meryl fatally ill. To save her sister, meek Princess Addie must find the courage to set out on a dangerous quest filled with dragons, unknown magic, and death itself. Time is running out, and the sisters' lives—and the future of the kingdom of Bamarre—hang in the balance.

Amazon | Book Depository | Waterstones | Wordery | HarperCollins

The Two Princesses of Bamarre is one of those books I've seen so many people rave about as a childhood favourite, but it's one I never came across as a child. My earliest taste of Gail Carson Levine's work was in my last year of primary school when I came across a copy of Ella Enchanted in the library, but even though I liked it I never sought out any of her other books. Recently I was in the mood to dive back into Middle Grade, so I figured it was about time I picked up a copy of this one.

Had I read this when I was little I would have absolutely loved it and I'm pretty sure I'd still be looking back on it fondly now as a must-read fantasy novel for younger readers. As an adult reader, though, I didn't love this one as much as I was hoping. Obviously I'm not the target audience for this book but I do believe that a good Middle Grade novel should be able to be enjoyed by children and adults because children deserve books that don't talk down to them.

That's not to say I didn't like this book, because I did, but so I can end this review on a high I'm going to talk about what I didn't like first. One of my biggest issues with the novel was that it seemed to drag on for a long time for a novel that's really quite short, and I think this is a case where the blurb contributed to that feeling for me. We know from the blurb that Meryl is brave and Addie is not, but that ultimately it's Addie who's going to have to go on an adventure to save Meryl and all of Bamarre when Meryl falls sick, and I felt like quite a large amount of the book had passed before Addie had even come to the realisation that this task was going to be hers. I appreciated that we weren't thrown immediately into the action and we had a chance to learn about the sisters and their kingdom, but when Meryl fell sick the plot seemed to stagnate for me before Addie finally set off on her quest.

A lot of that probably also has to do with the part of the novel that most surprised me, and that's that Meryl and Addie don't remain children. We're introduced to them as children, but if I remember correctly it's not until Addie turns 16 and the Gray Death has already killed a lot of people in Bamarre that she leaves home. I love well-written child narrators, either in MG or adult fiction, and because this is a novel aimed at younger readers all about being brave and how being brave isn't the same as not being scared, I thought it was a shame they were given a 16 year old heroine rather than a heroine closer to their own age. Particularly because Addie and Meryl continued to sound a lot younger than 16 to me.

I can understand the logic behind Addie being a little older so that it's feasible that she would be allowed to go on her quest alone, except it makes no sense to me that a kingdom with one heir to the kingdom on her deathbed would allow their only other heir, who has no experience outside of the castle walls, to go on such a dangerous quest alone. I know it's a fantasy novel and we have to suspend our disbelief, but for me there's a difference between suspending disbelief and disregarding belief altogether. What baffles me is that Addie gets permission from her father to leave - I honestly don't understand how that man is still king, he's useless - when I would have found the whole scenario far more believable if she'd just snuck out instead.

All that aside, there's so much more I liked about this book. Firstly, any book that focuses on the love between sisters is a winner in my eyes, and I loved that even though she's a princess and heir to Bamarre Meryl starts out as more of a 'Prince Charming' in training with her love for knights, heroism and violence, but she's ultimately the princess confined to her bed while her cowardly sister is forced into that 'Prince Charming' role to save her.

Coward seems like such a cruel word, but it's the best way to describe Addie and that's no bad thing. Addie is terrified of everything, especially of not having Meryl around anymore to help her feel safe, so it's far more satisfying to see her face her fears as it would have been to watch Meryl. Addie has to learn to be Addie, and not just Meryl's sister. I personally loved that Addie was genuinely cowardly so, when she was brave, it was a very different kind of bravery to what Meryl's would be. Her friends give her various magical objects before she leaves so that she has some kind of assistance when facing all of the dangerous creatures that roam the wilds of Bamarre, all of which were so fun and imaginative, and I loved how Addie used them to both help herself and to fight and outwit her enemies.

Her greatest enemy in the book is a dragon who takes her captive, and while Meryl probably would have slain it at first sight (or tried to) Addie learns its weaknesses and eventually escapes the creature with her brains rather than her fists. There's a whole pantheon of dragons in fantasy literature, but this one is probably one of the most sinister ones I've come across and definitely one I'll remember!

I think what I enjoyed most about this book, though, was the ending. There's very little I can say without spoiling it completely but I think it would have been easy for Levine to give us a perfect, sunshine and daisies ending even though this is a story about a kingdom that has been suffering at the hands of a dreadful disease for years. Instead I thought she made some very brave choices and I really admire her for making them, and it's because of the ending that I understand why this MG novel is a favourite of so many people, particularly people who read it during their childhood.

Did I love it? No. Would I recommend it? Definitely.

Review | Gaslight by Eloise Williams

Gaslight

by Eloise Williams

My Rating: 

1899. All Nansi knows is that her mother disappeared on the day she was fished out of Cardiff docks. She can't remember anything else. Now, with no other family to turn to, she works for Sid at the Empire Theatre, sometimes legally, sometimes thieving, trying to earn enough money to hire a detective to find her mother.

Everything changes when Constance and Violet join the theatre, both with their own dark secrets. Nansi is forced to be part of Violet's crooked psychic act. But it's when Constance recognises her, and realises who her mother must be, that Nansi's world is turned upside down forever. She is soon on the run for her life and she will have to risk everything if she's going to find the truth. 

In Eloise Williams' wild, desperate world, with its unforgettable cast of characters, Nansi is a brave, complex heroine who will break your heart and make you cheer.

Amazon | Book Depository | Waterstones | Wordery | Firefly Press

It's been the longest time since I read any Middle Grade and Gaslight has been on my radar for a while now after I kept seeing it everywhere last year. Firefly Press is a Cardiff-based publisher of MG and YA fiction, set up by a lovely lady I worked with during my first job in publishing, so I'm really pleased I finally picked up one of the Press's books and Gaslight has definitely reawakened my love for MG and made me want to pick up more from Firefly Press in future.

As you all know I love my historical fiction and, when it comes to MG historical fiction, the Victorian era is such a wonderful introduction to historical fiction and to history - especially as, in the UK at least, the Victorian era is usually touched upon in primary school. What I particularly enjoyed about Gaslight, though, is that it's set in Victorian Cardiff rather than London or even Edinburgh, which are both cities far more commonly explored in Victorian era novels. I lived in Wales for a few years and worked in Cardiff for two of those years, so I found it really immersive to be pulled into a story that mentioned landmarks I'm familiar with in a more personal way than the typical mentions of Big Ben or Buckingham Palace.

Our heroine Nansi lives and works for Sid in Cardiff's Empire Theatre, unable to remember anything about her early childhood or what happened to her beloved mother before she was pulled out of Cardiff docks. She's not the only one who's found herself working for Sid with nowhere else to go; Sid is something of a Fagin-esque character, but personally I find Fagin far more likeable. Nansi is a lot of fun to follow around, her character really jumps off the page, and Gaslight feels like a tip of the hat to Dickensian novels such as Oliver Twist and David Copperfield.

But because we have a leading lady rather than a young boy, there were elements of Gaslight that reminded me of Sarah Waters' Fingersmith, particularly as Nansi is privy to the darker underbelly of Victorian society. Sid isn't always sinister, there are times when he seems like something of a pantomime villain, but Eloise Williams isn't afraid to go to some dark places and there was one scene in particular where Sid was genuinely frightening and he felt like a real threat. His relationship with Nansi was written really well, too; she read like a young girl who'd grown up learning how to handle him depending on his various moods, meaning Nansi is a survivor in every sense of the word.

What I was most pleasantly surprised by was that Nansi's search for her missing mother didn't irritate me. That makes me sound like a stone-hearted trout, I know, but often when a character really wants something, particularly in fiction aimed at younger readers, we hear about that desire and nothing else and the story soon grows boring and repetitive. I thought Williams balanced Nansi's search for her mother really well with the rest of the novel, so it kept moving forward and I felt as though we learned something new every time Nansi mentioned her mother.

That being said, it was the pacing in the end that prevented me from giving Gaslight more than three stars. That's not a bad rating - I liked this novel a lot and whether you're a child or an older reader who enjoys MG I'd definitely recommend this novel (as long as, if you're a younger reader, you're comfortable with the darker elements) - but it definitely could have been higher if I hadn't felt as though the second half of the novel was a lot more rushed than the first half. Everything was solved a little too easily for my liking, and considering the risks Williams took earlier in the novel the ending lacked the same grit that the beginning had. And considering everything he does, I don't think Sid really got his comeuppance in the end.

If you're in the mood for some MG then Gaslight is definitely one I'd recommend, especially if you'd like to try some UK-based MG that isn't set in England!

This Week in Books | 14/03/18

This week I'm joining in with Lipsy @ Lipsyy Lost & Found to talk about the books I've been reading recently!

Now | Considering I only gave the first two books in the Mistress of the Art of Death series two stars, it's a wonder I'm reading another book in the series. Usually if I don't love a series I won't bother with the rest of the books, but this particular series is a really easy read and, while I don't think Franklin was the best writer around, I do enjoy her characters and I'm never going to let the chance of reading books centred around women in the 12th century pass me by. I'm actually really enjoying Relics of the Dead so far, especially as this book is set in parts of the UK that I'm familiar with and includes legends I'm familiar with, so it's strangely comforting for a book about potential murder...

Then | For the first time in years I read some Middle Grade and I loved the experience of it. I need to read more children's books and now I have a small selection waiting for me to make my way through this spring. Gaslight was another one that was comforting and familiar, being a Victorian era novel set in Cardiff, the city where I used to work. Look out for my review!

Next | Carrying on with the historical theme - because let's face it, when am I not reading historical fiction ? - I'm feeling myself drawn towards Mistress Firebrand at the moment. Sometimes I like to indulge in a bit of historical romance, and this novel, set during the American Revolutionary War, follows a playwright who once wrote comedies and now writes plays for the Rebels under a pseudonym that have landed her on a British hanging list.

What have you been reading recently?

Review | Malkin Child by Livi Michael

Malkin Child

by Livi Michael

My Rating: 

Wouldn't you like to save your family, Jennet?

Jennet's family all believe they are witches. Other folk think they are, too. But 1612 is a dangerous time to be a witch. When her family are imprisoned and put on trial in Lancaster Castle, Jennet's evidence will help decide their fate.

On the 18th of August, 1612, Anne Whittle, Elizabeth Device and James Device were tried at Lancaster Castle on charges of witchcraft. All three of them were found guilty thanks to the testimony of a nine year old little girl called Jennet, Elizabeth's daughter. The next day eight more were tried, including Alizon Device, who was Jennet's sister, and they too were found guilty. The next day all of them were dead.

The Pendle Witches are some of the most famous 'witches' in Britain's history; never before had so many people been tried and hanged for witchcraft at once during the witch-hunting craze that swept over Europe in the 17th century, and never before had someone so young been able to testify.

There have been many interpretations of the Pendle Witches story over the years - particularly as 2012 marked the 400 year anniversary of the trials - but none of them have impressed me as much as Malkin Child.

The book tells the story of the trials from the POV of young Jennet Device, only nine years old, and explores the reasons behind why she decided to stand up in court and claim that her family were indeed witches.

I was lucky enough to meet Livi Michael at a Children's Literature Festival back in May, where I listened to her read out a few extracts from Malkin Child and talk about the process of writing it. I loved the sound of it - and I loved the idea of writing a story about the trials for children - so I bought a copy and she kindly signed it for me!

I read it in the space of an hour, it's a very short middle grade book and it's very readable; Michael has given Jennet a charming, authentic voice, so she really does sound like a little girl who's grown up in one of the poorer areas of 17th century Lancashire. 

I enjoyed this book a lot. I appreciated that Michael's retelling didn't turn Jennet into a hard-hearted child who wanted to see her family dead, as so many other interpretations have, but that she presented her as a little girl whose trust was abused by the authorities. She was used as a means to a very gruesome end.

In fact I found Malkin Child quite emotional; Jennet truly believes that she's doing the right thing, truly believes that by calling her family witches in front of a jury she is saving them, and it's heartbreaking to watch her realise that her actions send her family to their graves.

Even though the story is, sadly, based on true events, there is something of a light at the end of the tunnel. Jennet loses her family, but the ending is bittersweet rather than entirely miserable, and we are left with hope for Jennet's future.

Like Witch Hill (which I reviewed here!) I definitely recommend Malkin Child for younger readers; particularly younger readers who are interested in history or historical fiction. That being said, I think anyone can enjoy this book! Michael brings a horrifying period of history to life through the eyes of a child, and she does so tastefully and respectfully, and really that's all we can ask for when it comes to retelling the stories of the poor people who were hanged 402 years ago.

I would also like to mention that the proceeds made by Malkin Child were donated to Stepping Stones Nigeria, a Manchester based charity which is fighting against the witch hunts that are still happening in the Niger Delta today. If you can, please take a look at their website and spread the word or, if you're able, donate. It's an incredibly worthy cause.

J.

Review | Witch Hill by Marcus Sedgwick

Witch Hill

by Marcus Sedgwick

My Rating: 

At first, Jamie isn't too worried about the bad dreams he's been having since coming to his aunt's house. Most people awoken in the middle of the night to find their house burning down would probably have nightmares, too. But instead of fire, he keeps dreaming of a "horrible, scary old woman," relentlessly coming after him for some awful, inexplicable purpose. Even though he's come to Aunt Jane's to recover from the fire's aftermath, he doesn't want to bother her or his cousin Alison with his silly fears. He can see that they are very busy with their village's community service project--cleaning off an age-old carving on the side of hill that overlooks the town. But when the carving turns out to be a peculiar primordial figure instead of the "crown" that the people of Crownshill expected to see, and Jamie uncovers evidence of an ancient witchcraft trial in local history papers, he is swept into a centuries-old mystery to which he unwittingly has the key. Who is the old crone chasing him, and what does she want? Jamie will have to endure an experience worse than fire to find out.

Marcus Sedgwick is one of those authors I'd never heard of before until I came across his Swordhand Omnibus over on Goodreads. After that, I started seeing his books everywhere. His work sounded pretty interesting, so I found myself a second hand copy of Witch Hill on Abebooks for around £2, and when I eventually got around to reading it I read it in about an hour. My edition is only 161 pages long, so it's definitely more of a novella than a novel.

I have mixed feelings about this book. Despite my rating, which is relatively low, I actually have a lot of good things to say about this novella, so I'm going to start with those!

I would definitely class Witch Hill as a middle grade novella, but I'd be a big fat liar if I said it didn't give me the creeps. A lot of this story focuses on the nightmares Jamie has been having since going to stay with his aunt and his cousin, and the descriptions in his nightmares gave me the heebie jeebies. In fact reading those dream sequences was quite nostalgic, it reminded me of the way I felt as a child when I read ghost stories before bed that I probably shouldn't have been reading. I find myself reading middle grade so rarely these days that it was a real joy to read it again!

As I've grown older and learned more regarding the history of witchcraft, I find myself sympathising with the word 'witch' rather than fearing it. This book, in the hour I read it, reminded me why witches can still terrify children; in fact it reminded me of those frightening, self-inflicted afternoons of my childhood when I would watch Roald Dahl's The Witches.

Having said that, one of the elements of this story I appreciated the most was its historical accuracy, and I think that's especially important in a middle grade story; writers of historical fiction should try just as hard to be accurate for their younger readers as they would their adult readers. One of the characters is a historian from whom Jamie learns a lot about the witch trials in the 17th century; she shares information with him such as crushing the myth that accused witches in England were burned at the stake.

Alongside the terrifying woman on the hill, we also have the story of a young girl from the 17th century who was accused of witchcraft by her neighbours, and murdered because of it. Honestly it was nice to see Sedgwick use the old witch for the fright factor, but also use the story to remind his readers, most of whom we can presume are children, that the witch trials which occurred in our past were incredibly unjust and resulted in the horrific deaths of many innocent people.

Now, it's time we moved on to some of the stuff I didn't like that much.

I have to admit I was expecting a different kind of story when I started reading Witch Hill. The blurb on my copy is a little different to the one at the top of this review, and when I first read it I assumed the story was going to be about a modern day boy befriending the ghost of a 17th century girl who was wrongly accused of witchcraft, and the evil, old crone was going to fit into the story somehow. Honestly, I sort of wish it had been that story and I can't help thinking that, my edition at least, was a little misleading. The story is much more focused on Jamie and his fears, which isn't a bad thing, but I did sometimes find him a little boring as a narrator.

In fact the other major problem I had with this novella is that Jamie's narrative voice seemed to be all over the place. I kept having to remind myself that he was 12 years old, because at times he seemed a lot younger and then at other times he said something that made him sound more like a teenager. I would have liked to have gotten more of a sense as to who he was. Despite the story being told from his POV I don't think I could tell anyone anything particularly interesting about him; as far as I can remember he doesn't seem to have any hobbies or interests. He just felt a bit bland.

Though there were definitely elements of the story I appreciated and enjoyed, I thought the story as a whole was underwhelming and pretty obvious. However, I am in my 20s so I'm not exactly this novella's target audience, which is why I have such mixed feelings about it. While I might not recommend this book to one of my friends, I definitely recommend it to younger readers; especially younger readers who like their stories on the spooky side, or readers who have an interest in history but don't want to dive straight into historical fiction.

This story might not have blown me away, but parts of it still creeped me out so I'd like to check out more Sedgwick in future - I'm interested in seeing what some of his YA fiction is like.

J.

Jess Suggests | Middle Grade

Last month I read two middle grade books - Malkin Child and Witch Hill - and they got me thinking about some of the books I loved reading when I was younger; books which I still love to read now. So today I thought I'd share with you some of my favourite middle grade books, books I think readers of any age can enjoy!

Skellig

by David Almond

When a move to a new house coincides with his baby sister's illness, Michael's world seems suddenly lonely and uncertain. Then, one Sunday afternoon, he stumbles into the old, ramshackle garage of his new home, and finds something magical. A strange creature - part owl, part angel, a being who needs Michael's help if he is to survive. With his new friend Mina, Michael nourishes Skellig back to health, while his baby sister languishes in the hospital. But Skellig is far more than he at first appears, and as he helps Michael breathe life into his tiny sister, Michael's world changes for ever . . .

Skellig was the first ever book I was assigned to read in secondary school - when I was around eleven/twelve years old - and it's been one of my all time favourite books ever since. Something about this story seems to pull in everyone who reads it; I don't think I've met a single person who's read this book and forgotten about it. This book is gorgeous, and I highly recommend it!

Inkheart

by Cornelia Funke

Twelve-year-old Meggie learns that her father, who repairs and binds books for a living, can "read" fictional characters to life when one of those characters abducts them and tries to force him into service.

Characters from books literally leap off the page in this engrossing fantasy. Meggie has had her father to herself since her mother went away when she was young. Mo taught her to read when she was five, and the two share a mutual love of books. He can "read" characters out of books. When she was three, he read aloud from a book called Inkheart and released characters into the real world. At the same time, Meggie's mother disappeared into the story.

I feel like the Inkworld Trilogy isn't talked about enough in the book community, which is especially confusing when we take into account that this is a book about books! Inkheart, like a few of the other books on this list, is often classed as YA rather than middle grade, but personally this trilogy doesn't feel like a YA trilogy to me. It has a very middle grade feel to it, and I mean that in the best possible way. A lot of YA nowadays is romance heavy, but this book is nothing short of an adventure book; it's the kind of story that will remind you why you love reading - give it a try if you haven't already!

Vampirates: Demons of the Ocean

by Justin Somper

Conor and Grace are twins, recently orphaned after their widowed father's death. Rather than being adopted by the town's busy-bodies, they decide to set sail in their father's last possession, his sailing boat. But a vicious storm sees their boat capsize and the twins are separated. Two mysterious ships sail to their rescue - each picking up one twin before disappearing into the mist. Conor wakes to find himself on a pirate ship and is soon being trained up with a cutlass. Meanwhile Grace finds herself locked in a darkened room, as the vampirates wait for night to fall and their feasting to begin... Determined to find each other, yet intrigued by their new shipmates, the twins are about to embark on the biggest adventure of their lives...

This book is just so much fun! It might not be a literary masterpiece or a stunning piece of writing, but it's a fast-paced, action-packed story, and frankly I refuse to believe that everything we read has to leave us with some powerful message. Sometimes we just need to read something fun and enjoy it - this book is great if you're in the mood for an adventure!

The Secret Garden

by Frances Hodgson Burnett

When orphaned Mary Lennox comes to live at her uncle's great house on the Yorkshire Moors, she finds it full of secrets. The mansion has nearly one hundred rooms, and her uncle keeps himself locked up. And at night, she hears the sound of crying down one of the long corridors.

The gardens surrounding the large property are Mary's only escape. Then, Mary discovers a secret garden, surrounded by walls and locked with a missing key. One day, with the help of two unexpected companions, she discovers a way in. Is everything in the garden dead, or can Mary bring it back to life?

This book is a classic, and I just had to include it on this list because I guarantee that you can enjoy this book whether you're six or sixty! This story is nothing short of lovely, and as well as being one of my favourite children's books, it's one of my favourite classics, too. In fact this book is a great place to start if you're intimidated by classics, or if you're a younger reader who's looking to start reading them!

Holes

by Louis Sachar

Camp Greenlake is a place for bad boys, where the belief is: "if you take a bad boy and make him dig a hole every day in the hot sun, it will turn him into a good boy." When Stanley Yelnats, accused and found guilty of a crime he did not commit, is sent to Camp Greenlake he really doesn't think it can be so bad. Stanley and his family try to pretend that he is just going away to camp like the rich kids do, and he promises to write to them every day. But the harsh realities of the camp, and the evil Warden with her lizard-venom impregnated fingernails with her own reasons for making the boys in her charge dig so many holes, sometimes make dying seem like a great idea. When Stanley leaves the camp to go in search of his friend Zero, their journey towards freedom becomes a battle with hunger, thirst and heat in the shadow of Big Thumb--a mountain so entwined in Stanley's own family history that he knows if they can reach it they will somehow find salvation.

We started with a book I read in secondary school, so I thought it was fitting that we end with another. Like Skellig, there's something about Holes that just seems to stick with everyone who reads it. This story has so many layers; it'll make you laugh as much as it'll make you cry, and stay with you for years to come. The film adaptation is also worth a watch! 

Have you read any of the books on my list? What are some of your favourite middle grade books?

J.