Latest Review 
Jul 28 2010
The Emerald Casket by Richard Newsome
Text, 2010. ISBN 9781921656453.
Expect a giggle in the opening pages as the author's use of description
makes scenes come to life as we meet the bumbling constable from The
Billionaire
Trilogy. Of course, I knew I would enjoy the book when my
13 year old son was competing with me to read it. It might be aimed at
teens but adults who enjoy a mystery will love it too.
The Emerald Casket is Book 2 in The Billionaire Trilogy
and you don't
need to have read Book 1, The Billionaire's Curse, to get
involved or
understand this exciting quest with 13 year old billionaire Gerald and
his friends, twin siblings, Ruby and Sam. Of course, reading this one
will make you want to go out and read it.
The Emerald Casket starts a few weeks after their last adventure
in
Book 1 and the three friends are off to India for a well earned break.
The holiday soon turns into a race to discover the whereabouts of the
emerald casket before their arch nemesis, Sir Mason Green, gets there.
They encounter a deadly cult, discover Gerald's family tree goes back
thousands of years, see the wonderful sites of India, and make new
friends along the way.
From the streets of England to the bustling cities of India, the three
friends discover the meaning of true friendship and teamwork as they
try to stop Sir Mason Green's attempts to uncover an amazing treasure
with an unknown power and with a billion dollar fortune at their
disposal, anything is possible.
Kylie Kempster
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Jul 28 2010
Ransom by David Malouf
Vision Australia, 2009. Audio book. Read by
Ron
Haddrick. ISBN 978186484826142. Random House, 2009.
David Malouf's novel, Ransom retells part of Homer's Iliad, the
epic
poem which recounts the story of the Greek hero Achilles and the siege
of Troy. Far from simply retelling... more
Jul 28 2010
Sex and other stuff: The A-Z of everything you need to know by
Black dog books, 2010. ISBN 9781742031194
(Age 12+) Non fiction. Recommended. 200 pages packed with
information about sex and stuff, presented in a
dictionary format, will have huge appeal to the newly emergent teenager
looking for knowledge, answers to questions and facts, facts,... more
Jul 27 2010
Vampires: The un-history of the undead by Tony Thompson
Black dog books, 2010. ISBN 9781742031316.
Non fiction. Recommended. Just when you thought the vampire euphoria
was dying down, up pops this
most readable account of the history of vampires and their place in
myth, fiction, film and television. I wish this little gem was around
when... more
Jul 27 2010
Daisy and the trouble with Christmas by Kes Gray
Red Fox, 2010. ISBN 9781862304970.
Junior Fiction. One in the series about the lovable but slightly odd
young girl, Daisy,
this one revolves around her involvement in Christmas. It is the time
of the year that she really enjoys, but it has its troubles. Mainly the
trouble with Christmas... more
Jul 27 2010
The Night Fairy by Laura Amy Schlitz
Ill. by Angela Barrett, Candlewick, 2010. ISBN: 9780763636746.
(Age 8+) Highly recommended. Flory the fairy was born at night and,
unlike many other night fairies, had beautiful wings. Before she was
three months old, the wings were crunched by a bat, leaving her to
adapt to a whole new... more
Jul 26 2010
The Necromancer: The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel by Michael Scott
Doubleday, 2010. ISBN: 9780385618298.
Highly recommended for ages 10 and up. When the twins, Sophie and Josh
Newman, return to San Francisco, their arrival is marred by the
appearance of their friend Scatty's twin, Aoife of the Shadows. Almost
as soon as they arrive, Sophie is kidnapped... more
Jul 26 2010
Arnie Avery by Sue Walker
Walker Books, 2010. ISBN 978 1 921529726.
Recommended. What started out as a regular Saturday afternoon at the
local pool turns into a nightmare. Family night is becoming
increasingly odd with Mum seeming to be disengaged with life and an
unexpected test produces disastrous results. Can... more
Jul 26 2010
Tiger Moth and the dragon kite contest by Aaron Reynolds
Series: Tiger Moth (Graphic novels). Raintree Publishers, London, 2010.
ISBN 9781408216691.
(Ages 8+) This new series of graphic novels revolves around the
exploits of Tiger Moth, and his side kick, Kung Pow, primary school
ninjas. To celebrate Chinese New Year with his classmates,... more
Jul 23 2010
Darkwater by Georgia Blain
Random House, 2010. ISBN 978 1864719833.
(Age 15+) Recommended. The waterfront suburb is like an island, water
on three sides, an enclave of well known streets, some shops, a school
and the riverside, where the kids hang out after school and on
weekends. Kids ride their bikes around the... more
Jul 23 2010
The important things by Peter Carnavas
New Frontier, 2010. ISBN 9781921042287.
(Age 4-8) Recommended. Christopher's mother does everything, from
painting the house by day and reading novels at night. She 'had to do
everything, for his father had faded from their lives.' One day she
decides to collect small things that had... more
Jul 23 2010
Blood Ninja by Nick Lake
Atlantic, 2010. ISBN 9781848873872.
(Age 13+) We all know that vampires are enormously popular at the
moment. This book seeks to capitalise on this popularity with an added
Japanese ninja twist. The protagonist of Blood Ninja is a
teenage boy
called Taro from a small fishing... more
Jul 21 2010
Frankenstein by Mary Shelley
Retold by Michael Burgan. Series: Graphic Revolve. Raintree
Publishers, 2009. ISBN
9781406213539.
Recommended. The perennial favourite, Frankenstein by Mary
Shelley, first published
in1818, is given the graphic novel treatment in this highly inviting
comic version of the well... more
Jul 21 2010
Lucy the Lie Detector by Marianne Musgrove
Random House, 2010. ISBN 978 1 741664553
The character of Lucy was originally introduced to us in Marianne's
earlier novel Lucy the Good and returns to solve the dilemma of
modern
life about what makes a lie and what is just embellishing the truth and
are they really the same... more
Jul 21 2010
The Queen must die by K.A.S. Quinn
Atlantic Books, 2010. ISBN: 978 1848873704
(Suggested reading level 12-15) First in The Chronicles of the
Tempus
trilogy.
In this novel, Katie Berger-Jones-Burg, a contemporary American
teenager, time travels to London in 1851 where she becomes embroiled in
a sinister plot... more
Jul 20 2010
Inside my head by Jim Carrington
Bloomsbury, 2010. ISBN: 978140880277.
(Suggested reading age 14-17 years) Recommended. Jim Carrington writes
about adolescent bullying, set in modern rural England using four main
characters. Zoe has recently moved reluctantly from London with her
family and must face the trepidation of... more
Jul 20 2010
The serpent's tale by Gary Crew and Matt Ottley
Lothian, 2010. ISBN 9780734410283.
Picture book. Playing on the word 'tale' by both author and illustrator
gives the
reader a tantalising narrative about the universality of story in this
picture book for all ages. The boy pesters his mother into buying him
an amulet at the market. The... more
Jul 20 2010
Scarygirl by Nathan Jurevicius
Allen and Unwin, 2009. ISBN 9781741753707.
(Age 8+) Picture book/Graphic novel. Abandoned by a dumpster along with
a host of other rubbish, Scarygirl
meets Blister, a cool giant octopus, who takes on the role of her
mentor and guardian. Determined to find the man who pervades... more
Jul 19 2010
Ice Lolly by Jean Ure
Harper Collins, 2010.
(Ages 9+) Recommended. When teen fiction as a genre began to
grow, Jean Ure was there at the forefront and I have fond memories of
devouring A Proper Little Nooryeff and See You Thursday
during my own
adolescence. In recent years Ure has focused more... more
Jul 19 2010
Where's Wally? The Incredible Paper Chase by Martin Handford
Walker Books, 2009. ISBN: 9781406324464.
(All ages) Wally's back-if you can find him!
'The search for Wally continues through more astounding scenes in this
new classic title in the Where's Wally? Series. As Wally
travels
through worlds of dinosaurs, soldiers and clowns he... more