My sister Rhiannon is very shortly turning thirteen, which means she will be in my 'target demographic'! I'm going to make her read all of my manuscripts! (She hasn't yet read Girl Saves Boy, because she 'didn't really get into it'. Don't let this dissuade you from reading it, though! We also argued the other day, because she was convinced there was a swearing lawyer in my book... There isn't, but she wouldn't believe me.)
So I thought I would get her to review some books before her birthday, so we can get a twelve-year-old perspective on some MG fiction! Here are some novels she has recently read, and her very thoughtful reviews!
Liar & Spy by Rebecca Stead
"Liar & Spy is about an early teenage boy whose family sells their house and moves into an apartment. Georges is the main character who spends most of his time with his quirky dad watching baseball on the TV and going to DeMarcos pizza restaurant every now and then, and they sometimes go to their favourite Chinese restaurant. His mum is always at work and every day she makes him a message on his desk with Scrabble letters before she leaves. Then Georges meets Safer, another quirky character who likes to watch parrots through binoculars, walks dogs and is obsessed with spying. He is training Georges to spy on the lobby through the video intercom, always on the look out for Mr X, who lives in Georges' building and who they are suspicious of.
The character development is really good in this book, you slowly get to know the characters which I think is really good. It is great for pre teens to early teens, it keeps them intrigued and entertained.
The plot is really good. You get caught up in the story and you always want to know what will happen next. A complete page turner.
I give Liar & Spy 5 Stars out of 5."
Now by Morris Gleitzman
Angel Creek by Sally Rippin
Thank you, Rhiannon!
"Now is about a girl called Zelda who lives with her grandfather. He is a famous surgeon. It is summer. There is a group of girls at school that bully and chase Zelda home. There's a massive bushfire, and Zelda and her grandfather help people, including the bully and her brother. She finds out her grandfather had a best friend called Zelda as a child, who she was named after. She learns about her grandfather's childhood in the war, and all of the awful things that happened.
Some bits are graphic, like the grandfather doing surgery. There are some horrible parts. So under tens might find those parts scary. I liked the grandfather. He was my favourite character. The bully's brother was also a nice character.
It was suspenseful, and you wanted to know what happened next. It was pretty exciting and a bit scary. I imagined it as a TV series. Good imagery.
I give Now 3 Stars out of 5. I would give it more stars if it didn't have gory parts."
Angel Creek by Sally Rippin
"Angel Creek is about a girl called Angelica, but everyone calls her Jelly. There's a tunnel in a creek at the back of her house. One Christmas holidays, she sees a light inside, and when she crawls in there, she finds an angel. Her two boy cousins are staying with her because her aunt is having another baby. With her cousins, she rescues the angel, worried someone will hurt it. They take it to school with them, and hide it in the shed and bring it water and food every day.
The angel is described as scared, screaming and trying to scratch them. The attacking scenes can be a bit scary, because Jelly is afraid her cousins will get hurt. The angel is very small at the start, but it keeps growing, like a baby almost growing into a child. Jelly is a good character, she wants to make sure everything will be all right. I liked the scenes where she is sitting in the tree at the back of her house.
Something very magical happens at the end. Everything about it was quite unique to me. Theme, tone, everything.
I give Angel Creek 5 Stars out of 5."--
Thank you, Rhiannon!
