Tag: Year 6

Author:  Arthur Ransome

Review by: Miriam

Year Group: Year 6

Review:

Siblings John, Susan, Titty and Roger decide to go and camp on a deserted island in a huge lake. They pretend to be sailers and call themselves the Swallows, but when they meet another crew called the Amazons, war is declared. With retired pirate Captain Flint thinking that the Swallows have damaged his boat, will they be able to stay afloat and win victory over the Amazons once and for all?

The Swallows have to overcome many obstacles, search for treasure, survive a storm and fish for sharks, in this very entertaining story. I really enjoyed it and am looking forward to reading the next book!

Mark out of 5…

5 – Excellent

Author:  M. G. Leonard and Sam Sedgman

Review by: George

Year Group: Year 6

Review:

The fifth book in the Adventures On Trains series. This is a story about the Solar Express powered by hydrogen for a greener way to travel. Nathaniel Bradshaw and Harrison beck (Uncle Nat and Hal) follow Boaz (the maker of the train) into the cab, only to realise the train has been sabotaged. Will they stop the train before it derails at Tenant Creek?

This is an exciting and adventurous read for any train lovers or thrill seekers.

Mark out of 5…

5 – Excellent

Author:  Carl Anka

Review by: Harvey

Year Group: Year 6

Review:

I read this book as I had heard lots about it in the past and others were recommending it to me. Its all about your mentality and how you are a champion, the book is very inspirational and teaches you to build your confidence, let your voice be heard and to never stop being you. The main character is a poor boy from the outskirts of Manchester who shows us that no matter who you are, if you practise like a champion and dream big,  then nothing will stop you from achieving your goals.

Marcus Rashford lived in a large family of seven, (him being the youngest,) and always looked up to his Mum, a calm and caring lady who he claims taught him countless life lessons and always had his back through the highs and lows of his childhood and career.

This book has changed my perspective on how I treat my mentality and confidence. This book isn’t fictional and shows how Marcus Rashford began his career on becoming one of England’s star forwards. I recommend this book to all ages and hope that it will inspire you as it did me.

Mark out of 5…

5 – Excellent

Author:  Bobbie Peers

Review by: Thomas

Year Group: Year 6

Review:

The book is second in the series. I’ve never heard about these books before.  There’s a boy named William, he is great at code breaking. He lives in Norway and his Dad has a exoskeleton because he was involved in a horrible car accident that paralysed him. William is half human and half luridium, which is basically a robotic metal that helps William solve codes, so he is a cyborg but from the outside he looks normal.  The book is very exciting and full of shocks. William went to a secret base. In William’s room there was one of the bad guys there in the corner, it was a shock!   William working with his friends at the secret base with his Grandfather to stop a bad guy taking a robot through an ancient portal because it would destroy the world.  There lots of codes that William has to solve through the story.

When I saw this book it looked good so I decided to read it. It was better than I thought, it’s definitely an adventure book. I think that William is nervous in the middle and the beginning. At the end I think  that he was sad because something happened. I think that this all happened because of luridium.   I would deeply recommend reading this book.

Mark out of 5…

5 – Excellent

Author:  Iva Ibbotson

Review by: Miriam

Year Group: Year 6

Review:
Maya is an orphan who is sent to live with her only found relatives in Brazil. She is hugely excited and imagines her twin cousins as two pretty girls skipping along happily in the Amazon, but instead she finds two horrid brats who don’t like her one bit. Luckily their new governess, Miss Minton, is kind and understanding and makes everything much more bearable.
Unlike her relatives, Maya adores the rainforest and the local people. She makes friends with a fugitive boy and following a fire they escape to search for a mysterious tribe.
I loved how the book made me feel as if I was in the Amazon too. I learnt how different this part of Brazil is from our home in England and wanted to keep reading to find out what happened. It was inspirational!

Mark out of 5…
5 – Excellent

Author:  Michael Morpurgo

Review by: Fergus

Year Group: Year 6

Review:

My friend, Miriam and her family recommended this book to me after they had read it and really enjoyed the story.  I liked reading this book because it is different to other books I have read in the past.

The story is about a boy called Michael, who is on an around the world adventure with his parents on their boat, the Peggy Sue.  One day, Michael and his dog, Stella, fall overboard in a storm.  They get washed up on a desert island and eventually meet Kensuke.

Although, Michael and Kensuke don’t always get on they become friends and Michael learns all about Kensuke’s family in Japan.

The main characters in the book are Kensuke and Michael.  Kensuke is old, carries a stick around with him and he doesn’t know how to speak English but he wants to learn.

Michael is 12 years old and he tries to find ways to get off the island, which Kensuke does not always agree with.

My favourite part of the story is at the end of the book but I can’t tell you any more otherwise it will give the story away!

I found the story scary when it talked about the hunters, who came onto the island to kill the orang-utans and gibbons, which had become Michael’s friends.

The author describes the island in a number of ways, for example, the forest became impenetrable.  This means the forest was not easy to walk through as there were lots of trees and undergrowth.  Also, the author also wrote that the jungle droned, cackled and croaked.

The author chose these words to make the story more interesting.

The new words, which I learnt from this book include:

Uninterrupted  – without a break in continuity, unbroken, continuous, constant, sustained.

Frantic – distraught with fear, anxiety or other emotion, panic-stricken, distressed.

I think Michael experienced a mix of feelings.  He was probably feeling happy at the beginning of the story because he was travelling with his parents but then he became scared when he fell off the boat and nervous when he arrived on the island.

I would recommend this book to other readers who enjoy adventures.

Mark out of 5…

5 – Excellent

Author:  Serena Patel

Review by: Lucy

Year Group: Year 6

Review:

At first I didn’t like the the look of this incredible book but as the saying goes don’t judge a book by it’s cover. The great thing about this book is always want to read more! I love Anisha accidental Detective because it’s all about this girl Anisha and her friend Milo.  Anisha is a young girl who is very adventurous and always wants to know more than she does.

Milo is… um… different? I guess. Just to prove my point he has a pet lobster! He is always coming up with silly ideas! 

Anisha is an Indian and she has a weird family, which is:  Her mum, her dad, her granny Jas and her aunty Bindi. The story is based on Aunty Bindi’s  wedding with a bit of a mystery. CALLING ANISHA ACCIDENTAL DETECTIVE!! There is also a series which I recommend but the one I am writing the review about is the pink one all about the wedding disaster and how… read it to find out

Mark out of 5…

5 – Excellent

Author:  Helen Dunmore

Review by: Indi

Year Group: Year 6

Review:

Sapphire lives a normal life with her Mum, Dad and brother Conor in a house by the sea in Cornwall. But when her Dad disappears, her and her brother become the only people who believe that he is still alive and will come back to live with them in the future.

One day, Conor is sighted talking to a mysterious girl on the rocks. Who is she? Sapphire wonders. What is she? For she might well live in the sea. And if so, is that where her Dad disappeared to; the ocean?

I really enjoyed this book because it is adventurous, gripping and sounds like it could be a true story. I highly recommend it to 9-12 year olds who are looking for an exciting fiction book!

Mark out of 5…

5 – Excellent

Author:  Adeline Yen Mah

Review by: Daisy

Year Group: Year 6

Review:

Chinese Cinderella is a book based on the author’s childhood set during World War Two. (I imagine her to be around 13/14). A girl (CC) is banished from her family home by her evil stepmother and manages to get a place in a Kung Fu academy. When some of the American airmen fail to land in Chinese occupied territory and are taken prisoner by the Japanese, CC devised a cunning plan to rescue them. With the help of her new best friends and kung fu master, Grandma Wu, CC’s plan is put into action. “The night of the Dragon Boat Festival is the night,” said CC to the others, “when we will pounce!”

I loved Chinese Cinderella because it was full of mystery. The characters are daring and kind. When CC looses the one person who means the most to her she won’t let her grief stop her from saving the ones who can be saved. The book shows you what some people had to go through during times of war and how much courage and bravery were needed to pull off all of the stunts eventually leading to victory. The book inspires you, it shows you that if you do things you fear you will eventually be rewarded for it.

I recommend this book for any mystery seekers over ten as some of the words are hard to understand as they are in a different language and it is rather emotional. The book is bound to brighten up your day and leave you wanting more.

Mark out of 5…

5 – Excellent

Author:  Adam Kay

Review by: Sophia

Year Group: Year 6

Review:

This book is about the history of the human body. Who would imagine that the Egyptians thought that the brain was so useless that it was the only organ that wasn’t preserved during mummification! In fact they thought that the heart did the brain’s job and that the lungs were some sort of central heating system. In the middle ages doctors thought that the more blood and gore that was on their clothing the better. It is only from the 1700s until now that we have actually started to understand the body properly.

The whole book is very funny with Adam Kay’s robot butler making predictions (only half were actually relevant to the book) and overall I would really recommend this book to anyone who wants to hear about the history of medicine with a bit of humour in it.

Mark out of 5…

5 – Excellent

Author:  Donald Hyslop, Alastair Forsyth and Sheila Jemima

Review by: Daisy

Year Group: Year 6

Review:

The ‘Titanic Voices’ is a non – fiction reference book all about the history of RMS. Titanic. The book has 15 chapters telling you about the building of Titanic and how the White Star Line was bought through to the sinking of the ship. This book contains real life quotes from the crew and has lots of photos of RMS. Titanic. It has paintings of the sinking and the lifeboats floating as well as unpublished letters from the passengers and the crew on the ship. The history is very detailed in this book. It really takes you back to 1912 and the horror of what it must have been like to be part of this awful tragedy.

Perfect book for all Titanic lovers as well as history lovers. This book’s language is a bit complicated so I recommend the book for 9+ years.

Mark out of 5…

5 – Excellent

Author:  Pamela Butchart

Review by: Maya

Year Group: Year 6

Review:

I really liked this book because it started when they went on a school trip for a week. They thought that there was a werewolf in their tent. I like how at the end they find out about the werewolf. But the werewolf is not actually a werewolf. I like how they talk in first person.

Lizzy is one of the characters and the one who tells the story in the book. Jodi, Zach, Maise and a little later Garry come and help her on this adventure. 

There were two teachers that came on the trip, their names are Miss Moon who is the P.E teacher and Miss Jones who is their teacher.                       

There  are also lots of other books by the same author with the same characters in it, they are really good books.

Mark out of 5…

5 – Excellent

Author:  Mark Twain

Review by: Sasha

Year Group: Year 6

Review:

Huckleberry Finn is an exciting tale of a boy escaping his drunken, violent father. Traveling along the Mississippi river, Huckleberry and his runaway slave meet the king and duke. They aren’t practically kind people. They were thieves. I enjoyed this book as it had a load of mysterious clues and funny phrases. It is a very enjoyable book that catches your attention. As he stumbles upon villages to little cabins floating in the river, he meets his friend Tom Sawyer who was visiting his aunt. This a great book from Mark Twain.

Mark out of 5…

5 – Excellent

Author:  Stephen and Lucy Hawking

Review by: Sophia

Year Group: Year 6

Review:

This book is a general science book which I found really interesting. It talks about atoms, light years robots and even how planets are made. It is really interesting especially the small articles by other scientists which I think broadens the range of knowledge you can read in the book.

Probably, the most interesting part for me was when I learnt about atoms, light years and particle accelerators. Light years although they sound like time are actually a measure of distance used in astronomy. The distance is how far light can travel in a year and that is very far. Because some stars are so far away if we looked up to the night sky today then we could be seeing light that is many years old and we would be looking into the past. So if a star 10 light years away exploded it would be 10 years after the event that we would learn that it had exploded.

I would recommend this book to anyone who likes science and is prepared to read a reasonably long book.

Mark out of 5…

5 – Excellent

Author:  Rene Goscinny

Review by: Harriet

Year Group: Year 6

Review:

Asterix and the Big Fight is a comic book set in ancient Roman times in a Gaulish village that has not yet been defeated by the Romans. The secret to the Gaul’s success is a magic potion brewed by the Druid Getafix, that makes the villagers invincible. Gallo-Roman chief, Cassius Ceramix, challenges the villager’s chief, Vitalstatistix, to a fight. The winner of the fight will become the chief of the loser’s village. When the Druid Getafix is hit in the head with a menhir by Asterix’s best friend, Obelix – the Menhir delivery man, he goes absolutely crazy and loses his memory. Asterix realises that Getafix will not be able to make any magic potion for the big fight.

What will they do? Will they be able to get some magic potion before the fight?

Asterix and the Big Fight is the 7th book in the Asterix series. I enjoyed this book because it contains comedy and adventure. I would recommend this book for people aged 7 and up.

Mark out of 5…

5 – Excellent