Month: June 2012

Cool stories to discover at Story Cloud

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There is an awesome new website that’s just been launched in the UK where you can read, listen to and download a new story from a different author every Monday and it’s all FREE. It’s called Story Cloud and it runs from 18 June to 3 September 2012.

To read the stories you click on one of the icons and choose to read or listen to the story. Then go and find the surprises in the pictures and see the challenges and tasks for you to write your own story.  It’s a great resource for primary teachers to use or for a boredom buster for the school holidays.

This week’s story is called The Talent Show, written by Michael Rosen and illustrated by Kristyna Litten.  Other stories to come are written by David Almond, Malorie Blackman, Debi Gliori and Philip Ardagh.  Check it out now at www.storycloud.co.uk.

Michelle Harrison talks about Unrest

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Michelle Harrison’s new book, Unrest, is my latest obsession.  It’s one of the creepiest, spine-tingling books I’ve read and makes me consider sleeping with the light on.  It’s out now in NZ.  Check out the creepy book trailer for Unrest and hear Michelle talk about her book and her top 5 ghost stories

Win The Drover’s Quest by Susan Brocker

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Susan Brocker is a New Zealand author whose books keep getting better and better.  Her love of animals and history are obvious in her stories, especially her latest book, The Drover’s Quest.  The story is set in 1860s New Zealand and tells the story of Charlotte who joins a drove from Christchurch to the West Coast to find out what has happened to her father.  You can read my review here on the blog.

Thanks to Susan’s wonderful publishers, HarperCollins NZ I have 2 copies of The Drover’s Quest to give away.  All you have to do to get in the draw is enter your details in the form below.  Competition closes Monday 25 June (NZ only).

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Slated by Teri Terry

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Imagine waking up and having no idea who you are or where you are.  You learn that your memory has been wiped because you’re done something bad.  You’ve been given a second chance at life but you have what is effectively a bomb attached to your wrist.  If you get too angry, sad, or depressed you’ll start having seizures and die.  If you step out of line you could disappear and never be seen again, so in order to survive you must be a perfect citizen and follow the rules.  This is what life is like for Kyla in Teri Terry’s new book, Slated.

Kyla’s memory has been erased, her personality wiped blank, her memories lost for ever.

She’s been Slated.

The government claims she was a terrorist, and that they are giving her a second chance – as long as she plays by their rules. But echoes of the past whisper in Kyla’s mind. Someone is lying to her, and nothing is as it seems. Who can she trust in her search for the truth?

Slated is a tense, psychological thriller, that keeps you guessing and leaves you hungry for more.  In the future society of Slated, teenagers that are considered a danger to society are rehabilitated by having their memories wiped.  They have no idea of who they are or what they did to be Slated, and they’re adopted by a new family.  Every Slated has a Levo on their wrist which monitors their levels; if they get angry or scared, their levels drop and when they are happy their levels rise.  If levels get too low Slateds can black out and even die, so it is important to keep their levels mid-way or higher.  Kyla is different though, because she has horrible nightmares that have links to past events and anger has a strange affect on her levels.

If I had a Levo my levels would be pretty low because Teri’s story and some of the characters made me quite tense.   Like Kyla, you’re never really sure who to trust or who might be listening to her conversations. Teri keeps you guessing about why Kyla is different, why Kyla’s parents act so strange and what happens to the teenagers that disappear.  Teri answers some of these questions in Slated but leaves you hanging so you desperately want to read the next book, Fractured (coming in 2013).

4 out of 5 stars

Derek Landy’s 2012 Down Under Tour

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Does your world need more awesome?

Well, Derek Landy is about to bring it – and Skulduggery Pleasant: Kingdom of the Wicked – when he visits New Zealand and Australia for his 2012 Down Under Tour.

I’ll certainly be queuing up with hundreds of other Skulduggery fans to see the creator of one of the coolest series around.  Venues and times are soon to be released but in the mean time, here are the NZ and Australian cities that Derek will be visiting (more details to follow):

NZ

  • Auckland – 8 August 2012
  • Wellington – 9 August 2012
  • Christchurch – 10 August 2012
  • Auckland – 11 August 2012

Australia (roughly 12-21 August 2012)

  • Brisbane
  • Sydney
  • Melbourne
  • Adelaide
  • Perth

Congratulations Patrick Ness and Jim Kay!

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I was unbelievably happy to wake up to the news this morning that A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness and illustrated by Jim Kay has won both the Carnegie Medal and the Kate Greenaway Medal.  To celebrate I thought I’d re-post my review of A Monster Calls (you’ll probably gather that I think it is a very deserving winner) and I’m giving away 2 hardback copies of this amazing book.  Keep reading to find out why I LOVE A Monster Calls.

It’s no secret that I think Patrick Ness is a brilliant author (I’ve written many blog posts about it).  His Chaos Walking Trilogy is one of those stories that really struck a chord with me and and the characters and their world will stay with me for a long time.  The books in the trilogy have won various awards in the world of children’s literature, including the BookTrust Teenage Prize, the Guardian Award, the Costa Book Award, most recently the final book, Monsters of Men won the prestigious Carnegie Medal.  When the Chaos Walking Trilogy came to an end last year, I was looking forward to reading whatever Patrick Nesswrote next and thankfully I didn’t have to wait very long.

Patrick’s next project was to write a story based on the ideas of another brilliant author, Siobhan Dowd, who had passed away from breast cancer in 2007.  Siobhan had the characters, premise and beginning and it was up to Patrick to turn it into a story.   Being both a fan of Patrick’s and Siobhan’s writing I eagerly anticipated their story, called A Monster Calls.  And boy, what a story it is!  Night after night, Connor is woken by the same nightmare, “the one with the darkness and the wind and the screaming.  The one with the hands slipping from his grasp, no matter who hard he tried to hold on.”  It is one night, after waking from this nightmare, that the monster arrives, twisting to life from the yew tree in the graveyard.  The monster comes to offer Connor a deal; it will tell Connor three stories, but then he must tell the monster a fourth story, and it must be the truth.  However, Connor’s mum is very sick and the truth is the thing that he fears the worst.

I really can’t explain how amazing A Monster Calls is.  Before you even start reading the book, you just need a few minutes to marvel at how beautiful it is.  Walker Books have put so much love into the design, from the dust-jacket and the cover,  to the stunning illustrations spread throughout the book by the very talented Jim Kay.  The story itself is breathtaking and you’ll go on a roller-coaster of emotion as the monster guides Connor towards the truth.  I especially liked the three stories that the monster tells and I hope that Patrick Ness writes more short stories like these.  Grab a copy of A Monster Calls from the library now.  Trust me, you won’t regret it.

Win the award-winning A Monster Calls

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The very deserving winner of both the 2012 Carnegie and Kate Greenaway Medal is A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness and illustrated by Jim Kay.  Patrick Ness is one of my all-time favourite authors and I absolutely LOVED A Monster Calls.  It’s a beautiful, heart-breaking story and was probably my favourite book of 2011.

If you haven’t already read A Monster Calls or you loved it and want to own a copy you can win one of 2 copies that I’m giving away.  All you have to do is leave a comment below telling me your favourite childrens or young adults book.  Competition closes Friday 22 June (International).

Who are your picks for the 2012 Carnegie and Kate Greenaway medal?

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The winners of the 2012 Carnegie and Kate Greenaway Medal are announced this Friday (NZ time).  Who do you want to win?  It’s so hard to pick but mine are My Name is Mina by David Almond (Carnegie) and A Monster Calls illustrated by Jim Kay (Kate Greenaway).

Carnegie Medal

     

     

  

Kate Greenaway Medal

     

     

  

Win The Nature of Ash by Mandy Hager

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The Nature of Ash is the latest Young Adult novel from New Zealand author, Mandy Hager.   It’s an exciting, explosive, action-packed thriller that had me on the edge of my seat from start to finish.  To find out why I thought it was so great you can read my review here on the blog.

To help spread the word about Mandy’s fantastic book I’ve got 2 copies to give away.  To get in the draw to win a copy of The Nature of Ash just enter your details below.  Competition closes Monday 18 June (NZ only).

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The Drover’s Quest by Susan Brocker

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Over on the Christchurch Kids Blog (Christchurch City Libraries’ blog for children aged 8-12 years) our June Star Author, Susan Brocker has just released a fantastic new book called The Drover’s Quest.  It’s filled with Susan’s favourite things, including history and animals, and it’s set in New Zealand in the 1860s.

Rumour is flying around the west coast gold fields that Tom McGee has struck it rich and found a nugget of gold as big as a man’s fist. So no one is surprised when next his campsite is found wrecked and abandoned. Men have been killed for a lot less on the tough goldfields of 1860s New Zealand.

But one person is convinced Tom is not dead. His headstrong daughter, Charlotte.  Solving the mystery is not her first task, though. First, she must get to the coast. A skilful horse rider, she disguises herself as a boy and joins a cattle drive across the Southern Alps. To survive the dangerous drive over Arthur’s Pass and to keep her identity hidden from the vicious trail boss, she’ll need the help of her dog, her horse, and her father’s friend, Tama. She knows she can do it – she has to – but what will she find? And will her new American friend, Joseph, help or hinder her quest?

Charlie is in for the ride of her life – and the stakes couldn’t be higher.

If you love stories set in the past, stories about animals or stories with lots of adventure then The Drover’s Quest is the book for you.  The story starts in Christchurch and the characters travel over Arthur’s Pass to Hokitika on the West Coast.  These are my favourite parts of our beautiful country and I’ve travelled the route they took many times so I could see it clearly in my head.  It’s a route that is very quick and easy to travel today but was very rugged and dangerous in the 1860s.  There is a very tense part in the book where the drovers are taking the cattle down the Otira Gorge (it had me on the edge of my seat).

I really liked the characters, especially Tama and Joseph who bring different cultures into the story, and Scar because I couldn’t figure out whether he was good or bad.  The animals are also important characters in the story and they are incredibly loyal to their masters.

Check out the Christchurch Kids Blog throughout June to find out more about The Drover’s Quest from our June Star Author, Susan Brocker.

5 out of 5 stars