Carnegie Shortlist

No book of the week this week, instead a look at the books on the Carnegie shortlist (some of which have been books of the week in the recent past!).

• Maggot moon by Sally Gardner (ex book of the week). 
• Wonder by R.J. Palacio (also ex book of the week)
• Code name Verity by Elizabeth Wein (the book most enjoyed by the students judging the Scottish Children's Book Awards here in ICHS)
• A greyhound of a girl by Roddy Doyle
• In darkness by Nick Lake
• Weight of water by Susan Crossan
• Midwinterblood by Marcus Sedgewick
• A boy and a bear in a boat by Dave Shelton

 

 Look out for reviews of these books on this blog over the coming weeks. If you would like to read and /or review any of these books pleae let me know.

Book of the Week - 18th March

The book of the Week this week is 'Itch' by Simon Mayo. You may recognise the name of the author as he has been a radio DJ for many years, this is his first novel. Itchingham Lofte is a boy who loves science, so much so he is trying to collect examples of all the chemical elements. This is not only a messy task, as his bedroom will testify, it can often lead to explosions and occasional unconsciousness! When Itch discovers a new element lots of people want to claim it for themselves. This leads Itch and his friends into something of an adventure. A thrilling book which will keep you on the edge of your seat and "itching to read more" as Anthony Horowitz notes on the book cover. The book also has an app and webpage with lots of interviews, podcasts and downloads.

Book of the week - 11th March

The book of the week this week is the winner of the 12-16 age group of the Scottish Children's Book Awards - The 13th horseman by Barry Hutchison (author of the Invisible Fiends series). This book is is funny,scary, imaginative and very, very good!
What is it about? Well, to sum up in as few words as possible:
One boy...
One shed...
Four horsemen of the apocalypse.
Death wants Armageddon...
...Pestilence, Famine and War are not so sure!
Can Drake fulfil his destiny AND Save the world?

Scottish Children's Book Awards

And the national winners are:

The world of Norm by Jonathan Meres

The 13th horseman by Barry Hutchison

Scottish Children's Book Awards

This afternoon the winning books in the SCBA are announced. The students who took part as judges, reading the shortlisted books, will be joining me in the Library to watch the award ceremony from Dundee and we will have  our own small award ceremony as a reward for all their efforts. Find out in the next post whether or not we voted for the same books as the rest of Scotland!

                           Our favourite in the 8-12 age category is: Out of the depths by Cathy Macphail.

 

Our favourite in the 12-16 age category is Code name Verity by Elizabeth Wein

World Book Day

Thursday 7th March is World Book Day. Celebrate all things bookish! There are competitions in the Library - see if you can name the authors and titles of the books just from the jacket design or find Wally, he's here in the Library - somewhere!!

Student competition -possible example!

Staff Competition

Art work

Some S1 students did some book cover art work. The book title had to include words from Roald Dahl books or an animal.

FlipSide

The latest FlipSide magazine is now available in the Library.. This month the magazine has some amazing photos of dogs underwater, tips on how to survive an avalanche and an article on the future of cars as wellas all the usual news, reviews and fascinating facts.

Check out their website or find them on Facebook.

Book of the week - 4th March

This week's book is The call by Michael Grant. It is the first book in the series 'The magnificent 12'.
It is a laugh out loud, fantasy/adventure story. Mack MacAvoy is an American school student with so many phobias it is a wonder that he gets through a school day at all. Being afraid of so many things does not make for a good hero, or does it? When Mack encounters a three thousand year old man in the school corridor and then discovers a golem in his bedroom at home he realises his life may never be the same again.In fact it is up to Mack to find the other eleven members of the elite team (the Magnificent Twelve) because they are needed to save the world from a terrible evil.
This book did make me laugh and was an enjoyable read, once I got over my own phobia - all the 'Americanisms'!! But it is set in America so ...