Your Reviews - June 2011
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The Book Thief Markus Zusak
Review by Emma Mitchell, Palmerston North Girls' High School
Imagine the restriction, the anxiety of a looming air raid, the never-ceasing growl of your stomach as you scuttle along a street which is meant to be heaven on earth.
Imagine feeling all alone, lost in a whirlwind of emotions. Abandoned by your mother, chosen by a stranger. Imagine the pressure on your mind, knowing your race is responsible for the unfair treatment of millions of human beings. Imagine not knowing where your loved ones are, and whether they’re still alive...
Liesel Meminger is a Aryan girl living in Germany during the time of death camps and ferocious men with little mustaches and black spiders on khaki coats. After being left by her mother at social workers, she is relocated into the arms of the Hubermann couple. While adjusting to her new home she discovers a new-found love of books, and a romance is stirred, sparking new relationships and forming an escape to a world of knowledge with enchantment and contentment.
This tale is brilliantly told by Australian author Markus Zusak, filled with intriguing snippets of knowledge and compelling figurative language. Shock and satisfaction stay with you long after you read the final page.
The Book Thief Markus Zusak
Review by Jessica Bryce, Age 15, Palmerston North Girls’ High School
Imagine being a fourteen-year-old German girl trapped in a lifestyle of hatred and regret in the year 1939. Imagine being housed with unfamiliar foster parents who think nothing of the death of your six-year-old brother and the fact that he now lies in a distant graveyard. The only memory you have of him is his dying eyes and a gravediggers' handbook, stolen from his tomb site. The only vice you have is stealing the most amazing thing...books.
Liesel Meminger was a fourteen-year-old German girl taken from her communist mother at the age of ten and was rehoused with her poor foster family in Molching, Germany. Trying to understand the dynamics of living in Nazi Germany, she adopts the unusual habit of stealing books to feed her ever-growing hunger to know, learn and own literature.
The Book Thief written by Markus Zusak is a story of life, loss and love. It is a complex text but has an irresistible tone to it. Markus Zusak has a unique writing style that can be particularly irritating but never fails to pull on the reader’s heart-strings.
Confessions of the Sullivan Sisters Natalie Standiford
Review by Review by Katie Ditzel, Age 13, Waimea College
On Christmas day, Almighty, the wealthy Grandmother of the Sullivan family gathers everybody around to tell them that she is dying and the family will be cut out of her will unless the one member of the family that has greatly offended her, comes forward with a handwritten confession of their “crime” by New Year’s Day. Seeing as she is the source of almost all of the Sullivan’s income, they will be left penniless.
From reading the three letters from the Sullivan sisters Norrie, Jane and Sassy, we learn a lot about their family, and great secrets from the family’s history, no secret is too big to confess. For instance, we find out how Almighty’s fifth husband really died. No one is prepared for the truth about who deeply offended Almighty and why.
I really enjoyed this book, it has an interesting plot and I liked how the author wrote it so that you learn about the family and their personalities through the confessions. The ending is really cool, because you have no idea whose confession Almighty is looking for, and you’ll be shocked to find out who it is that has offended the great Almighty.
Chinese Cinderella Adeline Yen Mah
Review by Eden Penfold, Age 12, Waimea College
This book took me only one day to read. It gave me a jolt of disbelief and horror.
Adeline’s mother died giving birth to her, so the whole family considers her bad luck. She is neglected, unloved and forgotten through her whole childhood, with no-one to believe in her but her grandparents and her Aunt Baba. When Adeline’s stepmother discovers the strong bond of love between Adeline and her aunt, her jealous mind does all it can to separate them and darken Adeline’s only ray of happiness, making her life a dark, grey world of sadness. Adeline’s life becomes an emotional roller coaster as she is passed from school to school as a boarder, rarely visiting home. It seems no-one wants her.
This story will break your heart and bring hatred and anger towards those involved in making Adeline’s life a misery, it will open your eyes, maybe for the first time, to the horrible world millions of young Chinese girls had to live in. It truly emphasises the cruelty and lack of female rights in the world of those living in the age of the Second World War.
Juno of Taris Fleur Beale
Review by Julia Harding, Age 12, Southland Girls’ High School
Juno of Taris is the tale of a girl who just wouldn’t fit in. In the enclosed world of Taris, one life doesn’t stray far from the next. The many, many rules that come with living in this world are what keep Taris from collapsing. Everyone on Taris is obedient and accepting, apart from Juno. She begins to question the ways of Taris, the rules, the control, the history. The people of Taris never expected her to rebel in such a way. When she does, their world falls apart.
What happens when she starts questioning the outside? Will their leaders stop at nothing to get rid of her? Is there more to history than what they have been told? Most importantly, what is the fate of Taris?
This book questions many of life’s guidelines and is the ultimate book for those who want a read to puzzle over. I thoroughly recommend this superb book, and hope those who accept this challenge learn as much as I did.
Happy Reading!
The Flight of the Emu Rachael Anderson
Review by Reviewed by Vienna Ballantine, Age 12, Waimea College
The Flight of the Emu is about a young boy named Mak. Left by his mother eleven years ago he now has to cope with a know-it-all roommate, pointless meetings, caregivers who aren’t allowed to give a hug and teenage girls fighting with him over the T.V remote at the children’s home, Bel’Vue. Until the Open Day…
Suddenly a late arrival and a two men game of rugby later and it looks like Mak has found himself a new mother, a former Australian who’s so much different than anyone he’s ever met. She may be old enough to be his grandma but somehow, Evelyn makes Mak happier than he’s ever been and for once he feels like he belongs.But a sudden change of events turns Mak’s world upside down; will he ever find his beloved Evelyn Cairns again?
I really liked how the author sets the scene and describes Mak’s ever changing life, making the book sunlit in areas and dark in others. It’s really unpredictable and all its twists and turns really made me want to read on. Even though it’s not a happy book, it’s a good read.
Moko the Dolphin Andrea Skuse
Review by Review by Safron Tata, Age 6, Brookfield School
The story was about Moko the dolphin. Once he wanted some friends to play with. When he first met them Moko loved his friends. The people lived in New Zealand. Moko stole their boogie boards. I liked the story because it was about Moko and his friends.
Moko the Dolphin Andrea Skuse
Review by Review by Taila Rikirangi, Age 6, Brookfield School
The story was about a dolphin named Moko. He was a very nice dolphin who swam with people and stole their boogie boards. Once I swam with Moko.
I liked the story because of all the rhyming words.
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