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Redwood School (Tawa)

4,437 pages read and 5,702 team points

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    JanL

    5,702 pts
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JanL

5,702 pts
(4,437 pages read)

  • The life impossible

    By Matt Haig
    3 stars

    This book was given to me by someone who thought I'd enjoy it. I was looking forward to reading it as I was curious about the author, having read some good reviews of his last book. In the end, I enjoyed it, but it didn't captivate me. It follows the story of a retired maths teacher, stuck in a cycle of grief and self-loathing following the death of her young son and husband. She is unexpectedly left a house in Ibiza by someone she was kind to, many decades previously. She heads to Ibiza thinking she will sell the house and return to her less-than-brilliant life in England however, once in Ibiza, she gets caught up in the mystery of her friend's death and a magical presence in the ocean that changes the focus of her entire life. You definitely need to suspend belief or preconceived notions of the existence of alien life to really enjoy this book, but it does touch on some very human themes - grief, guilt etc that trouble a lot of people which I related too.

  • Spook Street

    By Mick Herron
    5 stars

    I'm not usually a fan of books being adapted for television but this series of spy stories by Mick Herron, is the rarest of beasts. Having first discovered the sorry bunch of misfits that occupy 'Slough House' via the Apple TV series 'Slow Horses', I moved onto reading the books with some trepidation but to my surprise, I enjoyed both equally. The books (there are 8 in total) follow the lives and misfortunes of a group of British secret agents who have all failed in their jobs in some way and are banished to Slough House to work on the most menial of tasks under the watchful eye of their (very) disgusting and seemingly disinterested boss, Jackson Lamb (who is portrayed very accurately by Gary Oldham in the TV adaptation) Each book is a standalone novel but I would recommend reading them sequentially as there a lot of small details layered into every story. Highly recommended :)

  • The deadlands hunted

    By Skye Melki-Wegner
    3 stars

    I'm no dinosaur lover but as a librarian I can imagine recommending this book to readers who are. In this book a group of dinosaurs - each cast out from their 'tribes' for various reasons - band together to stop a war which would destroy their clans. The book's ending lays the groundwork for a series of books about these warring tribes of dinosaurs who (I'm picking) will be constantly waging battle for supremacy and territory. I think this book will be popular with young children who love dinosaurs and want a fiction book to read. A confession - I liked seeing the pictures of the characters at the end of the book - I would've preferred to have them at the start of the book though, not the end!

  • Giraffe Island

    By Sofia Chanfreau
    5 stars

    This is another delightful book from Gecko Press. It is the story of a little girl Vega who has a powerful imagination; she sees crazy animals all around her that no-one else can. This worries her father but luckily she has a champion in her equally eccentric grandfather. When her father seems to be taken under the spell of an icy witch, Vega decides to try and solve the mystery of her missing mother. This book reminded me very much of the picture book "Bamboozled" and had the same effect on me - I just smiled the whole time I was reading it! Highly recommended.

  • Still Life

    By Sarah Winman
    4 stars

    This book came to me highly recommended. It is the story of how a chance meeting between two people can have powerful implications for the rest of their lives. It is also a story that tries to answer the question 'what is meant by the concept of family?' The book definitely built very slowly. It took me a while to get used the sparse writing style of the author - there was a lot of 'work' for the the reader to glean meaning from the text, but the development of the characters and their eccentricities was a delight. I recommend this book.

  • Head for the hills

    By Tricia Stringer
    2 stars

    This book was a light-weight 'holiday' read for me. If you have a complicated relationship with your sister you will probably find yourself nodding in recognition with some of the interaction between the two main characters Margot and Roslyn. However, overall I felt some of the storylines were underdeveloped; particularly for the character Amber who was running from a troubled past. The conclusion for her thread, although 'happy' was unconvincing to me.

  • How I saved the world in a week

    By Polly Ho-Yen
    0 stars

    This book was completely different than what I was expecting. Based on the cover image (which was a cheerful bright blue and had on it a cartoon of a boy lighting a fire with a book in his hand ) I thought I'd be reading a humorous novel about a boy called Billy who learnt a bunch of survival skills from his slightly crazy mother. Instead it was an exciting and at times scary story about a terrifying virus sweeping the world and turning ordinary people into shrieking, grey monsters. Mixed in with the story of Billy's complicated relationship with his dad and mum, this story had a little bit of everything. I think a lot of children would enjoy the story (particularly if they wanted a 'scary' book to read) but I would advise caution for any sensitive readers. It could definitely lead to nightmares!

  • Blooded minded

    By Susie Ferguson
    4 stars

    After not expecting to really enjoy this book, I ended up reading it in a couple of days! Susie Ferguson has had an interesting and varied life, all the while experiencing debilitating symptoms from severe endometriosis. I have several family members who have also struggled to get help for this condition so I found this element of the book particularly relevant to me. The bullying Susie endured at school and the lack of help and compassion she received from many medical professionals - both in the UK and New Zealand appalled me. I finished the book full of admiration for her resilience. Although it's a word she personally dislikes, I can't think of a better word for how she endured what she did!

  • Nugly

    By M.C.Ross
    4 stars

    I was surprised at how much I enjoyed this book. The messages of hope, self-acceptance, needing love in your life and being kind whenever possible are messages that our young people need to hear over and over again. It helps that Nugly is a cute and likeable character. As the reader you really suffer along with him as he searches for a family to call his own. I can already see a number of children who frequent our library, enjoying this book.

  • All the beautiful things

    By Katrina Nannestad
    5 stars

    This is a gentle read about a difficult topic. It tells the story of Anna - a young girl growing up in Germany during WWII. Anna has a disabled sister who she hides and shelters from the Nazis. But doing so is dangerous for everyone involved - especially once more children need their help. This is definitely a book I will be putting in the hands of our older students (we are a school that goes to Year 6) if they have enjoyed books like the Diary of Anne Frank, Beyond Belief and the 'Once' series written by Morris Gleitzman. I really enjoyed it.

  • Read at your own risk

    By Remy Lai
    3 stars

    I really only read this book as I'm putting into our library and I was curious as to who I would recommend it too. It definitely isn't something that appeals to me but I can see it in the hands of a reluctant reader who wants to read a 'scary' book.

  • The Grimmelings

    By Rachael King
    5 stars

    I loved this book and will be recommending it to as many students (and teachers!) as possible next year when I return to school! Perhaps it is my Scottish heritage combined with my love of interesting words that made this book such an enjoyable read but whatever the reason was, this book had great 'balance' to me: plenty of adventure and intrigue, interesting main characters, lots of horses featuring throughout (a nod back to my childhood obsession) and a touch of magic woven in. For me, a perfect combination!

  • Before you knew my name

    By Jacqueline Bublitz
    5 stars

    I was curious about reading this book as it had really good reviews and the author had just released her second book. It didn't disappoint. I found it a slow burn but by the end I was thoroughly engaged with the story and characters. I'm now looking forward to reading Jacqueline's second novel.

  • The accidental teacher

    By Tim Heath
    4 stars

    An interesting memoir from a teacher in NZ - particularly because it spans over 40 years. Tim's experiences help to shine a light on the changes in thinking around the education of young people over the years and in particular how much our attitudes have changed around cultural awareness in New Zealand. Tim started teaching in the 60s so thankfully we have definitely moved on from then! This book would be particularly interesting if you work in the education field. I predict you will find yourself nodding in agreement or acknowledgement of the struggles Tim faced, at several points in the book.

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