Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by J.K. Rowling
My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Just like the first three books in the Harry Potter series, after reading all of the books a few years ago, I have just re-read Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire with my children (12 & 7). They are loving this series and have really enjoyed this book too.


What I loved most about this book though, was that there was so much going on. Apart from the Triwizard Tournament, there were so many other threads to follow and even right up to the very last pages of the book, there were questions we wanted answers to, such as who Fred and George were blackmailing and why, and how Rita Skeeter was getting her information.


They are all great books to read aloud, with interesting and well rounded characters, fantastic description and exciting storylines. I highly recommend them for parents to read to their children.

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Bad Dreams

Bad Dreams by Anne Fine

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I liked this book. I have read a few of Anne Fine's books and although this is not one of my favourites, I think it's a really good read for children (probably girls rather than boys) of 9 or 10.

Mel or 'Melly' (did she really not mind being called that?!), as people called her, the narrator, was quite rude at times and I cringed at her lack of social skills. I would have preferred it if she were more of a likeable character that children could like and want to be like, especially as she could show that it's okay to be someone who likes to read and prefers to spend time alone, even if others think it's odd.

I found the teacher annoying and not very realistic (probably because I am a teacher myself), but I think he would be realistic enough for 9-10 year olds not to pick up on this and it certainly wouldn't spoil the story for them.

The idea for the story is fantastic and the plot was so unpredictable, I was keen to read to the end to find out how it all turned out.

There were a few things I would like to have found out more about, such as Imogen's mother and what was going on with her. We found out a little and I guess that's enough for a minor character in the book, but it would have been interesting to find out more about her.

Overall, I think this book may have been better if it had been written in 3rd person narrative, but nevertheless, I think it would be an enjoyable read for confident junior readers.

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A Pleasant Read

Playing With Fire by Derek Landy



I am currently reading this with a year 5 (10 year old) pupil, who is really enjoying it. It has a good balance of action and mystery to keep a 10 year old boy's interest. The characters, who all have great names like 'Barron Vengeous' are amusing and interesting, allowing for good discussions about them as well as writing based on what we know about them. The writing provides fantastic examples of interesting sentence structures, brilliant imagery as well as interesting and exciting vocabulary. This book was recommended to me by an 11 year old, evidently one with good literary taste. It's all I can do not to read ahead to the end!


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