Difference between revisions of "Newest Dyslexia Friendly Reviews"

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[[Category:Dyslexia Friendly|*]]
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{{newreview
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|author=Karen McCombie
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<!-- INSERT NEW REVIEWS BELOW HERE-->
|title=The Girl With The Sunshine Smile
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{{Frontpage
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|isbn=1800901232
 +
|title=Stitched Up
 +
|author=Steve Cole
 
|rating=5
 
|rating=5
 
|genre=Dyslexia Friendly
 
|genre=Dyslexia Friendly
|summary=Everyone knew Meg as the girl with the sunshine smile.  She always looked ''pretty'' and ''happy'' and her mother used her in her business to model bridesmaid's dressesThey had a lovely little flat which was always neat as a new pin and Meg thought that life was perfectThen her mother met Danny - and everything changed.  Danny was the single father to four boys and they all lived on a houseboatA messy houseboat.  With no lock on the bathroom door. And when there was a flood at Mum's flat they had to move in with Danny and the four boys.  That was when Meg stopped smiling.
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|summary=Twelve-year-old Hanh wanted to be a fashion designer.  Life in the rural village where she lived with her family was happy, if not prosperous, so when the smartly-dressed man and woman came to the village to offer Hahn a job in Hanoi it was an opportunity not to be missedSome money changed hands and Hanh was on the mini-bus to HanoiOnly, Hanh and the other girls were not going to work in a shop, they were to work in virtual slavery in an illegal garment factoryYou know those jeans you really wanted: the ones with intricate embroidery and beading on the legs? The ones with the artfully-placed rips and distressed seams that felt so soft when you touched them?  It's quite possible that Hanh and her co-workers made them.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1781124035</amazonuk>
 
 
}}
 
}}
 
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{{Frontpage
{{newreview
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|author=Marcus Sedgwick
|title=Wolfman
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|title=Wrath
|author=Michael Rosen and Chris Mould
 
 
|rating=4.5
 
|rating=4.5
|genre=For Sharing
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|genre=Teens
|summary=People are panicking. The police are afraid. The army have run away. Who or what could possibly be so scary? It’s Wolf Man. And he’s on the loose.
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|summary=Meet Fitz, a young Scottish lad full of frustration at himself. Lockdown is only just over, and he should be free to do what he wants, to go where he wants and with whom he wants, but he cannot stop himself from putting his foot in it when he talks to his best friend, Cassie. They were half of a desultory school band, but Cassie was also one hundred per cent the enigmatic – saying she could hear a subhuman hum coming from the earth. Is this connected with one of her eco-warrior parents saying the end of the world is already a done deal? Is it some spooky new kind of music she's dreaming of? Is she just bonkers? And can Fitz find out the truth? Well, not when Cassie has gone missing he can't...
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1781123748</amazonuk>
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|isbn=1800900899
 
}}
 
}}
 
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{{Frontpage
{{newreview
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|author=Lucy Strange and Pam Smy
|title=Freddy and the Pig
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|title=The Mermaid in the Millpond
|author=Charlie Higson and Mark Chambers
 
 
|rating=4.5
 
|rating=4.5
|genre=For Sharing
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|genre=Confident Readers
|summary=When Freddy send a pig to school in his place, wearing his school uniform and not looking entirely dissimilar to him, he thinks he's hit upon the perfect plan!  The pig can work all day in school whilst he stays at home and plays his console game and eats and eats, and no one will ever know!
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|summary=There is no mermaid in the millpond. That at least is what Bess is telling herself. Neither will there be a friend for her in amongst all the other kids, who have had their entire childhoods sold to the mill-owners by the London workhouse they used to call home. Bess knows there is no time for friendship in a hand-to-mouth, every man for himself kind of existence. But despite herself Bess does find a bit of a kindred spirit in the slight little Dot, and despite everything that life has taught her about betrayal and how befriending people only leads to harm, there might be a glimmer of companionship in the tired-out mill workers. But surely that doesn't mean there is any truth in the existence of the mermaid?
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>178112373X</amazonuk>
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|isbn=180090049X
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}}
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{{Frontpage
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|author=Keith Gray
 +
|title=The Climbers
 +
|rating=4
 +
|genre=Confident Readers
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|summary=Sully is the best tree climber in the village. He has what's known amongst the kids as 'reach'. But what happens when a new kid shows up in town? A new kid, called Nottingham, who clambers up some of the hardest trees with ease? Suddenly Sully is worried that his status is being threatened, and not only that, that his chance to name the final, unnamed big tree in the park by being the first to conquer it, might be snatched from his hands. How can Sully stop Nottingham? And will it cost him his best friend, or maybe even all of his friends, to do so?
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|isbn=1781129991
 
}}
 
}}
 
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{{Frontpage
{{newreview
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|author=Lisa Thompson
|author=Andy Stanton
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|title=The Small Things
|title=The Story of Matthew Buzzington
 
 
|rating=5
 
|rating=5
|genre=Dyslexia Friendly
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|genre=Confident Readers
|summary=Ten year old Matthew Buzzington was less than impressed when his father got a new, high-powered job and they had to move to the big city like IMMEDIATELYIt meant a new school, complete with a bully called Pineapple Johnson(NoSorryYou'll have to find out for yourself.) Matthew held on to one fact though - he knew that he had a superpower.  He could turn himself into a flyThere's only one problem.  It didn't workNo matter how hard he tried, no matter how he concentrated on thinking himself into being a fly, he was still a ten-year-old boy with curly hair and he was getting bullied.  Then everything changed one night when Matthew, his four-year-old sister Bella and Pineapple Johnson were accidentally locked in the school one night. And burglars broke in.
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|summary=Although Anna has friends at school, she feels like she never really fits in. Her family don't have enough money to let her do after school activities, and so she feels like her life at home is boring in comparison to theirs. When a new girl joins her class, Anna is asked to partner her, but things are complicated because the new girl, Ellie, is unwell and so can't attend school in person. Instead, she joins in with the class by using a robot. Can Anna overcome the challenge of making friends with someone through a robot, and is she even interesting enough to be a good friend to Ellie?
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1781124140</amazonuk>
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|isbn=1781129649
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}}
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{{Frontpage
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|author=Emma Carroll and Kaja Kajfez
 +
|title=The Ghost Garden
 +
|rating=4.5
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|genre=Confident Readers
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|summary=Fran, the gardener's daughter at a posh country house, is worriedShe's just cracked her garden fork through quite a grim discovery - a large bone, buried under the potatoesBut she's even more worried when she learns that that event coincided with Leo, the older child of the house, breaking his leg while playing cricket on the lawnShe is due to get even more worried when she finds something else that also seems to foretell a surpriseTasked with shoving Leo around the grounds in his bathchair, she might have reason to be out of her mind with fear, when she learns what he is seeking - a long-forgotten burial chamberBut surely that won't act as a premonition to anything - not here in the sultry, summery days of 1914?
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|isbn=1781129002
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}}
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{{Frontpage
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|author=Alex Wheatle
 +
|title=The Humiliations of Welton Blake
 +
|rating=2.5
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|genre=Confident Readers
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|summary=We meet Welton Blake at the worst of times – only they should be the best of times.  He should be getting a text from the most bae-worthy girl in school in regards to a cinema date, but his phone has packed up, he's chundered last night's meal and his breakfast over another girl in class, who's duffed him up in response, and the wanna-bae seems to actually be with someone else anywayOn a bigger scale he's living with his mother and not much income now that the dad has left the picture – yes, things are so bad they're resorting to having cabbage for dinnerI know, right?  But surely this is just a blip, a day at school to forget, and everything (like his vomit) will all come out in the wash? This can't be the start of a most nightmarish time for young Welton?
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|isbn=1781129495
 
}}
 
}}
 
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{{Frontpage
{{newreview
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|isbn=178112938X
|author=Jean Ure
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|title=Survival in Space: The Apollo 13 Mission
|title=Star for a Day
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|author=David Long and Stefano Tambellini (illustrator)
 
|rating=5
 
|rating=5
 
|genre=Dyslexia Friendly
 
|genre=Dyslexia Friendly
|summary=Lucy French (Luce to her grandad) is thirteen and she lives with said Grandad, Mum - and eleven-year-old Lola.  Lola's the one who gets all the attention, is able to loosen Mum's purse strings with a pout of her lip and who was upset when she only got Highly Commended in last year's Talent ShowThis year she will, of course, require a ''completely'' new outfit and the undivided attention of the family - and that not long after she's had a new outfit to go to a party.  Lola is gorgeous, bubbly and brims over with confidence.
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|summary=It's fifty years since the Apollo 13 mission was launched from the Kennedy Space Centre in Florida, but the story of that journey remains one of the greatest survival stories of all time.  ''Survival in Space: The Apollo 13 Mission'' is a brilliant retelling of what happened.
 
 
Lucy isn't - and doesn't.
 
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1781123586</amazonuk>
 
 
}}
 
}}
 
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{{Frontpage
{{newreview
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|isbn=1781129312
|author=Jenny Oldfield
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|title=Sequin and Stitch
|title=Bright Star
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|author=Laura Dockrill and Sara Ogilvie (illustrator)
 
|rating=5
 
|rating=5
 
|genre=Dyslexia Friendly
 
|genre=Dyslexia Friendly
|summary=Morgan was just thirteen when she was sent to her aunt's ranch in the Rockies for the summer.  It was all a bit alien to her - I mean she was a city girl from Chicago and she was going to have to get on with ''horses''It's not long though before she realises that she has a real affinity with horses and ponies and develops a special bond with a terrified wild mustangIt's Morgan who rescues the animal when it's trapped in barbed wire and calms it sufficiently to bring it into shelter.
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|summary=Sequin loved her mum to bits, but sometimes she got very cross with her.  It wasn't that mum wouldn't go outside their flat - Sequin coped with that - it was because she never pushed to get credit for what she did.  Mum is a seamstress and she makes the sort of clothes that you see on red carpets or at important weddingsShe's not the designer - they're the people who make a lot of money from the clothesMum is the person who actually ''makes'' the garments and she's really talented, but when people talk about the dress or the suit, they talk about the designer.  The seamstress is never mentioned.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1781123756</amazonuk>
 
 
}}
 
}}
 
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{{Frontpage
{{newreview
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|author=Tanya Landman
|author=Sally Nicholls
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|title=Jane Eyre: a Retelling
|title=Shadow Girl
 
 
|rating=5
 
|rating=5
 
|genre=Dyslexia Friendly
 
|genre=Dyslexia Friendly
|summary=One of the disadvantages of the foster care system is that some children get moved around rather a lot and usually it's not down to themBut because of this it's easy to see making friends as being a wasted effort and this was certainly Clare's opinion.  By the age of fourteen she was at her third secondary school - and after being there for two months she hated itEveryone else had been there for years and they all had friends: Clare had no one.  A very bad day saw her being evicted from the school bus and then getting lost as she tried to find her way home.  The good thing was that she met Maddy.
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|summary=A young woman, fresh from living with horrid relatives who could care less about her, and years in a dreary school, moves into Thornfield Hall with only one intent – to have something like the life she wants – and with only one job, to tutor a young half-French girl, whose father is almost always absentWhen he does turn up he seems to be dark, brooding and troubled – but that's nothing compared to the darker, more broody and even more troubling secret in the houseYes, if you know Jane Eyre then you know the rest – but if you don't, for whatever reason, this is a wonderful book to turn to.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1781123136</amazonuk>
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|isbn=1781129126
 
}}
 
}}
 
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{{Frontpage
{{newreview
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|isbn=1781128952
|author=Caroline Lawrence
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|title=The Starlight Watchmaker
|title=The Night Raid
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|author=Lauren James
|rating=4.5
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|rating=4
 
|genre=Dyslexia Friendly
 
|genre=Dyslexia Friendly
|summary=The Trojan War is over and the few survivors have to find somewhere else to live. Rye and Nisus - barely more than children at the end of the war and both with their own burden of guilt and horror - are obsessed by the need to seek vengeance and protect the land on which they have now settled.
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|summary=This is a dyslexia-friendly, science fiction novella for young adults. It tells the tale of Hugo, an unwanted and rather lonely android, who makes a living for himself mending time-travel watches. When one of his clients demands that his broken watch be mended, Hugo realises there is a mystery to be solved and is only too ready to help. An exciting journey of discovery unfolds, which takes Hugo out of his drab attic workroom and into a scary adventure with some amazing new friends, exploring regions of the planet never before known to exist.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1781123667</amazonuk>
 
 
}}
 
}}
 
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{{Frontpage
{{newreview
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|isbn=1781128693
|title=The Moonshine Dragon (Little Gems)
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|title=Special Delivery
|author=Cornelia Funke
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|author=Jonathan Meres
|rating=4.5
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|rating=4
 
|genre=Dyslexia Friendly
 
|genre=Dyslexia Friendly
|summary=What happens when stories escape from books? One moonlit night Patrick is woken up by the noise of a tiny dragon emerging from his storybook and chased by an equally tiny knight on horseback. Suddenly Patrick finds himself shrunk to story book size too and he and the dragon find themselves under attack. Can Patrick save them both before time runs out?
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|summary=How do you explain to children about dementia? Injuries or illnesses are obvious, but when the problem is the brain which isn't functioning quite as it used to it isn't as easy to grasp.  Frank was a normal nine-year-old and like many nine-year-olds what he wanted was a new bike.  He'd had his for about seventy-eight years and he didn't want to raise the seat any more.  Mum pointed out that it wasn't his birthday or Christmas any time soon and bikes cost a lot of money, which didn't grow on trees.  His sister Lottie had a solution: Frank could help her with her paper round. Frank agreed despite thinking that it would take him a thousand years to save up the money for a bike AND he had to get up at six o'clock in the morning.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1781123535</amazonuk>
 
 
}}
 
}}
 
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{{Frontpage
{{newreview
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|isbn=1781128707
|author=David Almond and Vladimir Stankovic
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|title=The Spectacular Revenge of Suzi Sims
|title=Klaus Vogel and the Bad Lads
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|author=Vivian French
|rating=4
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|rating=5
 
|genre=Dyslexia Friendly
 
|genre=Dyslexia Friendly
|summary=The Bad Lads had been together for years.  They were scamps, mischief makers - lads having a bit of fun - and they were led by Joe Gillespie who was a year or two olderThe lads thought that Joe was great but there was a niggling feeling amongst one or two of the boys that he was getting a bit more extreme and that some of his pranks were actually - deliberately - going to hurt people.  The fire at Mr Eustace's (he was a conchie, you see) happened the same week that Klaus Vogel arrived in the town of FellingThe scrawny refugee from East Germany who knew hardly any English would change things for the Bad Lads.
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|summary=Suzi Simms loved running and it was her ambition to win the 100 metres race on sports day at the end of term - and that was next weekWe're going to read about what happened in her diary, although there's a warning that we really shouldn't be reading it, particularly as it's about Barbie Meek.  To say that the two girls don't get on at all well is a bit of an understatementSuzi wouldn't actually do anything about it, but Barbie is a troublemaker and she wants to win the 100 metres race too - by fair means or foul.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1781122695</amazonuk>
 
 
}}
 
}}
 
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{{Frontpage
{{newreview
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|isbn=1949471004
|title=Minikid (Little Gems)
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|title=Dog on a Log Chapter Books: Step 1
|author=Michael Morpurgo
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|author=Pamela Brookes
|rating=3.5
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|rating=4
 
|genre=Dyslexia Friendly
 
|genre=Dyslexia Friendly
|summary=There seem to be more and more books being published, now, that are marketing themselves as being dyslexia friendlyThis Michael Morpurgo story is from Little Gems and it follows the guidelines that make it easier to read for children with dyslexiaThe paper is a high quality cream paper, so no shadows coming through from the other side to distract readers, there's a special font, and there are pictures throughout the story. It's a lovely size that fits nicely into small hands, with an appealing cover. So far, so good!
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|summary=What do you do when your child has dyslexia and you need books which will help them to achieve the wonder that is reading?  You can risk buying early readers, but the sounds in the book might not be the ones you've been working on and encountering words which are just too challenging can have more of a negative effect on the young dyslexic than a child without that problem.  You need to be able to buy books at a reasonable price which concentrate on what you've been working on, without anything else being thrown into the mixYou need a story which engages the young mind and you need stages which progress steadily through the learning process without there being any large jumpsSome online support and games wouldn't go amiss, either.  Reading - and ''learning'' to read - should be a pleasure. It should be ''fun''.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1781123527</amazonuk>
 
 
}}
 
}}
 
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{{Frontpage
{{newreview
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|isbn=1781128510
|author=Tom Palmer
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|title=One Shot
|title=Over The Line
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|author=Tanya Landman
|rating=5
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|rating=4.5
 
|genre=Dyslexia Friendly
 
|genre=Dyslexia Friendly
|summary=Jack Cock made his debut as a professional footballer for Huddersfield Town and that fragile dream of playing for his country came just a little bit closer, but this was just before the beginning of the First World War, when there was immense pressure on young men to do the honourable thing and join the war to fight in France. ''Over the Line'' is the story of Jack's war, of joining the Footballers' Battalion, playing in the Flanders Cup, fighting in the trenches and not just surviving but being decorated for bravery.  After the war he scored England's first international goal and was one of the first of the modern generation of 'professional footballers'.
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|summary=''Pa and I understood each other. Our souls were cut from the same cloth.'' But Pa has since died, leaving Maggie very much alone in her family. She was the only one of three children who looked like him, and none of the others acted like him, and certainly, his wife didn't seem to fully understand him. Maggie might as well be reliving the Cinderella story, stuck with two siblings and mother that are fully against her. But at least she can sneak out at night, and shoot some game to stop them from starving? Well, no, not where her mother is concerned – the very idea of a female shooting things, when they could be preparing for a life of unhappy married drudgery, is just scandalous.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1781123934</amazonuk>
 
 
}}
 
}}
 
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{{Frontpage
{{newreview
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|isbn=178112843X
|title=Blamehounds (Little Gems)
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|title=Lark
|author=Ross Collins
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|author=Anthony McGowan
 
|rating=5
 
|rating=5
|genre=Confident Readers
 
|summary=The idea began with Mr Lime’s bodily explosions (didn’t I put that nicely?)  After three of them it was Norman the dog (who was entirely blameless in this matter so long as you’re willing to overlook the fact that he was having a lovely dream about dropping cats off bridges) who got the kick to speed him from the room.  There were a couple more occasions when something similar happened but instead of getting a complex about what was happening, Norman saw an opportunity.  A business opportunity.  If dogs were going to get the blame then there should be something in it for them and he went into partnership with his best mate, Ringo (who does seem to be obsessed with sausages) and Blamehounds was born.
 
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1781123926</amazonuk>
 
}}
 
 
{{newreview
 
|author=Eleanor Updale and Sarah Horne
 
|title=Itch Scritch Scratch
 
|rating=4
 
 
|genre=Dyslexia Friendly
 
|genre=Dyslexia Friendly
|summary='''Warning: This Book Will Get Under Your Skin'''
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|summary=I'll warn you first.
 
 
Well, that's what it says on the back of the book and I can promise that it's true.  You might like to wear a pair of those cotton mittens for babies whilst you read.  It will feel awkward, but you'll feel the benefit, honestly.  But - I'm getting ahead of myself.  You want to know about the book.  It's a family story - and the family in question are head lice.
 
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1781122946</amazonuk>
 
}}
 
  
{{newreview
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This is the fourth and last story about Nicky and Kenny. Try not to cry before you've even read the first page.
|author=Michael Morpurgo and Ross Collins
 
|title=All I Said Was
 
|rating=4
 
|genre=Dyslexia Friendly
 
|summary=Our young friend looked up at the window and saw a pigeon balancing on the window sill and our young friend had a thought. ''I'd like to be you,'' he said, dreaming of flying off to anywhere that he liked.  The pigeon was quite happy to change places: lying on the bed reading a book seemed like a good idea, so the two changed places. Our young hero thought it was great as he flew off towards the sea:
 
  
''I want to be a bird all my life''.
+
Things have got tense at home - again - for Nicky and his learning-disabled brother Kenny. Their mum is coming to visit - the mum who abandoned them a long time ago. They haven't seen her for years and the impending visit is stirring up a lot of uncomfortable feelings. And Nicky's girlfriend has ended things. To take their minds off it all, Nicky and Kenny plan a day out, trekking across the moors. But it doesn't go to plan and an accident puts both boys - and their dog, Tina, in terrible danger.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1781123489</amazonuk>
 
 
}}
 
}}
 
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{{Frontpage
{{newreview
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|isbn=1786697173
|title=Tilly's Promise
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|title=Mr Tiger, Betsy and the Blue Moon
|author=Linda Newbery
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|author=Sally Gardner
 
|rating=5
 
|rating=5
 
|genre=Dyslexia Friendly
 
|genre=Dyslexia Friendly
|summary=Tilly often wished things would change in the sleepy little village she called home, but she gets more change than she bargained for when war breaks out. First her sweetheart joins up, then Tilly signs on a nurse and finally her brother Georgie is called up, despite the fact that he is completely unfit for service. Georgie is different, big and strong but with the mind of a child - how could he possibly survive the horrors of war? So many promises are made, Tilly promises her sweetheart Harry she will wait - Harry assures her he won't be away long - sure it will probably be over by Christmas (famous last words).  When Georgie is posted to Harry's unit, Tilly extracts a somewhat reluctant promise from him to look after her brother. More promises will be made - but  promises are hard to keep in wartime. As Georgie and Harry face the harsh reality of life in the trenches, Tilly finds herself near the frontline as a nurse. Everything seems to have changed. Will even love remain the same - especially in the aftermath of a broken promise?
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|summary=Betsy K Glory lives a rather wonderful life on a peaceful island where nothing horrible ever happens. Her father, Alonso, makes the most wonderful ice cream in every flavour you could imagine. Her mother, Myrtle, is a mermaid and comes to visit regularly, although she still lives in the sea. Betsy dreams of two things: firstly, about the circus owned by a tiger and whether it would ever come to her island and secondly, about a magical ice cream made from the berries of the Gongalong bush. One scoop of this ice cream can make wishes come true.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1781122938</amazonuk>
 
}}
 
  
{{newreview
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And then Mr Tiger and his circus arrive. And a journey is planned...
|title=Old Dog, New Tricks
 
|author=Bali Rai
 
|rating=5
 
|genre=Dyslexia Friendly
 
|summary=Nick is a miserable old sod by anyone's definition. His equally mangy dog, Nelson, is the only friend he has, as his nasty nature puts everyone off. But while he may be unpleasant to most people, he is downright horrible when the Singh family move in, bringing out the worst of his racist views - but can a man who likes Bob Marley really hate anyone of another colour? Is Nick just an ignorant and  offensive old git, or is there something more beneath the surface? No one seems to have really bothered to find out before a common love of dogs draws young Harvey Singh to attempt to befriend not only the unkempt dog, but the lonely old man as well.
 
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1781123470</amazonuk>
 
 
}}
 
}}
 
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{{Frontpage
{{newreview
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|isbn=1781128286
|title=The First Third Wish (Little Gems)
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|title=Run Wild
|author=Ian Beck
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|author=Gill Lewis
 
|rating=5
 
|rating=5
 
|genre=Dyslexia Friendly
 
|genre=Dyslexia Friendly
|summary=This is a lovely story of a lost wish. Cobweb has bungled her very first assignment, losing the third wish meant for a kindly woodcutter. She managed to replace it with a spare, but her job will not be complete until the missing wish is found and returned. It seems a lost wish is very dangerous indeed as it gives the finder an unlimited supply of wishes - and not all people are careful what they wish for. As luck would have it though, the wish has found its way just to the place where it most needed, where it will result in a true happily ever after, not only for the young man who finds it, but for  many others as well.
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|summary=Meet Izzy and Asha. Bullied away from the local attempt at a skatepark, they find a huge waste ground in the shadow of a derelict gasometer to practise on, which they duly do, even though they have to drag Izzy's younger brother with them. The following day they all want to return, as does the brother's schoolfriend, despite – and of course because of – there is a huge wolf living in the site. Can the children survive living in the urban wilderness, alongside such obvious dangers?
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1781122458</amazonuk>
 
 
}}
 
}}
 
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{{Frontpage
{{newreview
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|isbn=Jennings Different
|title=My Friend's a Gris-Kwok (Little Gems)
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|title=A Different Dog
|author=Malorie Blackman and Andy Rowland
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|author=Paul Jennings and Geoff Kelly
 
|rating=4.5
 
|rating=4.5
 
|genre=Dyslexia Friendly
 
|genre=Dyslexia Friendly
|summary=When Mike discovers that his best friend Alex is a Gris Kwok or shape shifter it looks like they are in for some real fun. Not only can Alex change into any creature he wants, he can change anyone touching him as well. There are only three hitches. The first is that Alex can only change three times a day. The second is that his sister has the same powers. The third is that Alex is babysitting and if you think babysitting ordinary siblings is difficult just wait until you see all the mischief a shape shifting toddler can get into.
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|summary=Our hero is a boy, whose name we never learn. We know what he wants in life – with his mother exceedingly poor, and even his bed burnt to keep the two of them warm, he wants the prize offered by a down-a-mountain-and-back-up-and-down-again foot race. Winning the race and the large purse would also give him more status in the eyes of those kids that bully him, and it might even give him a voice – for he is almost mute. We quickly learn he never talks back to anyone, whatever the motivation, and can only speak aloud to himself – and, so it turns out, to a dog he rescues from a bad road accident he finds on his way up the hill to the start line…
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>178112244X</amazonuk>
 
 
}}
 
}}
 
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{{Frontpage
{{newreview
+
|isbn=Dawson_Grave
|title=Snug (Little Gems)
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|title=Grave Matter
|author=Michael Morpurgo and Faye Hansen
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|author=Juno Dawson and Alex T Smith
|rating=2.5
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|rating=4.5
|genre=Dyslexia Friendly
 
|summary=Michael Morpurgo has captured what is like to own a cat, or perhaps more accurately to be owned by a cat, perfectly. Snug comes into the family at almost the same time as Lisa and the two grow up together and share a special bond. His exploits will be familiar to any one who has any experience of cats and many children will relate to things Snug does just like their own pet. The illustrations in this book are beautiful and certain to delight any animal lover, as well as giving readers a nostalgic look at childhood.
 
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1781122865</amazonuk>
 
}}
 
 
 
{{newreview
 
|title=The Castle in the Field (Little Gems)
 
|author=Michael Morpurgo and Faye Hansen
 
|rating=5
 
 
|genre=Dyslexia Friendly
 
|genre=Dyslexia Friendly
|summary=I think all children love dens. It is almost a primal instinct for children, to find, construct and hide away in huts, dens, tents, or any other place that gives them that sense of their own private place, away from the world. Michael Morpurgo has captured the magic of a secret den perfectly in this story of three friends who find an abandoned WW2 Pillbox and make it into their own private castle. The  children are not really meant to be in the pillbox. It is on private property, but they don't really have any place else to go. Two of the children are not allowed to go home until their parents finish work and the third will not leave his best friend out in the weather alone. At first the pillbox is just shelter from a storm, but it soon becomes an embodiment of all the wonder of childhood as the children transform it into a wonderful private retreat. But how long will they be able to keep their special hideout a secret? This is a lovely story with a  heart warming theme of friendship, a confrontation with bullies, and the inevitable pangs of growing up.
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|summary=Since Eliza died, since the night of the car crash that took her life, Sam is a broken soul. He is lost without the girl he loves, feeling as though a part of him died that night too. But he is desperate and he cannot live without Eliza. He remembers his estranged Aunt Marie and her peculiar healing powers and wonders if she might be able to help him. However, finding his Aunt Marie leads him to discover the Milk Man, which causes Sam in his grieving state to make a pact with forces he doesn't understand. Things soon turn complicated as supernatural powers start to change Sam's life in more ways than he bargained for.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1781122873</amazonuk>
 
 
}}
 
}}
  
{{newreview
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Move on to [[Newest Dystopian Fiction Reviews]]
|title=Ninja: First Mission (Ninja Trilogy)
 
|author=Chris Bradford and Sonia Leong
 
|rating=5
 
|genre=Dyslexia Friendly
 
|summary=If you are looking for adventure, '' Ninja First Mission'' will certain come up trumps. This book never has a slow moment. But even as the story races along at breakneck speed, there is plenty to think about as well. This book has as much to offer the deep thinker as the adrenaline junky. Tata, a young Ninja in training, is desperate to prove himself. He has failed the test for his black belt three times, but this was just a simple test. The sacred scrolls of his clan have been stolen, and all of the fully fledged Ninja but one are away on another mission. Tata faces another test, but this time the stakes are life and death, not only for himself, but for his clan. In order to succeed Tata must learn to find victory in failure. Most of all he must learn to believe in himself.
 
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1842999397</amazonuk>
 
}}
 
 
 
{{newreview
 
|title=Football Crazy
 
|author=Tony Bradman and Michael Broad
 
|rating=5
 
|genre=Dyslexia Friendly
 
|summary=''Football Crazy'' is about a  group of friends who play on the worst team in the league. It can be difficult when your team loses every time you go on the pitch, but Danny, Jamil and Lewis love the sport and they stick with it - win or lose. They keep hoping the next game will be the game in which they finally win, or at least get on the scoreboard, but it never happens - not as long as Mr Perkins is coaching. When the coach finally packs it in - it looks like curtains for Rovers FC. But, luck seems to be on the children's side when a new coach, Jock Ramsay,  with some history in the pro leagues is found. The new coach is tough, but he quickly gets the team into shape and the Rovers start climbing the league tables. Parents are delighted, the stands are full, but the children find they no longer love the sport. Everything is about winning. Things come to crisis point when Coach Ramsay orders Danny to take a dive.
 
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1781122121</amazonuk>
 
}}
 

Latest revision as of 15:30, 13 May 2022


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Review of

Stitched Up by Steve Cole

5star.jpg Dyslexia Friendly

Twelve-year-old Hanh wanted to be a fashion designer. Life in the rural village where she lived with her family was happy, if not prosperous, so when the smartly-dressed man and woman came to the village to offer Hahn a job in Hanoi it was an opportunity not to be missed. Some money changed hands and Hanh was on the mini-bus to Hanoi. Only, Hanh and the other girls were not going to work in a shop, they were to work in virtual slavery in an illegal garment factory. You know those jeans you really wanted: the ones with intricate embroidery and beading on the legs? The ones with the artfully-placed rips and distressed seams that felt so soft when you touched them? It's quite possible that Hanh and her co-workers made them. Full Review

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Review of

Wrath by Marcus Sedgwick

4.5star.jpg Teens

Meet Fitz, a young Scottish lad full of frustration at himself. Lockdown is only just over, and he should be free to do what he wants, to go where he wants and with whom he wants, but he cannot stop himself from putting his foot in it when he talks to his best friend, Cassie. They were half of a desultory school band, but Cassie was also one hundred per cent the enigmatic – saying she could hear a subhuman hum coming from the earth. Is this connected with one of her eco-warrior parents saying the end of the world is already a done deal? Is it some spooky new kind of music she's dreaming of? Is she just bonkers? And can Fitz find out the truth? Well, not when Cassie has gone missing he can't... Full Review

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Review of

The Mermaid in the Millpond by Lucy Strange and Pam Smy

4.5star.jpg Confident Readers

There is no mermaid in the millpond. That at least is what Bess is telling herself. Neither will there be a friend for her in amongst all the other kids, who have had their entire childhoods sold to the mill-owners by the London workhouse they used to call home. Bess knows there is no time for friendship in a hand-to-mouth, every man for himself kind of existence. But despite herself Bess does find a bit of a kindred spirit in the slight little Dot, and despite everything that life has taught her about betrayal and how befriending people only leads to harm, there might be a glimmer of companionship in the tired-out mill workers. But surely that doesn't mean there is any truth in the existence of the mermaid? Full Review

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Review of

The Climbers by Keith Gray

4star.jpg Confident Readers

Sully is the best tree climber in the village. He has what's known amongst the kids as 'reach'. But what happens when a new kid shows up in town? A new kid, called Nottingham, who clambers up some of the hardest trees with ease? Suddenly Sully is worried that his status is being threatened, and not only that, that his chance to name the final, unnamed big tree in the park by being the first to conquer it, might be snatched from his hands. How can Sully stop Nottingham? And will it cost him his best friend, or maybe even all of his friends, to do so? Full Review

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Review of

The Small Things by Lisa Thompson

5star.jpg Confident Readers

Although Anna has friends at school, she feels like she never really fits in. Her family don't have enough money to let her do after school activities, and so she feels like her life at home is boring in comparison to theirs. When a new girl joins her class, Anna is asked to partner her, but things are complicated because the new girl, Ellie, is unwell and so can't attend school in person. Instead, she joins in with the class by using a robot. Can Anna overcome the challenge of making friends with someone through a robot, and is she even interesting enough to be a good friend to Ellie? Full Review

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Review of

The Ghost Garden by Emma Carroll and Kaja Kajfez

4.5star.jpg Confident Readers

Fran, the gardener's daughter at a posh country house, is worried. She's just cracked her garden fork through quite a grim discovery - a large bone, buried under the potatoes. But she's even more worried when she learns that that event coincided with Leo, the older child of the house, breaking his leg while playing cricket on the lawn. She is due to get even more worried when she finds something else that also seems to foretell a surprise. Tasked with shoving Leo around the grounds in his bathchair, she might have reason to be out of her mind with fear, when she learns what he is seeking - a long-forgotten burial chamber. But surely that won't act as a premonition to anything - not here in the sultry, summery days of 1914? Full Review

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Review of

The Humiliations of Welton Blake by Alex Wheatle

2.5star.jpg Confident Readers

We meet Welton Blake at the worst of times – only they should be the best of times. He should be getting a text from the most bae-worthy girl in school in regards to a cinema date, but his phone has packed up, he's chundered last night's meal and his breakfast over another girl in class, who's duffed him up in response, and the wanna-bae seems to actually be with someone else anyway. On a bigger scale he's living with his mother and not much income now that the dad has left the picture – yes, things are so bad they're resorting to having cabbage for dinner. I know, right? But surely this is just a blip, a day at school to forget, and everything (like his vomit) will all come out in the wash? This can't be the start of a most nightmarish time for young Welton? Full Review

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Review of

Survival in Space: The Apollo 13 Mission by David Long and Stefano Tambellini (illustrator)

5star.jpg Dyslexia Friendly

It's fifty years since the Apollo 13 mission was launched from the Kennedy Space Centre in Florida, but the story of that journey remains one of the greatest survival stories of all time. Survival in Space: The Apollo 13 Mission is a brilliant retelling of what happened. Full Review

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Review of

Sequin and Stitch by Laura Dockrill and Sara Ogilvie (illustrator)

5star.jpg Dyslexia Friendly

Sequin loved her mum to bits, but sometimes she got very cross with her. It wasn't that mum wouldn't go outside their flat - Sequin coped with that - it was because she never pushed to get credit for what she did. Mum is a seamstress and she makes the sort of clothes that you see on red carpets or at important weddings. She's not the designer - they're the people who make a lot of money from the clothes. Mum is the person who actually makes the garments and she's really talented, but when people talk about the dress or the suit, they talk about the designer. The seamstress is never mentioned. Full Review

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Review of

Jane Eyre: a Retelling by Tanya Landman

5star.jpg Dyslexia Friendly

A young woman, fresh from living with horrid relatives who could care less about her, and years in a dreary school, moves into Thornfield Hall with only one intent – to have something like the life she wants – and with only one job, to tutor a young half-French girl, whose father is almost always absent. When he does turn up he seems to be dark, brooding and troubled – but that's nothing compared to the darker, more broody and even more troubling secret in the house. Yes, if you know Jane Eyre then you know the rest – but if you don't, for whatever reason, this is a wonderful book to turn to. Full Review

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Review of

The Starlight Watchmaker by Lauren James

4star.jpg Dyslexia Friendly

This is a dyslexia-friendly, science fiction novella for young adults. It tells the tale of Hugo, an unwanted and rather lonely android, who makes a living for himself mending time-travel watches. When one of his clients demands that his broken watch be mended, Hugo realises there is a mystery to be solved and is only too ready to help. An exciting journey of discovery unfolds, which takes Hugo out of his drab attic workroom and into a scary adventure with some amazing new friends, exploring regions of the planet never before known to exist. Full Review

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Review of

Special Delivery by Jonathan Meres

4star.jpg Dyslexia Friendly

How do you explain to children about dementia? Injuries or illnesses are obvious, but when the problem is the brain which isn't functioning quite as it used to it isn't as easy to grasp. Frank was a normal nine-year-old and like many nine-year-olds what he wanted was a new bike. He'd had his for about seventy-eight years and he didn't want to raise the seat any more. Mum pointed out that it wasn't his birthday or Christmas any time soon and bikes cost a lot of money, which didn't grow on trees. His sister Lottie had a solution: Frank could help her with her paper round. Frank agreed despite thinking that it would take him a thousand years to save up the money for a bike AND he had to get up at six o'clock in the morning. Full Review

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Review of

The Spectacular Revenge of Suzi Sims by Vivian French

5star.jpg Dyslexia Friendly

Suzi Simms loved running and it was her ambition to win the 100 metres race on sports day at the end of term - and that was next week. We're going to read about what happened in her diary, although there's a warning that we really shouldn't be reading it, particularly as it's about Barbie Meek. To say that the two girls don't get on at all well is a bit of an understatement. Suzi wouldn't actually do anything about it, but Barbie is a troublemaker and she wants to win the 100 metres race too - by fair means or foul. Full Review

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Review of

Dog on a Log Chapter Books: Step 1 by Pamela Brookes

4star.jpg Dyslexia Friendly

What do you do when your child has dyslexia and you need books which will help them to achieve the wonder that is reading? You can risk buying early readers, but the sounds in the book might not be the ones you've been working on and encountering words which are just too challenging can have more of a negative effect on the young dyslexic than a child without that problem. You need to be able to buy books at a reasonable price which concentrate on what you've been working on, without anything else being thrown into the mix. You need a story which engages the young mind and you need stages which progress steadily through the learning process without there being any large jumps. Some online support and games wouldn't go amiss, either. Reading - and learning to read - should be a pleasure. It should be fun. Full Review

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Review of

One Shot by Tanya Landman

4.5star.jpg Dyslexia Friendly

Pa and I understood each other. Our souls were cut from the same cloth. But Pa has since died, leaving Maggie very much alone in her family. She was the only one of three children who looked like him, and none of the others acted like him, and certainly, his wife didn't seem to fully understand him. Maggie might as well be reliving the Cinderella story, stuck with two siblings and mother that are fully against her. But at least she can sneak out at night, and shoot some game to stop them from starving? Well, no, not where her mother is concerned – the very idea of a female shooting things, when they could be preparing for a life of unhappy married drudgery, is just scandalous. Full Review

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Review of

Lark by Anthony McGowan

5star.jpg Dyslexia Friendly

I'll warn you first.

This is the fourth and last story about Nicky and Kenny. Try not to cry before you've even read the first page.

Things have got tense at home - again - for Nicky and his learning-disabled brother Kenny. Their mum is coming to visit - the mum who abandoned them a long time ago. They haven't seen her for years and the impending visit is stirring up a lot of uncomfortable feelings. And Nicky's girlfriend has ended things. To take their minds off it all, Nicky and Kenny plan a day out, trekking across the moors. But it doesn't go to plan and an accident puts both boys - and their dog, Tina, in terrible danger. Full Review

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Review of

Mr Tiger, Betsy and the Blue Moon by Sally Gardner

5star.jpg Dyslexia Friendly

Betsy K Glory lives a rather wonderful life on a peaceful island where nothing horrible ever happens. Her father, Alonso, makes the most wonderful ice cream in every flavour you could imagine. Her mother, Myrtle, is a mermaid and comes to visit regularly, although she still lives in the sea. Betsy dreams of two things: firstly, about the circus owned by a tiger and whether it would ever come to her island and secondly, about a magical ice cream made from the berries of the Gongalong bush. One scoop of this ice cream can make wishes come true.

And then Mr Tiger and his circus arrive. And a journey is planned... Full Review

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Review of

Run Wild by Gill Lewis

5star.jpg Dyslexia Friendly

Meet Izzy and Asha. Bullied away from the local attempt at a skatepark, they find a huge waste ground in the shadow of a derelict gasometer to practise on, which they duly do, even though they have to drag Izzy's younger brother with them. The following day they all want to return, as does the brother's schoolfriend, despite – and of course because of – there is a huge wolf living in the site. Can the children survive living in the urban wilderness, alongside such obvious dangers? Full Review

link=http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/Jennings Different/ref=nosim?tag=thebookbag-21

Review of

A Different Dog by Paul Jennings and Geoff Kelly

4.5star.jpg Dyslexia Friendly

Our hero is a boy, whose name we never learn. We know what he wants in life – with his mother exceedingly poor, and even his bed burnt to keep the two of them warm, he wants the prize offered by a down-a-mountain-and-back-up-and-down-again foot race. Winning the race and the large purse would also give him more status in the eyes of those kids that bully him, and it might even give him a voice – for he is almost mute. We quickly learn he never talks back to anyone, whatever the motivation, and can only speak aloud to himself – and, so it turns out, to a dog he rescues from a bad road accident he finds on his way up the hill to the start line… Full Review

Dawson Grave.jpg

Review of

Grave Matter by Juno Dawson and Alex T Smith

4.5star.jpg Dyslexia Friendly

Since Eliza died, since the night of the car crash that took her life, Sam is a broken soul. He is lost without the girl he loves, feeling as though a part of him died that night too. But he is desperate and he cannot live without Eliza. He remembers his estranged Aunt Marie and her peculiar healing powers and wonders if she might be able to help him. However, finding his Aunt Marie leads him to discover the Milk Man, which causes Sam in his grieving state to make a pact with forces he doesn't understand. Things soon turn complicated as supernatural powers start to change Sam's life in more ways than he bargained for. Full Review

Move on to Newest Dystopian Fiction Reviews