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Attractive book recommended

27/10/2014

On the Edge
by Linley Jones

On the Edge is a good book for readers aged eleven to fifteen years.
In this story twelve-year old Brady has to overcome his fear of heights, as the school has got a new climbing wall. Unfortunately for him, he gets dizzy two rungs up a ladder, and with Stan Mackersley, the school bully, watching him it gets a lot harder. If he has trouble doing that, then what will happen when there’s a bigger challenge facing him?
What I liked about On the Edge, was every problem had a reasonable solution and I liked that there was nothing that didn’t make sense. And I found no spelling or grammar mistakes either.
What I didn’t like so much was that as soon as one problem had a solution, another problem occurred. This happens five times in a row, which makes six problems and most stories only have two to four.
It is an attractive-looking book with a good colourful cover.
I really liked this book but would recommend it to slightly older kids than I am (10). Though it’s about a boy, two other main characters are girls, and girl readers will like the book too.

Review by Zoe
Zoe is a primary school pupil from Wellington

On the Edge, by Linley Jones
Publisher: AM Publishing New Zealand
ISBN: 978-0-9922628-3-9
Paperback: 164 pages. Rec Retail: $20.00
Available: Total Library Solutions; Wheeler Books; lesjones@xtra.co.nz

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Entertaining for small children

20/10/2014

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Socket, Where are you?
Illustrations and Poetry by Jude Leonard
Storyline by Larraine Buswell

Socket, Where are you? is a picture book for pre-schoolers, probably best for about 3 to 4 year olds.
The illustrations are lovely, with a combination of paint techniques making colourful representations of the seven dogs and their kennels, animals, flowers and landscapes.
The dogs live in Ruishton cottage in rural New Zealand, and one of them, Socket, goes missing. The story is about the other dogs searching for her, and in the end, finding her in time for dinner.
Much of the story is told in rhyme, which makes it entertaining for small children. It is a sweet book, with pretty pictures and a simple story.

Review by Annie Whiterod

Socket, Where Are You? A Story About Seven Cottage Dogs
Illustrations and Poetry by Jude Leonard
Storyline by Larraine Buswell.
Publisher: Strategic Book Publishing and Rights Co
ISBN: 978-1-62857-775-4
Available: print book from Author via judedesign@xtra.co.nz
print and eBook for Kindle eBooks from Amazon

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Fascinating Story of Survival

13/10/2014

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Fifty South
by Margaret Beames

Fifty South will appeal to anyone interested in the history of New Zealand, maritime exploration, or survival in the outdoors.
Margaret Beames paints a clear picture of the 1907 shipwreck of the sailing ship Dundonald on a remote island not far from Antarctica. Conditions are bleak. The story is told largely through the eyes of the protagonist, Charlie Eyre, a 21 year old able-bodied seaman. The characters are drawn from factual historical records, but come to life as they show courage, endurance, and determination to do their best in order to survive.
I thoroughly enjoyed reading this account and I especially liked the author’s simple way of describing early technology, such as using a sextant to measure the angle between the sun and the horizon, for navigation.
Margaret Beames has chosen to write in the past tense, without dialogue, in order to present a historical account. At the same time, she portrays the humour, optimism, and disappointment, a medley of emotions, in the lives of these strong characters who are intent on doing the best they can in an apparently hopeless situation.
The timeless values of courage and teamwork are honoured in Fifty South. I think that anyone who enjoys sailing, or who has ever been lost when hiking, will be able to relate especially well to this fascinating story of survival.

Review by Jan Eriksen

Title: Fifty South
Author: Margaret Beames
ISBN978-0-9941088-3-8
Trade paperback, 145 pages, black and white illustrations.
Publisher: Rangitawa Publishing.
Available: Amazon.com; Barnes and Noble; www.rangitawapublishing.com

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A Variety of Tales

6/10/2014

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An Itchy Hand, Short stories
by Jean McDavitt

This collection of short stories by Jean McDavitt is an interesting and entertaining assortment of domestic set stories, showcasing a variety of tales that catch the reader’s interest with each new chapter.
One criticism I have with McDavitt’s short stories is that they are largely too short – a fact I think the publisher was aware of due to the huge font that still only manages to bulk up some of the stories to a mere 3 pages. McDavitt has obviously lived a full life, yet the stories don’t reflect that. I strongly believe this would be fixed by having the stories extended a bit longer so they can achieve the fullness they deserve. The stories are good, but have so much potential to be even better - many of them feel like they’re still in the early stages of development and have been rushed to conclusion in order to meet the deadline of the publisher. This is a shame as it does a disservice to McDavitt’s storytelling that is clearly very strong. Her authentic descriptions make for absorbing stories, which is why it’s so jolting that they end so quickly. All they really need is a moment to breathe.
McDavitt’s character voices are consistently authentic and fresh, keeping the stories (especially the more surreal ones) grounded in reality. Her strength is writing authentic relationships between characters and expressing raw emotion via pithy, sarcastic humour - but in turn it also emphasises the emptiness of the stories without any emotional investment. “The Job”, “Braces”, “The Snake” and “The Rats” were not my favourites, solely because they had nothing real to anchor them down leaving them silly and, as I said before, much too short. I also found it weak to end the collection on “The Rats” which only reminded me as I finished that there was no coherence to the order of stories, no theme tying them together and no flow. Again, this could be rearranged with a good edit to properly complement McDavitt’s writing.
Exposition was a hindrance in a few cases, where even among the most beautifully written sections (particularly “The Cello”) the writing was bogged down by unnecessary heavy handed exposition of things that were either very obvious or altogether unimportant. This aside, I loved how pretty and surreal “Fairies” is, which though out of place with the other more grounded stories, was still really enjoyable. I also enjoyed “What’s In a Name” which had beautiful, relatable descriptions and much like “Turn Again” was rather funny!

Review by Jemma Richardson

An Itchy Hand
by Jean McDavitt
ISBN 978-0-9941088-2-1; 112 pages, 18 stories.
Publisher: Rangitawa Publishing
Available: Trade paperback from Amazon.com; Barnes and Noble; rangitawa@xtra.co.nz; phoe.nix@xtra.co.nz

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Attractive book recommended

Entertaining for small children

Fascinating Story of Survival

A Variety of Tales

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