An Island of Our Own by Sally Nicholls

An Island Of Our Own is an absolutely amazing book and I recommend it to anyone aged roughly 11 who loves an emotional journey. It is about the rollercoaster life of siblings Jonathan, Holly and Davy.

The trio are orphans, and with brother Jonathan as the official foster parent, and a waiter in the week, money is low and they just about have enough to pay the rent for their flat- there is no dishwasher and everybody hates washing clothes.

When their Aunty Irene has a stroke, Holly should have inherited all of her jewellery, but there is no jewellery to be found. Aunty Irene’s daughter Jo reveals to the family that Irene kept all of her documents and jewellery in locked safes so when Holly is given a photo album by her aunt on her death-bed, she is determined to solve the mystery of her missing family inheritance.

Jonathan is not so sure but with the persuasion of his internet girlfriend added to the mix, things begin to run a bit more smoothly until…sorry but I’m not going to spoil it!

One of the settings in An Island of Our Own is ‘the Maker Space.’ There are Maker Spaces all over the UK in this fictional account, which provide a sense of safety and security and encourage new things. Just to give you an example, they provide lock-picking classes!

Sally Nicholls uses imagery to help us imagine the atmosphere in the Maker Space- warm, jolly, welcoming- but I think it also adds a sense of security to the book, it makes us feel like the characters have almost got a second home.

An Island of Our Own takes on the style of an autobiography, Holly is the narrator, but we as readers also get a sense of calmness. As mentioned, the great detail of the Maker Space adds immensely to the plot but there is a twist at the end- at first the plot seems to be rolling on oiled hinges, but soon things become slightly more fragile! This book is definitely one of my current favourites.

FictionFan1 Rating: 9.5/10

If you liked this author you might like: Laurel Remington,  Katherine Rundall

About the author: Sally Nicholls is a British author and has published over 10 books and 1 movie!

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Coming up soon: Stay tuned for my next review of ‘The Double Life of Cassiel Roadnight’ by Jenny Valentine

Piglettes by Clémentine Beauvais

What can I say? Piglettes certainly leaves an imprint on my heart, that’s for sure! I finished it recently and was sad to see it end, because it was so meaningful.

Piglettes is the first person tale of three girls, the medallists of their school online ‘Pig Pageant’. They unite, all for different reasons, and set off to gate-crash a presidential garden party, in Paris, a six day cycle away. Accompanying them is Hakima’s older brother, who is a double amputee. They share the same motivation, to strip an army officer of his bravery medal, for he was the cause of Kader’s disability.

Astrid, however, is a die-hard fan of the Indochines, a band that will be performing at the garden party. Mireille is heading off for a completely different reason. She has the intention of informing her father, the husband of the president, that he has a daughter, a fifteen year old daughter to be precise.

So together with three bicycles, a wheelchair, a trailer and several sausages, the group set out on their unlikely quest. Along the way encounter another type of fame, one they’re not as used to, and an unbreakable friendship.

This story motivates me to stand up for our rights, and reiterates an important concept; nobody is ugly and everyone has the potential to be their own hero.

FictionFan1 Rating: 8.5/10

If you liked this author you might like: Sharon Creech, Laurel Remington, E.B White 

About the author: Clémentine Beauvais is French and has written many novels, mainly for adults, but some for children and teenagers. Piglettes is the English translation of Les Petites Reines and was translated by Clémentine Beauvais.

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Coming up soon: Stay tuned for next review of Rooftoppers by Katherine Rundall

The Secret Cooking Club by Laurel Remington

When I first read this book I absolutely loved cooking, it was my favourite hobby, and not to boast, I was pretty good at it too. Some things in life never change, but some do. I still have a passion for cooking but unfortunately it’s not the same urge it used to be. So I read this book, having chosen it for the title, not even having read the blurb, which for me is very rare, and really enjoyed it.

All this was nearly a year ago, but it still often visits my bedside table, something to pull me back in to the real world if I have read something too graphic, or even too boring. Now, these visits also make me realise how lucky I am.

We live in a world where, let’s face it, society is not always equal, and bullying is not just a story, but most of us have a chance to leave that world every now and again, through perhaps a book, a holiday, a friend, or even just a hug.  The Secret Cooking Club gives me a window in to that ideal world. All the events in it could easily be real and that just gives it an air of happiness, even understanding.

To give you a brief synopsis, The Secret Cooking Club gives you an insight into the life of a 12 year old named Scarlett. She is both the star and victim of her mum’s blog and wishes she could fall through a hole in the ground every Friday when her mum’s blog is published. Hopefully that is not the case for any of my lovely readers!

When her neighbour is taken to hospital and Scarlett visits to feed the cat, she discovers a huge kitchen, just on the other side of her living room wall. Scarlett finds herself returning, and soon forms a cooking club.

This book gives some reassurance that there is always good in the world, and you can always make the best of a difficult situation. I would tell you more but then I would have to have a big red sign saying !!!SPOILER ALERT!!! so I won’t, but once you’ve read it please comment below!

FictionFan1 Rating: 8.5/10

If you liked this author you might like: Rebecca Stead, Holly Smale, and Cathy Cassidy

About the author: Laurel Remington writes children’s and teen fiction and is also a mum to three girls. Her daughters love to cook and provided inspiration for this novel. She also visits schools to encourage children to read and write more.

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Coming up soon: Stay tuned for future reviews.

The Geek Girl series by Holly Smale

In the Geek Girl series there are six books; I have decided to review them as a series. They all link together perfectly and flow, almost as if they were one long book.

The first book gives a fitting introduction. It explains the characters and in short gives a brief synopsis of the series. The next four books, are the jam in the sandwich, the real meat. They share the story between them and each split is clearly just where it should be. The final book in this emotional series, finishes off the journey. The series ends thoughtfully though, almost a happy ending.

In short, this series is the story of the protagonist Harriet’s love life, her career and friendship. It is so moving and is a series I will remember forever.

Although I could ramble about the positives, every book has its fair share of cons. For this series, and remember I’m talking about the whole series here, I think it goes on slightly. I want to reveal that straight away. I think that with some more ‘clues’, the story would just click, it needs some more twists and turns in my opinion, just one more push.

I may be telling you about the things I didn’t enjoy as well as those I did, but I don’t want you to get me wrong here; I love this series and it is engraved in my heart. I would say it is aimed at tweenagers, probably from the age of about 10, but that shouldn’t stop anyone older or younger reading the series. In fact I wouldn’t be surprised if mum enjoyed it!

FictionFan1 Rating: 8/10

If you liked this author you might like: Sharon Creech, Rebecca Stead

About the author: Holly Smale tells almost her own story in Geek Girl. Aged 15, she was spotted by a modelling agency and after falling over on catwalks and breaking expensive items, she decided to become a writer instead!

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Coming up soon: Stay tuned for my next review of The Secret Cooking Club by Laurel Remington

The Trumpet of the Swan by E.B White

A couple of years ago, the only book I would ever talk about was The Trumpet of the Swan.  Although I don’t love it as much now, it is still one of my earliest memories of reading.

It is the story of a young swan, Louis, who has no voice. When Louis falls in love with another swan, Serena, he cannot declare his love. Louis’s father steals a trumpet from a local music shop to help him. Louis then seeks the help of a young nature watcher named Sam in order to pay off his father’s 

debt.

This story portrays emotion and determination on Louis’s part and devotion on his father’s. Sam is passionate about animals and is only too pleased when Louis requests help from him. It is a moving book and has a happy ending which suits its age category. I think this book is aimed at children aged 8+ but my Mum enjoyed it too when we read it together.

Personally, I am a fan of animal stories, but even if that’s not your favourite genre then you should still give this book a try. The main protagonist may be an animal, but I’d say that second in line would be Sam, who is a human. The book also demonstrates that animals and humans can be friends.

The Trumpet of the Swan is filled with emotion right from the word go. Love. Envy. Fear. Sadness. Determination. Grit. Friendship. This book has it all. It’s like a rollercoaster, dipping and diving, twisting and turning, and it will take you on a journey you'll never forget.

FictionFan1 Rating: 9.5/10

If you liked this author you might like: Holly Webb, Rebecca Stead

About the author: E.B White is commonly known as the author of the popular children’s book, Charlotte’s Web, which tells the story of a pig and a spider’s friendship. I particularly enjoy books that are by renowned authors but which are not their most famous works.

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Coming up soon: Stay tuned for my review of Itch by Simon Mayo...