A Hat Full of Sky

Author: Terry Pratchett


Tiffany Aching, a witch in training, leaves Chalk to go and work for Miss Level (a witch with two bodies) doing chores around the village. Petulia, a pig witch in training takes Tiffany to a small group of witches in training, led by Annagramma, a bossy witch in training who is disliked by most of the group. Tiffany tells the group about the imaginary hat she has but the girls don't believe her. Tiffany goes back to Miss Level's cottage and shuts herself in her room. Shut in her room, the hiver attacks Tiffany and takes her over. The hiver steals Mr Weavall's money, kills one of Miss Levels bodies and scares Annagramma. The Nac Mac Feegle start a mission to kill the hiver. The Feegles go inside Tiffany's head and find out that they must find three particular objects to wake the real Tiffany up: sheep's wool, turpentine and Jolly Sailor tobacco. Tiffany fights the hiver out of her head but the hiver is not dead...

The hiver is a creature that goes into the head of powerful people and takes over them. Everyone the hiver takes over becomes part of the hiver itself. When the hiver left Tiffany's head a bit of another of the hivers victim was stuck in Tiffany's head. The hiver cannot be killed.

I like Oswald, a spirit that helps around the house.

The Wee Free Men

Author: Terry Pratchett


 The Queen of Faires has stolen Tiffany Aching's younger brother Wentwell. Helped by The Nac Mac Feegle / Wee Free Men / pictsies, she has to travel to the land of fairies where she meets dromes that take her through several nightmares to get her brother. On the way, she meets Miss Tick the witch finder who chooses her to be a witch. And on the way back she meets the most famous witch, Misstress Weatherwax.

My favourite characters in this book are Daft Wully Feegle, Rob Anybody Feegle, Hamish and Not as Big as Medium Sized Jock but Bigger than Wee Jock Jock.

Liar And Spy

Author: Rebecca Stead


7th grader Georges has moved to an apartment where he meets Safer and Candy. Safer tells Georges about Mr X, a mysterious man who always wears black. Together, they spy on him, trying to find out as much they can. As they get closer, it turns out Safer was lying...











                                       
                                          Both Georges parents
                                           liked the painter
                                           Georges Seurat and
                                          named their son after
                                          him. This is a picture
                                          by Seurat.
                                         
                                     
                                         
                                           



                                                                                   A Sunday afternoon on the island of La Grande
                                                                                   Jatte.

Under Wildwood

Author: Colin Meloy


Prue McKeel returns to Wildwood where Curtis is a bandit in training. She goes to a meeting where she finds that a new danger has arrived in Wildwood. Prue finds that somebody is trying to assassinate her. She and Curtis join up to go on a quest to unite a divided country. In order to do that, they must go under Wildwood. Meanwhile, a titan of industry , Joffrey Unthank gets children from his orphanage to work for him so he can industrialize Wildwood.

Who could that be at this hour?

Author: Daniel Handler/ Lemony Snicket

<----- Bombinating Beast Statue

Lemony Snicket has been hired to investigate the theft of the Bombinating Beast. Snicket and his chaperone investigate the theft to discover that the statue wasn't stolen in the first place and Snicket finds himself getting into trouble that he wasn't meant to. Hangfire will do anything to get the statue, tying people up and kidnapping the  father of Snicket's friend, Ellington Feint. But Snicket still doesn't get why...

The Aviary

Author: Kathleen O' Dell

Clara Dooley lives in the Glendoveer mansion with her mother, Ruby and Mrs. Glendoveer who keeps an Aviary. When Mrs. Glendoveer dies, Clara starts to discover the Glendoveer's dark history. Then the birds in the Aviary start to squawk like crazy until one day when one of the birds talks...

Where the mountain meets the moon

Author: Grace Lin

In the valley of fruitless mountain, young Minli and her parents work hour after hour in the fields. During dinner, Minli's father tells her stories. One day, a goldfish man comes to the valley of fruitless mountain and tells Minli that a goldfish will bring good fortune to their family. Minli buys a goldfish with the only money left in the house. The goldfish tells Minli how to bring good fortune to her family. Minli sets out to find the Old Man of the Moon to ask him about her fortune. On the way, she meets a dragon who can't fly. But when Minli finds the Old Man of the Moon, she asks a different question that still brings the valley of fruitless mountain good fortune. 

My favourite character is Dragon the dragon.

The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place: The Unseen Guest (Book 3)

Author: Maryrose Wood



Lord Frederick Ashton's mother, The Widow Ashton, has come to Ashton Place to see Frederick. She brings along Admiral Faucet who introduces the Incorrigibles to a wild ostrich hunt in the wood. Penelope Lumley goes with them but is worried that the children will go back to their wolfish ways. The Incorrigibles show Penelope the most peculiar cave and introduce her to Mama Woof the wolf. The Widow Ashton seeks an answer from the dead Edward Ashton and the fortune teller from London is called in.
This book really drew me into it. I love how you never know what happens next and how the end of each chapter leaves you puzzling over another mystery. I recommend this book to anyone who loves Lemony Snicket's books.

The Outlaw Varjak Paw

Author: S F Said


Varjak and his friends have solved the Vanishings and have formed a gang. Varjak must destroy Sally Bones and her gang before she can control all the cats. Varjak, Holly, Tam, Jess, Ginger, The Scratch Sisters and Cludge the dog destroy Sally Bones's gang and find her weakness.

Varjak Paw

Author: S F Said



Varjak paw is a Mesopotamian blue cat who lives in the countessa's house. When the countessa dies a man and his black cats come and look after Varjak's family but Varjak doesn't trust them. Elder Paw tells him he must go outside into the city to find a dog to save his family from the black cats and the man. In his dreams Varjak is taught the Way, a martial art for cats by Jalal. He makes friends with cats Holly and Tam to help him solve the mystery of the Vanishings that are happening in the city.

The Silver Donkey

Author: Sonya Hartnett



One day, Coco and Marcelle find a lost soldier who is blind from the war in the woods. They bring food to the soldier and he shows them a little silver donkey. He tells them story, each relating to the donkey.  Marcelle shows Pascal, her and Coco's brother who then tells his friend, Fabrice who can help the soldier go home to his sick brother.

Moon over Manifest

Author: Clare Vanderpool



Abilene Tucker has been sent to Manifest by her father. She makes friends with two girls at her school, Lettie and Ruthane. Abilene stays at Shady's house and finds letters. She shares them with Lettie and Ruthane and starts a hunt for the Rattler. Soon Abilene starts working for Miss Sadie who tells her wonderful stories about Abilene's father in the past. Lettie, Ruthane and Abilene find the Rattler and by the end of the holidays Abilene is brought back home.

45+47 Stella Street and everything that happened

Author: Elizabeth Honey



When Auntie Lillie dies, the Phonies move into Auntie Lillie's house in 45 Stella Street. The Phonies, who are mean and nasty, send letters to the kind family in 47 Stella Street, complaining about their dog. Henni researches about money and, with Danielle, Frank, Zev and herself, chase the Phonies in the airport. She writes a journal, recording everything that happened.

The Children of the King

Author: Sonya Hartnett


Cecily and Jeremy Lockwood are living through a war in London. One day, Cecily's father tells her that Cecily, Jeremy and their mother are escaping to the countryside while Cecily's father stays in London. At first, Jeremy doesn't want to but his mother makes him go. Cecily, Jeremy and their mother stay at Heron Hall with their Uncle Peregrine. At the country station, Cecily takes home an evacuee called May Bright. At Heron Hall, May and Cecily make friends. Soon May discovers a ruined castle across from a river. May discovers a secret in it and shows Cecily. The girls ask Peregrine more questions about the castle and find out it's called Snow Castle. Peregrine tells the three children the story of Snow Castle. Then Jeremy runs away to do something to help the war in London. When he comes back 
he has his own story to tell.

The Midnight Zoo

Author: Sonya Hartnett

Andrej, Tomas and baby Wilma are three siblings running away from the war. They come across many wrecked towns but the most interesting town is the one with the zoo. Inside the zoo, a lioness, a wolf, chamois, lama, bear, seal, monkey, eagle, kangaroo and the boar are locked up in cages. The animals tell the siblings the story of Alice, the daughter of the zoo keeper who ran away. Andrej and Tomas give them food and help them escape.

I like the wolf, kangaroo and the chamois.

The Lump of Coal

Author: Lemony Snicket (Daniel Handler)



The lump of coal had always wanted to make great art, or at least be useful for people to cook meat on him. One day, a fake Santa Claus meets the lump of coal on the street and shows him a way to be useful. But the way he was meant to be useful failed and he finds himself being useful in a different way.

Breaking Stalin's Nose

Author: Eugene Yelchin

Sasha Zaichik has always wished to become Stalin's Young Pioneer. The night before he becomes a Pioneer his father unexpectedly is hauled off to prison. Sasha has always admired the great Stalin but when he holds the banner for a parade he makes a mistake, breaking the statue of Stalin, but he only broke one part of it, it's nose. When it's finally time to say he broke the nose, his classmate, Four Eyes takes the blame because his parents are in Lubyanka prison where he would be taken to. But what Four Eyes doesn't know is that his parents had already been executed.

In the end Sasha realises that he doesn't really want to be a Pioneer, he would rather see his father.

I like the picture of the nose smoking a pipe.
It looks like Gogol's character from his book The Nose.

Theodosia and the Eyes of Horus (Book 3)

    

Author: Robin Lorraine LaFevers

Sticky Will is taking Theo to a magic show featuring the great Awi Bubu. Theodosia realises that Awi Bubu is performing serious magic and she starts visiting him often. Meanwhile, Henry has come back for the spring holidays and accidentally discovers an ancient artifact that alchemists have been looking for for a long time. Soon many people are fighting for it, and Theodosia seems to right in the middle of it all.
The characters in this book are wonderfully mysterious. You never know who is and who isn't to be trusted. I recommend it to anyone who loves Lemony Snicket's writing or Egyptian mythology.

Theodosia and the Staff of Osiris (Book 2)

Author: Robin Lorraine LaFevers


Missing mummies are repeatedly being found at the Museum of Legends and Antiquities, Theodosia's fathers museum. Even worse, her father could be sent to jail with all the mummies around his museum. Theo must find what is attracting the mummies not only for her father but to stop the Serpents of Chaos from doing whatever they are up to.


I love Hieroglyphics!


                           This is a simplified version --->

Theodosia and the Serpents of Chaos (Book 1)

Author: Robin Lorraine LaFevers


Theodosia Throckmorton is a girl with the talent of being able to sense a cursed artifact. One day, her mother arrives home with an artifact, the Heart of Egypt. Theodosia, her brother Henry and her pickpocket friend Sticky Will work together to return the Heart of Egypt to its original place before the Serpents of Chaos get it. 


This book is full of ancient Egyptian myths. I like the cat called Isis, who was named after the Egyptian goddess.


The illustrations were done by Yoko Tanaka who also illustrated Kate DiCamillo's The Magician's Elephant.