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New
Books for May
For
the youngest we've added the Mem Fox and Judy Horacek
masterpiece Where
is the Green Sheep? Peter has had to read this numerous
times to his grandson. After a while Louie responded by
immediately paging to the back of the book to answer the
question.
DK
Readers have been very popular for many years and with good
reason. For beginner readers we've added a whole stack of these
colourful and interesting books. The readers provide a good read
even for those who have just started reading. Reading levels are
indicated clearly and there is even a description of what each
of the levels means. Our favourites among these titles are: My
Dressing-Up Box (Pre-Level 1), Animals
at Home (Level 1), A
Trip to the Theatre (Level 2), Homes
around the world (Level 3) and Thomas
Edison - The Great Inventor (Level 4).
For
older readers, we've added Australian John Flanagan's
award-winning Ranger's
Apprentice series. These are thoroughly enjoyable adventure
stories set in the days of knights (and rangers!). The main
character, Will, is 15 years old and the first title in the
series describes how:
Reluctantly,
Will learns to use a Ranger's secret weapons: a bow and arrow,
a mottled cloak and a stubborn little pony. It may not be the
sword and battlehorse he longs for, but when Will and Halt set
out on a desperate mission to prevent the assassination of the
King, Will finds that a Ranger's weapons are not so useless
after all...
There
is a bit of strife in the books as can be expected, but no
graphic violence, and the righteous triumph time after time.
Although the main character is a boy, the girls in the story are
not weak characters and one of the secondary characters is a
teen girl being trained as a diplomat. The author describes
thought processes and how these teens consider their options and
grow. We recommend this series for 11-14 year olds.
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