April/May: Warrior Cats - Into the Wild by Erin Hunter

This month's read was Into the Wild, the first in the Warrior Cats (now rebranded as "Warriors") series by Erin Hunter.

Into the Wild tells the story of Rusty, an everyday housecat who discovers a whole new world outside his garden when he encounters the wild and fearsome Thunder Clan cats. Should he turn his back on his safe, easy life as a "kittypet" for the danger and excitement of the forest?

This is a thrilling read that keeps you turning the pages right to the end, and leaves you wanting more!

The Book Group gave it another unanimous thumbs up and everyone wanted to go on and read the other books in the series to find out what happens next!

Comments from the group:

"It was really enjoyable and fast-moving." - Lottie

"I got into it straight away." - Tabitha

"Anyone who doesn't like cats would love them after reading this book." - Naz

"It's the best book ever!" - Willow

Here are some pictures inspired by Into the Wild:



"Scarface" by Tabitha



"Bluestripe" by Naz

"Goldenpaw" by Lottie

"Brindleface" by Lilah

"Mousefur" by Freya

"Gangstercat" by Poppy

Page Turners rating for Warrior Cats - Into the Wild: 5/5

December '11/January '12: The Salt-Stained Book by Julia Jones

Our last read was The Salt-Stained Book by Julia Jones, volume 1 of her Strong Winds trilogy.

Here's the blurb from the back of the book:

"In 1945, two brothers die in the icy Barents Sea and a book is all that survives of them. More than sixty years later Donny and his mother set out for Suffolk to meet his mysterious great aunt.
There is an accident and Donny is taken into care. But are the officials all that they seem and why won't they believe Donny's story? Soon he discovers that his life has been built on a lie. Only the new friendships he makes and an unsuspected talent for sailing help him steer his way through dangers that he cannot understand towards a knowledge of his own identity - and the secrets of a salt-stained book."

It made for good reading, but the group had several criticisms. They felt there were too many sailing terms used, and that you probably needed to have experience of sailing to be able to fully enjoy the story. The group thought that a glossary would have been helpful.
There were some interesting characters in the book, namely Donny's new friends "Awful" Anna, and sisters Xanthe and Maggi, but the "baddies" were not so convincing.

Overall, a good but not a great read.

Here are some comments from the group:

"If you like sailing and Swallows and Amazons you'll probably like this book." - Ana

"There are lots of good, strong, girl characters." - Tabitha

"A good book for budding sailors." - Lottie

Page Turners rating: it's another 3.5/5

Ana's treasure map

July - Sept. : The Case of the Deadly Desperados by Caroline Lawrence

Our summer read was The Case of the Deadly Desperados, the first in Caroline Lawrence's new series: The Western Mysteries.

As the book itself describes:
" A whip-cracking, action-packed adventure that brings the Wild West vividly to life, from the bestselling author of The Roman Mysteries."

Narrated by 12 year old half Lakota Sioux "Pinky", we are pulled into the action from the first page, and the pace never lets up.

"My name is P.K. Pinkerton and before this day is over I will be dead.

My foster parents were scalped & killed a few days ago on my 12th birthday. I came to this lawless town of Virginia City to escape their fate but now I find myself trapped down the deepest shaft of a silver mine, with three desperados hot on my trail.

Before they find me, I am going to write this account so you will know What Happened and Who Done it."

Pinky dashes from scrape to scrape in a tale packed full of colourful characters, disguises and close shaves with the dastardly desperados in hot pursuit.
Real-life historical figures are woven into the story, such as Sam Clemens (later known as Mark Twain) a reporter at the Virginia City newspaper The Territorial Enterprise.

The end of the story is the perfect opening for the rest of the series.

The book group all loved this book, despite some gory and brutal scenes. They all thought they would read the other books in the series when they are published. Here are their comments:

"Really exciting" - Ana

"Really surprising" - Freya

"Really good, I recommend it." - Lilah

"It really gets you into it." - Lottie

"Most books take a while to get into, but this one pulls you in really quickly and it's hard to stop reading." - Poppy

Page Turners rating : 4.5/5