Year: 2012

Posted in Duncraig Primary School, National Year of Reading, teachers' resources

Book Review: Dork Diaries: Party Time

Posted on by Alphabet Soup

This week we are featuring book reviews from students at Duncraig Primary School* in WA. Today’s guest reviewer is Shannon.

Dork Diaries: Party Time by Rachel Renée Russel, ISBN 9781847387424, Simon & Schuster

Reviewed by Shannon, 10, WA

dork diaries (cover)

This book is a comedy mixed with a bit of drama. It is about a girl called Niki who doesn’t really get along with the kids at her school. Her biggest enemy is Mackenzie. Niki is in a bit of trouble when she had to organise the high school Halloween party. Will she cope or will she be a normal dork who has a crush on Brandon the hottest boy in 8th grade?

The book is enjoyable, with a bit of love and dorkiness. I loved the way it was like reading someone else’s personal diary and the great tension. I couldn’t possibly stop reading. It had excellent illustrations and they really suited the book. I loved everything about it. I liked the tension and illustrations best of all.

This book would only suit girls because it is packed with a girl’s life story. This book is nine plus. It has great strong characters and a story that can seem real. Just wait and read and you’ll find out more!

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"Undercover Readers Club logo"* Duncraig Primary is a member of our Undercover Readers Club. (Download information about the club on the magazine’s website.) Shannon reviewed her own copy of Dork Diaries: Party Time.

Posted in Duncraig Primary School, National Year of Reading, teachers' resources

Book Review: Eleven Days

Posted on by Alphabet Soup

This week we are featuring book reviews from students at Duncraig Primary School* in WA. Today our guest reviewer is Chloe.

Eleven Days by Michael Manuell, ISBN 9781865046211, Scholastic Australia

Reviewed by Chloe, 11, WA

eleven days (cover)

Are you looking for a book that drags you in by the first expressive sentence? Well, this is the book for you.

Eleven Days will amaze your socks off. This book is a brilliant book for readers from the age of ten years to teenagers and will suit you any mood you’re in.

Eleven Days is about a girl called Izabella. She is really nice and kind until Izabella comes face to face with kidnappers and gives them all her personal details. She is kidnapped and has no idea what to do. Is she brave enough to escape the danger? I really love this book with all the unexpected twists and turns.

It had fantastic complex sentences that brought out the atmosphere in the story. The very few drawings suited the text exactly. I think this book would suit girl readers most because most characters are women.

I really enjoyed this book and I hope you find a book that suits you soon. If you liked my book review please take the chance and have a go.

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"Undercover Readers Club logo"* Duncraig Primary is a member of our Undercover Readers Club. (Download information about the club on the magazine’s website.) Chloe reviewed her own copy of Eleven Days.

Posted in Book reviews by kids, Duncraig Primary School, National Year of Reading, teachers' resources

Book Review: Think Smart, Hazel Green!

Posted on by Alphabet Soup

This week we are pleased to be featuring book reviews from students at Duncraig Primary School* in WA. Our first guest reviewer is Lara—welcome, Lara!

Think Smart, Hazel Green! by Odo Hirsch, ill. Andrew McLean, ISBN 9781741141108, Allen & Unwin

Reviewed by Lara, 10, WA

Think Smart, Hazel Green! (cover)

Chocolate dippers! Cherry Flingers! Cream Canoopers! All the delicious pastries in  Mr Volio’s bakery. But how about the thought of them being gone … forever?

Will Hazel Green ever find a way to help poor Mr Volio stay in his baker’s shop? When Mr Volio has ended his lease in his shop a mysterious new owner buys it. Who is this new owner? And how will Hazel Green help Mr Volio to stay, and still devour his glorious pastries? Will her mathematical friend Yakov Plonsk (AKA the Yak) use his logical mind to assist her? Hazel will have to think smart for this adventure!

Andrew McLean’s magical black and white watercolour illustrations make the book come alive. You only need to glance at them to understand them. Odo Hirsch’s detailed words and phrases help readers to really understand the pictures.

This is a book suitable for ten and over. The expressive characters in this book will capture any reader’s mind. I love this book because in every page you turn you feel the tension rising through your body.

Odo Hirsch has captured readers internationally with his essence and flair of describing wonderful and capturing characters. This book is the last of the Hazel Green series. The others are titled Hazel Green; Something’s Fishy, Hazel Green!; and Have Courage, Hazel Green, all with clever and satisfying plots.

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"Undercover Readers Club logo"* Duncraig Primary is a member of our Undercover Readers Club. (Download information about the club on the magazine’s website.) Lara reviewed her own copy of Think Smart, Hazel Green!

Posted in info

Book Review: The Adventures of Charlie and Moon

Posted on by Alphabet Soup

The Adventures of Charlie & Moon – Book 1: Facing the Quincequonces by Martin Meader, ISBN 9780981491011, Crow Flies Press

Reviewed by Vincent, 7, NSW*

The Adventures of Charlie & Moon (cover)

The night before his birthday, Charlie receives a magic present from a man named Bizz-Buzz and a dancing ticket collector named Doreen Tremblingknees. He promises not to open it until his birthday.

He breaks his promise and the present turns into a book that makes him and Moon, the eagle, part of a funny adventure story involving Quincequonces, Thunder Eggs, the evil Skunk Weavel and Snarlies.

I really liked this book (it’s the first of a trilogy) and recommend it to kids 7–15.

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"Undercover Readers Club logo"* Vincent is a member of our Undercover Readers Club. (Download information about the club on the magazine’s website.) A review copy of The Adventures of Charlie & Moon was provided by the publisher.

Posted in poetry

Poems at the Nedlands Library (WA)

Posted on by Alphabet Soup
winning poems in the Roland Leach Poetry Prize
Winning poems in the Roland Leach poetry prize – on display at the Nedlands Library.

This afternoon we stopped in at the Nedlands Library to check out the winning poems from the 2012 Roland Leach Poetry Prize. (You can find the display in the Children’s Library section.)

Congratulations to Celine Ng—the 9-year-old poet who won the overall prize, as well as the Year 3, 4 & 5 category. Way to go!

(If that’s inspired you to get writing, you can check out a list of kids’ writing comps here on the blog.)

Posted in National Year of Reading

Fabulous First Line Friday: 26 October

Posted on by Alphabet Soup

It’s Fabulous First Line Friday! And here is this week’s Fabulous First Line*:

Peggy lived in a small house in a quiet street.

Do you want to read on? The title of the book is at the end of this post …

*For the purposes of Fabulous First Line Friday, we’re counting the first line as the first line of chapter 1 in any book. So if there is an introduction or an author’s note or something before chapter 1, we don’t count that bit …
The book is Peggy by Anna Walker
Posted in National Year of Reading

Fabulous First Line Friday: 19 October

Posted on by Alphabet Soup

It’s Fabulous First Line Friday! And here is this week’s Fabulous First Line*:

In the sunlit gully, green and wide
Where secret nooks are fine to hide
In a soft and grassy snuggly nest
Little bandicoot comes to rest.

Do you want to read on? The title of the book is at the end of this post …

*For the purposes of Fabulous First Line Friday, we’re counting the first line as the first line of chapter 1 in any book. So if there is an introduction or an author’s note or something before chapter 1, we don’t count that bit …
The book is Bushland Lullaby by Sally Odgers.
Posted in info

Our new mailing address!

Posted on by Alphabet Soup

If you receive our e-newsletter*, you will know that we recently moved to a new office. We now have a NEW ADDRESS!

We do love opening mail! So please send all your poems, stories, book reviews and artwork to:

Pile of Letters (artwork copyright Greg Mitchell 2008)Alphabet Soup Magazine
PO Box 3099
BROADWAY NEDLANDS WA 6009

(And, YES, Broadway Nedlands is the correct suburb. Don’t shorten it to Nedlands or your mail will be delayed.)

Don’t panic if you’ve just posted something to our old post office address in Willetton—mail to our old address will be forwarded on to the new address for a month or so.

We’re still selecting kids’ writing for our last issue of the year, so send us your best work! And we’ll keep an eye on the new post office box …

~ Rebecca
Editor, Alphabet Soup Magazine

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* If you don’t receive our e-newsletter but you’d like to, ask a parent (or teacher) to send us an email with ‘subscribe e-news’ in the subject line. Our e-newsletters are sent about 5 times a year and include news, interesting links to writing or illustrating sites, writing prompts for your journal, and other writing-related bits and pieces.

Posted in National Year of Reading

Fabulous First Line Friday (5 October)

Posted on by Alphabet Soup

It’s Fabulous First Line Friday! And here is this week’s Fabulous First Line*:

Twelve pairs of eyes widened in unison, awaiting Miss Ophelia Grimm’s next move.

Do you want to read on? The title of the book is at the end of this post …

*For the purposes of Fabulous First Line Friday, we’re counting the first line as the first line of chapter 1 in any book. So if there is an introduction or an author’s note or something before chapter 1, we don’t count that bit …
The book is Alice Miranda Takes the Lead by Jacqueline Harvey.
Posted in National Year of Reading

Fabulous First Line Friday (28 September)

Posted on by Alphabet Soup

To celebrate the National Year of Reading, we are sharing some fabulous first lines from the books on our bookshelves. Every Friday you’ll find another fabulous first line here on Soup Blog.

Now for today’s Fabulous First Line*:

Most guinea pigs would be scared diving down into the mouth of a volcano, in a homemade jet with two kids and a three-legged wolf pup.

Do you want to read on? The title of the book is at the end of this post …

*For the purposes of Fabulous First Line Friday, we’re counting the first line as the first line of chapter 1 in any book. So if there is an introduction or an author’s note or something before chapter 1, we don’t count that bit …
The book is Animal Rescue: Shark Attack by Jackie French.