Category: Book reviews by Matilda

Posted in Book reviews by kids, Book reviews by Matilda

Book review: The Flyaway Girls

Posted on by Alphabet Soup

REVIEWED BY MATILDA, 10, WA

The Flyaway Girls

Matilda borrowed this book from her local library.

The Flyaway Girls by Julia Lawrinson, Puffin Books, ISBN 9780143308652

The Flyaway Girls is a novel about a girl called Chelsea who is really serious about gymnastics. She starts getting her hopes up about getting into the nationals competition as she gets better and better. But then a new girl comes and is catching up to her quickly, except for one thing holding her back — the vault. The badge ceremony is drawing closer and closer. Will the new girl stop Chelsea getting into the nationals?

I recommend this book for ages 8+ or serious gymnasts like Chelsea. I really enjoyed this book though, and I’m not a gymnast.

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Matilda is one of our regular book reviewers. Her most recent review (if you don’t count this one) was of  Alice-Miranda in the Alps. If YOU would like to send us a book review, check out our submission guidelines. Happy reading!

Posted in Book reviews by kids, Book reviews by Matilda

Book review: Alice-Miranda in the Alps

Posted on by Alphabet Soup

REVIEWED BY MATILDA, 10, WA

Alice Miranda in the Alps

Alice-Miranda in the Alps by Jacqueline Harvey, Random House Australia, ISBN 9780857982742

Matilda reviews her own copy of this book.

Alice-Miranda is a very bright girl with a big imagination. She solves a lot of mysteries and is liked by nearly everyone. This is Book 12 in the series, and Alice-Miranda goes on holidays to Switzerland with her friends Jacinta, Sloane, Millie, Lucas and Sep. They only planned to stay at Fanger’s Hotel but when they find that they have to stay an extra week in Switzerland, they decide to visit Alice-Miranda’s uncle’s hotel — the Grand Hotel Von Zwicky, and help him out. Alice-Miranda is suspicious to find Frau Doerflinger now appears to be staying at the hotel when the hotel was supposed to be full.

This was one of my favourite Alice-Miranda books because I have just been through the Alps.

People who already love Alice-Miranda books will enjoy this book, and so will people who like mysteries. I think ages 6 to 12 will like reading Alice-Miranda in the Alps.

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Matilda is one of our regular book reviewers. Her most recent review (if you don’t count this one) was of  Mrs Frisby and the rats of NIMH. If YOU would like to send us a book review, check out our submission guidelines. Happy reading!

Posted in Book reviews by kids, Book reviews by Matilda

Book review: Mrs Frisby and the Rats of NIMH

Posted on by Alphabet Soup

REVIEWED BY MATILDA, 10, WA

Mrs Frisby and the rats of NIMH

Mrs Frisby and the Rats of NIMH by Robert C O’Brian, Penguin UK (Puffin Modern Classics), 9780141333335

Matilda found this book on the bookshelves at a holiday house.

When we were on holidays this book was on a bookshelf, so I read it. When I picked it up I thought that Mrs Frisby was a person, but she is actually a mouse and she lives at a farm with her children. The rats of NIMH are a group of rats with a secret, and they also live at the farm. Soon Mrs Frisby knows that it’s time to move their house again because the humans are coming with ploughs — but she has a big problem. One of her children is very sick and can’t get out of bed. The mice mostly stay out of the rats’ way. Will Mrs Frisby be brave enough to ask the rats to help before the ploughs arrive?

You can’t put this book down because it’s so exciting and you’ll need to find out what happens next. I recommend Mrs Frisby and the Rats of NIMH for children aged 7 to 12.

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Matilda is one of our regular book reviewers. Her most recent review (if you don’t count this one) was of  An Artist Once Said. If YOU would like to send us a book review, check out our submission guidelines. Happy reading!

Posted in Book reviews by kids, Book reviews by Matilda

Book review: An artist once said

Posted on by Alphabet Soup

REVIEWED BY MATILDA, 9, WA

An artist once said

An Artist Once Said: An inspiration book by Hannah Rollings, Michael O’Mara Books Ltd, 9781449472290

Matilda reviews her own copy of this book.

Have you ever got frustrated because you don’t know what to draw? This book will cure you.

A picture and a quote from all different artists leads you to drawing something you might never have thought of before. I love the idea of this book and it did lead me to drawing lots more pictures, right inside the book.

There are different types of pictures and this book will inspire you in different ways, from reading quotes by artists like Picasso and Kahlo, to looking at yourself in the mirror.

I recommend this book for people who would like to draw more often — kids and adults too.

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Matilda is one of our regular book reviewers. Her most recent review (if you don’t count this one) was of  At My Door. If YOU would like to send us a book review, check out our submission guidelines. Happy reading!

Posted in Book reviews by kids, Book reviews by Matilda

Book review: At My Door

Posted on by Alphabet Soup

REVIEWED BY MATILDA, 9, WA

At My Door by Deb Fitzpatrick

At My Door by Deb Fitzpatrick, Fremantle Press, ISBN 9781925162707

A review copy of this book was provided by the publisher.

This book is set at Poppy’s house. When the doorbell rings and a car speeds away, her family discovers that a baby has been left on the doorstep. What will they do? Where are the baby’s parents?

I really liked the creativity and the language in this book. I liked how it was about a situation that doesn’t happen every day. My favourite character was Mei because she was funny and cute. I was surprised when she turned up because I didn’t expect what was left on the doorstep to be her.

This story is realistic and you feel like it could happen to you. What would you do if a baby turned up on your doorstep?

I would recommend it for kids aged 7+ and people who wonder about these sorts of things.

You can read a sample chapter of At My Door on the publisher’s website. And you can listen to the author read from the book, too.

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Matilda is one of our regular book reviewers. Her most recent review (if you don’t count this one) was of  The Cleo Stories: A Friend and, A Pet. If YOU would like to send us a book review, check out our submission guidelines. Happy reading!

Posted in Book reviews by kids, Book reviews by Matilda

Book review – The Cleo Stories: A Friend, and A Pet

Posted on by Alphabet Soup

REVIEWED BY MATILDA, 9 WA

The Cleo Stories: A Friend, and A Pet

The Cleo Stories: A Friend, and A Pet by Libby Gleeson, ill. Freya Blackwood, ISBN 9781743315286, Allen & Unwin

A review copy of this book was provided by the publisher.

Cleo is a little girl who loves wearing animal ears and has a big imagination. I have read the first Cleo book in this series and I really liked it. This book also has two stories in it.

A Friend.
Cleo is bored and has nothing to do.

A Pet
Cleo really wants a pet but her parents keep saying ‘no’.

I like how Cleo always uses her imagination to find a solution. There are lots of illustrations that are very simple. They are colourful and they are on every page. I liked this Cleo book even more than the first one and I think they are getting better and better. I would recommend The Cleo Stories: A Friend, and A Pet for children who are 5+, and for people who have a big imagination.

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Matilda is one of our regular book reviewers. Her most recent review (if you don’t count this one) was of  Bella and the Wandering House. If YOU would like to send us a book review, check out our submission guidelines. Happy reading!

Posted in Book reviews by kids, Book reviews by Matilda

Book review: Bella and the Wandering House

Posted on by Alphabet Soup

REVIEWED BY MATILDA, 9, WA

Bella and the Wandering House

Bella and the Wandering House by Meg McKinlay, ill. Nicholas Schafer, Fremantle Press, ISBN 9781925162301

A review copy of this book was provided by the publisher.

This is another book by Meg McKinlay. I have also read Duck for a Day, Definitely No Ducks, and Ten Tiny Things. This is a novel with occasional pictures in black and white.

Bella is a girl who lives in a house that seems to be moving at night and then stops at different places. It’s hard for her mum and dad to get to work every day from a different place. But then things really get out of hand when Bella finds out the movers will cut her house in half to move it back to where it belongs.

A house that wanders around reminds me of Baba Yaga’s house with chicken legs from folktales.

It was a very imaginative book. I wouldn’t like it if my house walked away at night. I recommend this book for ages 6 and up.

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Matilda is one of our regular book reviewers. Her most recent review (if you don’t count this one) was of  Molly and Pim and the Millions of Stars. If YOU would like to send us a book review, check out our submission guidelines. Happy reading!

Posted in Book reviews by kids, Book reviews by Matilda

Book review: Molly and Pim and the Millions of Stars

Posted on by Alphabet Soup

REVIEWED BY MATILDA, 9, WA

Molly and Pim and the millions of stars (cover)

Molly and Pim and the Millions of Stars by Martine Murray, Text Publishing, ISBN 9781925240085

A review copy of this book was provided by the publisher.

This is a story about working together and going and going at it and not stopping. I liked how it’s a book about magic. Molly and a boy called Pim are trying to fix the shocking accident that happens to Molly’s Mama early in the book. (Before he starts helping, Molly thinks that Pim is weird because he does all this weird stuff at school.)

The cover looked kind of gentle with the hat and the girl and the dog and I liked how they used glittery bits for the stars. But I didn’t think the title was the best title for this book. I would have called it ‘Molly and Pim and the Mama Tree’.

I liked how this book made me laugh out loud and how it was short and sharp. My favourite character is Prudence Grimshaw. She’s mean and she’s a really picky lady. I can really imagine her voice in my head as I read.

Girls from ages 9 to 11 would enjoy this book most.

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Matilda is one of our regular book reviewers. Her most recent review (if you don’t count this one) was of  Summer in Enchantia. If YOU would like to send us a book review, check out our submission guidelines. Happy reading!

Posted in Book reviews by kids, Book reviews by Matilda

Book review: Summer in Enchantia

Posted on by Alphabet Soup

REVIEWED BY MATILDA, 9, WA

Summer in Enchantia (Cover)

Magic Ballerina: Summer in Enchantia by Darcey Bussell, ill. Dynamo Limited, HarperCollins Children’s Books, ISBN 9780007317219

Matilda borrowed a copy of this book from her local library.

This is about a girl called Rosa who has magic ballet shoes. Whenever there is trouble in Enchantia the ballet shoes whisk her off there so she can help solve the problem. This time the king and queen of Enchantia want to have a garden party but pirates are stealing everything they need for the party.

I found out about this series (about Rosa) when I read a Delphie book (another girl in the Magic Ballerina series.) I like this book because it’s about working together to solve a problem. There are seven books in the Rosa series.

I’d recommend this book for ages 6 to 10 and for people who like ballet.

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Matilda is one of our regular book reviewers. Her most recent review (if you don’t count this one) was of  Tales of Wisdom and Wonder. If YOU would like to send us a book review, check out our submission guidelines. Happy reading!

Posted in Book reviews by kids, Book reviews by Matilda

Book review: Tales of Wisdom and Wonder

Posted on by Alphabet Soup

REVIEWED BY MATILDA, 9, WA

Tales of wisdom and wonder

Tales of Wisdom and Wonder, retold by Hugh Lupton, illustrated by Niamh Sharkey, Barefoot Books, ISBN 1905236840

Matilda reviewed her own copy of this book.

This is a book of old folktales from different countries. The stories are Haitian, Cree, English, French, West African, Russian and Irish. It comes with a CD so you can listen to the stories as well as read. There are seven folktales in the book and my favourite was ‘The Curing Fox’ (it’s Cree) because it’s like an old memory and I like listening to the CD of it best because it’s kind of poetic. Before I saw this book I had never come across these folktales.

There are more words than pictures on each page but I like the illustrations, they are easy to see. I like how the colours are not normal colours you see in a picture book — there are dark colours and colours that make you feel cold. The artist has used simple shapes and they suit the stories.

People who like fairytales, folktales and animals would like this book. Six to ten year olds would like it best and it can be relaxing to listen to Hugh Lupton telling the stories on the CD.

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Matilda is one of our regular book reviewers. Her most recent review (if you don’t count this one) was of  Harriet the Spy. If YOU would like to send us a book review, check out our submission guidelines. Happy reading!