Category: Oxley Christian College

Book reviews by kids, Oxley Christian College

Book review: The Wolf, The Duck and the Mouse

Alphabet Soup

The Wolf The Duck and the mouse by Mac Barnett and Jon Klassen. Image: Picture book with the title in black print on a white banner at the top of the book. Bottom two-thirds of the book shows a tree trunk with a wolf hiding behind it and a duck and mouse sitting against the the front of the tree trunk. REVIEWED BY ISABEL, 8, VIC

The Wolf, the Duck & the Mouse by Mac Barnett, illustrated by Jon Klassen, Walker Books, ISBN 9781406377798

Isabel borrowed a copy of this book from her library.

The Wolf, the Duck & the Mouse is about a mouse in the woods unexpectedly swallowed by a wolf.

It is the beginning of the story, but is this the end already? What does the mouse find in the dark tummy of the beast? What is life like on the inside?

This book shows what it feels like for every character in this book.

This book is great for children between 7-10 years old, with remarkable illustrations and some silly nonsense.  The illustrations have been created to give watery paint and collage effects.  Others like the wolf are textured and maybe you might see some splatter paint on every page. This book also tells you a back story about why the wolf howls at the moon.

What challenges must the animals overcome to save their lives?

I give this humorous book a 5-star rating.

If you’d like to read more book reviews by Oxley Christian College students, you can click on ‘Oxley Christian College’ in the grey categories box in the right column of this blog. To send us YOUR book review, check out our submission guidelines. Happy reading!

Book reviews by kids, Oxley Christian College

Book review: Do Not Lick This Book

Alphabet Soup

Do Not Lick this Book by Idan Ben-Barak and Julian Frost. Image: Picture book with a yellow cover. The title DO NOT LICK THIS BOOK is within a white speech bubble, text is being spoken by some tiny germ characters on the front cover. REVIEWED BY WEYLEN, 8, VIC

Do not lick this book by Idan Ben-Barak and Julian Frost, Allen& Unwin, ISBN 9781760293055

Weylen borrowed a copy of this book from her school library.

This is an impressive book about different germs and what they do. Find out which germs help us and which germs don’t.

Take Min on an awesome adventure and join her too! Meet all her new friends and find out what she discovers at different places.

My favourite part is when Min finds out what all her microbe friends do.

I recommend this book to children 7-9yrs old who want to become doctors so they know what kind of germs there are.

I give this a 7 out of 10 rating because some pages were easy to understand and others were challenging.

If you’d like to read more book reviews by Oxley Christian College students, you can click on ‘Oxley Christian College’ in the grey categories box in the right column of this blog. To send us YOUR book review, check out our submission guidelines. Happy reading!

Book reviews by kids, Oxley Christian College

Book review: Mopoke

Alphabet Soup

Mopoke by Philip Bunting. Image: picture book cover with black background and a southern boobook Owl sitting on a branch. The title MOPOKE is in white under the owl. REVIEWED BY CHARLIE, 8, VIC

Mopoke by Philip Bunting, Scholastic Australia, ISBN 9781742991658

Charlie read a copy of this book at his school library.

Mopoke discovers new ways to be an everyday owl. That’s hard for an owl to do when all you do every day is sit on a branch.

Come along on a journey. High in a tree.

The imaginary life of Mopoke, a Southern Boobook, is amazing. Characters include other mopokes, other animals and everyday objects. They try different ways to annoy Mopoke.

The illustrations are amazing as they help the reader really get to know Mopoke and his friends. My favourite character is the ‘fropoke’ because of the clever rhyme with an unusual word. Read this book to find out more about the interesting vocabulary.

I rate this book 5 out of 5 definitely because Philip Bunting has alternated pages with text and pictures in perfect balance.

I recommend this book for children aged 3-9 years old because it’s easy for them to copy and draw their own versions of mopokes.

If you’d like to read more book reviews by Oxley Christian College students, you can click on ‘Oxley Christian College’ in the grey categories box in the right column of this blog. To send us YOUR book review, check out our submission guidelines. Happy reading!

Book reviews by kids, Oxley Christian College

Book review: Queenie

Alphabet Soup

Queenie by Corinne Fenton and Peter GouldthorpeREVIEWED BY ELIZABETH, 8, VIC

Queenie by Corinne Fenton, illustrated by Peter Gouldthorpe, Black Dog Books, ISBN 1876372974

Elizabeth read this book in her school library.

Queenie is an Indian elephant. When she gets separated from her mother, where does she go? Will she ever find her mum?

Follow Queenie’s journey to a new life. She grows to be an amazing elephant, strong and big. She becomes a legend.

She carries hundreds of people who feed her lots of peanuts, her favourite food.

My favourite picture is of two elephants playing in a bright green forest, splashing in the glittering water. Their hideaway place is calm and peaceful.

People of all ages, children and adults, who like elephants, should read this book.

I give this book a 10 out of 10 star rating because of the fascinating pictures that fade into the plain light grey outline border.

If you’d like to read more book reviews by Oxley Christian College students, you can click on ‘Oxley Christian College’ in the grey categories box in the right column of this blog. To send us YOUR book review, check out our submission guidelines. Happy reading!

Book reviews by kids, Oxley Christian College

Book review: Rodney Loses It

Alphabet Soup

Rodney Loses It by Michael Gerard Bauer and Kristina KrebsREVIEWED BY RACHEL, 8, VIC

Rodney Loses It by Michael Gerard Bauer, illustrated by Christina Krebs,
Scholastic Press, ISBN 9781742991900

Rachel read a copy of this book in her school library.

Wow! Look at Rodney, a crazy rabbit.  He totally lost it, but what did he lose?

Read on to find more clues.

Rodney loved everything, but the one thing he loved the most was drawing.  Rodney sketched all the time. He treasured his pencils, pen and textas.

Chrissie Krebs uses such impeccable pencil skills to give great clues and encourage children to really dive deep into this book.

Michael Gerard Bauer uses amazing adjectives to play with words, such as ‘bonkers’, that children would find funny.

I love this book because it’s hilarious.

I give this book a 10/10 rating for children in aged 8-11.

This is Rachel’s first book review for Alphabet Soup. If you’d like to read more book reviews by Oxley Christian College students, you can click on ‘Oxley Christian College’ in the grey categories box in the right column of this blog. To send us YOUR book review, check out our submission guidelines. Happy reading!

Book reviews by kids, Oxley Christian College

Book review: I’m Australian Too

Alphabet Soup

I'm Australian Too by Mem Fox, illustrated by Ronojoy GhoshREVIEWED BY MIRANDA, 9, VIC

I’m Australian Too by Mem Fox,
illustrations by Ronojoy Ghosh, Scholastic, ISBN 9781760276218

Miranda read a copy of this book in her school library.

I’m Australian Too is a beautiful book with its sing-song like words and detailed pictures.

On every page you will get a surprise. You will read about different cultures and countries. Each will page will tell you about immigrants and why they came to Australia.

This book celebrates that we’re all Australians no matter where we came from. I recommend this book for 3-10 year olds because there are not so many words. I rate this book 10/10 because it has a great message for everybody about how we are an international continent.

This is Miranda’s first book review for Alphabet Soup. If you’d like to read more book reviews by Oxley Christian College students, you can click on ‘Oxley Christian College’ in the grey categories box in the right column of this blog. To send us YOUR book review, check out our submission guidelines. Happy reading!

Book reviews by kids, Oxley Christian College

Book review: The Great Rabbit Chase

Alphabet Soup

The Great Rabbit Chase by Freya BlackwoodREVIEWED BY CINDY, 7, VIC

The Great Rabbit Chase
by Freya Blackwood, Scholastic,
ISBN 97817438111641

Cindy read this book in her school library.

A girl’s mum goes out to buy a pair of gumboots but comes home with a rabbit instead.

This book is about a little girl, her mum and lots of other people trying to catch a rabbit who is very fast.  Where is the rabbit going?  Why is he escaping?

I appreciate this book because there is a board game in the endpapers.

I recommend this book for kids who love rabbits and games, particularly kids who are 4 to 9 years old.  I give this book a 10 out of 10 rating.

This is Cindy’s first book review for Alphabet Soup. If you’d like to read more book reviews by Oxley Christian College students, you can click on ‘Oxley Christian College’ in the grey categories box in the right column of this blog. To send us YOUR book review, check out our submission guidelines. Happy reading!

Book reviews by kids, Oxley Christian College

Book review: The Snow Wombat

Alphabet Soup

REVIEWED BY JEREMIAH, 8, VIC

The Snow Wombat by Susannah Chambers, ill. by Mark Jackson, Allen and Unwin, ISBN 9781760113810

The Snow Wombat by Susannah Chambers, illustrated by Mark Jackson

Jeremiah borrowed a copy of this book from his school library.

The Snow Wombat is a heart-warming story of a curious little wild wombat who sees lots of nature covered in snow, including the high country and his nose!

This is a beautiful story with amazing illustrations and incredibly funny words in it. It encourages little kids to predict the rhyming words.

I rate this book as suitable for 3–4 year olds. My joy rating is 100%.

This is Jeremiah’s first book review for Alphabet Soup. If you’d like to read more book reviews by Oxley Christian College students, you can click on ‘Oxley Christian College’ in the grey categories box in the right column of this blog. To send us YOUR book review, check out our submission guidelines. Happy reading!

Book reviews by kids, Oxley Christian College

Book review: Gary

Alphabet Soup

REVIEWED BY ZAC, 8, VIC

Gary by Leila Rudge, Walker Books Australia, ISBN 9781925081695

Zac borrowed a copy of this book from his school library.

Gary by Leila RudgeGary is like the other racing pigeons but when they depart in the travel basket, Gary stays at home.

Gary can’t go anywhere because he can’t fly!

When the others arrive back home, Gary collects notes about their experiences so that he can remember. But, is Gary still the same as the other pigeons? Will Gary eventually find a way to travel?

I recommend this book for kids aged 4–8 years old.

Leila Rudge’s words and illustrations are outstanding. They hook the reader into the ordinary, but then extraordinary, life of Gary.

I give it a 6-star rating.

This is Zac’s first book review for Alphabet Soup. If you’d like to read more book reviews by Oxley Christian College students, you can click on ‘Oxley Christian College’ in the grey categories box in the right column of this blog. To send us YOUR book review, check out our submission guidelines. Happy reading!

Book reviews by kids, Oxley Christian College

Book review: Chip

Alphabet Soup

REVIEWED BY NICHOLAS, 9, VIC

Chip by Kylie Howarth, The Five Mile Press, ISBN 9781760400736

Nicholas borrowed this book from his school library.

Chip by Kylie Howarth

Every seagull loves chips and Chip is a cute little seagull who loves fish and chips especially. However, when he gets banned from his favourite chip store near the Beach, he tries to form a plan with his friends to get access to his precious chips again.

How will they get their chips back so they don’t starve?

I think this book will be wonderful for children aged 3 and over. It has excellent pictures to show the little ones what is happening and describes the setting in detail. I personally think it is a magnificent book.

I give it a 10 out of 10 rating.

This is Nicholas’s first book review for Alphabet Soup. If you’d like to read more book reviews by Oxley Christian College students, you can click on ‘Oxley Christian College’ in the grey categories box in the right column of this blog. To send us YOUR book review, check out our submission guidelines. Happy reading!