Book 10 – War Horse by Michael Morpurgo (number 32 on list)

Started 15.05.17 Finished 15.05.17

I have wanted to read this book for a long time, but have never gotten round to it. With the tour of ‘War Horse’ coming to the North West this winter, I had to read it before going to see it performed on stage. It did not disappoint. This is the story of the life of Joey the horse and the people that he meets along the way. The story is told from Joey’s perspective and there are some moments that will really tug at the heart strings. This is a nice quick read – which I was so engaged with I read over one evening.

Book 11 – I capture the castle by Dodie Smith (number 31 on list)

Started: 17.04.17 Finished 28.04.17

From start to finish I couldn’t get into this book. The story is written through the viewpoint of Cassandra as she writes her diary entries. Each entry is very lengthy and I needed a lot of time to be able to read each chapter. Throughout there wasn’t a clear time period for the book and I think that this was one of the reasons why I couldn’t warm to the story. There are some amusing moments throughout the story especially the part with the ‘bear’ on the train.

Book 12 – Pig Heart Boy by Malorie Blackman (number 13 on list)

Started: 28.05.17 Finished: 29.05.17

A warm hearted story about a teenage boy called Cameron who needs a heart transplant. The story follows his journey from before to after his heart transplant and the daily struggles that his family and he face. Malorie Blackman knows how to engage her reader from the first chapter. I really enjoyed this book and it gave me a lot of things to think about regarding science and medicine.

Book 13 – Goodnight Mister Tom by Michelle Magorian (number 23 on list)

Started: 29.05.17 Finished: 02.06.17

This is one of my favourite childhood books, so enjoyed reading it again. Set during World War Two, young William Beech arrives at Mister Tom’s house as he has been evacuated from London. The story follows their relationship from strangers to becoming family. This book will have you laughing out loud one minute to making you cry the next. This book should be read by everyone and then the film should be watched too. Both as brilliant as each other!

Book 14 –Matilda by Roald Dahl (number 22 on list)

Started: 02.06.17 Finished: 03.06.17

Who doesn’t enjoy a Roald Dahl book? Having not read this book since I was at Primary School my memories from the story were from the film version of ‘Matilda’ and the theatre production. Matilda is an extremely talented and gifted child who has been neglected by her family. It was great to read about Miss Trunchball’s comeuppance and to see how Miss Honey finally got everything she wanted. I wanted this book to be longer as I enjoyed it so much and wanted to know more about the characters within the book.

Book 15 – Oliver Twist by Pauline Francis (number 10 on list)

Read on 07.06.17

If you don’t feel like you can tackle the Dicken’s novel, then Pauline Francis tells the story of Oliver Twist in 50 pages. Although it doesn’t capture everything that the original novel has in the story, it does present the story that any reader can understand. A quick read that will take you about 45 minutes to read from start to end.

Book 16 – Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll (number 39 on list)

Started on: 08.06.17 Finished: 13.06.17

Why is a raven like a writing desk? Alice follows the white rabbit down the rabbit hole into Wonderland and happens to stumble across a lot of different characters while there. The reader meets the Queen of Hearts, the Mad Hatter, the Cheshire Cat and a lot more of Carroll’s famous characters. I really enjoy the story while Alice is in Wonderland but feel like the ending of her tale is very abrupt and needs more a build up as I was disappointed how it came about.

Book 17 – Treasure Island by Pauline Francis (number 12 on list)

Read on 13.06.17

I started with Pauline Francis’ version of Treasure Island before I have to tackle the novel by Robert Louis Stevenson later on in the top 50. I was glad that I did as I was not very familiar with the story of Treasure Island beforehand but the way that this short version of the novel is written is a good indicator of the story and the characters in the book. As I read through this 50 page book, I came across characters that I had heard of but didn’t know they belonged to this story. It has made me feel ready to tackle the novel…soon!

Book 18 – The Witches by Roald Dahl (number 16 on list)

Started 16.06.17 Finished 18.06.17

Another classic Roald Dahl book that was an enjoyable read. I'd read this book when I was in Primary School and have since watched the film version of The Witches numerous times. My favourite part has to be the description of how these ordinary women take off their wigs, masks and gloves to reveal their true identity.

Book 19 - Holes by Louis Sachar (number 15 on list)

Read once a week with my form during AM reg

I decided to read this book with my form, 7TEB, during one morning registration a week as the English department lots of copies of this book. It took us most of the spring and summer term to be able to read it all but we got there in the end. I had never heard of this book before, or known that Disney had turned it into a film in 2003, but found that it was a good read with many different characters whose personalities were very relatable. The form really enjoyed the book too with many actually getting the book out of the LRC to read ahead as they wanted to know what happened.

Book 20 – When Hitler stole Pink Rabbit by Judith Kerr (number 29 on list)

Started 20.06.17. Finished 27.06.17

I have always enjoyed learning about World War Two from the eyes of the children who experienced it many through evacuees describing how their life had changed and what they can remember about their time with their new family. This book was from the viewpoint of a young girl, Anna, who lived in Germany and was from a Jewish family. The story follows her family as they have to move to different countries in order to escape from Hitler. Her dad was a famous writer and Hitler had put up ransom money in order to have him (and the family) brought back to Germany. I thought that the story worked very well through the narrative of Anna as she described the hard times that the family faced while remembering her time spent in Germany before the war.

Book 21 – Black Beauty by Anna Sewell (number 41 on list)

Started 28.06.17. Finished 29.07.17

Due to the busy summer term at WHS this book took me a lot longer than I wanted it to, but once I was able to read the majority of it during the start of the summer holidays, it didn't take me long to complete it. I found it an endearing story told through the eyes of the horse, Black Beauty, and detailed her life in various stables and with different owners. Sewell loved horses and she wanted to tell her reader about the different conditions that horses had to face and I feel she did that brilliantly in her book through Black Beauty's story. A definite read for avid animal lovers.

Book 22 – THe Tell-Tale Heart by Benjamin Harper (number 4 on list)

Read on 31.07.17

After a long break from reading due to the business of the summer term, I have finally picked up a top 50 book at the start of the summer holidays. I chose this book first as not only is it a short graphic novel adaptation, it is also a book I am unfamiliar with. The original short story of The Tell-Tale Heart was written by Edgar Allan Poe. Benjamin Harper has worked with an illustrator who is an award-winning artist for marvel comics. The whole story is set out as a comic and is narrated by the protagonist as asks the reader to decide whether he is crazy as he tells his story. A gripping but quick read if you like graphic novels.

Book 23 – The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins (number 26 on list)

Started 31.07.17. Finished 01.08.17

I read this book for the first time about 18 months ago before creating a scheme of work that the drama department now teach within Year 8 drama. I loved it on first read and I loved it even more the second time. Having read the trilogy I found that I was able to link a lot of the detail in the first book to what happened to Katniss and Peeta in the second and third book. This book is not my favourite genre to read which is why I didn’t read it for a long time after it was published, but I would argue that no one can read this without enjoying the various stories in the book. I wish I'd read it sooner and definitely know that it won't be the last time I read it.

Book 24 – Shine by Candy Gourlay (number 6 on list)

Read on 03.08.17

It took me a couple of chapters to finally realise what was going on with the book but once I got it (and read the blurb!) I was unable to stop reading. Similar to The art of being normal the story is told via two different characters, the daughter in the current day and the mother in the past. With both characters unable to communicate via speech a lot of the story is told to the reader via their thoughts and the conversations others in the story have. Although I felt the story become over-heightened towards the end of the book, I was grippe with trying to piece the different clues together.

Book 25 - The Thirteen Secrets by Michelle Harrison (number 18 on list)

Started 04.08.17. Finished 07.08.17

I didn't realise until I was part way through this book that Michelle Harrison had written other books that were prequels to this one. Therefore, when I first started reading this book, I was a bit confused to what some of the meanings meant and how this tale of fairies and magic had begun. Once I'd read on a bit further it does become clearer and the reader doesn't have to read the previous books. I enjoyed the whodunnit mystery that made up the main plot of this book and just when you thought you had figured out the mystery Harrison adds another clue into the plot which changes everything.

Book 26 - Tom's Midnight Garden by Philippa Pearce (number 33 on list)

Started 08.08.17. Finished 09.08.17

It took me until chapter seven to enjoy this book. I felt the first few chapters were too descriptive and the same thing seemed to be happening again and again which soon became very repetitive. However, from chapter seven onwards I really enjoyed the story of the friendship that developed between Tom and Hatty in the midnight garden.

Book 27 – The Giver by Lois Lowry (number 27)

Started 09.08.17. Finished 10.08.17

When I read up on this book before starting it I read the words utopia and dystopia and rolled my eyes – definitely not the genre of book that I pick up to read. Following the story of Jonas as he approaches his 12^th year of live, Lowry shows the reader how a utopian community has been created. However, things are not what they seem in the community. Once I had started reading it, I was hooked and wanted to find out was going to happen to Jonas. When I got to the last page in the book, I wanted to know more and couldn't believe I was left with so many questions. This book has been the one that I have spoken about to a lot of people and urged them to read this. I won't be so quick to roll my eyes next time!

Book 28 - The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain (number 42 on list)

Started 11.08.17. Finished 18.08.17

In this book Twain writes about the daily life of Tom Sawyer and his friends in St. Petersburg. Previously, I tried to start reading this book twice but nothing about the story was intriguing me to continue to read on. Out of all the books that I have read so far in this top 50, this was the one I have struggled with the most as there was nothing in it that made me want to continue to read on after each chapter. One book that I won't be reading again.

Book 29 - The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole ages 13 ¾ by Sue Townsend (number 24 on list)

Started 18.08.17 Finished 20.08.17

Over a year of Adrian Mole's life is documented in this book from his happy days to the days of embarrassment and I found myself laughing out loud at parts of this book. Townsend writes extremely well as a teenage boy and there is something that everyone can relate to in reading this book. I thought the book worked well as diary entries as the reader was able to understand Adrian's character much more.

Book 30 - The Boy at the Top of the Mountain by John Boyne (number 35 on list)

Started 21.08.17 Finished 23.08.17

Having loved reading The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas I was eager to read this book by the same author. As previously said, I have always enjoyed reading books about children during World War Two and enjoyed this book just as much. It followed Pierrot's journey having to leave his home in Paris to live with his Aunt at the top of the German mountains and the encounters he has with many different types of people over the years that he is there.

Book 31 – Around the World in 80 Days by Jules Verne (number 45 on list)

Started 24.08.17 Finished 03.09.17

Phileas Fogg bets his friends that he can travel around the world in 80 days and if successful he will win a large sum of money. The reader follows his travels around the world to many different countries. There are many different obstacles while Fogg is on his travels and a lot of times throughout the book the reader is forced to believe that he will not make it back to London in time. A good adventure book which I didn't think I would enjoy but was pleasantly surprised. This book also has the best character name it in, Passepartout, Fogg's French valet.

Book 32 - 20,000 leagues under the sea by Carl Bowen (number 3 on list)

Read 10.09.17

Bowen's book is a short graphic novel adaptation on the novel of the same title by Jules Verne, same author who wrote Around the World in 80 Days. This is a quick read for anyone who wants an understanding of the plot without having to read the full novel. The pictures really help to tell the story. From reading this version of the story, I will eventually read the full novel.

Book 33 – Pale by Chris Wooding (number 5 on list)

Read 10.09.17

A quick read, only 59 pages, that looks at friendship and what it means to be different. This book follows the story of a teenage boy called Jed who gets hit by a car and is administrated with Lazarus Serum so he can be brought back to life as a 'pale'. It shows his struggle to accept he is different than his peers but with the help of his new friends, learns that he can be happy at being different than the others. The author is telling the reader through the story that we shouldn't judge people on what makes them different.