The Witches

The Witches is the story of a boy and his grandmother who, after an unfortunate run-in with witches, decide to stop them from wiping out all the children in the world.

I first read The Witches when I was nine and it freaked me out; I seriously considered not taking regular baths. Even though it does get quite scary at parts, we can learn some good values from the story: bravery, the importance of family, overcoming setbacks and a positive can-do spirit.

Roald Dahl has a wicked sense of humour and can be quite rude, which was what got me hooked onto his books as a child. And Quentin Blake is the perfect illustrator for his stories: he captures the essence of the characters perfectly. The Witches is quite dark, so I would recommend it for young readers who enjoy such stories and are not uncomfortable with reading about the supernatural.

This is one of my all-time favourites, so I shall have to give it 5 out of 5 stars.

Author: Roald Dahl
Illustrator: Quentin Blake
First published in 1983 by Heinemann Educational Books Ltd

Age range: 9 to 12 years old

NA's rating: 5/5

The Graveyard Book

The Graveyard Book is a coming-of-age tale full of danger and hope. It is the story of Nobody Owens, known as Bod to his friends, a boy who is raised by ghosts in a graveyard.

The story is wonderfully written and has all the elements needed for a brilliant tale: the theme of good versus evil, a protagonist with a tragic past, interesting and enigmatic characters, supernatural elements and exciting adventures. I could not put the book down and had to read it through to the end in one sitting! Neil Gaiman is a masterful storyteller and he always does a superb job of writing stories with themes as old as memory yet are still really modern and relatable. His stories are usually rather dark, so I would recommend this to young readers who enjoy fantasy and the macabre.

I love this book. 5 out of 5 stars!


Author: Neil Gaiman
Illustrator: Chris Riddell
First published in 2008 by Bloomsbury Publishing Plc

Age range: 11 to 14 years old

NA's rating: 5/5

The Island

The Island is a simple yet poignant tale of a man washed up on a strange island and the treatment that he receives from its residents.

The story is written in language that is simple and in a style that is accessible and straightforward. The illustrations are beautiful, if sombre. Characters represented are grotesque and the colours used are dark and muted. The illustrations are wonderful at depicting the emotions and reactions of the characters. They are also used very effectively to capture and relay the dark mood of the story.

This book is perfect to kick-start discussions on issues like racism, human rights and xenophobia. It gave me chills but I love it nevertheless. 5 out of 5 stars!

Author and illustrator: Armin Greder

First published in 2002 as Die Insel in Germany by Sauerländer Verlag

Age range: 8 to 16 years old

NA's rating: 5/5

The Black Book of Colors

The Black Book of Colors is about Thomas, the visually-impaired protagonist, and how he experiences the world.

The entire book is black, with text standing out in white. The illustrations are done using raised lines which the reader can feel, rather than see. Text is minimal but vividly describes how Thomas experiences the world through his other senses: hearing, smell, taste and touch. The Braille alphabet is included at the end of the book. The experience of touching the illustrations is interesting and allows the reader to get an inkling of how the visually-impaired live and feel. It's a good way to start the conversation on tolerance and understanding for people who are different. Overall, I give this book 4.5 out of 5 stars.

Author: Menena Cottin
Illustrator: Rosana Faría
Translated by: Elisa Amado
First published in Spanish as El libro negro de los colores in 2006

Age range: 5 to 16 years old

NA's rating: 4.5/5

The World in Infographics: Planet Earth

Planet Earth presents facts about Earth's physical aspects - ecosystems, geographic features, plate tectonics, water cycle - through infographics!

The infographics featured in the book are brightly coloured and eye-catching. This definitely influenced my decision to borrow it. Each topic is given a spread over two pages. There is a main infographic taking up the bulk of the spread and smaller infographics or paragraphs of text in the remaining space. These make it quite exciting to read - it gives one the feeling that there's just so much to know about each topic!

The language used is simple but there are quite a number of difficult terms used, such as "transform boundary". It is therefore more suitable for older children. There is a glossary of terms included at the end of the book to help with understanding. An index and a list of useful websites for further reading are also included. Since infographics do not present information in a conventional manner, the index is especially helpful in pinpointing where certain facts or topics appear.

Overall, this is a nice introduction to our home planet. I give it 4 out of 5 stars.

Editor: Jon Richards

Designer: Ed Simkins
Part of the World in Infographics series

First published in 2012 by Wayland

Age range: 8 to 12 years old

NA's rating: 4/5

Reticulated Python: The World's Longest Snake

Reticulated Python shares interesting facts about the habitat, distribution, behaviour and life cycle of reticulated pythons. It includes colour photographs and illustrations of reticulated pythons exhibiting various behaviours and in their natural habitat.

The information is presented in bite-sized pieces and is written in easy-to-understand language. I really appreciated the neutral tone used in the book; the snakes are not vilified. The photographs and illustrations are used to effectively illustrate and explain the facts that are presented. In addition to the main topics discussed, there are interesting related facts highlighted. For example, under the main topic of how pythons find food, the heat-sensing pits located above the python's lips are highlighted. In addition to facts on the reticulated python, there is also a section that features other long snakes such as the green anaconda. This will help children who love snakes find out what other species of snake they can read up on next. 

A glossary of terms, index and list of resources for further reading are included at the end of the book. The glossary is useful in explaining unfamiliar terms and the index is useful in locating specific topics discussed in the book. The list of resources for further reading would be useful to children who would like to read and learn more on reticulated pythons.

Overall, this is a good primer on reticulated pythons. I give it 4 out of 5 stars.


Author: Meish Goldish
Part of the More Supersized! series
Published in 2010 by Bearport Publishing Company, Inc.

Age range: 5 to 10 years old

NA's rating: 4/5

Komodo Dragons

Komodo Dragons shares interesting facts about the appearance, habitat, distribution, behaviour, and life cycle of the komodo dragon. It is full of colour photographs of komodo dragons in their natural habitat or displaying certain behaviours.

The information is presented in bite-sized pieces and is written in a style that is accessible and easy to understand. I appreciated the neutral tone used in the book; the komodo dragons are not vilified. The photographs are used very effectively to enhance understanding of the facts presented. A mini-glossary explaining difficult terms and words is included at the bottom of the pages where they are used. There is also an index and a list of recommended books and websites for further reading included at the end of the book. These are useful for children who are doing research for projects or those who are just interested to find out more.

Older children might find the language too simple and the explanations too brief, so this would be more suitable for younger children. But overall, it is a good primer on komodo dragons.

I give this book 4 out of 5 stars.


Author: Valerie Bodden
Part of the Amazing Animals series
Published in 2013 by Creative Education

Age range: 5 to 10 years old

NA's rating: 4/5