Some of my
favourite school based reads include Looking
for Alaska (John Green), Lev Grossman’s The
Magician, Maureen Johnston’s The Name
of the Star, and Maggie Stievfater's Ravens Cycle series.
My recent reading includes these newer school based books.
Esme Kerr The Glass Bird Girl (Knight Haddon
series) Chicken House
This eloquent
book has an old fashioned feel to it which will appeal to girls aged 9+ who like stories where school girls are school girls and where
adults can be mysterious and duplicitous.
Her blind grandmother can no longer look after the orphaned Edie. Instead Edie is sent by her awful uncle to
Knight's Haddon School to keep an eye on Anastasia. The Russian princess is the
daughter of one of the uncle’s clients.
Mysterious things are happening and someone is trying to undermine
Anastasia.
Holly Black and Cassandra Clare Iron Trial (Magisterium Series) Random House
This fantasy (as do many fantasies set in schools) bears
similarities to the Harry Potter series but ignore those initial doubts as the
twists and turns will leave readers anxious for the next instalment. Alastair Hunt tells his son, twelve-year-old
Callum, to fail the selection tests for the Magisterium, a training school for
mages. But Master Rufus chooses Callum anyway; if he cannot learn to contain
his magic within the first year, the magic will be bound.
Pip Harry Head of the River UQP
The story is told alternately by brother/sister twins - both in
the school’s firsts rowing team. Pip Harry describes the anxiety caused by parental
expectations very well. Someone is bankrolling the use of steroids to ensure
the rowing team wins. Cris, the brother, takes the drugs and is therefore a
cheat, but Cris is always there to support his sister. Leni, on the other hand,
is not so likeable; she is determined to be the stroke and captain, yet has to
learn how to be part of the team.
Any
suggestions for recent school stories?
Nella Pickup
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