Read me ... if you dare!

 

We have put together a display of horrifying, spine-tingling books - from terrifying ghost stories like The Woman in Black to supernatural tales of werewolves, vampires and zombies such as Darren Shan's Zom-B and Rachel Caine's Morganville Vampires series.

Borrow them if you dare!

Books into film!

This month sees the release of the film adaptation of Markus Zusak’s acclaimed novel, The Book Thief.  Set during World War II in Nazi Germany, the book is narrated by Death and the story centres around Liesel Meminger, a young girl who has been sent to live with a foster family on Himmel Street.  When her brother dies and is buried, she steals the gravedigger’s handbook and becomes hooked on reading.  Although immensely sad it is also uplifting and well worth a read!  You can find a copy in the Discovery Library.

To view a trailer of the film:

Book Thief film trailer

Other acclaimed books that have recently been adapted for the big screen are the Nelson Mandela’s autobiography A Long Walk to Freedom and The Railway Man by Eric Lomax, a moving true story of a man who was taken prisoner and tortured by the Japanese in the Second World War and how he comes to terms with his experience many years after the war.  Both books can be found in the War Memorial Library.

Children's Laureate writing competition

To celebrate the release in paperback of Children’s Laureate Malorie Blackman’s new novel, Noble Conflict, publisher Random House and Movellas.com have launched a writing competition.  Entrants must read an extract from Noble Conflict online and then write a 3,000-word account of the different sides of the dispute.  The winner will take part in an exclusive Q&A with Malorie Blackman and three runners up will receive a signed copy of her book.  The competition is now open and all entries must be submitted by 28^th February.

Click here for more information and how to enter.

Noble Conflict is on our wish list and should be available shortly, meanwhile we have many other Malorie Blackman titles in both the Discovery and War Memorial Libraries including Noughts and Crosses, Pig-Heart boy and Trust Me.

Welcome back!

Hope you all had a great Christmas and enjoyed reading lots of good books! 

Let us know if you took part in the Christmas Mini Reading Challenge – we would like to post reviews of any of the books you read on the blog!

Look out for library competitions, with lots of prizes to be won, recommended reads and author visits this term!  As well as asking your librarians for advice, why not have a look at the 'new books' and 'book review' pages of the blog for ideas of what to read next. 

Christmas Books and Film tie-ins on TV

Why not enjoy a good book this Christmas holiday? Come and browse our display of Christmas books and books with a film tie-in on TV over the Christmas holidays in the Discovery library! Our display in the War Memorial Library includes ghost stories and Christmas crime stories, for those that like a scare at Christmas!

 

We have lots of great titles in the both the Discovery and War Memorial libraries, including those in our ‘new books’ section so please feel free to browse and borrow.

Also, School Librarian, Helen Smith, has compiled her annual list of Christmas book and film tie-ins that are on TV over the Christmas Period. Please click on the link below to view:
Christmas book to film listing 2013

 

 

 

Winners of the Roald Dahl Funny Prize announced

The winners are:

I Am Still Not a Loser by Jim Smith in the aged seven to 14 catagory

Monkey Nut by Simon Rickerty in the six and under category

Jim Smith's books I Am Not a Loser and I am Still Not a Loser are on our wish list so look out for them in the Discovery Library in the New Year!  Meanwhile, you can find other funny books, including previous Roald Dahl Funny Prize winners and shortlisted titles in the Discovery Library.

Roald Dahl Funny Prize shortlist - winners to be announced next week

The Roald Dahl Funny Prize celebrates funny books for children.  Six books have been chosen in each of the two categories, children aged 6 and under and children aged 7 to 14.  The winners will be announced at an awards ceremony in London on Tuesday 10 December.

The books shortlisted for children aged 7 to 14 are:

The Grunts All At Sea by Philip Ardagh
 

My Parents Are Out of Control by Pete Johnson

 Press to view the Waterstones book trailer

Pants Are Everything by Mark Lowery  

Geek Girl by Holly Smale

Fish-Head Steve! by Jamie Smart  

I Am Still Not a Loser by Jim Smith

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rq1rW9JhD3M

Let us know which book you think should win.  You can find many of these books and other prize winning funny books in the Discovery Library.

For more information about the Roald Dahl Funny Prize visit the Book Trust website.