December Book Club
This Article was written by our Head Girl, Lina Kürten (Year 13) and Rayna Venkadesh (Year 7)
Happy December everyone! As the holidays are approaching, we are giving you a perfectly curated book list you can work on throughout.
Whether you are a book worm- or prefer to watch the motion pictures; you can never go wrong with a good book! Share us your favourite novels that you feel should make it to the list next!
Contemporary recommendation:
The Book Thief
By Markus Zusak
Genre: Historical fiction
The Book Thief is the story of Liesel, a little girl growing up in Germany during World War II. She steals books, learns to read and finds comfort in words and her new family. However this story is not told by Liesel, but by our narrator... Death.
This book was recommended to me a lot so after a lot of requests, I picked it up … I ABSOLUTELY loved it! The writing is probably my favourite aspect of this book. Though the plot is quite simple, not once was I bored or counting the pages till the next chapter. This is mainly because of the superb writing which did a great job at establishing a tone from the first age and maintaining that throughout the narrative. It is both lyrical and sometimes comical even though it covers such dark topics.
In conclusion this is my favorite historical fiction I have ever read. I am begging you please read this book! Even if you don’t typically like to read or you don't tend to pick up historical fiction, I truly believe that you will not regret reading this one.
Fantasy recommendation:
Northern lights
By Philip Pullman
Genre: Fantasy/ Adventure Fiction
Northern Lights- set in a parallel universe, shows Lyra Belacqua’s journey to the North in search of her missing friend and her imprisoned uncle, who has been conducting experiments with a mysterious substance known as "Dust". It is the first book in a trilogy called “His Dark Materials”.
Before reading this book, I had seen the movie adaptation called “the Golden Compass,” I am delighted to tell you that (of course) the book is even better. This book is excellently written, especially its description of the ice cold North (perfect to read in winter). Both the magical elements and the story were extremely engaging and it is definitely a series I want to continue reading.
Middle Grade Recommendation:
The Goldfish boy
By Lisa Thompson
Genre: Fiction/Mystery
Matthew Corbin, 12 years old suffers from severe obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) He hasn’t been to school in weeks. His hands are cracked and bleeding from always washing his hands with scalding water. Matthew refuses to leave his bedroom and to pass time he watches his neighbours doing their daily chores. Suddenly a toddler goes missing and it becomes apparent that Matthew was the last person to see him!
I have always been the type of person who likes to read books on OCD and other diseases. In another book that I read, It brings out an important message:
“Your difficulties are your strengths, they make you stand out from the crowd!”
Many people who have autism, OCD and others have really made a difference to this world; like Albert Einstein. This book tells a story on the difficulties of this situation. Matthew finds that it is okay to get help when you are not okay. It’s okay to not be okay!
Non-Fiction Recommendation:
Chinese Cinderella
By Adeline Yen Mah
Genre: Non-fiction
Ever since Adeline was born, she has been rejected coldly because of her family who thought she brought bad luck as Adeline’s mother died after having birth with Adeline. Soon, her father remarries a beautiful half-french lady who becomes her cruel stepmother. She treats all of Adeline’s father’s first five children with distaste and dissatisfaction.
Even though I have already read this book 5 times and know what is going to happen; I still enjoy it. This is one of those books that you just want to keep reading over and over again.
I recommend this book to Year 8s and 9s!
There it is! Join the KCDSpeaks book club by reading these books, sending your take on them & then sharing some new reads that we can add to the list next month!
Just email us your views & recommendations on: newspaper@kentcollege.ae - you can also email me directly at: linku21@kentcollege.ae
Or DM us on instagram (@kcdspeaks)
Until next time!
Love,
Lina & Rayna
