The countdown to Easter has begun and our school library has been very busy with World Book Day Celebrations with our guest author, Andrew Lane, of the Young Sherlock Holmes series fame. See further down the blog to read about the day he spent at SGS. In addition, our Carnegies shadowing has begun, the return of Whodunnit Club, lots of competitions have been launched and our important Library Easter Quiz which will get everyone guessing to win Easter Egg prizes!
Easter Reads
This Easter hop into a new book or why not try a new author? We been on a hunt around the library and found some ‘eggtastic’ recommendations to get you started. If you have enjoyed a particularly cracking read please do a review on the Reading Cloud to earn achievement points. Remember to record all your books in your school planner to get stickers and additional achievement points.
Pick up one of these books today: Run Rabbit Run by Barbara Mitchelhill (KS3); How to Save the World with a Chicken and an Egg by Emma Shevah (KS3); The Chocolate War by Robert Cormier; The Trials of Apollo The Hidden Oracle (BK 1) by Rick Riordan (KS3).
Quick, grab one of these books: White Rabbit, Red Wolf by Tom Pollock (KS3); The Hunt by Andrew Fukuda (KS3); All That’s Left in the World by Erik J Brown (KS4); How Bad Are Bananas by Mike Berners-Lee
(KS3 upwards – section 363).
Quick, don’t forget to log onto SORA for all of your Easter treats. SORA have an extensive range of cook books and comics to look through.
Andrew Lane Visit on World Book Day
On Thursday 8 March we celebrated World Book Day in school and the day was filled to the brim with book inspired activities, including our popular Masked Reader video to keep everyone guessing which members of staff are behind the mask? Answers at the bottom of the blog!
We were delighted to meet the author of the hugely successful Young Sherlock Holmes and Awol series, Andrew Lane. Andy, as he likes to be known, started his busy day with us by speaking to our Year 7 students in the Hall. Followed by a break-out session in the library; to give a group of students an exclusive opportunity to speak to him.
Year 8-9 students were equally enthralled to meet Andy and listen to him talking about being a writer for YA fiction and how he worked on developing the Young Sherlock character for his book series, making reference to lasting legacy of Sir Arthur Canon Doyle’s Character Sherlock Holmes and how he still has an impact on us today.
Andy then kindly did a book signing which was hugely popular with our students and lastly, spoke to a small group of sixth formers, rounding up a very exciting World Book Day 2024 for everyone.
All of Andrew Lane’s Young Sherlock Holmes books and others he has written are available in the library to borrow now.
Check out our new library books which have arrived just in time for the Easter holidays for you to borrow: A Kind of Spark by Elle McNicoll (KS3); The Song Walker by Zillah Bethell (KS3); House of Sky and Breath by Sarah J Maas (KS4); Blood Flowers by Jay McGuiness (KS3); Crossing the Line by Tia Fisher (KS3); The Door of No Return (KS3).
Budget Time
Every March the UK Government discloses its yearly Budget. The Chancellor of the Exchequer makes the Budget Statement to the House of Commons outlining the nation’s economy and the Governments proposals for changes to taxation.
You may have seen in the press this year the Chancellor holding up the traditional and iconic ‘Red Box’ containing the Budget? But what is the budget and why is it so anticipated by the British public? Well, in short, the Chancellor states where the money to run the nation is to be spent, together with taxation changes. This means that the amount of tax that the British people pay can go up or down in order to fund our public sectors e.g. NHS, Police, Education and Defense. The Budget decides just how much money each sector will get and this can increase or decrease every year. It is a big balancing act which is why it is an important process.
Our economics teacher Mr. Barlett has selected two books to give you an excellent insight on how the budget is organised. Follow the Money by Paul Johnston is recommended for KS5 students and How Money Works by DK is for KS3/4. Both books and many others can be found under section 330.
Carnegies Shortlist is Announced
The Yoto Carnegies celebrate outstanding achievement in children’s writing and illustration and are unique in being judged by librarians, with respective Shadowers’ Choice Medals voted for by children and young people.
16 books have been shortlisted in total, with eight in each category for the Carnegie Medal for Writing and Carnegie Medal for Illustration; whittled down from the 36 longlisted titles by the expert judging panel which includes 12 librarians from CILIP: the library and information association’s Youth Libraries Group.
The 2024 Yoto Carnegie Medal for Writing shortlist is (alphabetical by author surname): The Door of No Return by Kwame Alexander (Andersen Press); The Song Walker by Zillah Bethell (Usborne); Away with Words by Sophie Cameron (Little Tiger); The Boy Lost in the Maze by Joseph Coelho, illustrated by Kate Milner (Otter-Barry Books); Choose Love by Nicola Davies, illustrated by Petr Horáček (Graffeg); Crossing the Line by Tia Fisher (Bonnier Books UK); Safiyyah’s War by Hiba Noor Khan (Andersen Press); Steady for This by Nathanael Lessore (Bonnier Books UK).
All of the Shortlisted books are available on SORA to Download.
Credits: Yoto Carnegies yotocarnegies.co.uk SORA by Overdrive: soraapp.com
Mr Bartlett Reviews
Vindolanda by Adrian Goldsworthy
Adrian Goldsworthy is an eminent military historian who specialises in the Roman army. Consequently, his historical fiction is thoroughly researched, whilst also possessing a pacey narrative.
I recently visited the British Museum’s excellent “Legion” exhibition, which features an extensive display of artefacts from the excavations of the Roman fort at Vindolanda, in Northumberland, including 1,700 tablets inscribed with details of conditions living there. This prompted me to re-read Goldsworthy’s “Vindolanda,” the first book in his trilogy of the same name. At the northern outpost of the empire, before the construction of Hadrian’s wall, Flavius Ferox, a Briton and Roman centurion, must keep the peace despite rebellious tribes fighting against Rome and druids preaching the fiery destruction of the invaders.
I found the saga thoroughly engrossing and I would warmly recommend both the trilogy and the exhibition, which runs until 23 June 2024.
www.britishmuseum.org/legion-life-roman-army
Eid-al-Fitr: A Muslim Celebration
By Blog Buddy: Aman 10G
I am sure many of you have heard of Eid before and even know that it is a Muslim celebration, but how many of you can say that you know more than that? Eid happens on the first day after the lunar month of Ramadan, during which Muslims fast and pray to our God, Allah. The reward for this fasting comes with Eid.
Traditionally, parents, grandparents, uncles, and aunties often give money or a gift to the children to make their day. Delicious food is prepared, and sweets are distributed to neighbours, friends, and family. The day starts off with a shower first, then you wear new clothes for the day and go to the mosque for the special Eid-al-Fitr prayer. After the prayer, everyone hugs and shakes hands, whilst wishing each other “Eid Mubarak.”
Eid is a special day in every Muslim’s life as it is the reward given to us because of our fasting and praying throughout the 30 days of Ramadan. Often after everyone has prayed, people go out and distribute sweets to friends and family and wish them Eid Mubarak. Once the sweets have been distributed, the family often go out together or enjoy some time together at home on the blessed day. Some of my family live abroad, so we often call them and wish them well.
Eid is a joyful celebration for all Muslims, and I often relate it to Christmas for Christians. The traditions for Eid have been taking place year after year for many centuries and bring people closer together. If you want to learn more about Eid, then I would recommend a book for you to read: Once upon an Eid. You can find this on SORA.
Shakespeare
(You may have heard of him)
By Blog Buddy, Ezra 9T
Shakespeare Week 18 -24 March 2024
If Shakespeare wanted to enter some sort of writing company, they would probably hire him on the spot and give him a senior position as soon as they saw his resume. In his lifetime of 52 years, he wrote 154 sonnets, 38 plays, and invented over 1700 words in the English language! Nowadays, people find it difficult to invent maybe one or two, and most don’t even try (why would they?). He was also greatly favoured by the king at the time, King James I, who ‘sponsored’ him, and watched him all the time, so much so that Shakespeare’s performing group was even called ‘The King’s Men’. He wasn’t just popular with the king either. Literally everyone wanted to watch his plays in his own theatre, the Globe. Noblemen, the upper-middle class, peasants, everyone was allowed in.
Shakespeare wrote in several genres, but perhaps the most famous plays are his tragedies. He loved putting heart-warming, loving events in his tragedies, from poison, to blood and gore and of course, you have to put in several murders every now and again. There was even the odd witch’s curse here and there! One such play is called Macbeth, and it fit perfectly in his genre of tragedy. Starting with a betrayal to the king, then king murders, to child murders, to murdering your best friend, Macbeth has it all. So if you are looking for a perfectly gruesome, definitely safe book to read, why don’t you start with Macbeth?
During Shakespeare Week why not borrow some books on this famous writer and imagine yourself back in the Sixteenth Century. Check out section 822 in our school library.
Phil Earle
Bestselling author Phil Earle currently lives in West Yorkshire with his family and two dogs. He spend much of his childhood aspiring to be a professional footballer for Hull City and loved sports, acting and singing.
As a boy Earle found reading hard but when he started to pick up comics and graphic novels a passion ensued, amongst his favourites, Batman comics and the graphic novel, Maus (available under section 741).
After attending university Earle had a number of jobs, amongst them he was a care worker and drama therapist in a children’s residential home. It was this experience he drew from when writing his books Being Billy and Saving Daisy. His love of books really started to flourish when he took a temporary position in the Children’s fiction of a bookshop. He has gone to work as a bookseller and publisher. He has written over twenty books for children and young adults.
Earle’s works include: Mind the Gap (KS3/4), The Bubble Wrap Boy (KS3), While Storm Rages (KS3) and more recently, Until the Road Ends (KS3), which was longlisted for the Carnegies writing medal 2024. His book When the Sky Falls (KS3) was the Winner of the British Book Award for Children’s Fiction Book of the Year; Winner of the Books Are My Bag Readers Award for Children’s Fiction and was shortlisted for the Carnegie Medal for writing, and The Times Children’s Book of the Year.
Red Carpet Books
In the library we get very excited as the ‘Oscars’ approach to see which books have been adapted for screenplay and have been nominated for a prestigious golden statue award (Oscar). This year didn’t disappoint, as the film ‘Oppenheimer’ took home seven academy awards. This film about the atomic bomb was inspired by the New York bestseller and Pulitzer Prize-winning biography: American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J Robert Oppenheimer by Kai Bird and Martin J Sherwin (KS5).
The motion picture ‘American Fiction’ won the Best Screenplay award. The film is based on the novel: Erasure by Percival Everett (KS5). Other films that were nominated, won awards and critically acclaimed were: Poor Things based of the book of the same title by Alasdair Gray (KS5); The Zone of Interest by Martin Amis (KS5); Killers of the Flower Moon by David Grann (KS5). The above books and ebooks are available to borrow from your local Library, Libby App or Borrow Box. Some will be coming into our library soon – so keep an eye out.
The bestselling graphic novel Nimona by ND Stephenson (KS3/4) was adapted into a Netflix film and was nominated for the Animated Feature film at this year’s Oscars. This subversive and humorous book, based in the Middle Ages, is available to borrow in our school library NOW.
Easter Egg Quiz
Starting on Monday 25th March 2024 we have our Easter Egg Quiz with a change to win prizes: 1st Prize a big Easter egg, 2nd/3rd Prize small Easter eggs and runner up mini easter chocolates.
Simply come into the library and collect a Quiz Sheet, answer the questions and hand your sheet with your name on it Mrs Taylor, Ms Lo or Mrs Payne. Winners will be drawn out of a hat on Friday 28th March 2024. Good Luck!
Whodunnit Club Cracks the Case
Who doesn’t love a bit of Whodunnit? This half term has been no exception with students coming to solve crime mysteries, puzzles, games and much more in Whodunnit club. They have all proved to be excellent detectives and we have had lots of fun in the process. Whodunnit club will finish just before we break up for the Easter Holidays, after its six week run. No doubt it will return next year for more super sleuth solving.
These are our Whodunnit Club recommendations: ABC Murders by Agatha Christie (KS3); Sherlock Holmes by DK (KS3) under section 823.8; Let’s Play Murder by Kesia Lupo (KS3). There are even more on SORA.
Grab a New Graphic Novel
Comic Club have been amongst the first to recommend and read our new Graphic Novels to add to our growing collection – see section 741. We now have more books in the series of Spy family by Tatsuya and Naruto by Masashi Kishimoto (KS3) for you to delve into.
For something a little different, check out Gods of Asgard adapted by Erik Evensen (KS3). We also have vividly illustrated Trinity by Jonathan Fetter-Vorm (KS3/4), about the race to build the first atomic bomb and the events leading to the decision to drop it. If you are a dragon fan, try the Graphic Novel series of the ‘Dragonet Prophecy’ Wings of Fire by Tui T. Sutherland, which is sure to take you soring into your next mythical adventure.
Big Kids Book Club
Keep up to date with YA author interviews and conversations on bigkidsbookclub.com. This fantastic resource is a brilliant place to find out what is going on with the YA book scene. We particularly like the ‘New Book Nook – March edition,’ which you’ll find on the website. The Big Kids Book Club also has Podcasts you can access via Spotify and other platforms, for more information visit: www.bigkidsbookclub.com/podcast
Please note: Always check with an adult and the bill payer before downloading.
Answers to the masked reader video:
1. ‘A Monster Calls’ by Patrick Ness, excerpt read by Dino – Mrs Payne.
2. ‘The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time’ by Mark Haddon, excerpt read by The Lady – Ms Vincent.
3. ‘The Hobbit’ by JRR Tolkien, excerpt read by Smeagol – Mr Roy.
4. ‘AWOL’ by Andrew Lane, excerpt read by Dragon – Mrs Taylor.
5. ‘Alex’s Adventures in Numberland’ by Alex Bellos, excerpt read by Cat – Ms Cain.
6. ‘Dune’ by Frank Herbert, excerpt read by the Little Train – Ms Benson.
7. ‘Fellowship of the Ring’ by JRR Tolkien, excerpt read by Mr Blobfish – Mr Marsh.
8. ‘Born to Run’ by Christopher McDougall, excerpt read by Mr Handsome – Mr Humphries.
9. ‘Fatherland’ by Robert Harris, excerpt read by Spiderman – Mr Blunt.
From the SGS Library Staff