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Showing posts from July, 2020

Anatomicum - Katy Wiedemann and Jennifer Z Paxton

Welcome to Anatomicum. This museum is open all hours. It houses a remarkable collection of displays, from the muscles to show emotion to the delicate workings of the brain. So what makes our bodies tick? And how does a human body grow from a single cell?  Anatomicum had been on my "books I really want but can't justify buying yet" list for a long time before I finally caved and bought it and boy am I glad I did. Illustrated by Katy Wiedemann and written by Jennifer Z Paxton Anatomicum is an in-depth look into the human body - from all angles! It's the perfect illustrated science book, which we all know I'm a huge fan of.  The book is split into six sections, each focusing on a different system within the body: musculoskeletal, cardiovascular and respiratory, digestive and urinary, nervous and special senses, immune and lymphatic and endocrine and reproductive. (The amount of red squiggly lines that appeared whilst I was typing that shows me I need to brush up on m...

Good Girls Die First - Kathryn Foxfield

Ten teenagers lured to a derelict carnival. Each one with a dark past they are determined to keep hidden. As they start to die, is it an unknown killer they need to fear...or each other?  Mind games. Murder. Mayhem.  How far would you go to survive the night?  If the blurb doesn't sell this book to you then you must really be a tough nut to crack. I was lucky enough to win a copy of Good Girls Die First after taking part in the #SixforSunday chat that Steph hosts on Twitter each week and I was thrilled as it was brilliant to talk to Kathryn about her inspiration behind the book and just how she came up with such a macabre story line. I'm a big fan of a thriller and murder mystery so this Young Adult delight was right up my street and I couldn't wait to delve in.  The concept is straightforward yet quite unique. Ten teenagers each receive a mysterious note luring them to the abandoned carnival pier.  Each note is seemingly ambiguous - a picture, a typed message...

Orphans of the Tide - Struan Murray

When a mysterious boy washes in with the tide, the citizens believe he is the Enemy - the god who drowned the whole word - come again to cause untold chaos.  Only Ellie, a fearless inventor living in a workshop crammed with curiosities, believes he's innocent.  But the Enemy can take possession of any human body, and the ruthless Inquisition are determined to destroy it forever.  To save the boy, Ellie must prove who he really is - even if that means revealing her own dangerous secret.  I'd heard a LOT of good things about this book before I finally bought myself a copy last month and with it being compared to His Dark Materials  it certainly has gained high praise indeed from authors, teachers and book bloggers alike. And I'm pleased to say it's very well-deserved.  The book is set in a dystopian-style future, where The City is the last remaining city in the world, following a flood which washed out (we presume) most of the human population. Now, the popul...

The Ship of Shadows - Maria Kuzniar

Aleja is a dreamer who longs for a life of magic and adventure. So when a mysterious ship arrives in her Spanish harbour city, crewed by a band of ruthless women, Aleja knows it's sailed right out of a legend. And it wants her.  But life aboard the Ship of Shadows is more than even she bargained for. It will take all of Aleja's strength and skill to gain the trust of her fellow pirates - and discover what they are risking everything to find ... I know what some of you may be thinking. Haven't you already reviewed The Ship of Shadows ? And you'd be right. I have (you can find last month's review here ) but when I heard about The Write Reads Blog Tour to help promote Maria's book I couldn't help but jump aboard. So here is review number two, with a little acrostic twist, because I'm a teacher. Plus, you know it must be good if I want to review it twice. S is for SEA.  It wouldn't be a book about pirates and ships without the sea. Throughout the book we...

July TBRs

It's July already and I'm not quite sure how that happened. What with being in lockdown for 100+ days and not being in work every single day the last few months have flown by. This has been a bonus for my reading habits though as I've had much more time to spend reading I usually do! July is the start of everything going back to normal and back to the daily grind. Although there are only two weeks left of the school year and I can't quite believe that I will have to say goodbye to my lovely bunch so soon!   This month I plan on trying to maintain my reading level and fly through some books that I've been waiting to read for a while. I've limited myself to four on this list but I'm hoping I can complete a few more if I manage to speed through these. I can't wait to finally set foot back in a bookstore (I've still been avoiding non-essential shops for the moment) and the wonderful feeling you get from browsing through brand new books! A Monster Calls -...