THE RED NECKLACE BY SALLY GARDNER

It is 1789. The French revolution is in its early stages and Yann Margoza is living with the dwarf Tetu and a magician in Paris. After the magician is murdered by the evil Count Kalliovski while the entertainers are performing at the house of the selfish Marquis de Villeduval, the Marquis' unloved daughter Sido helps Yann to escape. Yann and Tetu must flee Kalliovski, but while they are fleeing, Tetu is shot. Yann goes to London and there he is educated over the next two years, but the Revolution is gathering steam and France is becoming increasingly dangerous. Sido is trapped and Count Kalliovski is scheming, and Yann must face danger and return to France to rescue Sido and discover the secrets of the Marquis and Kalliovski.

This book is historical, romantic and mysterious. The plot is complex but very clever and the characters are well-developed and realistic. The fantasy elements of the book make it appeal to a wide range of readers.

The history in the book is particularly intriguing, involving both the events surrounding the start of the French Revolution and the stories of the gypsies in France and England. A perspective on the Revolution is given from both sides of the Channel.

The romance in the novel is not overused but still touching. Yann and Sido share a fascinating bond - though they barely know each other they long for each other like well-acquainted lovers and their relationship is almost spiritual in the way it is described. This makes it a refreshing change from the overused, extreme passion often present in young adult books.

The mystery, however, is what makes this book. The backgrounds of the characters and Kalliovski's evil deeds are revealed as the book goes on, and although the reader can sometimes guess what is coming some plot twists are unexpected and fascinating.

The book does have a few flaws, however. Sometimes the plot is difficult to follow and some characters were confusing. I lost track of who everybody was, even though I only read the book over a few days. I found I could not remember some characters. The book was also fairly long for the story, and contains a lot of detail that, although it is interesting, is not necessarily relevant to the plot.

Overall, however, this was an enjoyable and exciting read and I am intrigued to read what happens in the sequel.

Butterflies: 8 out of 10
Recommended for: people over 11
Warnings: the book is set in the French Revolution and there is a fair amount of violence, particularly at the end of the book. There are also references to the occult and spirits, so that is also something to consider if you are an adult buying this book for a child.

MIRROR BY JEANNIE BAKER

They say a picture tells a thousand words, and in the case of Jeannie Baker, it is so true.

Mirror is Jeannie Baker's latest amazing collage picture book. The images in it are painstakingly prepared, with figures replicated many many times and diverse landscapes created using both natural and synthetic materials.

Two stories are told in the book of two journeys - one of a young Sydney boy and his father going to buy supplies to decorate their newly-renovated house, and one of a young Morrocan boy and his father going to market to tell handmade rugs. Both stories are different, but the amazing thing about the book is that it is really two books in one. When you open the cover, one story opens out conventionall from the back cover, to be read from left to right. This is the story of the young Australian boy. The other opens from the front cover, and reads from right to left, just like the language spoken in Morroco.

The stories are commonplace in their societies, but vibrantly different when compared. The book is designed so that both stories are read at once. I went to the exhibition of the artworks when they were displayed, but did not get to see both stories at once. It is not until you read them side by side that you realise how clever they are, and all the little motifs and similarities between the two stories.

I found myself amazed at the detail in the images and the beauty in the story. I particularly loved the places in Sydney I could recognise - driving through Balmain and Drummoyne near the Tiger's club, crossing the ANZAC bridge and many more. The Morrocan landscapes created were beautiful as well.

So although this was not a book with words, it was a story (really two stories!) that I really enjoyed. I love Jeannie Baker's work and this book was no exception. However, I do find that I enjoy the books that take place over a longer timeframe more, so that is why I am not giving it 9 or 10.

Butterflies: 8 out of 10
Recommended for: anyone! Can be read on many levels.
Warnings: nothing at all!

TOBY ALONE BY TIMOTHEE DE FOMBELLE

Toby Alone is a novel about a 13-year-old boy on the run from the law. The thing is, he's one and a half millimetres tall and lives in a tree.

When the novel opens the reader has no idea why Toby is on the run, but as the book progresses, through a series of flashbacks it is revealed why Toby is running. More and more information about Toby's childhood is also revealed, and characters are introduced both in the flashbacks and the story of Toby running.

The book was clever in it's descriptions of the tree and the author has created a whole world in the Tree. But there were so many characters I found it hard to keep track of them all, and so many of them were evil that I just got the bad guys all mixed up.

Toby's friend Elisha is one of the more interesting characters, as are his parents. There is a strong environmental/conservation theme in the book which both adds and detracts to the story - for older readers this adds interest but it could easily bore younger readers.

Overall the book was a good story but I thought it had too many characters and the plot was overly-complicated. I'm still really trying to figure out some aspects of it.

Butterflies: 6 out of 10

Recommended for: children over 11

Warnings: references to violence and death but nothing much really!

(apologies for lack of cover, I will upload it later but right now blogger is not letting me!)

with just days to go

Hello :)

I've been reading a bit more slowly now that I know I've caught up and will finish on time. So sorry if you liked the reviews every two days or so, that won't be happening any more.

I just wanted to let you know that I HAVE A PLAN for what to do after the project has finished.

So basically I want to study journalism at university, with a view to being a feature writer. My dream job is working for the Good Weekend and travelling the world, interviewing interesting people and writing about really fascinating topics. Because of that, I've decided to write a feature article about this project, from my point of view, as the final thing I do for this blog.

I'll probably post the article in a few weeks, so it is up for the presentation day (which is Tuesday November 16, if you are interested!) and I'd love to be able to include some quotes from my readers about what you thought of the blog. So, post in the comments what you thought! Did the blog recommend any new books to you? Did you follow my progress? Did you try and do anything like it?? I just want to know ANY thoughts you've had that involve the blog.

Anyway, reviews for Toby Alone and Mirror will be up within a day or two, and The Red Necklace (as suggested by Laura as the final book!) will be reviewed by Saturday or Sunday. Keep commenting and reading!

suggest the final book!

Hey there everyone. It's less than one week until the end of the project!

I'm currently reading Toby Alone by Timothee de Fombelle and next up is Mirror by Jeannie Baker, which is an AMAZING picture book, but... that only adds up to 25.

So, I need your help to suggest my final book! I will have about four or five days to read it so it can really be anything less than about 400 pages. And I don't care what genre, I just need to be able to get my hands on it soon, probably from a library.

So leave your suggestions in the comments! I would love to be able to read one of your favourite books :)

HALO BY ALEXANDRA ADORNETTO

This book was one I've wanted to read ever since I heard it was being published. Alexandra Adornetto was first published when she was 15, and now she is 18 and Halo is her fourth book, the first in her second series.

Halo is the story of an angel named Bethany, who, with her siblings Gabriel and Ivy, are sent to earth to combat evil forces in the town of Venus Cove. They have to hide their true identities, and their wings. But it isn't long before Bethany falls in love with the school captain, Xavier Woods. Xavier is perfect, and it isn't long from then until they are an item. Then Bethany reveals to him her secret. All is wonderful for the couple even though they know they have limited time together, until a new person arrives, and starts to shake things up.

I loved The Strangest Adventures series, and this book was good, but I have to say it didn't amaze me like those other ones. The character Xavier was a little TOO perfect to be believable, and it all felt a lot like Twilight because of the supernatural being falling in love with a human theme.

That said, it was still a good book, and much better paced than Twilight. Xavier and Bethany are super cute together, so if you like that kind of thing then it's a great read.

And the fantasy side of it was very interesting, as it was based on facts found in the Bible.

Butterflies: 7 out of 10

Recommended for: teenagers over 14 (particularly girls, but guys could learn something from Xavier!)

Warnings: a bit of language, drinking and sexual stuff

THE TALES OF BEEDLE THE BARD BY JK ROWLING

The Tales of Beedle the Bard is a companion book the the immensely popular Harry Potter series by JK Rowling, that I happen to adore. The book is the very same one mentioned in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, and is said to be translated by Hermione Granger from the original runes (Hermione being one of the three main characters in Harry Potter) and featuring comments from Albus Dumbledore, the headmaster of Hogwarts.

The stories are reminiscent of the fairytales of the Grimm Brothers, in that they are fairly gruesome in their 'original form' and are apparently still told to wizarding children today. There are five short stories, each teaching a wizarding moral or lesson to wizarding children.

The highlight of the book for me was the notes, said to be written by Dumbledore. His notes are detailed and provide an excellent insight into the world of Harry Potter and the history of the wizarding world. Dumbledore is not writing for a Muggle audience, though, so JK Rowling has added her own notes to explain some things, like for example, the difference between a wizard and warlock.

I valued this book for it's contribution to Harry Potter, not for what it was alone. The stories themselves were good, but not amazing, but the book as a book was clever and an interesting read, particularly for a far of Harry Potter.

Butterflies: 7 out of 10

Recommended for: people who have read all 7 Harry Potter books. There are spoilers and it won't make sense otherwise!

Warnings: one of the stories is particularly gruesome, but it's meant to be a fairytale, so it's not very believable.