Across the Face of the World

Across the Face of the World
Author: Russell Kirkpatrick
ISBN: 9780316003414

Hi Everyone

Today I bring to you another one of the books I had picked for me from our library.  I have to warn you that this book is a big one, with 671 pages, so it might take a while to read.  I have to admit, that out of the 10 books the library picked for me, I opted to read this one first because of the cover.  I know! Don't judge a book by the cover! But, I am just one of those people who are attracted by a book cover.  So to all you budding authors out there, make sure you make the cover interesting.  One type of book cover that just doesn't draw my interest, but seems popular at the present, is those with the title printed one word per line right down the cover - stop it!  I want to see some imagination on the cover before I open it.  If you can't put something interesting on the cover then how can I expect something interesting inside the pages? 💁

Right....

Back to the topic at hand....

This book is the first in a trilogy which I should have taken note of before I got half way through and was totally hooked to the plot.  I will be reading the next book in this series because I can't stop at the end of this one, it was just too good.

I would say that to a degree this book reminded me a little of the 'Lord of the Rings' series.  And no, I am not going to even try to compare the two mainly because I have yet to be convinced I that I even like the Lord of the Rings - I tried reading it once and just couldn't see the hype, but may try again one day because the set does sit on my bookcase.

The best thing about this book was the descriptive writing of the scenes.  I took a look at some other reviews (about half way through reading the book) and found some people didn't like the map making descriptive aspect of Russell Kirkpatrick's writing.  I did.  I envisioned the journey with clarity and precision which in turn made me feel a part of the book.  I turned page after page to see where the characters would be taken, where they would meet again, and where/when they would meet their triumph or doom. 

I could put this book into a "just another generic plot" category and in some ways I would be correct.  But, there is still that little thing grabbing me to continue reading the second in the series, so it must be a good read.  Why?  For me it was the descriptive writing rather than the average 'he said, she said, they said' gabble that adorns many books on the market today.  Give me vision in the pages so I can enter the world that has been created by the author!  This is what 'Across the Face of the World' gave me. 

Stay tune in and I will get the next book from the library and tell you whether I continue to find this trilogy worth  of reading.


Happy reading

This was available from: Fishpond

Odd Boy out - Young Albert Einstein

Odd Boy Out - Young Albert Einstein

Author: Don Brown

ISBN: 9780547014357

Hi Everyone

I'm sitting in the sun writing this post.  It is the middle of winter and the sun is streaming through my window.  Amazing! 

Anyway....

'Odd Boy Out - Young Albert Einstein was in the 'book bag' that I got from our library during our lockdown.  This book bag initiative is a brilliant resource to be taking advantage of while it is still on offer.  

So, here is how it works:

• You head online to the Invercargill library - try your library and see if it is available there too.
• Click on my 'book bag' and fill in your library card details etc
• State the kind of books you like
• Answer when would you like to pick them up
• The library will fill a bag of 10 books picked just for you
• Turn up to the library entrance and your bag will be there with your name on it awaiting you
• Read
• Read
• Read
• Return six weeks later
• Brilliant!

I asked for a couple of picture flats to be included in mine for with my students.  This was one of them.  A couple of my students have read it with me and we have had great discussions throughout reading it;  great for comprehension.  We even had to stop and seek more information from Google because the questions that have arisen have had us seek more about the lad that grew to adorn the history books.  

Any book that gets my students asking questions and has them researching beyond its pages is a fantastic book in my opinion.  For such a little book, I am impressed by the questions that arose and the discussions that evolved.  

I cannot say that I loved the illustrations this time around, but they did suit the book.  They suited the era of the information and they didn't distract the young readers from the information.  I question if my students would have asked so many questions if the illustrations were bright and in their faces, hence I feel the pictures suited the purposes a living book.

I notice that Don Brown has written a number of books that outline historical events and characters.  I will look into whether our library has any of them and take a journey through history via picture flats if they do.  Keep looking in to see what I find.  In the meantime, I will be returning this copy to our library soon if you want to reserve it.  I have included a link by which you can purchase a copy for all of you that can't find a copy at your library.

Yes, I think our libraries should be used and used often.  Let's get our little ones back to the library.  My kids loved their weekly trip to the library when they were little.  My daughter would bring home a huge bag of books every week and then weeks later get out the same books because they were yet to be read 😂 To this day she loves the library (she finishes reading them now).

Happy reading

Available from:

https://www.fishpond.co.nz/Books/Odd-Boy-Out-Brown-Don-Brown/9780547014357