REVIEW: What Milo Saw - Virginia Macgregor

PAGES: 400

PUBLISHER: Sphere
FORMAT: Hardback
BUY IT: Waterstones
RATING: 4 Stars

PUBLICATION DATE: 31/07/14

This review refers to an uncorrected advance edition.

SUMMARY

A BIG story about a small boy who sees the world a little differently Nine-year-old Milo Moon has retinitis pigmentosa: his eyes are slowly failing and he will eventually go blind. But for now he sees the world through a pin hole and notices things other people don't. When Milo's beloved gran succumbs to dementia and moves into a nursing home, Milo soon realises there's something very wrong at the home. The grown-ups won't listen to him so with just Tripi, the nursing home's cook, and Hamlet, his pet pig, to help, Milo sets out on a mission to expose the nursing home and the sinister Nurse Thornhill. Insightful, wise and surprising, What Milo Saw is a novel filled with big ideas, simple truths and an emotional message that will resonate with everyone. Milo sees the world in a very special way and it will be impossible for you not to fall in love with him, savour every moment you spend with him and then share his story with everyone you know.

REVIEW

This book is a very clever and well written novel; it addresses some very important, and sometimes touchy, subjects with sensitivity and humour throughout. I liked how each chapter was told by one of the four main characters, it gave me more of an insight into how each person viewed the events that were unfolding (I wish there had been one chapter in Hamlet's point of view, that would have been hilarious!). It played out much as I expected it to, there were no big shocks or twists, it just moved along with a lovely pace and sense that once Milo had completed his mission there would be an end of sorts, and indeed there was. I think this novel has great crossover potential, much like other child narrated fiction like The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time and Wonder. 

I for one will be giving it a very positive review once we get it in store. 

Can't wait to see what issues the author tackles next.

- Gem.

REVIEW: Dead Ends - Erin Lange

PAGES: 384

PUBLISHER: Faber Children's Books
FORMAT: Hardback
BUY IT: Waterstones
RATING: 4 Stars

PUBLICATION DATE: 01/05/14

This review refers to an uncorrected advance edition.

SUMMARY

A riddle rarely makes sense the first time you hear it. The connection between Dane and Billy D doesn't make sense any time you hear it. But it's a collection of riddles that brings these two unlikely friends together. Dane Washington lives by two rules: don't hit girls and don't hit special kids. Billy D has Down syndrome and thinks a fierce boy who won't hit him could come in useful. Billy D has a puzzle to solve, after all, and he has the perfect plan to make Dane help him. Billy is sure the riddles in his atlas are really clues left by his missing dad. Together, Billy and Dane must embark on an epic road trip, although most of the clues lead to dead ends. What Dane doesn't realize is that Billy D isn't as innocent as he seems and the biggest secret is hidden close to home...

REVIEW

A wonderful tale of friendship and family. 

Dane and Billy D are such different characters, and their differences are what makes them work so well as a pair. I don't think I've ever read a book about anyone with Down's Syndrome before but I felt it was written with sensitivity and care, and it highlighted the importance of not judging someone by how they look - just because Billy D doesn't look like the majority of people, it doesn't mean he doesn't think and feel thinks. I liked how literally he took everything, it made the clue solving even funnier. Dane is also brilliantly flawed despite having violent outbursts he really does become protective of Billy D.

The plot was great, there were some great twists and revelations and the end was realistic - I felt that it was realistic; not everything gets a lovely happy ending so the up in the air way it was left felt suitable (even though I'd have loved and epilogue to see what happened in the future!)

A must read for fans of John Green and R.J Palachio.

- Gem.

REVIEW: Pivot Point - Kasie West

PAGES: 343

PUBLISHER: Harpercollins
FORMAT: Paperback
BUY IT: Waterstones
RATING: 4 Stars

PUBLICATION DATE: 24/04/14

SUMMARY

Perfect for fans of Sliding Doors, Kasie West's riveting novel Pivot Point follows a girl with the power to see her potential futures.

Addison Coleman's life is one big "What if?" As a Searcher, a special type of clairvoyant, whenever Addie is faced with a choice, she is able to look into the future and see both outcomes. So when her parents tell her they are getting a divorce and she has to pick who she wants to live with, a Search has never been more important.

In one future Addie is living with her mom in the life she's always known and is being pursued by the most popular guy in school. In the other she is the new girl in school, where she falls for a cute, quiet artist. Then Addie finds herself drawn into a murder investigation, and her fate takes a darker turn. With so much to lose in either future, Addie must decide which reality she's willing to live through . . . and who she's willing to live without.

REVIEW

Initially I struggled to get into this as I found the two different storylines a bit stilted, but after about 60 pages or so I had gotten used to it and I soon found myself absorbed in Addie's two alternate futures. 

The premise of this novel is very clever; a society of people with extraordinary mental powers, such as telekinesis or the ability to erase someone else's memories, and these people are hidden from the "norms".

Addie's two different futures have numerous aspects that interlock and seeing how her different actions cause minor changes or that things still happen was really interesting. I loved the ending, it tied up some loose ends whilst leaving others open for the sequel. I can't wait to read Split Second.

- Gem.