If you would like to recommend a Book of the Week, please let Mrs McPhee know your suggestion with (if possible) a short review.
Book of the Week (24th March)
This week’s choice is a fantastic story about a 12 year old girl, Lizzie who lives with her grandfather, Wai Gong who is a keen ballroom dancer. He hasn’t been himself since his wife died and Lizzie is really worried about him. They discover her grandma left them tickets to the tea dance at Blackpool Tower and Lizzie know going would really cheer her grandfather up. But how will they get there?
This is a story about friendship and never giving up on your dreams.
Book of the Week (6th December)
This week’s choice can be borrowed from the library or BorrowBox. (see Mrs McPhee if you need your membership details) It is a funny and magical tale of how one little boy from Finland came to become Father Christmas.
Father Christmas was not always an old, jolly man with a white beard, he was once just a little boy.
Little Nikolas’s life was not easy. Rarely receiving any kind of gift at Christmas, he certainly believed in happiness…yet he didn’t experience very much of it. Until one day, something magical happened.
Join Nikolas on a life-changing adventure, full of fantastic characters and beautiful moments, and watch how one little boy came to be the very symbol of Christmas itself.
Book of the Week (23rd August)
The first Book of the Week this term is You are a Champion.
Tear up the rule book. Find your own lane. You are only in competition with yourself. Marcus Rashford MBE is recognised worldwide for his journey both on-and-off the pitch – but how did a boy from south Manchester become not only an International footballer but also one of the leading activist voices in the UK.
Footballer Marcus gives advice on how to live your life being the best you can be and is one Mrs McPhee reckons every young person should read.
Book of the Week (7th June)
This week’s choice is one full of humour but also some issues covered which we can all identify with.
As the school bell rings. signalling the end of the day, the kids in Latimer Middle School stream out of their classrooms and begin their journeys home.
Here are ten stories about ten walks home – ten different kids, their friendships, their worries, their moments of joy, their routines. What makes today the same as any other walk home, and what makes it different?
Themes of friendship and compassion weave these stories together. It’s a book about in-between moments and the spaces where young people begin the walk from childhood to adulthood. Each story stands alone, but with little things here and there that overlap: a teacher shouting in the corridor; a character from one story passed in the playground in another story, while Jason Reynolds’ writing is gripping, direct and incredibly readable.
Book of the Week (31st May)
Mrs McPhee would like to recommend the Ultimate Football Heroes series this week. The latest in the series, Son (Heung-min)arrived in the library this week.
Ultimate Football Heroes is a series of biographies telling the life stories of the biggest and best footballers in the world and their incredible journeys from childhood fan to superstar professional footballer.
Book of the Week (24th May)
This week’s choice is a very revealing and empowering choice.
Jemima Small is funny and smart. She knows a lot of things. Like the fact that she’s made of 206 bones, over 600 muscles and trillions of cells. What she doesn’t know is how that can be true and yet she can still sometimes feel like nothing… Or how being made to join the school’s “special” healthy lifestyle group – aka Fat Club – could feel any less special. But Jemima also knows that the biggest stars in the universe are the brightest. And maybe it’s her time to shine…
Book of the Week (17th May)
‘Expected to fit in, proud to stand out’
This week’s choice tells the story of Tally, an autistic girl as she deals with everyday life.
Tally’s autism means there are things that bother her even though she wishes they didn’t. It means that some people misunderstand, her and feel frustrated by her.
People think that because Tally’s autistic, she doesn’t realise what they’re thinking, but Tally sees and hears – and notices – all of it. And, honestly? That’s not the easiest thing to live with.
This is such a heartwarming book. It includes diary entries written by Libby Scott who is also autistic. This story of autism, empathy and kindness will touch readers.
Book of the Week (10th May)
Mrs McPhee has selected a book from our Shelf Help section this week as it’s Mental Health Awareness Week
This inspirational book challenges young people to put aside beliefs that may hold them back and learn how to get the right mindset to help achieve dreams.
Book of the Week (19th April)
This historical mystery is the new book by Kiran Millwood Hargrave, author of The Girl of Ink and Stars.
In the Italian city Siena ravaged by plague, Sofia’s mother carves beautiful mementoes from the bones of loved ones. But one day, she doesn’t return home. Sofia and her little brother Ermin are sent to the convent orphanage but soon escape, led by a new friend and their pet crow, Corvith. Together they cross the city underground, following clues in bones up to the towers of Siena, where – circled by magpies – the children find the terrible truth…
Book of the Week (29th March)
This week’s choice is an adventure story written by popular author, Katherine Rundell (author of Rooftoppers and The Explorer)
Fresh off the boat from England, Vita Marlowe has a job to do. Her beloved grandfather Jack has been cheated out of his home and possessions by a notorious conman with Mafia connections. Seeing Jack’s spirit is broken, Vita is desperate to make him happy again, so she devises a plan to outwit his enemies and recover his home.
She finds a young pickpocket, working the streets of the city. And, nearby, two boys with highly unusual skills and secrets of their own are about to be pulled into her lawless, death-defying plan.
This tale tells of a heist as never seen before – the story of a group of children who will do anything to right a wrong.
Book of the Week (22nd March)
This weeks Book of the Week is one Mrs McPhee stumbled across by chance. She is glad she did! It’s about a growing friendship between 3 very different teens and has a real feelgood feeling to it.
Agnes, Hattie and Jake travel on the school bus together but don’t know each other well. They plan a week in Weston as a ‘study break’ before exams but none of them admit the real reasons they need to get away. Agnes must find her sister. Hattie can’t bear being home now all her friends have ghosted her. And Jake is afraid he’s ill and has absolutely no idea how to tell anyone. Thrown together, what will happen when the secrets start to spill out? Read this book to find out!
Book of The Week (15th March)
This week’s book is the latest offering from Karen McManus, author of the One of Us is Lying series. I predict that it’s going to be as popular!
Milly, Aubrey, and Jonah Story are cousins, but they barely know each another, and they’ve never even met their grandmother. Rich and reclusive, she disinherited their parents before they were born. So when they each receive a letter inviting them to work at her island resort for the summer, they’re surprised… and curious.
Their parents are all clear on one point—not going is not an option. This could be the opportunity to get back into Grandmother’s good graces. But when the cousins arrive on the island, it’s immediately clear that she has different plans for them. And the longer they stay, the more they realize how mysterious and dark their family’s past is.
The entire Story family has secrets. Whatever pulled them apart years ago isn’t over and this summer, the cousins will learn everything.
Book of the Week (8th March)
This week’s Book of the Week is a past Teen Book Award shortlisted book. Mrs McPhee enjoyed it and thinks you will too.
Eleven-year-old Solomon loves to run! The great athletes of the Ethiopian national team are his heroes and he dreams that one day he will be a gold-medal-winning athlete like them, in spite of his ragged shorts and bare feet.
When his grandfather announces that he’s going to take Solomon to Addis Ababa, Solomon cannot believe his ears. A trip to the capital? It’s unfathomable. Solomon’s joy is increased when he realizes that the Ethiopian running team will be doing a victory parade through the city that day. Maybe he’ll get a glimpse of Haile Gebrselassie or Derartu Tulu?!
But Solomon’s grandfather has other plans. As Solomon follows him through the big, overwhelming streets, he learns something he cannot believe. The strict old man is a war hero who once risked his life to save a friend and has been in hiding ever since. When grandfather collapses,
Solomon knows that getting help from his village is up to him. It’s a twenty-mile run from the city to home, and grandfather’s life hangs in the balance. Can the small bare-footed runner with the big heart do it? Read this amazing book to find out.
Book of the Week (1st March)
This week’s choice was one Mrs McPhee read in a day. It’s a story about friendship, trust, bullies, homelessness and kindness.
Hector is a bully who doesn’t really care about anyone. His teachers don’t seem to like him (he certainly hates them), he particularly dislikes teacher’s pet Mei Lei, and he devotes his time to being mean to other kids and making them give him sweets.
He’s got so little sympathy for a local homeless man Thomas (who is taking up space in the park, including a bench Hector would like to sit on) that he ends up pushing Thomas’s trolley containing his only worldly possessions into the park pond without a single thought of how much hurt that would cause.
When a spate of London landmark sculptures are suddenly stolen, including Paddington Bear and the Eros statue in Piccadilly Circus, Hector is convinced the crimes have been carried out by homeless people led by Thomas – but no sooner has he reported Thomas to the police than he realises he’s got it horribly wrong. With the help of his enemy Mei Lei, Hector must race against time to make sure justice is done – but that’s not the only thing he needs to change.
Book of the Week (22nd February)
Book of the Week (15th February)
This week’ choice is the first in a series of books. It is a nail-biting time-travel adventure, set in Roman London – where past meets present.
Billionaire Solomon Daisy is obsessed with the skeleton of a blue eyed African girl from Roman London. When his tech guys accidentally invent a time machine he decides to send London schoolboy Alex Papas on a mission. Time travel is easier for kids, and Alex knows Greek and a little Latin. The portable portal is placed in London’s Mithraeum, recently relocated back to its original 3rd century AD site. Now all Alex has to do is go through and find the blue-eyed girl. There are just three rules: 1. Naked you go and naked you must return. 2. Drink, don’t eat. 3. As little interaction as possible. But Time Travel is fun fair, and there are more ways to die in Roman London than Alex could have guessed.
This book can be borrowed from BorrowBox.
Book of the Week (8th February)
This was a book that Mrs McPhee couldn’t put down. Several issues flow through the story which you may have heard of but not experienced. Hopefully after reading the story our awareness is better and will help us identify with those who need our understanding.
Jamie Lee wants to be normal. But his ADHD makes him feel like his brain is full of butterflies. Elin Watts wants to be perfect. If she can be, surely her dad will come home. When Jamie and Elin’s families blend, the polar opposites of chaotic Jamie and ordered Elin collide. As their lives spiral out of control, Jamie and Elin discover that they’re actually more alike than they’d admit. Maybe there’s no such thing as normal, or perfect. And perhaps, just like families, happy-ever-afters come in all shapes and sizes.
Uplifting and moving, The Boy with the Butterfly Mind is an inspiring story of acceptance, blended families, and discovering that in the end, being yourself is more than enough.
Book of the Week (1st February)
This is the first book in a news series by Eoin Colfer, author of the Artemis Fowl series.
Myles and Beckett are twins but the two boys are wildly different. Beckett is blonde, messy and sulks whenever he has to wear clothes. Myles is impeccably neat, has an IQ of 170, and 3D prints a fresh suit every day – just like his older brother, Artemis Fowl.
A week after their eleventh birthday the twins are left in the care of house security system, NANNI, for a single night. In that time, they befriend a troll on the run from a nefarious nobleman and an interrogating nun both of whom need the magical creature for their own gain . . .
Mrs McPhee reckons this epic adventure story is going to be a firm favourite at St Matthew’s.
Book of the Week (25th January)
This is a book that I think fans of The Diary of Anne Frank and The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas will want to read.
The story is about fourteen-year-old Ella who has joined the seamstresses of Birkenau-Auschwitz. Every dress she makes could mean the difference between life and death.
Ella seeks refuge from this reality, and from haunting memories, in her work and in the world of fashion and fabrics. She is faced with painful decisions about how far she is prepared to go to survive. Is her love of clothes and creativity nothing more than collaboration with her captors, or is it a means of staying alive? Will she fight for herself alone, or will she trust the importance of an ever-deepening friendship with Rose?
One thing weaves through the colours of couture gowns and camp mud – a red ribbon, given to Ella as a symbol of hope.
Book of the Week (18th Jan)
This week’s choice is the 1st in a series of book.
It is the story of a young Jewish boy, Felix who is determined to escape the orphanage he lives in to save his Jewish parents from the Nazis in the occupied Poland of the Second World War.
Book of the Week (11th January)
This was one of the 1st graphic novels Mrs McPhee read. It was shortlisted for the 2020 Teen Book Prize.
Dangerous intergalactic outlaws and an arrogant footballer collide, on the run after his home world is destroyed, Rok of Arkadi needs a hiding place. And that hiding place happens to be troubled football star Kyle Dixon. This is a black comedy about revenge, redemption and the ‘beautiful game’.
This was a book that was easy to read and interested Mrs McPhee so mch that she read it in one sitting!
Book of the Week (7th December)
This book was recommended to us by our author penpal Savita. It was the winner of a children’s fiction competition in 2017.
It’s a magical adventure which has an Indian flavour to it. Asha lives at the bottom of the Himalayas with her mum while her father works in the city, sending back money each week for them to survive. When he suddenly stops sending money they can’t understand why and are anxious.
Asha makes a pact with her friend to go and find her father but to do this they face a dangerous journey, crossing the world’s highest mountains and face hunger and dangerous animals. This is her story.
Book of the Week (16th November)
This week’s Book of the Week is the 3rd shortlisted title in this year’s Scottish Teen Book Prize. It is a fairly short story which Mrs McPhee read in a day.
Summer 1939. With Europe on the brink of war, eighteen-year-old Kristina Tomiak has been called up to join the White Eagles, Poland’s valiant air force. When the Nazis reach the town where she is based, Kristina makes a daring escape, but she doesn’t realise that she’s carrying a stowaway in her plane. This is the story of her bravery and adventure as she tries to reach safety.
Book of the Week (9th November)
This week’s choice is by one of Mrs McPhee’s favourite children’s authors, Cathy MacPhail. She lives in the west of Scotland and some places she mentions Mrs McPhee knows well. This is the 1st novel she wrote and she did so after finding out her teenage daughter was being bullied. It’s a good choice in the run up to National Kindness Day on the 13th November.
Katie is being bullied at school. She is frightened and feels so alone until she meet a homeless girl, Zan who witnesses the bullying taking place and jumps in to help. Katie tries to befriend Zan who tries to keep her real identity a secret. This is a book about bullying, friendship and kindness and will keep you gripped right til the end.
Book of the Week(2nd November)
This is a personal favourite of Mrs McPhee and a good choice for this 1st week in November.
The story is set during World War one when millions of soldiers returned wounded, millions more never returned at all. In the summer of 1915, in a small village in Scotland, the Great War has already begun to irrevocably alter the course of five young lives. Eighteen-year-old John Malcolm enlists in the army, eager to fight for his country. His sweetheart, 15-year-old Charlotte, stays behind to earn her nursing certificate, along with John Malcolm’s twin sister, Maggie, who recognizes the opportunity to create a new life for herself. Charlotte’s brother, Francis, sees only tragedy in the war, but feels the pressure to join up. And Alex, below the recruiting age, is determined to reach the front lines somehow. This is their story.
Book of the Week (26th October)
This week’s book is the latest by well known and loved author, Michael Murpurgo.
War has forced Omar and his mum to leave their home in Afghanistan and venture across the sea to Europe. However their boat sinks and Omar finds himself alone with no hope of rescue until that’s exactly what happens.
This thrilling adventure inspired by the classic story of Gulliver’s Travels and is a story of high sea adventure, hope and kindness.
Book of the Week (5th October)
This week’s book is written by an author new to Mrs McPhee. The story is set in Brooklyn and follows the adventures of 2 students , Georges and self appointed spy Safer, as they work to unmask a suspected spy in their building. As the story develops Georges begins to wonder what is a game and what is a lie and how far is too far to go to help new friend Safer.
Book of the Week (28th September)
This week’s choice is another of the shortlisted Teen Book Awards titles.
Fifteen year old Sam is an ordinary boy who enjoys spending time with his friends and playing football. Life changes dramatically for him when his dad sells his business, gets rich and the family move to London. Sam starts a news school, The North London Academy for the Gifted and Talented and this is where the story really begins. The story is funny and hopefully will make you laugh out loud as you read about Sam trying to fit in this very different school!
Book of the Week (14th September)
This book is written by one of Mrs McPhee’s favourite authors, Robin Stevens. It is also one of the books picked by our book penpal Savita Kalhan.
It’s a whodunit about a 12 year old boy named Ted Spark. Ted has already solved a mystery and this is his 2nd adventure. He is on holiday in New York, visiting his visit Aunt Gloria. While there, a painting is stolen from the Guggenheim Museum, where his Aunt Gloria works. Aunt Gloria is blamed for the theft, and he realises just how important it is to find the painting, and discover who really took it.
Book of the Week (7th September)
This week’s Book of the Week is an old favourite of Mrs McPhee. It is a dark fantasy which you’ll laugh at.
Drake is surprised to find three horsemen of the apocalypse playing snakes and ladders in his garden shed. He’s even more surprised when they insist that he is one of them. They’re missing a Horseman, having gone through several Deaths and they think that Drake is the boy for the job. At first he’s reluctant to usher in Armageddon but does being in charge of Armageddon have to spell the end of the world?
An apocalyptic blend of riotous comedy, heart-stopping action and a richly imagined fantasy adventure.
Book of the Week (31st August)
Mrs McPhee has chosen one of the Scottish Book Trust’s Teen Book Awards for this week’s Book of the Week.
This darkly magical story is set in a brilliantly realised, hugely imaginative world.
As far back as she can remember, orphan Larabelle Fox has scraped together a living by treasure-hunting in the sewers.
In a city where emotionless White Witches march through the streets and fear of Hag magic is rife, Lara keeps her head down.
But when she stumbles upon a mysterious little box in the sewers, Lara finds herself catapulted into a world of wild magic – facing adventure, mortal danger and a man who casts no shadow …
Book of the Week (24th August)
2 of Mrs McPhee’s favourite things are football and history and as this story covers both it was always going to be a winner!
The story interweaves the present day life of an ordinary football mad boy Ross and his great grandfather, Jack who played for Heart of Midlothian Football Club and with his teammates volunteered for war. . The author focuses on the friendships that develop as the boys play football and learn to become soldiers together, making this remarkable story an enjoyable one.
Book of the Week (17th August)
This book is the 1st in a trilogy written by Lari Don. Our current S4 pupils were lucky enough meet Lari in S1.
Molly Drummond has a curse put on her, she turns into a hare every time she hears a dog bark! She enrolls on a curse lifting course run by a witch where she meets some interesting characters who are also trying to reverse curses. This book follows their adventures in a world of brilliant magic , dark danger and extraordinary friendship.
The 2nd and 3rd books of the trilogy are also available from the library.
Book of the Week (6th July)
This is a gripping adventure that will keep you guessing until the very end. It’s set during WW2 and is the story of evacuees Olive and Cliff who are sent to Devon to live with Mr Ephraim in a lighthouse. Olive becomes his post girl and soon discovers a link to her missing sister Sukie. This story is full of secrets, mystery and suspense.
Book of the Week (29th June)
This is the 1st in a series of books about Sephy and Callum. Sephy is a Cross and lives a life of privilege and power, Callum is a nought and considered to be less than nothing and there to serve the Crosses. They’ve been friends since childhood but that’s as far as things can ever go because Noughts and Crosses are enemies but despite this, they fall in love. They know they’ll face danger and that there will be repercussions in their world of distrust and violence.
Book of the Week (22nd June)
Final Book of the Week for this session, One of us is lying by Karen McManus has been chosen by members of our book group. It’s a thriller which you’ll find hard to put down according to Rebecca and Helen. 4 suspects all with reason and opportunity to kill. You’ll be guessing who is responsible right to the end.
Book of the Week (15th June)
This is the perfect choice for this week as it’s Refugee Week. This is the story of Ahmet, a boy who joins a new school. He doesn’t talk or look at anyone and the children are curious why this is so. They discover he’s a refugee and wonder what this is and how he managed to be at their school. It’s a story of hope, friendness and kindness.
Book of the Week (8th June)
Mrs McPhee is currently Step Sister by Jennifer Donnelly and is enjoying it so much that she’s chosen it for this week’s Book of the Week. It can be borrowed from BorrowBox.
It is the story of one of Isabelle, one of Cinderella’s stepsisters and starts where Cinderalla ends. Isabelle has tried to fit in and to live up to her mother’s expectations. She would have liked to be like her stepsister, sweet and pretty. One by one, she has cut away pieces of herself in order to survive a world that doesn’t appreciate a girl like her. And that has made her mean, jealous, and hollow.
Until she gets a chance to alter her destiny and prove what ugly stepsisters have always known: it takes more than heartache to break a girl.
Book of the Week (1st June)
A place called Perfect is the 1st book in the trilogy by Helena Duggan. The story is about a girl called Violet who moves to the town of Perfect where nothing is out of place but everything is not quite right. She hates her new life especially when her dad goes missing and her mum changes. Then she meets Boy. This quirky story follows her adventures with Boy as they try to find her dad and uncover the truth about Perfect.
Book of the Week (26th May)
This is the 1st Ross MacKenzie book Mrs McPhee read but won’t be the last.Set in a mysterious shop run the mysterious Mr Silver, The Nowhere Emporium is a magical place that can show you the wonders of the world.
When Daniel stumbles upon it in Glasgow while escaping from some bullies he is invited by the owner to start working there where he is introduced to a range of characters and exciting experiences.
Set between Daniel’s present day and flashbacks to Mr Silver’s past, the events and action comes thick and fast and the writing does convey the excitement and urgency that Daniel must be feeling. It is also incredibly descriptive of not only the wonders of the emporium but also both the main and additional characters we are introduced to, who all come across as people I want to meet (even the baddie!).
Book of the Week (18th May)
As it’s Mental Health Awareness Week and the theme this year is Kindness, there could only be one choice for Mrs McPhee, Wonder by R.J Palacio. Auggie Pullman is a boy with a facial abnormality who has been home schooled by his mum until he is 10 years old. This story follows his life as he attends school for the first time as a 5th grade pupil. It’s told by several people and is a story that will make you feel happy, sad, angry but most of all want to have a friend like Auggie.
If you would like to recommend a Book of the Week, please let Mrs McPhee know your suggestion with (if possible) a short review.
The FMRC (First Minister’s Reading Challenge) is all about reading a little more than you currently are whether you are a keen or reluctant reader. It doesn’t matter what you choose to read – book, magazine, newspaper article, ebook, online football report, football programme. You’ll be given a short presentation about the FMRC by Mrs McPhee.
Mrs McPhee is help you find something to read. In fact she loves discussing book choices with pupils! You can also have a look at these useful websites for reading recommendations:
Up for a reading challenge? Complete the appropriate booklet and you’ll be entered in a draw to win a prize.
Mrs McPhee values your opinion regarding what you’d like to see in the library. Remember it’s YOUR library! You can simply tell her your recommendations or print and complete a copy of suggestions form by clicking here
If you have time please complete the following short reading survey
