Upstart - Grocott's Mail

UPSTART MARCH 2011eREVIEW15What the reader thought...1X2X3X4X5Xpoorgoodexcellentbetter than a movieyou MUST read this book!REVIEWSTitle of the book: Carmen Tutukaand the curse of Isis HouseAuthor: Helen BrainThe main characters in the book areHannah, Dr Crawley, Miss Battersby,Mr Fairley, Sidi, Thomas and MrsCarmen Tutuka. Isis House was theschool that Hannah went to and DrCrawley was the headmaster of theschool. Hannah loved her schooland she felt a connection to theschool that she could not explain.Her mother was a learner at theschool before Hannah.At school there was a competitionand it was held at the school hall.On that day Hannah almost gotinjured when the lights fell but DrCrawley pushed her quickly and shewas safe. Hannah did not like MrsTutuka, the new librarian becauseshe smelled funny like vinegar andshe was not nice to all the schoolchildren.There were a lot of strange thingshappening at the school. Hannah,Sidi and their friends thought thatMrs Tutuka was trying to kill themand that the school was cursed.There was an old storeroom thatthe learners were not allowed togo to at school but Hannah and herfriends went in. In that room MrsTutuka found the children openingan old mummy’s case. Shescreamed at them and wanted tokill Sidi with a knife. They foundout that Mrs Tutuka was a ghostthat killed Mrs Battersby and cameto school to take her place. Thechildren were saved by a cat thatjumped at Mrs Tutuka’s face.This is a nice book to read but itis also scary at times. I enjoyedit a lot. The book is published byHuman and Rousseau Publishers, itis available at bookstores and theISBN number is 0 7981 4200 6.Title: Cool-cat AlleyAuthor: Jenny WinerThe main characters in the story arePatty and Rodney. The story startswhen Patty’s parents want to leavethe farm they are living on becausethere is a drought and their cattleare dying. Patty is not happy aboutgoing to live in a city.Patty meets a guy at the new schoolshe goes to. He is called Rodney andshe is attracted to him. They bothliked each other; Rodney calledPatty his country girl. Patty likedthat Rodney had a motorbike andwas a bad boy at school. Patty andher father are fighting a lot latelyand especially because Patty invitesRodney back to the farm with them.I do not want to spell out the fullstory but you should look for thisbook as you will enjoy it as much asI did. I like the story for several reasons,firstly because it takes place atschool. Secondly, it is about teenagersand we can relate to it. I thinkthat many teenagers will enjoyreading this book, especially readerswho enjoy stories about love.The book is published by Humanand Rousseau and the ISBN numberis 0 7981 3675 8.Review by Thembalethu Nanto •Grade 10, Nathaniel Nyaluza HighSchoolTitle of the book: The Tsitsa Riverand BeyondAuthor: Russell KaschulaThis book is about two young SouthAfrican boys growing up in a farmin the Eastern Cape, near the TsitsaRiver. Themba is a Xhosa boy whileDavid is an English-speaking boyand this story is about their friendshipand experience of being friendsof different races.The story starts when David andThemba spend the summer holidaystogether with their familieson the farm. They go fishing andswimming in the Tsitsa River andalso spend a lot of time readingbooks and talking about school thefollowing year. Themba is a verysmart boy and received the DouglasBader Award and distinctions forMathematics and Science. The twoboys end up going to the same highschool and becoming friends forlife. The two boys work very hardand help each other in their schoolwork and in preparing for the moredifficult senior year at school.The best part of the story is whenit is the last day of the second termwhen David and Themba are gettingready to go on holiday. About15 boys including Themba andDavid are going to the Drakensbergto camp out. Themba and Davidare looking forward to viewingthe Khoisan rock art in that area.Themba and David are familiar withthe area because Maclear is wherethey come from.This book is available at the library,at school and at bookshops and theISBN number is 1 86895 004 2.Review by Simphiwe Mbonda • Grade10, Nombulelo High SchoolReview by Olwethu Fleck • Grade9, Archie Mbolekwa Higher PrimarySchool