Wednesday 11 December 2013

The Doll People by Ann M. Martin and Laura Godwin

Although perhaps at first glance this book may seem a  little childish it is in actual fact a classic. The Doll people are like the borrowers except they don't 'borrow' anything. In fact they can't, if they did they might end up in permanent doll state and that would even more boring than being an alive doll. Annabel is eight years old, at least that's the age Kate wanted her to be. In fact Annabel had been eight for over a hundred years, however the only interesting thing that had happened to her in her whole life time was when Aunt Sarah went missing, that was around forty years ago.

This book has a very interesting take on how dolls live and it is not as free and easy as we might imagine. Unlike many other authors who have written about living toys this author describes it in a way that makes it feel like it could be true. Dolls who make the promise have to be careful, not every toy is alive and if they make too many mistakes or are spotted too many times then they could end up like that too. The danger is that after you've been living over a hundred years there are plenty of opportunities to be spotted whilst moving or when you are out of place.

Wednesday 4 December 2013

The Wolves of Willoughby Chase by Joan Aiken

Wolves are one thing, governesses are another. Bonnie is overjoyed when her quiet cousin Sylvia comes to live with her after the death of Sylvia's parents. Both of them acknowledge the terror of the wolves, neither of them expect Miss Slighcarp, their second cousin and governess.

I like the characters of the two girls best because they both depend on each other for different things. Bonnie is by far the stronger physically but Sylvia has a better control of temper and a more ladylike upbringing. The two have to use their different talents to escape death and although they may already have all the evidence they need to find out who they can give it to.

The Wolves of Willoughby Chase is a short, easy to read book with a gripping story line. If you are not a book lover this would be a good book to start on.