Our Recommended Reads from July 2012

Check out the reviews section of our website for the latest recommended reads - from children's fiction to poetry and classic reads we're sure there is something for everyone. We also welcome your reviews too - email them to 'Reviews' at info@bookapoet.co.uk and we'll let you know when we use it!

Below are the titles we recommended during July 2012:

‘Nefertiti in the Flak Tower’ by Clive James (Picador Poetry)

'I Spy with My Little Eye on the Farm' by Edward Gibbs (Templar Publishing)

‘My Brother Simple’ by Marie-Aude Murail (Bloomsbury)

‘Call Down Thunder’ by Daniel Finn (Macmillan Children’s Books)

‘The Dragon Prophecy: The Dragonology Chronicles’ by Dugald A. Steer (Templar Publishing)

‘Tiger Wars: The Falcon Chronicles’ (Book 1) by Steve Backshall (Orion Books)
 'Gods and Warriors' by Michelle Paver (Puffin)

‘Icespell’ by C J Busby (Templar Publishing)

‘Why Owls Are the Wisest Birds’ by Eric Pullin / Illustrated by Chris Davis (Barny Books)

‘The Ring of Sky: Young Samurai’ (Book 8) by Chris Bradford (Puffin)

August's recommended reads will start to appear on the website from next week. A selection of reviews will be published here too, as well as on our Facebook page and Twitter account.

‘Call Down Thunder’ - new stunning teen title from Daniel Finn

‘Call Down Thunder’
By Daniel Finn
Published by Macmillan Children’s Books July 2012
RRP £12.99 (hardback)
ISBN 9780230738003
Reviewed by Lynsey Evans

‘Call Down Thunder’ is a fantastic book! It’s a refreshing change in theme and style to all lot of other teen fiction on the market at the moment, it feels believable, gritty, real.

Reve and his sister Mi live in Riconda, a small fishing village that is run by Calde and The Night Man. Everything they do is controlled by Calde – if anyone calls in the authorities they’ll be punished – just like Reve and Mi’s father – who was drowned, then wrapped in a fishing net and left in the street for all to see. Their mother was arrested and has never been seen again – she’s presumed dead. That was 8 years ago.

Reve lives with Tomas the Boxer, he fishes and then sleeps under Tomas’ shack with his dog Sultan. His sister Mi is a couple of years older than Reve and she’s different. She has a sixth sense, can see the future and can call down thunder. She lives in a beaten up old car out of the village as Calde, his thug son and friends fear her as a witch.

Reve and Mi are determined to leave the squalid underworld, to find their mother after Reve’s strange dream Mi interpreted as their mother was living. Follow their cruel, ruthless adventure to the city and the hardships they face.

Enjoy the way the book is written, how the characters talk, learn the complicated relationships within the community, how they strive for survival and are courageous in all that they do. The ending is somewhat happy, but leaves you feeling there is hope for Reve and Mi, and Riconda, and that all they endured, survived and sacrificed was for the greater good.

A terrific, fast-paced summer read I urge you to read!

Recommended for readers aged 11+