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The next book club meeting takes place on Wednesday, October 1st

The children's book club (for 7 - 12 year olds) meets at St Kilda Library on the first Wednesday of each month from 4.15 - 5.30pm.

Do you enjoy reading? Do you like to talk about your favourite books and authors? Would you like to find out about the latest books? Want your reviews published on the website?

Then join the LIGHTNING READERS!!  

On the 26 August 2008 The Age newspaper ran a story on bookclubs and guess who featured in the publicity shot on page 15! Yep, our very own LIGHTNING READERS! Well done for looking so sparkling guys!

If you missed the article, here's what it said: 
                                                                                      
"IT'S late on a Wednesday afternoon and a roundtable pow-wow is in full swing at the St Kilda Library. The group's convener, Linda Todd, is busy scribbling notes, but it is hard to keep up with this lot - they are all book lovers and they have plenty to say.

Meet the Lightning Readers, a book club for seven to 12-year-old girls and boys - one of many niche book clubs around Melbourne today. Todd, who is children's youth services librarian with the Port Phillip Library Service, launched the book club almost two years ago. It started with eight members and has grown to 13.

They meet once a month after school for a 90-minute parley about the books they have been reading. Recent favourites include Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events, The Sisters Grimm series by Michael Buckley and, of course, the world of Harry Potter.

While Todd says she would never refuse anyone entry into the club, she is keen to keep it small. "It wouldn't work if it was to get too big. Like any book club, part of the charm is that people can get to know each other, there's plenty of space for everyone to have their say and it's not too daunting or intimidating." 

Most of the book club members are girls aged between 9 and 11 who, says Todd, are very articulate for their age. "They're coming from families who have always encouraged them to be surrounded by books and literature and they're really avid readers. They live to read," she enthuses. "They get incredibly intense and passionate about discussing books that have been made into films, but we also had an open discussion recently about burping, so it's not always  highbrow."

Well done gang!!!!

Drawing on right by Joong Do
Logo below by Samadhi

VIOLET suggested a new motto about the group following discussion about "how to best talk about books and recommendations, where Linda suggested avoiding the trap of just re-telling the story, e.g. and then...., and then...., and then.... where Violet said "Yes, because we are not "talking books" (audio books) - we are talkin' books!!!!"  Everyone thought this was terrific, especially Violet!!!!

Picture by Savarna

You'll soon get the hang of the sliding scale - it goes like this:

REALLY good
REALLY, REALLY good
REALLY, REALLY, REALLY good
REALLY, REALLY, REALLY, REALLY good
REALLY, REALLY, REALLY, REALLY, REALLY good

Of course, 5 REALLYs are what all authors should 'aspire' to!!!!!

Siobahn:

Elizabeth:

Bridget:

Violet:

The penultimate peril: a series of unfortunate events, book the twelfth
(no rating)
Includes the characters of Count Olaf and the Baudelaire siblings

Stella:

Flitterwig by Edrei Cullen (no rating)

Harry Potter and the deathly hallows by J. K. Rowling
5 REALLYS

The secret of platform 13 by Eva Ibbotson
4 1/2 REALLYS

A company of swans by Eva Ibbotson (no rating)
The protagonists father will not let her do ballet - he wanted a son not a daughter - and now she's grown up he won't let her go to university. Without a mother to turn to the 'protagonist' runs away with a ballet dancer.

Tash:

told everyone about a recent author talk she went to at her school. She was lucky enough to get signatures from Morris Gleitzman, Doug Macleod and Dave Hackett.

Antonia:

Georges secret key to the universe by Lucy and Stephen Hawking
4 REALLYS

The words are big and spacious. Stephen Hawking has an amazingly smart mind. In the story George has a pet pig, there is also an amazing computer that can tell you anything when you press ENTER!

Daisy:

The garden of Empress Cassia by Gabrielle Wang
4 1/2 REALLYS

A story all about a girl who can read.

Nandishwa:

Keys to the kingdom series by Garth Nix
5 REALLYS

Arthur is an asthmatic and in the middle of a cross-country run he has an asthma attack. He subsequently is given a key and that key leads to all sorts of adventures.

Lilly:

Molly Moon's incredible book of hypnotism
5 REALLYS!

Characters include Molly's pug, her friend Knockman and Lucy Logan the librarian. Molly becomes best friends with Lucy and visits the librarian everyday and together they discover how to hypnotise celebrities.

Julia:

45 + 47 Stella street and everything that happened by Elizabeth Honey (no rating)
And another one that likes Flitterwig by Edrei Cullen (no rating)

Elizabeth:

The Usborne book of classic horror: the stories of Dracula, Frankenstein, Jekyll & Hyde

Frankenstein: 3 Really's: "Confusing"

Dracula: 41/2 Really's: "Scary"

Jekyll and Hyde: 3 Really's: "Sad"

Antonia:

Milad : the voyage to Ophir / Nazam Anhar

It drags out a bit but is very exciting and is set in Egypt.

4 Really's

Tash:

Tom Sawyer and Hucklebery Finn / Mark Twain.

                   The prince and the pauper / Mark Twain

"Difficult language but I am enjoying it immensely".

The Key to Rondo by Emily Rodda

"She writes very descriptively. A music box is passed down through the generations to the most “sensible” family member but other family members will meddle....."

4 3/4 Really's

The sequel The Wizard of Rondo gets 5 Really's.

"Really fantastic!"

Black Beauty

Tash is reading this. She loves this book!

(Tash has been a busy little bookworm!)

Howl's moving castle
Castle in the air
Hardy Boys
Fiddle-back
Ballad of Cauldron Bay
The Named
Tale of Despereaux   (Brigit's favourite - read 20 times)

Looking for your something else? Check out the library catalogue.

 

Use eServices to ask us a question, request information or give us feedback online. If you prefer call ASSIST on (03) 9209 6777 or TTy (03) 9209 6713 and ask for Port Phillip Library Service.