Author: James O’Loghlin
Illustrator: Matthew Martin
ISBN: 9781760554835
RRP: $14.99
Publication Date: 24th June 2019
Publisher: Pan Macmillan
Copy: Courtesy of the publisher
I asked my 11 year old son and 9 year old daughter to read ‘The New Kid -Very Popular Me’. My son is an avid reader, and will pretty much read anything he can get his hands on, so these school holidays, I set him the task of reading the book, and writing a review. His sister, who isn’t as much of a frequent reader, wanted to join in. This is what they wrote:
From my 11 year old son:
About the book:
The book is about a lonely boy named Sam, who plays tennis against the wall. All too soon he’s a new kid at a new school, and things aren’t going well. Then Sam gets Swirly, an obsessive marble, and poof! Just like that, he’s popular and Sam’s loving it. But then, everyone starts to hate him again. Oh no, he’s the teacher’s pet! Luckily Sam ‘worms himself’ out of it and becomes just an average kid… until….
Pros: Very humorous
Cons: None
The book was very engaging and when I started reading, I couldn’t stop. The book captivated me very much and is a definite win for both the author and the reader. I recommend this book for 9+, but it would also be good for 7 and 8 year old readers.
From my 9 year old daughter:
Sam is an only child, but suddenly he gets a new baby sister. He isn’t very excited. He finds a marble jar in the garage and asks his mother if he can keep it. Then he picks a particular marble out that doesn’t have the same pattern as the other marbles. He becomes very popular with his marble. His worst enemy has even become his friend…
My star rating – 4 and a half stars out of 5
I liked the pictures of the baby and how the author used a lot of alliteration, similes and metaphors. I congratulate the author. I think that this book is good for 7 to 11 year olds. It is almost like reading an old fashioned book.
This guest review was submitted by Raechel, one of our Beauty and Lace Club members. Thank you for sharing the thoughts of your children with us Raechel.
The New Kid: Very Popular Me is published by Pan Macmillan and is available now from Angus & Robertson Bookworld, Booktopia and where all good books are sold.
Thanks to Pan Macmillan 10 of our Beauty and Lace Club Members will be reading The New Kid: Very Popular Me with their children and I look forward to hearing what they think. Please be aware there may be spoilers in the comments below.
Raechel is a Professor, mother of 5 and avid reader. She always has at least four books on the go at any one time – an audio book, a fiction e-book, a non-fiction e-book, and an ‘actual’ book. She is often criticized for this behaviour!