The Unit | Terry DeHart

The Unit by Terry DeHart


The Unit, is set just after a nuclear war; a time when there is no one you can trust except your family. Jerry, his wife, Susan, and his nearly adult children, Melanie and Scotty, are left with nothing except just enough food to keep them alive for a short while, four guns (though Melanie refuses to carry one), each other and a determination to survive.


Jerry just wants to protect his family and he’ll shoot anyone that threatens them. Susan wants her children safe and out of this mess. Melanie is trying to stand up for what she believes in. She won’t carry a gun and she’s desperate for this to end. Scotty was saved so now he plans to fight for what’s right and he plans on shooting anyone who gets in his way.


Bill and his gang, on the other hand, were locked up in a juvenile detention centre but the power went out and the guards left. They’ve found that everything is for the taking - if you’re strong enough to hold onto it.


It’s a tough book in every sense of the word. It’s not exactly an enjoyable read but I felt compelled to carry on anyway. I had to know what would happen to them. I hated Bill but cared a lot for the family, particularly Melanie. It was impossible to predict how it would end until I actually got there. Worth a look but don’t go in expecting a happy story. I definitely would not recommend it to under fourteens.


By Zobdy

Age 13

Hex Hall | Rachel Hawkins

When young witch, Sophie Mercer, makes one magical mistake too many, she is sent off to Hecate Hall,
a reform school for magical beings. This sets the scene for a teenage adventure story.

In this book, no matter how bad the situation is, teenagers still manage to be, well, teenagers.
While an evil creature is attacking and even killing fellow students, the characters still find time to fall in
love, bicker over boyfriends and fall out.

As the story draws towards a climax however, Sophie is forced to put all this to one side to clear
her best friend’s name. Yet all the while, she is walking into a trap herself, and surely, it is only a matter
of time before the trap snaps shut.

An interesting read for all teenage girls.

Wombat – 11

The Graveyard Book | Neil Gaiman

The main character is called Nobody Owens; known as Bod. When he was a baby, his family was killed. Bod managed to escape being killed and ended up in the graveyard where all the graveyard folk (the dead) care for him. They call him Nobody because they decided that he looks like nobody but himself.

Throughout the book, Bod gets into a lot of scrapes but, with the help of his friends and adopted family, just about manages to get out of most of them. Until he faces the hardest challenge ever thrown at him – the man who murdered his family. But he must learn to stand on his own two feet if he ever wants to be ready for the world outside the graveyard.

I was sucked in from page one. In the opening, it describes a knife then goes on to talk about the man holding it. It’s an extremely descriptive and captivating opening. My school librarian and several of my friends agree with me. I felt everything Bod felt. I loved everything and everyone he loved and hated the things and people he did. I desperately wanted it to end happily for him. I loved the idea of a boy living and growing up in a graveyard with the dead as his friends and family. Despite its title, this book is not scary. To Bod, the graveyard is his home filled with people (well, dead people) he loves.

By Zobdy

Age 13