Erebos by Usala Poznanski
Erebus is a computer game that gets passed around at a London school as a pirated copy from student to student; whoever plays it becomes "addicted" afterwards. The rules are rigid: Everyone has only one chance to play Erebus; whoever dies or is thrown out can not return to the game; Players are not allowed to talk about it with anyone and must always be alone when they play.
The players find that they need to start doing questions not just in the game, but in real life, and thus blur the the lines between fiction and reality. Nick is a student at the London School; He also gets into the virtual world of Erebus, and he becomes addicted to it, but when faced with doing the wrong thing outside of the game, will Nick be able to stop?
Watership Down by Richard Adams
Set in south-central England, the story features a small group of rabbits. Although they live in their natural environment, they are anthropomorphised, possessing their own culture, language (Lapine), proverbs, poetry, and mythology. Evoking epic themes, the novel follows the rabbits as they escape the destruction of their warren and seek a place to establish a new home, encountering perils and temptations along the way.
Crow Lake by Mary Lawson
Here is a gorgeous, slow-burning story of family love and misunderstandings, of resentments harboured and driven underground. Set in the rough-hewn heart of the Canadian Shield, Crow Lake brings us into the fold of the Morrisons, a family bound close by unexpected loss. Young Kate Morrison worships her elder brother Matt, whose passionate interest in the natural world inspires Kate to become a biologist. But as an adult she feels estranged from her siblings – Matt, Luke and Bo – who once composed her entire world, and she can't reconcile the heroic brother of her youth with the all-too-human man he has become.
Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
Set in the twenty-fourth century, Fahrenheit 451 introduces a new world in which control of the masses by the media, overpopulation, and censorship has taken over the general population. The individual is not accepted and the intellectual is considered an outlaw. Television has replaced the common perception of family. The fireman is now seen as a flamethrower, a destroyer of books rather than an insurance against fire. Books are considered evil because they make people question and think. The people live in a world with no reminders of history or appreciation of the past; the population receives the present from television. At first, Guy Montag takes pleasure in his profession as a fireman, burning illegally owned books and the homes of their owners. However, Montag soon begins to question the value of his profession and, in turn, his life.
Briar Rose by Jane Yolen
Ever since she was a child, Rebecca has been enchanted by her grandmother Gemma's stories about Briar Rose. But a promise Rebecca makes to her dying grandmother will lead her on a remarkable jouney to uncover the truth of Gemma's astonishing claim: I am Briar Rose. A journey that will lead her to unspeakable brutality and horror. But also to redemption and hope.
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon
Narrated by a fifteen-year-old autistic savant obsessed with Sherlock Holmes, this dazzling novel weaves together an old-fashioned mystery, a contemporary coming-of-age story, and a fascinating excursion into a mind incapable of processing emotions.
Christopher John Francis Boone knows all the countries of the world and their capitals and every prime number up to 7,057. Although gifted with a superbly logical brain, Christopher is autistic. Everyday interactions and admonishments have little meaning for him. At fifteen, Christopher’s carefully constructed world falls apart when he finds his neighbour’s dog Wellington impaled on a garden fork, and he is initially blamed for the killing.
Erebus is a computer game that gets passed around at a London school as a pirated copy from student to student; whoever plays it becomes "addicted" afterwards. The rules are rigid: Everyone has only one chance to play Erebus; whoever dies or is thrown out can not return to the game; Players are not allowed to talk about it with anyone and must always be alone when they play.
The players find that they need to start doing questions not just in the game, but in real life, and thus blur the the lines between fiction and reality. Nick is a student at the London School; He also gets into the virtual world of Erebus, and he becomes addicted to it, but when faced with doing the wrong thing outside of the game, will Nick be able to stop?
Watership Down by Richard Adams
Set in south-central England, the story features a small group of rabbits. Although they live in their natural environment, they are anthropomorphised, possessing their own culture, language (Lapine), proverbs, poetry, and mythology. Evoking epic themes, the novel follows the rabbits as they escape the destruction of their warren and seek a place to establish a new home, encountering perils and temptations along the way.
Crow Lake by Mary Lawson
Here is a gorgeous, slow-burning story of family love and misunderstandings, of resentments harboured and driven underground. Set in the rough-hewn heart of the Canadian Shield, Crow Lake brings us into the fold of the Morrisons, a family bound close by unexpected loss. Young Kate Morrison worships her elder brother Matt, whose passionate interest in the natural world inspires Kate to become a biologist. But as an adult she feels estranged from her siblings – Matt, Luke and Bo – who once composed her entire world, and she can't reconcile the heroic brother of her youth with the all-too-human man he has become.
Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
Set in the twenty-fourth century, Fahrenheit 451 introduces a new world in which control of the masses by the media, overpopulation, and censorship has taken over the general population. The individual is not accepted and the intellectual is considered an outlaw. Television has replaced the common perception of family. The fireman is now seen as a flamethrower, a destroyer of books rather than an insurance against fire. Books are considered evil because they make people question and think. The people live in a world with no reminders of history or appreciation of the past; the population receives the present from television. At first, Guy Montag takes pleasure in his profession as a fireman, burning illegally owned books and the homes of their owners. However, Montag soon begins to question the value of his profession and, in turn, his life.
Briar Rose by Jane Yolen
Ever since she was a child, Rebecca has been enchanted by her grandmother Gemma's stories about Briar Rose. But a promise Rebecca makes to her dying grandmother will lead her on a remarkable jouney to uncover the truth of Gemma's astonishing claim: I am Briar Rose. A journey that will lead her to unspeakable brutality and horror. But also to redemption and hope.
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon
Narrated by a fifteen-year-old autistic savant obsessed with Sherlock Holmes, this dazzling novel weaves together an old-fashioned mystery, a contemporary coming-of-age story, and a fascinating excursion into a mind incapable of processing emotions.
Christopher John Francis Boone knows all the countries of the world and their capitals and every prime number up to 7,057. Although gifted with a superbly logical brain, Christopher is autistic. Everyday interactions and admonishments have little meaning for him. At fifteen, Christopher’s carefully constructed world falls apart when he finds his neighbour’s dog Wellington impaled on a garden fork, and he is initially blamed for the killing.