I happen to believe that today is one of the greatest commemorative days of the year. Without books, where would we be? For this World Book Day, we asked a few people to let us know what their favourite Primary and High School books were, here are some of the standouts that we just had to share!
Favourite Primary School Reads
The Magic Faraway Tree
Blyton, Enid
The second book in the magical Faraway Tree series by one of the world’s most popular children’s authors, Enid Blyton. Will it be the Land of Spells, the Land of Treats, or the Land of Do-As-You-Please? Come on an amazing adventure! How could we not have put Enid Blyton on the list?
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
Blake, Quentin, Dahl, Roald
The ultimate children’s story’ – David Walliams
Greetings to you, the lucky finder of this Gold Ticket from Mr Willy Wonka! I shake you warmly by the hand! Tremendous things are in store for you! One miraculous moment changes Charlie Bucket’s life forever. A boy who only gets to eat cabbage soup for breakfast, lunch and dinner finds a Golden Ticket that will take him into Willy Wonka’s magical chocolate factory.
Matilda
Dahl, Roald, Blake, Quentin
There is no way Roald Dahl can make the list without having Matilda in the mix.
Matilda Wormwood’s father thinks she’s a little scab. Matilda’s mother spends all afternoon playing bingo. And Matilda’s headmistress Miss Trunchbull? Well, she’s the worst of all. She is a big bully, who thinks all her pupils are rotten and locks them in the dreaded Chokey. As for Matilda, she’s an extraordinary little girl with a magical mind – and now she’s had enough. So all these grown-ups had better watch out, because Matilda is going to teach them a lesson they’ll never forget.
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
Lewis, C. S.
It may be book 2 in the Chronicles of Narnia, but it is a great way to start the journey. This was my Grade 4 (Standard 1) set-work book, and I believe it is the sole reason that I fell in love with reading. The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe follows the four Pevensie children as they embark on an adventure through the lands of Narnia. Narnia has become enslaved and overpowered by the White Witch and these four play a pivotal role in bringing about positive change in this magical land.
Toad Of Toad Hall: A Play From Keneth Grahame’s Book ‘the Wind In The Willows’
Milne, A. A.
What do you get when you mix the classic that is the Wind In The Willows with the great A.A. Milne (Author of Winnie the Pooh)? Magnificence.
Unfortunately, for right now, an Ebook is not available. However, we felt it still deserved to make this list!
Bridge to Terabithia
Paterson, Katherine
Jess Aarons has been practicing all summer so he can be the fastest runner in the fifth grade. And he almost is, until the new girl in school, Leslie Burke, outpaces him. The two become fast friends and spend most days in the woods behind Leslie’s house, where they invent an enchanted land called Terabithia.
His Dark Materials: The Complete Collection
Pullman, Philip
Set against the dreaming spires of Jordan College and the dangerous wilderness of the frozen north, Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials trilogy offers an intoxicating blend of imagination, science, theology and adventure.
The Edge Chronicles 4: Beyond the Deepwoods
Riddell, Chris, Stewart, Paul
Beyond the Deepwoods is the first book of the Twig Saga – second trilogy in The Edge Chronicles, the internationally best-selling fantasy series, which has featured on the UK and the New York Times best-seller lists and sold more than 3 million copies. There are now 13 titles and four trilogies in the series, but each book is a stand-alone adventure, so you can read The Edge Chronicles in any order you choose.
Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone
Rowling, J.K.
This generation’s version of Narnia. Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone is the first instalment of the 7 book Harry Potter Series. Follow Harry as he moves from living in the cupboard under the stairs of 4 Privet Drive to Hogwarts, the school for witchcraft and wizardry!
This week it happens to be number one on the Amazon Ebook charts – so that should say enough. If you enjoy fantasy and well written books (J.K is my hero), then this is a must.
The Silver Sword
Serraillier, Jane, Serraillier, Ian
The classic tale of a journey through war-torn Europe.
Alone and fending for themselves in a Poland devastated by World War Two, Jan and his three homeless friends cling to the silver sword as a symbol of hope. As they travel through Europe towards Switzerland, where they believe they will be reunited with their parents, they encounter many hardships and dangers. This extraordinarily moving account of an epic journey gives a remarkable insight into the reality of a Europe laid waste by war.
Charlotte’s Web
White, E. B.
Used as a set-work book in many a school, Charlotte’s Web tells the story of Charlotte the spider, Wilbur the pig and Fern, the girl. The novel covers friendship, love, life and death and is a story that will continue to be loved in the many years to come.
Favourite High School Reads
Pride and Prejudice
Austen, Jane
For those who enjoy the classics, Pride and Prejudice is definitely one for the lists. Written in 1813, the themes found in this book transcends time. There is a reason that this book has been made into a mini-series, a film (more than one at that) and even been re-written as a zombie version too (which you can view here if that is your thing).
View it in store here (Free Download)
Wuthering Heights
Emily Bronte
Arguably the best from the Bronte sisters, Wuthering Weights is a story about the consequences of the passionate and thwarted love between Heathcliff and Catherine Earnshaw, set on the harsh moors of Yorkshire.
View it in store here (Free Download)
My Life In Crime
Kiriamiti, John
The true story of John Kiriamiti — a participant in some of the most heinous bank robberies and heists in Kenya in the late 1960s and early 70s. In raw and candid language, Kiriamiti tells the story of how he dropped out of high school at a tender age of 15 and went from pick pocketing, to car breaking, and ultimately to violent bank robbery. The plot thickens with one robbery after another, with the police hunting him and his squad relentlessly. He is finally arrested and imprisoned for 15 years. This spell-binding story takes the reader into the underworld of crime, and it graphically depicts the criminal’s struggle for survival against the forces of law and order.
Flowers For Algernon
Keyes, Daniel
The classic novel about a daring experiment in human intelligence.
Charlie Gordon, IQ 68, is a floor sweeper and the gentle butt of everyone’s jokes – until an experiment in the enhancement of human intelligence turns him into a genius.
But then Algernon, the mouse whose triumphal experimental transformation preceded his, fades and dies, and Charlie has to face the possibility that his salvation was only temporary.
To Kill A Mockingbird
Lee, Harper
Another common set-work book. One of the definitive novels of the twentieth century, and winner of the Pulitzer Prize. This enhanced edition includes an excerpt from the audio read by Sissy Spacek as well as footage from the documentary, Hey Boo, including contributions from Oprah Winfrey, Wally Lamb and Richard Russo among others.
On a personal note, I would just like to say that I give this book a 10/10. It is THAT good.
The Bourne Identity
Ludlum, Robert
Generally, when a book is made into a film, you know it is a good book. When a book is made into a film franchise, well, then it has to be just epic.
He was dragged from the sea, his body riddled with bullets. There are a few clues: a frame of microfilm surgically implanted beneath the skin of his hip; evidence that plastic surgery has altered his face; strange things he says in his delirium, which could be code words. And a number on the film negative that leads to a bank account in Zurich, four million dollars and a name for the amnesiac: Jason Bourne.
Death of a Salesman
Miller, Arthur
In the spring of 1948 Arthur Miller retreated to a log cabin in Connecticut with the first two lines of a new play already fixed in his mind. He emerged six weeks later with the final script of Death of a Salesman – a painful examination of American life and consumerism. Opening on Broadway the following year, Miller’s extraordinary masterpiece changed the course of modern theatre. In creating Willy Loman, his destructively insecure anti-hero, Miller himself defined his aim as being ‘to set forth what happens when a man does not have a grip on the forces of life.’
Hamlet
Shakespeare, William
It shouldn’t come as a surprise that Shakespeare made it on the list. A tragedy set in the kingdom of Denmark, recounting the revenge of Prince Hamlet over his Uncle Claudius.
View it in store here (Free Download)
The Lord of the Rings
Tolkien, J.R.R.
I am a firm believer of leaving the best for last. Either that, or Tolkien just happens to be the last in the alphabet.
One Ring to rule them all, One Ring to find them, One Ring to bring them all and in the darkness bind themIn ancient times the Rings of Power were crafted by the Elven-smiths, and Sauron, the Dark Lord, forged the One Ring, filling it with his own power so that he could rule all others.
If you are needing an adventure, look no further.
The more that you read, the more things you will know, the more that you learn, the more places you’ll go
Dr. Seuss
If you have a favourite book you would like to share, let us know! Pop an email to us at editor@teacha.co.za
