Author & Illustrators
The mountain had murder in mind’. Jamie Smith’s debut middle-grade novel starts with these words and maintains the same deeply dramatic mood throughout the story.
Frostfire is a highly original fantasy story set in icy mountains with magical, sentient glaciers at their heart.
Sabira lives in an ancient mountain settlement and is chosen for the special task of making the perilous pilgrimage to the top of the mountain to bond with a magical glacier fragment called a ‘frostsliver’.
Despite reaching the top and finding the frostsliver, Sabira soon becomes trapped when a mighty avalanche blocks the pass back home. In a bid to survive the dangers housed by the mysterious mountain, which seems to have a mind of its own, Sabira must demonstrate determination and quick-thinking in order to overcome a host of perils from fire and ice to monsters and villains.
Thrilling throughout and packed with the spirit of adventure, Frostfire is an unusual story full of twists and turns. I enjoyed the magic of the impressive mountain setting, the stream of surprises unravelled in the plot and the strength of Sabira’s character that is the driving force behind her journey.
There is something about Jeremy Strong books, they have a particular appeal, being both entertaining and slightly wacky. This book is in that same mould and in addition, the format is super child friendly, being both small in size but very inviting and looking like a ‘proper chapter book’!
Nellie Choc-Ice is a well-travelled penguin, who also happens to be slightly accident-prone and just wants to find her way home. Nellie is a very endearing and entertaining character and the illustrations should get a special mention here. They capture the essence of the story brilliantly and bring the whole book to life.
For its target age of 5-8 year-olds, it works perfectly as an early chapter book; not taking too long to plough through, but instead giving the text in manageable bites with colour illustrations and an easy-to-read font. This is part of a Barrington Stoke set of Little Gems books, designed specifically for young readers starting out reading independently.
Nellie Choc-Ice is a well-travelled penguin, who also happens to be slightly accident-prone. While attempting to get home via a series of mishaps, she comes across an island that blocks her path. The island is entirely made of plastic rubbish in the ocean. The story makes it clear that the plastic is putting wildlife in danger and that it must be cleared up. This is a funny and accessible first chapter book addressing an important issue, with a super-readable and child-friendly format that makes it perfect for newly independent readers.
review
Year group(s) the book is most suitable for:
Year group(s) the book is most suitable for:
Does the book contain anything that teachers would wish to know about before recommending in class (strong language, sensitive topics etc.)?
Does the book contain anything that teachers would wish to know about before recommending in class (strong language, sensitive topics etc.)?
Would you recommend the book for use in primary schools?
yes
Curriculum links (if relevant)
Curriculum links (if relevant)
Any other comments
Any other comments