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Adventure Holiday #2
Buried Alive!
1st Corgi 1983 edition paperback evidence of live burials vg++ In stock shipped from our UK warehouse
160 pages, Paperback
First published May 1, 1999
34 people are currently reading
814 people want to read
About the author
Jacqueline Wilson
393 books5,739 followersJacqueline Wilson was born in Bath in 1945, but spent most of her childhood in Kingston-on-Thames. She always wanted to be a writer and wrote her first ‘novel’ when she was nine, filling in countless Woolworths’ exercise books as she grew up. As a teenager she started work for a magazine publishing company and then went on to work as a journalist on Jackie magazine (which she was told was named after her!) before turning to writing novels full-time.
One of Jacqueline’s most successful and enduring creations has been the famous Tracy Beaker, who first appeared in 1991 in The Story of Tracy Beaker. This was also the first of her books to be illustrated by Nick Sharratt. Since then Jacqueline has been on countless awards shortlists and has gone on to win many awards. The Illustrated Mum won the Guardian Children’s Fiction Award, the 1999 Children’s Book of the Year at the British Book Awards and was also shortlisted for the 1999 Whitbread Children’s Book Award.
Double Act won the prestigious Smarties Medal and the Children’s Book Award as well as being highly commended for the Carnegie Medal. The Story of Tracy Beaker won the 2002 Blue Peter People’s Choice Award.
Jacqueline is one of the nation’s favourite authors, and her books are loved and cherished by young readers not only in the UK but all over the world. She has sold millions of books and in the UK alone the total now stands at over 35 million!
In 2002 Jacqueline was awarded the OBE for services to literacy in schools and from 2005 to 2007 she was the Children’s Laureate. In 2008 she became Dame Jacqueline Wilson.
One of Jacqueline’s most successful and enduring creations has been the famous Tracy Beaker, who first appeared in 1991 in The Story of Tracy Beaker. This was also the first of her books to be illustrated by Nick Sharratt. Since then Jacqueline has been on countless awards shortlists and has gone on to win many awards. The Illustrated Mum won the Guardian Children’s Fiction Award, the 1999 Children’s Book of the Year at the British Book Awards and was also shortlisted for the 1999 Whitbread Children’s Book Award.
Double Act won the prestigious Smarties Medal and the Children’s Book Award as well as being highly commended for the Carnegie Medal. The Story of Tracy Beaker won the 2002 Blue Peter People’s Choice Award.
Jacqueline is one of the nation’s favourite authors, and her books are loved and cherished by young readers not only in the UK but all over the world. She has sold millions of books and in the UK alone the total now stands at over 35 million!
In 2002 Jacqueline was awarded the OBE for services to literacy in schools and from 2005 to 2007 she was the Children’s Laureate. In 2008 she became Dame Jacqueline Wilson.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 104 reviews
April 18, 2020
This is probably one of my least favourite Jacqueline Wilson books i've read; I don't ever recall reading this as a child so maybe things would have been different if I read it back then, but as an adult there were just some off things with this book.
The main issue for me is the whole book seems to be focused on Biscuit's weight... every page there is a comment on it, how he should go on a diet, or just ridiculous focus on the amount of food that he eats. I get it's meant to be a children's book but when the overwhelming focus appears to be on someone's weight it starts to get a little bit harmful for me.
The plot felt quite weak to me and the ending was so sudden it had me pausing - there was no wrap up to this story which Wilson normally does quite well. It just suddenly ends as if there's a few pages missing. It wasn't terrible at all, but it just isn't one of my favourites.
The main issue for me is the whole book seems to be focused on Biscuit's weight... every page there is a comment on it, how he should go on a diet, or just ridiculous focus on the amount of food that he eats. I get it's meant to be a children's book but when the overwhelming focus appears to be on someone's weight it starts to get a little bit harmful for me.
The plot felt quite weak to me and the ending was so sudden it had me pausing - there was no wrap up to this story which Wilson normally does quite well. It just suddenly ends as if there's a few pages missing. It wasn't terrible at all, but it just isn't one of my favourites.
May 28, 2021
I read this one to my class of Year 3s (7-8 years old) and they really enjoyed it. Especially after I read them the first book on the series, Cliffhanger, they were super excited to find out more about Tim and Biscuits! I did feel like the first half of the book did drag on a little bit, with not much happening it was more for developing characters in my opinion.
Spoiler alert: For example, the actual “buried alive” bits only happen right towards the end. Having said that, I loved the ending. The children and I had some very deep and profound discussions about Prickle-Head’s family and how he was a bully only because his family was a bully! It has important messages that regardless of how someone treats you, you should always treat them with kindness and you’ll feel better yourself for it!
3 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spoiler alert: For example, the actual “buried alive” bits only happen right towards the end. Having said that, I loved the ending. The children and I had some very deep and profound discussions about Prickle-Head’s family and how he was a bully only because his family was a bully! It has important messages that regardless of how someone treats you, you should always treat them with kindness and you’ll feel better yourself for it!
3 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 21, 2020
I really didn't like this book. I can see why I liked it as a child, but looking back as an adult I can see how awful the character of Biscuits is. At least 50% of the book is made up with comments of how much he has eaten, and what he will do for food.
September 27, 2023
It was better than i thought it would be and easy to get into. REALLY long chapters though and i can not sleep without finishing on a chapter 😴
June 17, 2021
I actually really enjoyed this 😂 I know theres a lot of negative reviews of this book but I thought it was short and sweet and was just a bit of fun really
December 28, 2025
A good sequel and interesting ideas, I like that the bully is treated with kindness by the protagonist/ still treated as a human being when in danger as it's a good message for children
December 29, 2025
boooooooooooooring
June 23, 2014
I decided to re-read this book recently, and although I liked this book better then the previous instalment in Tim's life, I still found myself eager to finish it because there are more things I would rather have read. Although, I loved Jacqueline Wilson growing up and this book is another fine story by her.
Buried Alive is about a boy called Tim who is going on a holiday. He decides to take his friend, Biscuits, who he met on an adventure holiday (Cliffhanger - another book by Jacqueline Wilson) with him! They all set off and there is a mixture of emotions. Tim is in no way sporty and hates any activity he has to do where he moves. He likes exploring, building and seeing new things: not racing, golfing and showing off. Biscuits is in love with food and would do anything - if food comes with him. Despite Tim's horror towards all sports and activities involving exercise, his dad is forceful and makes Tim use these skills and forces Tim to do new sporty things. Whereas Tim's mum, would rather he came traipsing round the shops with her, she knows of his fear of getting things wrong and wants to protect him. The plot is good and there are a minimal amount of twists that make the story interesting. Before each chapter there is a diary entry from both Biscuits and Tim, outlining the chapter ahead. Although this could ruin things for the upcoming chapter, Jacqueline Wilson has done it very well and left people guessing and lets the diary entries just be small hints towards the upcoming events.
In the book, Cliffhanger, (which is actually a prequel to this!), I was disappointed by the lack of character build there was. The characters were witty and fun, however your opinions of them were already set out for you. You hated the bad guy and you liked the good guy, because there was no other alternative interpretations you could pick up from the characters presentation. It was already laid out for you. However, in this book: you set your own opinions and Jacqueline Wilson has used more advanced techniques where someone who wants to see an alternative to the characters, is able to paint the idea in their head and follow it through throughout the book. The chapters are a lot longer and are seemingly more enjoyable, as they have more then just one plot twist embedded in every one.
There is a comical feel to this book and although there are tense dramas you don't feel that the book is too silly, or that the book is forcing too much drama on you. Of course, Jacqueline has continued to use literary techniques and linguistic devices which can be useful for the classroom if you were using this book, however its silly enjoyable for people who are reading it out of sheer pleasure.
Personally, the book isn't a favourite of mine. The story just isn't something that I like or would read again anytime soon. I think this is more aimed at boys, which is good because sometimes I believe that most of Jacqueline Wilson's books are girly, but maybe a boy would prefer this. Or anyone who enjoys adventure books. Younger readers would enjoy this book too. I wasn't the target audience for this book, clearly, however when I was younger I felt the same way about the book and always put it towards the back of my shelf behind every other Jacqueline Wilson book I had.
Buried Alive is about a boy called Tim who is going on a holiday. He decides to take his friend, Biscuits, who he met on an adventure holiday (Cliffhanger - another book by Jacqueline Wilson) with him! They all set off and there is a mixture of emotions. Tim is in no way sporty and hates any activity he has to do where he moves. He likes exploring, building and seeing new things: not racing, golfing and showing off. Biscuits is in love with food and would do anything - if food comes with him. Despite Tim's horror towards all sports and activities involving exercise, his dad is forceful and makes Tim use these skills and forces Tim to do new sporty things. Whereas Tim's mum, would rather he came traipsing round the shops with her, she knows of his fear of getting things wrong and wants to protect him. The plot is good and there are a minimal amount of twists that make the story interesting. Before each chapter there is a diary entry from both Biscuits and Tim, outlining the chapter ahead. Although this could ruin things for the upcoming chapter, Jacqueline Wilson has done it very well and left people guessing and lets the diary entries just be small hints towards the upcoming events.
In the book, Cliffhanger, (which is actually a prequel to this!), I was disappointed by the lack of character build there was. The characters were witty and fun, however your opinions of them were already set out for you. You hated the bad guy and you liked the good guy, because there was no other alternative interpretations you could pick up from the characters presentation. It was already laid out for you. However, in this book: you set your own opinions and Jacqueline Wilson has used more advanced techniques where someone who wants to see an alternative to the characters, is able to paint the idea in their head and follow it through throughout the book. The chapters are a lot longer and are seemingly more enjoyable, as they have more then just one plot twist embedded in every one.
There is a comical feel to this book and although there are tense dramas you don't feel that the book is too silly, or that the book is forcing too much drama on you. Of course, Jacqueline has continued to use literary techniques and linguistic devices which can be useful for the classroom if you were using this book, however its silly enjoyable for people who are reading it out of sheer pleasure.
Personally, the book isn't a favourite of mine. The story just isn't something that I like or would read again anytime soon. I think this is more aimed at boys, which is good because sometimes I believe that most of Jacqueline Wilson's books are girly, but maybe a boy would prefer this. Or anyone who enjoys adventure books. Younger readers would enjoy this book too. I wasn't the target audience for this book, clearly, however when I was younger I felt the same way about the book and always put it towards the back of my shelf behind every other Jacqueline Wilson book I had.
January 1, 2024
I originally read this book when I was around 11 years old. However, during lockdown and doing some spring cleaning I came across my set of Jacqueline Wilson books that I have. I decided to re-read them and to review them.
This book follows Tim, who we met in Cliffhanger, he likes to read and play boardgames and puzzles. He doesn’t like any sports or activity. It's the summer holidays and he and his family are going on holiday and Tim is bringing his best friend Biscuits. Tim cannot wait for this trip. But the trip unexpectedly becomes truly, terribly adventurous and when an encounter with two local bully boys threatens to disrupt the fun. Tim will have to make a choice whether to run away or to stand up for himself.
I liked the idea of friendship and family within this book and how there can be so many different families on holiday during the holidays but that they can all have fun together. I love Biscuits and Tim’s friendship even if they did have a few disagreements during this book. Everyone's personality really showed in this book, even if it’s only 160 pages long. Tim wanted to build sandcastles and see the castles of Wales, Biscuit wanted to eat and enjoy the weather, Tim’s dad wanted to play cricket and Tim’s mum wanted to sunbathe and shop. I liked the addition of Tim’s and Biscuits diaries, but I would have loved for Biscuits POV in some of these chapters.
This book didn’t do well than cliffhanger because of the way that the adults (basically Tim’s parents) treated Kelly and Biscuits. They kept mentioning Biscuits weight in almost every other page, that it just got to the point of annoying. They didn’t like Kelly because of the way she acted which was basically like a caravan kid. They kept looking down on Kelly’s family even though they weren’t doing anything wrong. The ending was sort of abrupt and it was just cut off it just didn’t feel right.
Overall, this book was okay, but it would have been better if it was longer.
This book follows Tim, who we met in Cliffhanger, he likes to read and play boardgames and puzzles. He doesn’t like any sports or activity. It's the summer holidays and he and his family are going on holiday and Tim is bringing his best friend Biscuits. Tim cannot wait for this trip. But the trip unexpectedly becomes truly, terribly adventurous and when an encounter with two local bully boys threatens to disrupt the fun. Tim will have to make a choice whether to run away or to stand up for himself.
I liked the idea of friendship and family within this book and how there can be so many different families on holiday during the holidays but that they can all have fun together. I love Biscuits and Tim’s friendship even if they did have a few disagreements during this book. Everyone's personality really showed in this book, even if it’s only 160 pages long. Tim wanted to build sandcastles and see the castles of Wales, Biscuit wanted to eat and enjoy the weather, Tim’s dad wanted to play cricket and Tim’s mum wanted to sunbathe and shop. I liked the addition of Tim’s and Biscuits diaries, but I would have loved for Biscuits POV in some of these chapters.
This book didn’t do well than cliffhanger because of the way that the adults (basically Tim’s parents) treated Kelly and Biscuits. They kept mentioning Biscuits weight in almost every other page, that it just got to the point of annoying. They didn’t like Kelly because of the way she acted which was basically like a caravan kid. They kept looking down on Kelly’s family even though they weren’t doing anything wrong. The ending was sort of abrupt and it was just cut off it just didn’t feel right.
Overall, this book was okay, but it would have been better if it was longer.
Read
September 15, 2011I was pleasantly surprised to find this title as the previous Jacqueline Wilson books I have read have been aimed at young women rather than a mixed audience, "Buried Alive" is the tale of a boys adventure which happens to feature a rather familiar female character called Kelly as a side kick to the two best friends. This is probably best for solitary readers rather than a read aloud story time due to the fact that it is a sequel to Wilson's "Cliffhanger" and so some may be familiar with the characters and be particularly drawn to it. I enjoyed the boys enthusiasm and excitement throughout the holiday to Llanpistyll Wales, specifically Biscuits food diaries.
Themes included personal weaknesses and strengths and the characters ability to over come difference and accept qualities they may have viewed as faults at first. The importance of friendship and loyalty were highlighted through the three way relationship of Tim, best buddy Biscuits and Tims girlfriend Kelly. The most prominent was the issue of bullying, the effect this had on Tim and the way it was consequently resolved (the adult finally stepping in to take control of the situation) but later realising that 'prickle-head' had issues of his own to deal with, this forces the reader to question 'Prickle-heads' motives and actions. I felt that this would be a great focal point for students reviewing the book and a chance to show empathy towards the "bad" character. For 9-12 year olds.
Themes included personal weaknesses and strengths and the characters ability to over come difference and accept qualities they may have viewed as faults at first. The importance of friendship and loyalty were highlighted through the three way relationship of Tim, best buddy Biscuits and Tims girlfriend Kelly. The most prominent was the issue of bullying, the effect this had on Tim and the way it was consequently resolved (the adult finally stepping in to take control of the situation) but later realising that 'prickle-head' had issues of his own to deal with, this forces the reader to question 'Prickle-heads' motives and actions. I felt that this would be a great focal point for students reviewing the book and a chance to show empathy towards the "bad" character. For 9-12 year olds.
December 2, 2021
Jacqueline Wilson is my farvoite author and david williams is my other farvoite author xxx
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Read
October 21, 2014This book is interesting because of the inspiring language and the way it's set out and the whole idea of it was a joy to read. I really wanted to keep reading I like how it was a sequel to the first book cliff hanger. I enjoyed ho they never knew what to do then they solved their problems. It is a wonderful book for young readers and if you haven't already you should definitely read it!!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Read
April 28, 2012This boom wasn't very good. I thought it was quite boring. Tim, Kelly and Biscuits said in Cliffhanger. It wasn't a good storyline; I thought it was not exciting. As much as I love Jacqueline Wilson, this has got to be the WORST book she has ever wrote!
February 11, 2021
It was really y good 👍. It is one of the best of Jacqueline Wilson s books.
January 20, 2023
It was okay but the climax of the book is right at the end so it takes a while for it to get good!
July 24, 2022
As the sequel to Cliffhanger, this book follows Tim and Biscuits and their adventures on a holiday in Wales. Along the way they deal with two bullies, Prickle-Head and Pinch-Face, with the story culminating at a carnival with some dramatic events.
The plot was not particularly engaging. The illustrations of the boys’ diary entries are a fun way to introduce each chapter, but Biscuits’ character is completely one-dimensional; the focus being on his weight and the copious amounts of food that he consumes was very repetitive and cringeworthy.
The only events of significance happen right near the end of the book and are fairly disturbing to reread as an adult - with Tim being buried up to his neck in sand while the bullies threaten to stamp on him and hit him with a spade, and then the carnival event where a ‘sandslide’ occurs and buries one of the bullies under it; Tim miraculously seems to perform mouth-to-mouth resuscitation on the bully and is hailed a hero for his efforts. As a child, this part was engaging and exciting to me, but as an adult it seems completely ridiculous - almost laughable, in a way.
Overall, not a terrible read, but definitely not a favourite.
The plot was not particularly engaging. The illustrations of the boys’ diary entries are a fun way to introduce each chapter, but Biscuits’ character is completely one-dimensional; the focus being on his weight and the copious amounts of food that he consumes was very repetitive and cringeworthy.
The only events of significance happen right near the end of the book and are fairly disturbing to reread as an adult - with Tim being buried up to his neck in sand while the bullies threaten to stamp on him and hit him with a spade, and then the carnival event where a ‘sandslide’ occurs and buries one of the bullies under it; Tim miraculously seems to perform mouth-to-mouth resuscitation on the bully and is hailed a hero for his efforts. As a child, this part was engaging and exciting to me, but as an adult it seems completely ridiculous - almost laughable, in a way.
Overall, not a terrible read, but definitely not a favourite.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 14, 2023
This book was certainly dragged out a bit more compared to its predecessor. A lot of the book seemed to focus on Biscuits and his eating habits which just yeah it’s part of his character how much he loves food but maybe give him a little bit more depth? We had discovered him in another of Wilson’s books, Best Friends as well where he does have more depth as a character though. I’m confused as to why the book is called buried alive when that doesn’t seem to happen until the end. But yeah a quick and easy read.
June 3, 2021
This is the continuation of Cliffhanger which follows Tim and Biscuits on their holiday in Wales with Tim’s family.
While this one was still quite cute, I remember not enjoying this one as much as the first one when I read them as a kid. I think it might be because Tim was starting to get on my nerves by that point!
Still, it’s a nice continuation of the story that kids would easily remember.
While this one was still quite cute, I remember not enjoying this one as much as the first one when I read them as a kid. I think it might be because Tim was starting to get on my nerves by that point!
Still, it’s a nice continuation of the story that kids would easily remember.
June 11, 2022
This book is about two boys -Tim and Biscuit. They go on a beach holiday with Tim’s parents. Kelly, Tim’s girlfriend shows up. Not much happens in the book and the buried alive part of the book only happens towards the end. However I enjoyed the writing. My biggest criticism is the negative way Biscuit is portrayed! 90% of his character is what he eats and I really don’t think that should be the case!
October 6, 2022
Just another quick read today, thought I would get this series done tonight. The sequel to Cliffhanger isn’t as good in my opinion, it’s less about adventure and more about facing bullies and fears. Which is still a good topic for kids but I much preferred the first book.
I still like Tim as a character and seeing his friendship with Biscuits (that’s the kids nickname 😂) is really sweet. Again just a short read but a JW classic.
I still like Tim as a character and seeing his friendship with Biscuits (that’s the kids nickname 😂) is really sweet. Again just a short read but a JW classic.
May 3, 2019
Raul: This is a hilarious book, interesting us with our young, non-adventurous boy TIm and his lad Biscuits defending themselves from the bullies of Llampistyll. I would recommend this book to anyone!
August 24, 2019
Read this for a video-
Unfortunately I did not like this as much I did as a child. The language surrounding weight would probably be deemed slightly problematic in todays society. I also thought the plot was a little weak and lacked the grit of some of her other books
Unfortunately I did not like this as much I did as a child. The language surrounding weight would probably be deemed slightly problematic in todays society. I also thought the plot was a little weak and lacked the grit of some of her other books
April 22, 2021
Tahle knížka se mi líbila, byla zábavná a někdy napínavá. Navazuje na knížku Přežít, která mě taky bavila. Líbila se mi závěrečná část, kde Tim zachránil Ježoura a aspoň se necítil tak, že mu nic nejde. Sice je to opět z pohledu kluka, ale to mi zase až tak nevadilo. Dobře se to četlo.
May 29, 2025
Bit longer than the first one but I somehow could quite get into this one for some reason.
The plot was really good and the selection of characters were brill to.
Won't stop me from reading this author in the future.
The plot was really good and the selection of characters were brill to.
Won't stop me from reading this author in the future.
February 25, 2018
Not as good as the rest of her books, possibly designed for a young boy?
January 30, 2019
It is a good book with a few twists
August 24, 2019
Standard children’s books really, although not as good as the prequel. The ending was a bit like ‘... what just happened? Is that it?’. Wasn’t really an ending tbf.
December 15, 2019
I like this book because it is very interesting to read and it is a funny book.
April 13, 2020
Rating given by 7yo son who thought it was ‘ok’
August 21, 2020
I find this book hilarious every time I read it.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 104 reviews