UEL PGCE group 2011-2012 discussion

Welcome! I am one of the English lecturers at UEL. I have a particular interest in fantasy and Science Fiction. I'm also a great fan of picture books and visual literacy, and passionate about the importance of teachers reading to their classes up to Y6 and beyond. Please say hi and tell us a bit about what you like to read!

I've just noticed a lot of people have joined. Please do say hi.

Hi All,

Thanks for the link to this page Alison! I look forward to meeting you in September.

I'm Zaid, 37 from Norfolk. I thought it would be beneficial to join this group. I am sure this will help me before and during the course. It would be of particular benefit to me to indulge in some KS2 level literature, as this is where my knowledge is limited (I have 2 children in KS1), although many of the authors on the WIKI pre course, reading list sound familiar.

I have spent many a happy hour reading to my own children and also spent some time volunteering at my local school helping in one-to-one reading sessions (mainly Biff and Chip of course!). I can't wait to find some good thought provoking reads to share with a whole class for the first time.

I look forward to other people’s reviews and will post a few in due course. I have just read Eats, Shoots and Leaves by Lynne Truss, which now makes me nervous about my punctuation! It is a great insight into our complex language however and a must read for all trainee teachers.

I am currently reading Bill Bryson, A Short History of Nearly Everything, which is full of scientific facts. I believe he also has another unique take on another part of the curriculum in The Mother Tongue: The English Language, which I look forward to reading in due course.

Sorry to waffle on, I'm sure we will have many a discussion over time and I look forward to picking all of my peer’s brains!

Hi everyone,

My name is Tuyet and I'm from London. I have to admit that I only started reading a lot more about 7-8 years ago, after I moved out of my parents' home and decided not to buy a television. Ever since then, my book collection has grown and grown.

My favourite childhood authors were Enid Blyton and Roald Dahl. In my late teens, I remember enjoying Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice so much that I bought and read all of her books. I later found that I also really enjoyed reading fantasy, after borrowing Philip Pullman's Dark Material's trilogy and Trudi Canavan's Black Magician trilogy from my younger brother.

What am I reading now? Science revision guides, as it has been years since I took my GCSEs.

I look forward to meeting you all in September.

Hey,
My name is Ann, I am 23 and from Ireland. I have been an avid reader all my life. There’s nothing more I enjoy than sitting down with a good book! I have spent many a rainy day, and in the last two years, many a quiet day at work, devouring a good book. As a child my favourite author’s included; Roald Dahl, Enid Blyton and Marita Conlon-McKenna, who is a fantastic Irish author . My favourite book was The Railway Children by E. Nesbit and I am currently re-reading it again for the first time in many years and enjoying it just as much as I did as a child!!

As I got older I developed a love for all things crime and police related. I found and fell in love with Michael Connolly, a native of Tampa, Florida and I have read each and every one of his books. I find them absolutely impossible to put down once I start reading. From the first line, I am always completely enthralled and nothing else matters but reaching the end and solving the mystery. I also love to read autobiographies, I most recently read Michael Mc Intyre’s Life and Laughing, and I have to admit I laughed constantly throughout. I would highly recommend it to anyone and have loaned it to most of my friends already!

Over the course of my three year English degree, I got the opportunity to read many of the classics; Wuthering Heights, Pride and Prejudice, Robinson Crusoe, Dracula, to name but a few. It was during my final year that I developed a particular interest in Irish writers. Brendan Behan, Patrick Mc Cabe, Edna O’Brien, Roddy Doyle and Patrick Kavanagh can all now be found on my already over-flowing book shelf.

I have just read one of Jacqueline Wilson’s books, The Longest Whale Song, and while I will admit I enjoyed it, I was a little shocked to see the difference in the content of books aimed at 9-11 year olds now, in comparison to the content of books I would have read at the same age, only ten years ago. I look forward to delving further into children’s literature of today and having further discussions and debates on many of their aspects with you all!

Thank you all! Great to met you. Ann, one of my favourite contemporary children's writers is Irish! Eoin Colfer, author of the famous Artemis Fowl novels.
REading widely is very, very important for teachers, and the Bill Bryson and Lynn Truss books will certainly help you on the course, Zaid! Tuyet, my academic interest is in children's fantasy fiction. I think Philip Pullman is one of the most important writers in English at the moment, and the scope and ambition of His Dark Materials is one I always cite to people who may be a little dismissive of the importance of good quality literature for children.

Good to see some of you have posted reviews and resources. Someone reviewed a book about PGCE (can't remember who!); very interesting. If you're reviewed a related book that isn't children's lit, perhaps the link could go up on the Resources discussion? Please do "friend" each other too! Everybody in the PGCE group is either a lecturer or a fellow 2011-12 trainee.

Hello everyone,

My name is Jayne and I'm 22 from East London. I love reading! I'm particularly thankful to my mum who encouraged my reading from an early age and would take me on regular trips to the library so I could stock up on books! As a child I loved Jacqueline Wilson, Roald Dahl, and especially the Horrible Histories collection!

I have recently completed a three year degree in History and English Literature, therefore I had to read a wide range of materials. My favourite books have to be: Jane Eyre, Pride and Prejudice, Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides and anything by Lesley Pearse or Phillipa Gregory. I'm also a sucker for vampire novels!

Last week I took a trip to my local library and picked up some historical and general fictional children's books such as 'Terry Deary's Viking tales'. Also, Beverley Naidoo 'The Great Tug of War' and a graphic novel of Robert Louis Stevenson's Kidnapped!

I look forward to discussing children's literature with you all and sharing the various books we have found!

Jayne wrote: "Hello everyone,

My name is Jayne and I'm 22 from East London. I love reading! I'm particularly thankful to my mum who encouraged my reading from an early age and would take me on regular trips to ..."

Hello Jayne, welcome! Thanks for sharing your reading history. I love Horrible Histories too, and Beverley Naidoo is a wonderful writer. I haven't read the graphic novel of Kidnapped; let us know what you think about it.

Hi my name is Andrew I am 40 (yikes) and currently working as a photographer for the National Maritime Museum in Greenwich. I love to read historical fiction and non-fiction and have enjoyed books by Conn Iggulden, Antony Beevor, C. J. Sansom, Helen Dunmore and Karen Maitland. I'm currently looking through some textbook for the PGCE course, 'PGCE Primary English (PGCE Professional Workbooks)' and 'Getting the Buggers to Behave'
I have two young children who love looking at books and I enjoy reading to them, my son’s current favorites are Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? and The Boy on the Bus: A Sing-Along Storybook.
I look forward to meeting you all and discussing the books we have read.

Hi Andrew, welcome. I've just come across CJ Sansom, and the first in the trilogy is somewhere in my teetering "to read" pile. Brown Bear is also a favourite of my 3 year old nephew's!

http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/audio... The Guardian's children's books website is a great resource. About halfway through the podcast is a section on it, the children's book prize and summer reading.

Hi all, my name is Heather and I'm 22. I am currently working in the army barracks up in Colchester. Working here has led me to a genre I had never read before - war time books, fiction and non-fiction. Some of the content is shocking but it is also very interesting.

My passion in reading is crime/thriller books. James Patterson, Jeffrey Deaver, Karen Rose and Michael Connelly are amongst my favourite authors - and take up most of my bookcase space!

Last year I completed a music degree. People are often amazed that we had to study history throughout the degree too - my 3rd year independent study module was based on the Ancient Egyptians; the significance of music within their society, their fascination with the arts and the effect religion had on their society. Found some fascinating books when searching for information. Am hoping this all comes in handy when teaching!

In response to Ann's comment, I too was shocked reading some books which are aimed at children - inc. those of Jacqueline Wilson. There is all this hype about protecting children, yet the contents of some books are quite 'advanced' from what I read as a child. I guess as society advances we need the information from a younger age.

Anyway, I look forward to meeting you all in September. Take care.

Good to meet you Heather. This is an interesting perception; I grew up in the 1970s where there was a very real threat of nuclear holocaust, and there were a lot of post-apocalyptic stories with quite frightening content, such as Peter Dickinson's Changes trilogy. Katherine Paterson's Bridge to Terebithia(1977) contains the death of a friend, and the protagonist's culpability in this. I am not aware of a great deal of sexual content in books aimed at Primary children, but "problem" novels have always existed: Judy Blume deals with families and growing up, Bernard Ashley with racism, family breakdown and crime, Anne Fine with bullying, family breakdown and mental illness. Even Roald Dahl's books contain a lot of disturbing material, although it is presented in a humorous way. Victorian children's novels contain incredibly difficult issues: think of Beth's death in Little Women. I think that critics of contemporary children's literature who think it is too disturbing must misremember much of what they read as children.

Hello!

My name is Megan and I'm 24 years old. Just like Jayne my parents encouraged my sister and I to read every night, and I can remember us having piles of books at the end of our beds and we would read a bit of each one before bed time.

Some of my favorite books through child hood were 'My Naughty Little Sister' (this would be read to me as I was the Naughty little sister), The Famous Five series, The Lottie Project, Sophie's Snail, and Roald Dahl of course. Then Harry Potter came along and I have been addicted ever since!

Other favorite books include Captain Corelii's Mandolin, The Lovely Bones, The Help, The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo (and the two that followed).

Look forward to reading some more and meeting you all in a few weeks!

Megan :-)

Hello everyone,

My name is Jazel and I am from East London. I am 30 (oh dear...cringe) and have an 11 year old son.

I absolutely love reading and have read many books of different genres. When I was younger I particularly liked Roald Dahl. When the teenage years set in loved reading the series of books by Francine Pascal called 'Sweet Valley High' with a passion. I sadly love romantic witty books by a range of authors such as Jill Mansell and absolutely love fantasy fiction books such as Harry Potter by J K Rowling, Eragon by Christopher Paolini and the 'Twilight' series by Stephenie Meyer.

I have worked in a secondary school for the last 4 years and have realised my liking of poems, especially from John Agard, Imtiaz Dharker, Simon Armitage and Carol Anne Duffy.
I am pleased to know that John Agard writes children's poems also and I will surely be writing a review on one of his books soon.

Look forward to meeting you all in September,

Jazel

Hi
My name is Kay. I live in Woodford and let's just say that I am a mature student. I have spent the last 3 years completing my degree so I am now looking forward to joining everyone else on the PGCE course.

I have two daughters and a fair selection of their literature on the shelves, much of which I have not read, but am now looking through the authors listed to read many of the books we possess. I enjoy reading although I haven't had much time over the past few years due to work and study. However I do like E.B. White, Roald Dahl and the My Story books to name only a few. Generally I like to read biographies, historical novels and enjoy poetry.

Having spent the past eleven years working in both primary and secondary schools I have worked on a number of books ranging from picture books (working in SEN) to Shakespeare and WWII poetry, such as Wilfred Owen, comparing it with more modern poetry. So roll on September - looking forward to meeting you.
Kay

Hi all,

I'm Maeve and I'm from Ireland. Like so many of you, I spent my youth reading with copious visits to the library with my mam and sister. I have so many books from Enid Blyton et al, all of which I thoroughly enjoyed. I enjoy various genres of books and read extensively. Currently I'm reading Malcolm Gladwell's 'Blink'. An interesting book about intuition. I like Christopher Brookmyer, a Scottish writer. I have a soft spot for the 'Harry Potter' series and have read all seven books many times! They definitely bring out the child in me and I get lost in their adventures!

I am enjoying reading childrens literature at the moment for the course, in which I shall review some books I have recently read. I love how simple the authors convey a message through a short story.

Looking forward to meeting everyone in September!

Maeve

Hello Megan, Jazel, Kay and Maeve, good to hear about your reading! I look forward to reading your reviews when I come back from holiday!

Hi everyone,
My name is Sajeda and Im from Ilford.Like most of you I love reading and have spent most of my Saturday mornings in Ilford Library wandering up the aisles looking for new reads.
A younger me loved reading the entire Sweet Valley High series with the twins Elizabeth and Jessica ,the Roald Dahl books and of course Enid Blyton.
I am in the process of reading "The Better Brown Stories" by Allan Ahlberg and will let you soon know how it is.
This might shock most of you but I have not read any of the Harry Potter books so this summer my challenge to myself is to read all of them.I will let you know what I think of each as I finish.

Look forward to meeting all of you in September

Sajeda

Hi
I'm Ellie, I’m 23 and I live in Highbury but I'm from the middle of the countryside in Oxfordshire. My mum is a prep-school librarian (and she used to work on a travelling children's library bus!) so I'm lucky because there are always lots of new children's books lying around the house for me to read. She often gets me to decide whether they are suitable for her year sixes or sevens which I find hard because by nine or ten children really start maturing at very different rates. I agree that a lot of the subject matter in children's books seems very advanced for the age range however I think that children process things on different levels.
I recently re-flicked through some of the books I was reading as an eleven year old - like 'The Wolves of Willoughby chase', 'Corum Boy' and 'Noughts and Crossess' (I recommend them all) and I was really shocked by them but at the time I think I took it all on board.
Personally at the moment I especially like YA historical novels but I also admit to having queued up at midnight for the last four Harry Potters!

Have an amazing summer everyone.

Hi,

I'm Jon, I am thirty two and I live in Hackney. As a lad I enjoyed reading books by Roald Dahl, Gillian Cross and Terry Pratchett as well as 'The Chronicals Of Narnia' series as well as comics such as 'Tintin' and 'Asterix'. I was so obsessed with Terry Pratchett that apart from set texts his fantasy novels where pretty much all I read between the ages of thirteen and nineteen. As a result I find I can't get through one of his books now. I still think he is brilliant however.

I now enjoy reading novels by Charles Bukowski, George P Pelcanos, Jonathan Letham, Haruki Murakami, James Ellroy and George Orwell.

I have two Nephews aged two and four who I enjoy reading to. Helen Cooper and Julia Donaldson are favourites unless there is a pop-up book nearby then that wins.

Children's literature I have enjoyed reading as an adult includes the 'Harry Potter' series, Philip Pullman's 'His Dark Materials' trilogy and 'The Phantom Tollbooth' by Norton Juster. The latter is a brilliant book and I wish I had read it when I was younger.

I spent this morning at my local library and I left with a pile of books to read this week so I hope to have some reviews up by next weekend. I enjoyed scanning the shelves and a lot of books I enjoyed reading at a young age came back to me.

Looking forward to meeting you all in a few weeks.

Hi Sajeda, Ellie and Jon! Good to see you here. I've just got back from holiday, and am catching up with new reviews and recommendations. Looking forward to your reviews!

Hi everyone,
I'm Lorraine, 25 from Wexford in Ireland and I am looking forward to starting the PGCE Primary course with you all. After completion of my Early Childhood Studies degree three years ago,I have been working in various Child Care and kindergarden centres around ireland and Australia.

I found myself engrossed in to the world of picture books such as 'The owl and the pussy cat','The Very Hungry Caterpillar', and 'We're going on a bear hunt', just to name a few. I love nothing better than reading various stories to my children at circle time;interacting with them,describing the characters, settings and helping them imagine the sounds, tastes and colours. I love seeing the reactions on their faces!

As a child, I enjoyed reading books such as 'The Hobbit', 'The famous five collections', and various books from the famous Roald Dahl and Enid Blyton. I have become quiet interested in researching into more childrens literature since I have joined this site. It has opened my mind again into the world of books for different ages. I spent this morning writing some reviews so I hope you enjoy them. I look forward to our discussions in September.

See you all in a few weeks,

Lorraine

Hi Lorraine, welcome to UEL. I'm glad you're enjoying discovering new books, and look forward to your reviews.

Hi!
I'm Carina and I live in Romford, I've been working in a private nursery for some time so I've read a fair few stories in my time! The pre-school childern I've worked with have particularly enjoyed stories by Julia Donaldson, 'We're going on a bear hunt' and the Kipper series by Mick Inkpen. My favourite picture book is probably 'The tiger who came to tea' by Judith Kerr and also the Meg and Mog series.

My favourite adult books tend to be classics such as 'Jane Eyre', 'Brideshead Revisited' and 'Pride and Prejudice'. As a child I was a huge Enid Blyton fan and also loved the chronicles of Narnia.


Look forward to meeting you all soon.

Welcome, Carina! I look forward to reading your reviews, and meeting you in September.

Hi everyone,

My name is Elishia. I'm 27 years old and looking forward to starting the PGCE in 3 weeks time (eeek!)
I've not read too many recent children's books but I have taken some home from the local library to read over the coming weeks, will keep you posted in the review section!
My favourite adult genres include non-fiction, biographies and chick-lit.
As a teenager, my favourite books included The Babysitters Club collection by Ann M Martin, Sweet Valley High and Little House on the Prairie. Before that, the Ramona collection and anything by Roald Dahl!

I have been working in Children's Services and my last day was on Friday so hopefully I should have some time now to catch up and participate in the forum.
Hope everyone is enjoying their last few weeks of freedom!

See you soon : )

Hi Everyone!

My name is Zaynab and I am 23 years old! I am quite excited about this link to Goodreads where everyone can post comments about the books they enjoy reading! I remember as a child I loved reading! Still do now which I am quite proud about! I remember making my daily trips to my local library at the age of 11 to see what new adventures I could find. Like many others here I also enjoyed Roald Dahl stories. Also Jacqueline Wilson, R.L.Stine Goosebumps Series books, and any other horror,fantasy or adventure book that I could lay my hands on. During my degree of Psychology and Sociology, there were many opportunities to read about child development, human behaviour and how society affects individuals, which I found fascinating! My recent reconnection with childrens books comes from my experience as a Teaching Assistant where I would read books to children in Nursery during carpet time, and in Year 5 was responsible for making sure children were reading everyday! The famous childrens author Anthony Browne visited the school I previously worked in and I remember reading some of his books to the children in Nursery. The children loved it!
Anyway, I look forward to learning more during the PGCE and I hope everyone enjoys the rest of the summer

zaynab :)

Hello Elishia and Zaynab! Thanks for introducing yourselves. I look forward to reading your reviews. I love the Ramona books Ramona the Pest and I am in awe of Anthony Browne's stories and illustrations.

Afternoon everyone!

I'm Beccy and another mature student living in East London.

I did my undergrad. degree in English Lit. at Sussex University, so am stupidly excited about Goodreads as a respository for all of our thoughts on the books that we're reading for the course. I'm really looking forward to reading all of your reviews, as well as writing my own.

In terms of the books that I liked when I was growing up, I think I tended to stick to most of the classics, though was also obsessed with anything that related to boarding schools! At university most of my electives were based around modern, feminist or black literature, though some of my favourite authors are Ernest Hemmingway, John Irving and Philip Roth, who only fit with the first of those three aspects... Still, am looking forward to continuing a varied approach to literature at UEL and with the children in schools.

Look forward to seeing you all in a few weeks.

Beccy

Hi Becky
I loved boarding school books as well as a child! The school story aspect is one that I really enjoy in the Worst Witch and Harry Potter books. I'm looking forward to reading your reviews.

Hi, I'm Sinead and I'm from Donegal in Ireland... Have to admit I'm a bit out of the loop as regards to childrens books but I've spent the morning pulling out all the old classics I could find at the back of my wardrobe.. The BFG is first on my list! I'm a big fan of reading, and will read almost anything. Loved Steig Larsson's Millenium Trilogy.. A friend recommended Jo Nesbo's books as a follow up but I'm finding them hard to get into.. Love everything from Harry Potter, to Marian Keyes, to Michael Connelly..
Look forward to meeting u all and will post some reviews after i visit the Library (In rural Ireland, its an hour away, ha)

Hi Sinead, welcome! Feel free to post some reviews of your old books as a starter! Alison

Hello everyone!

My name is Lucy and I'm from Hornchurch in Essex. I graduated with a degree in French and Italian last summer and have spent the past year working in an Italian team in an Insurance company. I'll be leaving work at the end of next week, so trying to squeeze in a bit of children's literature, alongside the prep for the course! I plan to go through my old books (that's if I can find them up in the attic!). Hopefully, I'll find some of my favourites up there somewhere! I loved Enid Blyton and 'The Famous Five'. 'The Faraway Tree' was another favourite of mine. I was also a big fan of the Goosebumps series and all of Jacqueline Wilson's books.

Right now, I'm reading 'The Lady Elizabeth', by Alison Weir. I enjoy reading historical novels and I'm going through a Tudor phase!

I look forward to meeting you all in a couple of weeks!

Elishia wrote: "Hi everyone,

My name is Elishia. I'm 27 years old and looking forward to starting the PGCE in 3 weeks time (eeek!)
I've not read too many recent children's books but I have taken some home from t..."

The Baby-Sitters Club and Sweet Valley High.... blast from the past! I used to love those books as well. I really feel like re-reading all of these books now!

Hi Lucy, welcome! Revisiting a book you loved as a child can be great, or it can be awful- many books I loved as a child really don't bear re-reading; I re-read a Nancy Drew book recently and cringed! Please feel free to add a couple of reviews of childhood favourites, until you have time to visit your library.

Jon wrote: "Hi,

I'm Jon, I am thirty two and I live in Hackney. As a lad I enjoyed reading books by Roald Dahl, Gillian Cross and Terry Pratchett as well as 'The Chronicals Of Narnia' series as well as comic..."

I adore Terry Pratchett,; have you read his Tiffany Aching books? I'm ariting about them as part of my PhD.

Alison wrote: "Hi Lucy, welcome! Revisiting a book you loved as a child can be great, or it can be awful- many books I loved as a child really don't bear re-reading; I re-read a Nancy Drew book recently and cring..."

Hi Alison! Oh, no! Well, I shall try and will let you know how I get on! I'm sure I'll definitely cringe at some of the books I used to like!

Lucy wrote: "Alison wrote: "Hi Lucy, welcome! Revisiting a book you loved as a child can be great, or it can be awful- many books I loved as a child really don't bear re-reading; I re-read a Nancy Drew book rec..."

Well, some were great to revisit: Susan Cooper's The Dark Is Rising series, Alan Garner and Diana Wynne Jones are definite favourites, so not all bad!

Hello everyone!

I'm Emma and I have enjoyed reading from a very young age. I read plenty of Roald Dahl books as a child and also really enjoyed the Goosebumps series by R.L Stine. I loved the excitement of the Goosebumps series, and remember each chapter ending in suspense.

I have a young daughter who is also currently overwhelmed by Roald Dahl, Lauren Child and Jeff Kinney. I have noticed simularities in the layout of the Lauren Child and Jeff Kinney books that she reads. They tend to have a non-traditional layout with big capitalised words in the middle of sentences and appear quite funky and fun to look at. I plan to give these a read myself over the next few days, and then will post reviews.

I look forward to reading all of your reviews and getting to know you all!

Shoeb wrote: "Hi Everyone,

Thank you Alison for the invite.

I’m Shoeb from East London. Like everyone else I’m very excited and looking forward to starting the PGCE course in September.
I’m 35, married with t..."

Hi Shoeb, welcome! I look forward to reading your reviews. If you liked Road Dahl, I'd suggest Andy Stanton's Mr Gum books.

Emma wrote: "Hello everyone!

I'm Emma and I have enjoyed reading from a very young age. I read plenty of Roald Dahl books as a child and also really enjoyed the Goosebumps series by R.L Stine. I loved the ex..."

Hi Emma, thanks for posting. Jeff Kinney's Wimpy Kid books are incredibly popular at the moment; I'm interested to see what you think of them.

Hi everyone!

Hope your all doing well :)

My name is Sara and I'm 21 from Ilford. Just reading what's been written above really brought back memories of books I loved when I was younger!
I loved reading Roald Dahl books, the Goosebumps series, Babysitters club, Nancy Drew books and of course Jacqueline Wilson books to name a few! Unfortunately I haven't been reading much recently, but I am really excited to get going again, and I think I'm going to start off with reading some of my old time favourites!

Hi everyone,

I'm Mehrin from East London. I’m 23 years old and incredibly excited about starting the PGCE course in a few weeks!

I graduated two years ago so I feel quite nervous and out of practise academically. As an English Literature and Linguistic graduate, I have read a wide range of books outside as well as during my studies. I particularly enjoyed post-colonial literature and poetry- something I became absolutely fascinated by and still harbour an evident love for. Over the years, I have read novels by Joseph Conrad, Alex Wheatle, Chinua Achebe, Earl Lovelace, Frantz Fanon, and lots more which I cannot recollect from the top of my head at the moment. During my recent holiday to Egypt, I completed reading 'The God of Small Things' by Arundhati Roy- an absolutely awesome novel exploring the social, hierarchical complexities existing in India and the 'love laws' which impact our lives in small yet significant ways.

For the last two years I have been temping across many primary schools as a teaching assistant, but settled in a secondary school last autumn up until this summer. I worked mainly with key stage four students and focussed mostly on GCSE English Literature and Language. Seeing the errors students make at that level only strengthened my choice to study a primary PGCE as I believe the strong foundational English skills are the key to future success in the subject. Anyways, I think I've rambled on enough and have provided a mini review of my current favourite book without realising!

To sum up, I feel I need to re-familiarise myself with children's literature, although I have read a few novels with groups of children whilst temping at primary schools. I'm familiar with some of works by Grace Nichols, Jacqueline Wilson, Julia Donaldson, Roald Dahl, and J.K. Rowling so I think I might begin by reviewing one of their books as a means of easing into the process.

I am looking forward to reading more widely in regards to children’s literature and meeting you all.

Hi, Sara and Mehrin, glad to see that you're so enthusiastic about reading widely in children's literature! It's absolutely fine to start with something that you know and then read more widely later. I look forward to reading your reviews.

Welcome, new members; please do say hi!

Hi all,

Steve from South Woodford here, besides the endless amount of children’s books I read with my mother as a child I’m afraid I’m not much of a reader, more of a wait until the movie comes out kind of guy!

Doing maths, physics and D&T at A level then going on to become a chartered Architect left me little time over the last 15 years to fit in much more than (dare I say it) Dan Brown and JK Rowling! (well i didn't want to be a total social outcast!). However, I do like reading and am hoping by becoming fully engrossed in this site and in the course I will help me clock up some more reading miles as it is clearly necessary for our proposed career route! Maybe some of you literature geeks could help me? I’m sure this maths geek could be helpful when the tables are turned? Any recomendations?

I look forward to meeting you all, and glad to see I’m not alone in the '30's club’!

Over and out

Ps I did recently complete the LC Lewis Narnia Series so I’m not a total infidel, please don’t hate me!

Hi Steve, welcome, and thanks for introducing yourself. Check out some of the recommended books on the bookshelf here, but if you enjoyed Harry Potter, I'd recommend Eoin Colfer's Artemis Fowl books, and at the moment I'm reading a brilliant author called Lucinda Hare. Her first book is called The Dragon Whisperer, and it's fabulous.

I'd also recommend Andy Stanton's Mr Gum for Roald Dahl fans- hilariously funny!

Hi everyone! I’m looking forward to meeting you all in September!

My name is Alyona. I’m originally from Russia (Saint-Petersburg), but now live in Basildon (Essex). I love reading but must say I haven’t read a lot recently. When I was a child, I liked Gianni Rodari’s stories, Russian versions of Pinocchio and The Wizard of Oz, and Antoine de Saint-Exupery’s Little Prince. As a teen I loved Jayne Eyre and Somerset Maugham’s novels.

English children’s literature is a completely new world for me and I really enjoy discovering it now!

I’ve taken a huge pile of children’s books from my local library so I hope to post my reviews shortly and to enjoy reading yours!

Now apart from reading English children’s books I love reading Russian poetry (Pushkin, Esenin, Tsvetaeva), QTS books and The Highway Code :).