WELCOME TO OUR
Termly Newsletter
The winter holidays are a great time to get cosy under a blanket with a hot chocolate and a good book. Check out some of the new ones in the library on page 4
We have had a great time in book club discussing Friends and Traitors or Apocalypse Cow. Sign up for next term when we will be reading the Spark Award shortlist. Last year’s books were fantastic.
I am really excited to read Tilly’s (our library rep) interview with Ms Orr on p4
Have a restful holiday. Miss Pearce
P2. LOOKING BACK - THE LRC IN OCTOBER/ NOVEMBER
P3. LOOKING FORWARD - THE LRC IN DECEMBER/JANUARY
P4 TILLY DOWNIE INTERVIEWS... - MS ORR
P5. NEW ARRIVALS
P6. BOOK CLUB & “WHAT WE READ”
Looking Back - The LRC in Oct/Nov
The LEH Book Awards 2024 -presented by L/U4 Book Club
This year the L/U4 Book Group had the wonderful idea of hosting the LEH Annual Book Awards.
The students designed the categories and worked together to pick a top three to be voted on by the student body and staff.
The results of the vote will be announced in the final week of term featuring rosettes made by the book group from recycled book pages
Huge thanks to the Book Club for putting in a tremendous effort and looking for ways to make sure all students and staff were able to celebrate the books they have read this year
If you’d like to vote, pop down to the LRC and get your stickers!
Book Review Winners!
Thank you to everyone who used Accessit to fill in a review this term.
We have loved reading what you though of the books, and they are helping other students find great books to read too so keep them coming!
The winners of our review competition (picked at random) are...
Reader’sReview
AmariandtheNightBrothers AmariandtheNightBrothers
byBB Alston
“My personal fav book with an unseen twist at the end. Would defo recommend to people who like magic, fantasy and adventure.”
CreativeWritingClub
The creative writing club is back stronger than ever Students from 3rds to L5 have been exploring how Christmas is celebrated in different countries and cultures. As the air continues to get crisper and Christmas trees slowly start getting decorated, we begin to focus on our favourite Christmas memories and have either produced a poem or a short story inspired by them. We have also spent a lot of time rebranding the creative writing magazine, once known as 'The Fable' and is now known as 'The Chapters.'
The first edition of the magazine will be launched the week of the 4th of December and will be a platform for students to share their creative writing to the rest of the school.
Phoebe (3L) & Charli (L4L)
Spark! School Book Awards
-launching in January 2025
Spark! is an award that looks to get everyone excited about books.
The shortlist of 4 books is announced in January and then it is up to participating schools to pick the winner of the award.
The YA category began last year, and here at LEH we encouraged all 3rds and L4s to get involved and read the books.
There are also two competitions to take part in The poetry competition where you do not have to have read the books and then the creative response competition.
In book club we will be reading and discussing all 4 books an in June anyone who has read any of the books has the opportunity to vote for the book we would like to win.
Last years winner was This Book Kills by Ravena Guron, one of our most borrowed books, so hopefully the shortlist will provide something equally enthralling to sink your teeth into
Coming in 2025!
BookClub
Next term will see the start of a new book for our 3rds and L/U4 book clubs. Please sign up on socs and come along if you’d like to be involved in book-games, bookcrafts and book-discussions!
Next terms books:
Reviews of this terms books can be found on page 5.
Tilly Downie Interviews...
Tilly Downie is the ‘24-’25 Library Rep.
Each newsletter Tilly interviews a different member of staff to share with us more about their relationship with books
Tilly is studying French, History, Latin and Maths and she enjoys reading fantasy, historical fiction and mystery.
New in the Library
Ms Orr Maths Department
What was your favourite book whilst growing up?
My favourite book growing up was The Swish of the Curtain by Pamela Brown It was written in the early to mid 1900s and is about group of children who set up their own theatre company. I really like how Brown shows the children transitioning from being children to being adults and gaining autonomy, whilst having fun The book has a similar feel to The Famous Five
Which genres of book are your favourite?
Fantasy, sci-fi and romance. I like to read books aimed at young adults as I think that the characters and storylines of these books can be more interesting than in most books aimed at adults I enjoy seeing writers of these books introduce elements of fantasy such as magic and vampires and seeing what remains similar to our world and what is different when these elements are introduced, particularly in dystopian novels!
Do you like to read multiple books at a time or just focus on one?
When reading purely fiction, I prefer to concentrate on only one book at a time. However, when I’m reading a non-fiction book, I like to read a fiction book alongside it as I find it helps to keep me motivated to read the nonfiction book
Which character has inspired you?
Vanyel from the Valdemar series by Mercedes Lackey Later in the series Vanyel becomes a powerful herald-mage (someone with magic who works for the monarch) and at this time he goes through a tremendous amount of trauma, bouts of loneliness and grief, and must navigate these challenges whilst discovering more about himself in the process. He was one of the first gay characters I read about, but his character is not centred around his sexuality One criticism I do have about Lackey's
writing (across her novels) is that many of the complex female characters in her books are subjected to sexual abuse However, I do think that her books mostly cover sensitive topics really well and for this, and the world’s she creates, she is one of my favourite authors
BookClub
3rds L&U4
Friends and Traitors
This book was liked but not loved. We agreed it is not a book that is going to be remembered.
Apocalypse Cow
The book club had mixed feelings on this book (which led to some wonderful discussion). But overall it was agreed that if you like funny, weird apocalyptic stories (that are actually about love) then this could be for you
Skandar and the Skeleton Curse
As Skandar and his friends begin their fourth year at the Eyrie, the Island’s unicorns are struck by a terrible curse that threatens to change everything. Between a Commodore determined to eliminate the spirit element for good, and a sister hellbent on revenge, nowhere is safe for Skandar
Reviewed by Ms Pearce
The Skandar series is an action packed set of novels where our main character, Skandar Smith, sets off to be a unicorn rider and lots of magic and adventures follow. Within each book the stakes seem to grow making this a very exciting book. However this is balanced out with the great friendship shown through Skandar’s quartet. This book ends with an interesting twist.
Memoirs of a Teenage Amnesiac
After an accident that leaves her with partial amnesia, Naomi tries to piece together the fragments of the last three-and-a-half years of her life But this also presents a chance to reinvent herself After all, who is to sa everything has to stay the same?
Reviewed by Ms Hensman
This is an interesting look at the contrast of identity vs the freedom to evolve as an individual.
As Naomi is re-introduced to her different relationships, we see the challenges she faces as she’s expected to act a certain way but doesn’t always relate to the person she’s told she was.
I didn’t personally find the resolution satisfying and there were aspects of memory loss that were (ironically) missing from the story. I think more memory loss, less romance would have made this a more unique concept.
