Blue Wolf Reviews

Tag: Skull

  • The Valley of Lost Secrets

    The Valley of Lost Secrets

    The Valley of Lost Secrets is a war time children’s adventure set in Wales at the commencement of the British involvement in World War II. Children were evacuated into the country to be safe, but often the trauma that was caused to the children, being separated from their family, the resentment of the villagers and the generally bullying of the children of the Village, was far from a good outcome.

    In her debut novel The Valley of Lost Secrets, Lesley Parr captures the sadness, the unhappiness and the anger that many must have felt as their world was turned upside down.  Jimmy and his young brother Ronnie are evacuated to a small mining Village in Wales where they are cared for by Mr and Mrs Thomas. The Village is so different to London: here it is green and open and the air smells very different. Jimmy finds this disturbing while Ronnie, who is a little bit younger, seems to settle into his new life considerably better.

    Lonely and  feeling very unhappy, trusting no one, Jimmy discovers a skull lodged in a tree which gives him the creeps, but as the days go on and friendships form and break up, Jimmy becomes more and more determined to get to the bottom of the mystery surrounding the skull.

    The more determined he becomes to find out how a skull come to be hidden in a tree, the more danger he places himself and Ronnie in, and it is not until a most terrible event occurs within the town, the truth can finally be discovered.

     Beautifully written with a lovely continuity The Valley Of Lost Secrets is a rich, emotional, well researched story based in history, which provides a depth of authenticity to the canvas of life in a small town and the confrontational changes so many had to learn to manage, children and adults alike, during the long years of World War II.

  • Treasure of the Golden Skull

    Treasure of the Golden Skull

    The combination of a fertile imagination for tales of terror and an artist’s skills, give Chris Priestley’s books massive appeal for young readers. This book is the second told in Maudlin Towers School and shares main characters with the other story in the series, creating a familiar feel. The setting is a boy’s Boarding School, with the characters Mildew and Sponge as the protagonists who are well known for their problem- solving abilities, and their desire to help fight for the cause of good.

    The Principal of the school knows of the boys’ heroic deeds and confides in them that the Governors of the school want it closed down, as it is falling into disrepair. From this point on, the story takes the most remarkable turns. Part of the Principal’s office falls down, and the timbers are covered with barnacles. It is here we learn that there is a connection with pirates and buried treasure that can save the school. However, to find the treasure, one needs to find the map, and as it has been destroyed, the only way that can happen, of course, is by using a time machine.

    With superb humour, delightful characters, such as Sir Brashley Bugle, a military man, and Toothless Dave, the pirate, there is much to chuckle about as the reader follows the story. There are clues to follow of course, but when the Pirates invade the school, and masquerade as teachers, and draw pistols and cutlasses to enforce lessons, the boys realise they must act quickly.

    There are so many interesting side issues here, such as giant eyeballs, werewolves and riddles to be solved, that each page is exciting. Together with the detailed illustrations breaking up the text, and the easy reading of the story, this book has a huge appeal for the independent reader. Lots of fun and laughter in this story.