Ethan: My Top 5 Series

I've been reading quite a few good series recently so I thought I would tell you about some of my favourites. Here is my Top 5.

5. The Robber Hotzenplotz by Otfried Preussler

This is a series of three books from the 1970s by one of my dad's favourite children's authors. They are about a really nasty thief who keeps getting foiled by two young boys. Dad read them to us when I was a bit younger.

They are really funny and a bit crazy.

4. The Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney

These are novels told with added cartoons and I have read each of them in less than a day. They are written like a diary and are about a boy called Greg who is in middle school in America and doesn't really like it. They tell about all the funny things that happen to him.

I like them because they are quick to read and are really amusing. My sister has also read them and downloaded the audiobooks. We both fall asleep to them every night.

There is going to be a movie version later this year.

3. The Demonata by Darren Shan

Nearly every book is about a different character but the person who appears in most of the books is Grubbs Grady. In the first book his sister is actually a werewolf but he doesn't find this out till later on. He gets sent to his aunt's because the rest of his family are going to fight Lord Loss who is a demon master of the Demonata which is the demon realm. The reason that they are fighting him is that there is an antidote to cure his sister.

Once you get half way through the first book I don't recommend that you read it in bed because it's super scary. The reason that I really like this series is because it has humour in the most unlikely places. For example, in the second book a boy called Kernel is making a mirror to another dimension so he and his friends can escape and when he is just about to jump through he flips the demons the finger.

2. I couldn't choose between Changeling by Steve Feasey and Holes by Louis Sachar

Changeling is another horror series and is about a werewolf (yes - another one!). I've reviewed it before on here and I also interviewed the author. I am currently reading book three which is called Blood Wolf. So far I don't think it is quite as good as the other two but it is still brilliant so I'm not complaining.

There are two books by Louis Sachar with some of the same characters. I have reviewed Holes before in the sidebar but recently read Small Steps which is the second. Small Steps is about a boy called Theodore who had a minor part in Holes but is the main character in this one. In Holes he is at a detention centre and has to dig holes every day but in Small Steps he is being paid to dig holes.

I really like Holes because it is written really well and Small Steps is the same.

1. Shadowmagic by John Lenahan

I have already talked about the first Shadowmagic book which is my favourite book in the world (so far). It is really funny but you should read my original review to find out more. The second book doesn't come out till next year but as it is published by my dad I have already read the manuscript on my (yes, my!) Sony Reader (my dad gave me his old one because he's now got a Kindle).

The new one is called Prince of Hazel & Oak and sees Conor returning to Tir Na Nog for an even bigger adventure than last time.

In case you think I am choosing this series because my dad has got something to do with it, I am really not. I promise. I have seen John live doing his magic show and in the Firestation Book Swap. He is really great (seriously) and I like the way he writes really exciting adventures but with lots of jokes. Nearly every chapter ends on a cliffhanger.

Comments

[John Lenahan]

Dear Ethan

Does your Dad have to come back? I think you should take over this blog permanently.

John L

[jem]

Thanks for sharing your favourites Ethan. I loved 'Holes' when I read it and bought it for one of my friends. I think it's got lots for adults to enjoy as well as children, which is the sign of a really good book in my opinion.

[John Lenahan]

I agree about Holes - a cracking choice.

[Sonia]

My daughter has just finished reading Diary of a Wimpy Kid for the second time - and always giggles on the sofa while she's reading :)

[John Lenahan]

Hey Ethan

I'm about half way through Changling by Steve Feasey - your right, it's good stuff.

John L