Book Review

Ink Pellet’s book review section covers an eclectic selection of new fiction, teachers’ guides, audio books and classics.

Many of our reviews are written by teachers, so we have an expert eye on how texts will work in the classroom. We hope to create a useful archive of reviews so that you can use this as a reference.

If you would like to join our panel of reviewers, please join in or email the editor john@inkpellet.co.uk.

We hope the section inspires you to share new fiction with your pupils or to revisit old favorites yourself.

  1. Book Review: AROUND THE WORLD IN EIGHTY DAYS

    Book Review:  AROUND THE WORLD IN EIGHTY DAYS  

    by Jules Verne Publisher CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform Around the World in Eighty Days is an amazing novella written by Jules Verne. The story is about Phileas Fogg – a first class Victorian man, journeying around the world with his Parisian servant. I believe the storyline is well written and one of the best I […]

  2. Book Review: ALL CHANGE PLEASE: A PRACTICAL GUIDE TO ACHIEVING GENDER EQUALITY IN THEATRE

    Book Review: ALL CHANGE PLEASE: A PRACTICAL GUIDE TO ACHIEVING GENDER EQUALITY IN THEATRE  

    by Lucy Kerbel Published by Nick Hern Books Over the years, the theatre industry has often come in for criticism for its male gender bias. And while gender equality has improved in society over the last decade, Lucy Kerbel, founder and director at Tonic Theatre, and author of 100 great plays for women, suggests that […]

  3. Book Review: The Story of Be

    Book Review: The Story of Be  

    by David Crystal Published by Oxford The verb ‘to be’ is the commonest in any language. That’s why it is invariably irregular: I am, you are, he is or je suis, tu es, il est and so on. This intriguing book, smilingly subtitled “A verb’s eye view of the English Language” examines said verb and […]

  4. Book Review: A Dangerous Crossing

    Book Review: A Dangerous Crossing  

    by Jane Mitchell Published by Little Island, 2017 Endorsed by Amnesty International, this is – effectively – docu-fiction. Everthing in it is based on the sorts of horrifying experiences Syrian families are dealing with every day. It’s graphic beautiully imagined and works as fiction without feeling remotely “worthy”. Ghalib and his family leave their home […]

  5. Book Review: The Voice Exercise Book

    Book Review: The Voice Exercise Book  

    by Jeannette Nelson Published by National Theatre Voice is to an actor what legs are to an Olympic runner – an essential, indispensable work tool. So if you use your voice to earn your living as actors do then you need to look after it and this book coaches the reader through how to do […]

  6. Book Review: Stargazing for Beginners

    Book Review: Stargazing for Beginners  

    by Jenny McLachlan Published by Bloomsbury 2017 Meg is a self-confessed geek. She loves astronomy, is academically and scientifically very bright and knowledgeable. She wants to be an astronaut – and probably will be. She is also a teenager, mortified by the low level bullying she tolerates at school but imperceptibly developing feelings she doesn’t […]

  7. Book Review: Three Plays

    Book Review: Three Plays  

    by Robert Alan Evans Published by Samuel French Three short, experimental and heat-warming plays are tucked into this tome that could be used by both drama and English teachers, as well as youth theatre groups. Very different in content and tone, each one appeals to experiences that will be familiar to young audiences. Pondlife, created […]

  8. Book Review: Illuminae: The Illuminae files #1

    Book Review: Illuminae: The Illuminae files #1  

    by Amie Kaufman & Jay Kristoff Published by Oneworld Publications   This morning, Kady thought breaking up with Ezra was the hardest thing she’d have to do. This afternoon, her planet was invaded. The year is 2575, and two rival mega-corporations are at war over a planet that’s little more than an ice-covered speck at […]

  9. Book Review: The Story of Drama: Tragedy, Comedy and Sacrifice from the Greeks to the Present

    Book Review: The Story of Drama: Tragedy, Comedy and Sacrifice from the Greeks to the Present  

    by Gary Day Bloomsbury Methuen Drama So how did it all begin? It’s easy to forget, when you’re sitting in the National Theatre absorbed in, say, the current Christmas show, Peter Pan with all its technical smoothness, that drama as a genre is constantly changing and involving. It has a long history and key periods […]

  10. Book Review: Drama Games for Young Children & Drama Games for Rehearsals

    Book Review: Drama Games for Young Children & Drama Games for Rehearsals  

    by Katherine Zachest Drama Games for Rehearsals by Jessica Swale Nick Hern Books A couple of new additions to the bestselling Drama Games series from NHB landed in our office. These dip-in, flick-through, quick-fire books would make an excellent addition to the resources at your disposal – whether you are working with young children or […]