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It's written as a verse novel — each chapter is a short non-rhyming poem — but this isn't the boring, difficult poetry you have to study at school: The poems are written from many characters' points of view - the cool kid, the funny kid, the bullied kid, the teacher, the janitor and even the police off Pookie Aleera is Not My Boyfriend is a charming and delightful little book about a group of school-kids living in a small rural Australian town. The poems are written from many characters' points of view - the cool kid, the funny kid, the bullied kid, the teacher, the janitor and even the police officer who visits the class to give a few speeches about safety.
It's easy to find a character to relate to, although are all pretty endearing.
Rural Australian life isn't always the most glamorous of topics, so I think it's great that Pookie Aleera is Not My Boyfriend shows that country life can be, well, pretty awesome. It could help build connections with a sometimes overlooked group of people. I also like the way the author shows what it's like to be bullied without lecturing the reader — he just gives each student a voice and encourages us to put ourselves in their shoes for a little while. Still, the reason why I loved this book so much was because it legitimately made me laugh, and it gave me all kinds of warm, nostalgic feelings about the things I got up to when I was a kid.
Feb 25, Gaby rated it really liked it Shelves: This was a great book. One that I think will appeal to any child as it is from the point of view of multiple students and a groundskeeper. In a world of Dear Dumb Diary Let's Pretend This Never Happened and other tween novels that often show the unkind nature of young children and teachers Herrick's book is delightful.
It is positive, but shows the kids having fun. They joke along This was a great book. They joke along with the teacher - not at her expense. Brothers Mike and Jacob like and support each other. This books also gives some insight into living in country Australia. Jun 19, Anthony Dalton rated it really liked it. Despite being a children's novel, I read for the 'children's literature' component of my university course, I really enjoyed this.
Written in verse form from the perspective of half a dozen or so kids and a couple of adults, the alternating narrative allows for insight into life within the schoolyard and the fringes of society of a small rural Australian community. Often laugh out loud funny, interspersed with moments of poignancy, this novel possesses an understated depth that is so often lacki Despite being a children's novel, I read for the 'children's literature' component of my university course, I really enjoyed this.
Often laugh out loud funny, interspersed with moments of poignancy, this novel possesses an understated depth that is so often lacking in much of today's supposed adult literature.
Aug 15, Holly Stanton-gillan rated it it was amazing. This is a very beautiful verse novel that uses simple language features to address the complexities of being in Year Six. It touches on elements of kindness, friendship, families, grief, joy and growing up! A worthwhile read for a teacher, a relevant read for a child and an enjoyable read for everybody. You will not put it down! Read it in about 3 hours. Dec 03, EllanReads rated it it was amazing.
Such a cute book. It really takes me back to being a child at school, I was smiling and 'aww-ing' all the way through. Children are such innocent creatures. Jul 27, Sarah Fairbairn rated it it was amazing.
Super cute story with a beautiful message behind it. A joy to read. Sep 27, Mary rated it it was amazing Shelves: This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. I love this book. Especially when I didn't even expect to like it. And it's surprising because I didn't even expect to like it.
In fact, I've never even heard of a verse novel until I read this book and I probably would never learn about it if university had not prescribed this book to me as required reading. At first, I was unenthusiastic about the compulsory reading, but since I had no choice well, I do, but I'd rather not fail just because I was too lazy to read, thanks I sucked up whatever complaint I had churning inside of me and opened the book to the first page. Literally the best decision ever.
I'd like to talk about the quality of the poems in the novel, but since I've no experience in what makes a technically good poem, I'd go straight to the characters, which the main thing that made the novel so successful to me. Now, I'm mostly a prose person. Poetry scares me because of my inability to write it—I think poetry has this ability to convey an infinite number of things by saying so little and I can't do that, so I stick with prose, where I can explain myself better. So unless coerced to, I wouldn't even touch poetry with a ten-foot pole.
Because of this, I was a bit skeptical on the connection I could have with the novel. I'm already biased against it and my only saving grace was the fact that since the novel's all poetry, I could get it over with quickly. But Pookie Aleera is pure magic. Pookie Aleera definitely conveys an infinite number of things by saying so little and it definitely stole my heart. There were no blocks of text for exposition or descriptions; no paragraphs for explanations and back stories.
There are just the characters and what they feel and their own stories. And it works in the most wonderful way.
The characters are the main driving force of the novel and they carried it all the way to the last page, leaving me to want more. They are sympathetic and they are easy to relate to. My heart ached for Pete when he talked about his grandfather's death. I was devastated about Mr Korsky's grief about his friend, and I thought that Mick's absolutely adorable.
His best friend is Goose, Captain of the local soccer team, until soccer crazed Jessica Bowles moves i Tom Jones Saves Th So I ride around in circles, Like a circus animal.
A prison for kids. Jayden Hayden, wordsmith, a. When a school father-son day is Are toenails a good source of vitamen C? What are ten things you will never hear your parents say? And, more importantly, how do you untangle spaghetti? A collection of humorous, touching and thought A special reissue of a bestselling and award-winning Australian classic from popular author Steven Herrick.
A new, laugh-out-loud novel from award-winning author Steven Herrick. There's shy and lonely Laura who hopes to finally fit in with a circle of friends, while Pete struggles to deal with his grandpa's sudden death. Popular Selina obsesses over class comedian Cameron, while Cameron obsesses over Anzac biscuits and Pookie Aleera - whoever that is! For new teacher Ms Arthur, it's another world, but for Mr Korsky, the school groundskeeper, he's seen it all before. Read more Read less. Our favorite toys for everyone on your list Top Kid Picks.
Kindle Cloud Reader Read instantly in your browser. At school his favourite subject was soccer, and he dreamed of football glory while he worked at various jobs, including fruit picking. For the past twenty years he's been a full-time writer of books for children and teenagers, and he visits many schools each year both in Australia and overseas. Steven lives in the Blue Mountains with his wife, Cathie. They have two adult sons, Jack and Joe. Product details File Size: August 1, Sold by: Share your thoughts with other customers.
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There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Learn more about Amazon Giveaway. What each of the characters talk about are so unique to them that I don't need anything beyond they're telling me. Top Reviews Most recent Top Reviews. Get fast, free shipping with Amazon Prime. Our favorite toys for everyone on your list Top Kid Picks. I just wish I had a class to share this with as it calls to be read out loud!