About the Book and Author
This sci-fi adventure story by Dan Smith for readers aged 8-10 years is dyslexia-friendly and contains graphic novel-style illustrations by Chris King in black and white. It is published by Barrington Stoke who create exciting books designed to inspire reluctant and dyslexic readers to discover the joy of reading for pleasure.
Nancy’s parents are acting weird. Their eyes are blank and they aren’t eating or drinking. Pete and Krish are obsessed with unexplained happenings in their village. The trio start to investigate the mystery and explore a possible to connection between people’s strange behaviour and the local fracking site. The deeper they dig, the darker the story gets as they realise their community is under attack from mysterious foe…
The Invasion of Crooked Oak has an environmental twist to the story too and it is always fun to read a story where the children are more insightful than the adult characters. This a sci-fi adventure story but it is also a book about friendship and communities. Our young reviewer describes it as a fast-paced and thrilling read. It is highly original and its length makes it undaunting for reluctant readers; it is shorter than a lot of middle-grade fiction stories.
Dan Smith is the bestselling author of books for both children and adults. His children’s titles include Mr Friend the Enemy and Boy X have won him the Coventry Inspiration Award, Essex Book Award and nominations for the Bradford Boase Award and Young Quills Award. He lives in Newcastle and you can find out more about his book on his website.
If you would would like to buy a copy of the book we invite you to order it from your local independent book shop.
Or, you can shop on-line and support our Kids Reviews page by sourcing your discounted book via this link
Alternatively, we suggest that you visit your local library and request to borrow a copy from a friendly librarian.
Whichever you choose we hope you enjoy being part of your unique reading community – happy reading everyone!
Book Review
The descriptions and beautiful language really made the story come alive in my head
[This book isn’t what I would normally choose to read, but I really enjoyed this opportunity to read and review it!]
The book is a mystery story about strange occurrences in a town called Crooked Oak. The descriptions and beautiful language really made the story come alive in my head. The style is also simple and easy to read and enjoy.
I would say that this book is a highly enjoyable mystery story, with a thrilling plot. As you begin to discover what is happening in Crooked Oak, the book becomes hard to put down.
I would recommend this book to children aged between eight and ten years, but older or younger children would also enjoy it too. I particularly enjoyed the definite feeling of mystery that was still there at the end of the book.
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Reviewer Profile
- Name: Margaret
- Age: 11 years
- Likes: reading, fossil hunting and writing
- Dislikes: seafood and stir-fry
- Favourite Book: The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
- Favourite Film: Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers
- Favourite Song: Contradicshun by Megson
