There was a great turnout of 8 Middle School pupils – Jeanne, Pablo, Lucy, Freya, Esme, Emily, Maddie and Emma – earlier this week to discuss Cody T. Luff’s bleak debut novel Ration.

Although we also read tried and tested classics, the group particularly enjoy tackling books which are brand new and are just beginning to make waves in the literary world. Despite the group finding Ration to be unrelentingly grim (it is set in a future world crippled by food shortages), they found it to be a powerful read and enjoyed the vagueness of how the broken society operated. Towards the last ten minutes of the meeting, a surprise guest in the form of Mr Markus Jaigirder, Chair of Governors, arrived and listened to the discussion.

Our next book is another 2019 release and a particularly strange one: Starve Acre by Jonathan Buckley has been published twice this year, with two different authors quoted as being responsible for writing the novel. The group have been tasked with unravelling the mystery, as well as reading the book.

Any pupils from Year 9 and above are welcome to attend the group. We read one book every half-term and the discussion on Starve Acre will be just before February half-term.

Mr Jones (Senior Librarian and Archivist)

'Starve Acre' has been credited to two different authors.