Teodora's Blog

The Apley Towers collection by Myra King is back with three new stories from the lives of the Lost Kodas. The four girls are constantly on the road to success, and they also make sure they always support each other and have fun even during their most difficult times. The fourth book of the series, Restless Warrior , talks about some of the girls’ typical teenage problems. Angela goes through two unexpected experiences. She is being interviewed for the first time by an animal magazine, Pet Talk , and finds out what it’s like to have a secret admirer and to randomly come across his surprise gifts. Meanwhile Kaela is jealous of Trixie for having her own horse and worried that her mother, Felicity, might end up being replaced by someone else. As for her love life, she knows she has a special connection with Bart Oberon, but she’s not sure whether they’ll end up together one day. Finally, Trixie finds herself in the same situation as a character from her favorite TV show, The Wild Ho...

Undoubtedly newly bought toys are awesome. Once they become part of your life, you create an exciting story with them. But what about old toys? From my point of view, they’re even better because they carry some memories they are ready to share with you! If you don’t believe me, just take a closer look at these shabby toys you randomly come across at car boot sales. You may notice the scruffy fur or maybe even some scratches. The older the toy is, the more interesting its story could be… While reading The Diaries of Robin’s Toys , I had countless throwbacks from my childhood and remembered my own experience with toys. These ten books of the collection feature a boy called Robin who goes to a car boot sale with his grandfather every Sunday. The boy is a sweet character. He is a great listener and he does anything he can to make other people smile. His weekly jaunts are just the beginning of a remarkable adventure. As soon as Grandad buys a toy and uses his special powers to wake it u...

At one point in our life everybody needs to read some of Shakespeare’s most famous and greatest plays. His original stories, though, can sometimes be difficult to be understood by young readers especially. But recently I’ve come across a delightful selection of 20 plays by Shakespeare, which is exactly what children of all ages need. The collection includes the following plays: A Midsummer Night’s Dream , All’s Well That Ends Well , Antony and Cleopatra , As You Like It , Cymbeline , Hamlet , Julius Caesar , King Lear , Much Ado About Nothing , Othello , Romeo and Juliet , The Comedy of Errors , The Merchant of Venice , The Taming of the Shrew , The Tempest , The Tragedy of Macbeth , The Two Gentlemen of Verona , The Winter’s Tale , Timon of Athens and Twelfth Night . Each book has a short summary on the back cover, which is really useful because children can find out what the plot is about. At the beginning of every single play, the main characters are shortly described, giving t...

I’m going to start off by saying that Apley Towers is a brilliantly satisfying collection of books about the importance of life and friendship. Some people might think that these books are only about horses or riding lessons. It’s true that the action takes place at Apley Towers, a riding school in South Africa, but in my opinion, the setting doesn’t matter that much. Each story brings out a different situation that can happen to anyone, anywhere. Apley Towers is born when Wendy Oberon, an ordinary English woman, moves from England to South Africa to accomplish her dream of setting up her own riding school: “ She could see it as though it already existed: a paddock for grazing, three riding rings, a tack room and, in the distance, her own little house nestled amongst the giant oak trees. It would be her own little paradise, concealed from the world. She could imagine life and laughter in this place. She could imagine a second chance at happiness. ” (page 6, fragment from the p...

I’ve always wondered what it’s like to have a twin brother or sister. Is it unusual to live with someone who looks just like you? Do you get along with your twin or do you end up having a lot of fights? Is it the same as having a younger or an older sibling? All these questions have remained unanswered until I read the Totally Twins Collection and entered the exciting world of Persephone Pinchgut, a 10-year-old girl who knows exactly what it’s like to share the same adventures with another version of herself. The reason why Persephone starts to write a secret diary is because she needs to hide her personal thoughts from Portia, her twin sister. Persephone and Portia are two interesting characters. They’re named after the Goddess of the Underworld (Persephone) and the heroine of The Merchant of Venice , one of Shakespeare’s plays (Portia). They have the same sunshine-and-honey hair with soft curls at the back, the same crystal-green cat’s eyes and the same pointy elbows and skinny ...

Over the last couple of years I’ve grown fond of acting. My mother has a friend who is an actress, so whenever there is a new play coming out at the theatre, I’m definitely not missing it. Once the play starts, all the actors and actresses enter a whole different world where they have other names, newly shaped personalities and interesting background stories. It’s quite magical really. And it’s even more exciting if they take part in more than just one play. It’s like they’re living multiple lives. Who wouldn’t want to experience something as fascinating as this? I haven’t heard of Noel Streatfeild until I found some of her books in a bookshop. Ballet Shoes , Circus Shoes , Tennis Shoes and Theatre Shoes , they were all standing on the bookshelf next to each other. I didn’t know which book was the first one in the series, so I decided to start off with Theatre Shoes , the one who actually caught my attention in the first place. The story is about three siblings, Sorrel, Mark and ...

If you had the chance to create anything you wanted with the help of a special box, what would you pick? There are countless possibilities and the only limit is your imagination… Timothy Hart, the main character of the story, lives in Glassbridge (“a quaint city full of history, complete with old buildings, wonky roofs, cobblestone streets, rusted iron railings and statues of people on horseback”), in the Dawn Star Hotel, which is owned by his adoptive parents, Chris and Elisa Green. Elisa is always busy with the hotel, being constantly anxious about money and not having enough time to pay attention to Tim’s “nonsense” (and by nonsense, she means everything Tim says or does). Chris is working for an internet company, so he spends most of his time away on business, selling and buying all sorts of things. Tim has to make his own fun, but this doesn’t seem to bother him at all. In fact he prefers his own company. His favorite hobby, drawing, is the perfect getaway from reality: “Paper...

As I’m a big fan of cookery competitions, “Recipe for Love” instantly caught my attention and made me turn the pages with both excitement and fear. While reading about Zoe Harper’s intense journey in the culinary world, it felt like I was watching a real cooking show. Zoe, the heroine of the story, has won a place in a well-known televised cookery competition and now she is ready to put her cooking skills to the test and make a good impression. She travels to Somerby, a beautiful, old mansion where the contestants and the judges are supposed to stay during the filming. The house belongs to a married couple, Fenella and Rupert Gainsborough, who gradually become good friends with Zoe. In the beginning, the contestant is exploring the Somerby’s surroundings, trying to relax and enjoy some time alone: “Zoe Harper lay on the bank in the sun with her eyes closed, listening to a lark high above her. Nearer her ear she could hear the crackling of the grass and the buzzing of insects. The ...

Reality can be tough sometimes… and no one knows it better than Joe Holt, the main character of the story. The 13-year-old boy lives in London, in a Peckham flat, with his mom and her boyfriend, Dean, who swears a lot and ends up drunk every day. Predictably, Joe shows to the readers indirectly that he doesn’t like Dean at all: “ I’m not your son , I think. And it’s not up to you, it’s up to Mum .” (page 4) The story begins on a cheerful note because the boy is relieved that he won’t be seeing Perry Fletcher, the biggest bully at school, for a whole week. The upcoming “holiday” turns out to be even more interesting when Joe’s mom announces that she’s flying to Spain with Dean. Since they can’t afford too much and Dean is busy with “a little job”, Joe is left home and he is told to stay out of sight and trouble, so nobody can ask too many questions. Joe is feeling positive about the holiday and tries to make the most of it, having a Mars bar and a packet of Hula Hoops for breakfast...

Stagiunea curenta a Teatrului National a inceput cu piesa Schimbarea. Pentru mine a fost un eveniment cu atat mai important cu cat in aceasta piesa joaca si sora mea, Miriam. Actiunea piesei are loc in Europa de Est, unde sistemul judiciar este foarte strict si complet diferit fata de cel din Vest. Nu exista justitie sau procese, prin urmare oamenii considerati vinovati de catre sistem n-au dreptul sa se apere. Acestia sunt torturati si executati. Piesa incepe cu discutia dintre Condamnat (Ada Lupu) si Soldat (Doru Aftanasiu). Condamnatul refuza sa raspunda la intrebarea referitoare la motivul pentru care se afla la inchisoare. Cei doi vorbesc despre diverse stiri de actualitate si politica. In curand isi face aparitia si Sotia Condamnatului (Pusa Darie). Atmosfera sumbra de pana acum dispare, fiind inlocuita de momente umoristice (bataia dintre Sotie si Soldat, dialogul acestora). Intre timp, un ofiter responsabil de executii (Constantin Puscasu) prezinta masina de ...

The title might remind you of “Gulliver’s Travels” by Jonathan Swift. These two stories have a few things in common. However, “Lilliput” is about Lily, a tiny Lilliputian girl, who goes on a big adventure. Gulliver’s unusual travels have proven to be only bedtime stories for children... until one day. The giant returns to Lilliput, finds Lily on the beach and takes her back to his house in London. The little girl hates Gulliver and all the other giants (or yahoos , as she calls them). She tries to escape a lot of times, but none of her plans work. Escape Plan Thirty-Three works a whole lot better than the others, though, as Lily manages to get out of a birdcage and fly away from Gulliver’s attic, using two bird feathers. The Lilliputian is finally free... But, unfortunately, her happiness doesn’t last for too long: “Gulliver saw his chance. With a desperate lunge he launched himself half out of the window. (...) Before Lily could wriggle free of the knots that tied her to the ...

Have you ever had the chance to experience a whole afternoon in an authentic arcade? If not, then this brand new movie, “Pixels”, will give you the possibility to discover an incredible pixelated world and take part in one of the greatest battles in the history. The film was released this year, on the 24th of July, and it is directed by Chris Columbus. The story begins in the summer of 1982. Two friends, Sam Brenner and Will Cooper, go to a new opened arcade. Even though he’s never played an arcade game before, Brenner turns out to be an excellent player. His brilliant technique and his high scores book him a place in an arcade world championship. At the event the two buddies find out that a time capsule will be launched into space (containing elements of the present culture). Brenner and Cooper also make a new friend, Ludlow Lamonsoff, an intelligent boy who happens to have a crush on Lady Lisa, the main character of the game called Dojo Quest . Brenner manages to get through eve...