# data[].attributes.body
It's amazing how reading can influence and shape our personalities and therefore our lives. I know for certain that much of the way I think and feel has been formed through my experiences with books. Stories, novels, treatise's and tracts are adventures of knowledge; they allow us to form relationships with writers who have important insights into life that may not be available to us through other means. These insights may not always be comforting or consoling but, in so far as they express truths which may otherwise remain undiscovered to us, they develop our characters and help us to more effectively deal with the challenges that life presents. This is why I read, and why I recommend you do too. And these are some of my favourite books:

IT
What makes Steven King such a successful writer is not just his ability to scare and shock (though he does that well enough) but his ability to create rich and engaging characters in a realistic world that we can relate to, so that as we  follow their travails over time, we experience intensely their fears, joys and sadness. This story of a supernatural clown who terrorizes a small American town and its inhabitants is one of his best.

Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance
It's not easy to explain Robert Pirsig's book in a few words, but if you are at all interested in philosophy or religion or any of the great ideas in life, it's a story with a lot to offer. It's beautifully written. moving and educational; and it's one of the very few books I have read several times.

# data[].attributes.body
My love of short stories...
I struggle to choose a genre that I stick to and tend to read recommendations, either from friends or family or from magazines or newspapers. I have joined a few book clubs in the past and have always enjoyed discussing a text. It’s so difficult to choose a favourite author or even genre, however for me the best books are ones where you think of the characters for long after you have finished the book and the story is forever stuck in your mind.

Although I rarely choose horror as a genre, I think Stephen King’s ability to create a vivid image is extraordinary.  Several of Stephen King’s books will be forever etched onto my brain! In particular his short story collection, Six Stories, contains several tales that will always scare me. A man realises he is still alive but paralysed as they start his autopsy and a crazed waiter goes on a murderous rampage in a New York City restaurant! Short stories are often my favourite genre within fiction as you can read one within a spare fifteen minutes. Another good short story writer is Shirley Jackson, her book, The Lottery and other stories, has the terrifying The Lottery. We find out what happens if you get a paper with a black circle on it and 'win' the town lottery, but we never find out why it happens.

I think the reason that short stories often stay with you is that short stories by their very nature don’t contain all the information needed by the reader. You are left wondering why an event occurred?  What were the character’s motivations? What drove them to do it? It is this unfinished nature, essentially what is not said that makes them so unforgettable.

Doran

# data[].attributes.body
Hi! I'm agree with Mila. Some books if it's already being adapted into movies might  be more possible for students to read the whole books. Actually I read few English version books, but a lot of translated versions. Some of books are very impressed. Harry Porter and The Chronicles of Narnia are well-known aross the world. So I believe a lot of chinese students have read them which are translated into Chinese before. So it is a good to re-read them in their original version.

This leads me to remember that in my childhood I read a very fantastic series for kids which called WARRIORS. I didn't read the original English version, but I'm still very impressed for its plots. It's really a kind of pleasure to read this series.

It's a story about cats tribles in a jungle. Just in the group of cats, there are conflicts, love, secrets...  It's really good. I love it even though it's a series for children. I don't know how many people know this seires and if they will like these animal fantasy genre books. The reason why I still recommend it  is that it's interesting to keep reading  and the vocabulary won't be very difficult for students to read. Even for those who have read it in their childhood may be happy to re-read it again.

The series are long, so it is okay to read the early plots of them. However, If you are interested in it after you read it, you won't be worry about what to read in a few months.
Rachel

# data[].attributes.body
Hi guys, I am Mila. I am so happy that Jane has the same idea with me. We are both the fans of Harry Potter. It is really a great honor to say that Harry Potter is the first book that lead me to the world of western culture.
Harry Potter can be the representation of fantasy novels, and Jane has already listed clearly about its advantages.
What I want to emphasis is that the interst of novel.
I think it will be great to choose a book which has its movies, products and a lot of fans. Students can read the book and watch the movie to get deeper impression. This may motivate their interest.
But there might be a probelm that many people my have read its Chinese edition.
By the way, <<pride and prejuidice》is fantastic,too.

# data[].attributes.body
Hi everyone, I’m Jane. And I would like to recommend the fantasy novels as materials for reading in English.

What I like about fantasies are the vivid imagination and the way it recreates another world. Every literature work is based on reality. Even the wildest imaginations have to be linked to what the author have experienced before. In fantasies, it’s always fun to relate the stories back to the reality. How people behave the same and how Due to the strong symbol that reappears in the story, it is actually quite interesting to see how those stories creates a stronger bond among the readers. Fans of the same fantasy story are usually pretty good at identifying each other. The symbols are like codes or passwords to the world of the stories.

And another phenomenon I personally conclude about the fantasies nowadays and the teenager readers is that teenagers are actually seeking for recognition through the stories and characters. In the fantasy world we are more likely to find characters with powers we would never have in reality. Take Harry Potter as an example, the fans of this series of stories all dream of being recognized as a wizard or witch so they would be different from other people. The eager to be outstanding and extraordinary is quite common among the teenagers and it may even be considered as part of the features of being in the stage of adolescence.

There mainly two reasons, for which I believe the fantasy story could be a good start for reading in English. First reason is that, like fairy tales for teenagers, some fantasies are not complicated to read. The first book of the Harry Potter series is actually quite simple and so are the Narnia stories. It would be a good start if you can actually finish an English book. It is definitely build up your confidence and you would be willing to find another one. Besides, fantasy series are usually quite hard to quit midway, which means the stories will hook the reader and it is hard not to finish all of them. The second reason is about the vocabulary. Sometimes, the author may create new word to fit their imagination and those words are new to both native speakers and English learners. Bear this in mind while reading will help you reduce the fear for new words. To a language learner, the created words might just be like the other new words that he comes across. And since the meaning of the created words cannot be understood via dictionaries, they have to be inferred through the context. This skill will also help the readers to master new vocabulary in any other readings. Also, the repetition of words is common in those stories in order to help establish the created world, this will also make inferring the meanings easier.

Some recommendations in this genre are: Harry Potter, Narnia, The Hobbits, Percy Jackson series. The Harry Potter series is actually available in school library. Also, in SAC corner there is a bookshelf providing the Graded Reader series, which suits the readers who just start reading in English. But it can also be fun challenging yourself by reading the stories you love in the original version of English. Since you have known the plots and stories, you can skip the difficult words and learn new ones that are repeating in the stories.

# data[].attributes.headline
Jasper Fforde: The Nursery Crime Division

# data[].attributes.subject
Jasper Fforde: The Nursery Crime Division

# data[].attributes.body
Ever wondered why Mummy bear and Daddy Bear slept in separate beds?

Ever pondered over the real reason Goldilocks was in the bear's house that morning?

Ever racked your brains over the thermodynamic impossibilities of simultaneous porridge pouring?

You did? Then hold onto your porridge spoon for:

The Fourth Bear

The Gingerbreadman: psychopath, sadist, genius, convicted murderer and biscuit is loose in the streets of Reading.

A book and writer I love - an hilarious story of Detective Inspector Jack Spratt of the Nurserv Crime Division trying to discover who killed Henrietta 'Goldilocks' Hatchett in the  'SommeWorld' Adventure park:

The story is set in the vibrant colourful Thames Valley metropolis of Reading.
Never laughed harder.
Peter