The Suitcase Kid by Jacqueline Wilson
Tags: Girls, Y5, Y6
Date: 11th January, 2010
Now, I know this looks like a book for girls, but it isn’t. Not just for girls anyway. I read it to the whole class last year and everyone loved it. And the girls brought in their own copy and read along as well!
Some teachers don’t like Jacqueline Wilson’s writing style, which is really chatty. I think that as I long as you learn when a chatty writing style is okay, and when it isn’t, why shouldn’t you sometimes write like Jacqueline Wilson! You could do a lot worse!
Anyway, I’d heard The Suitcase Kid was a really good read and that it dealt with an issue a lot of children face nowadays: parents getting divorced. The story centres on ten-year-old Andy, whose parents have split up and moved in with other people. No longer living in her idyllic Mulberry Cottage, Andy now lives out of her suitcase – one week with Mum’s new family and the next week with Dad’s.
It’s a lovely story which deals with a lot of the emotions and troubles experienced by children whose parents are separated or separating.
I’d recommend this to any child in Y5 or Y6. Although I can’t see many boys reading it (the publishers changing the cover, might help), I would encourage them to do so if experiencing problems at home, and all girls will probably like it. I think it is a great book to read to a class. For children, I think Y5/Y6 would be the ideal age and girls, in particular. Strong readers in Y4 might also enjoy it.
