Confusing, elusive, nonsensical, predictable, monotonous.

Bone talk was a very uninteresting book. It took some time to engage with this book. The name of the town,”Bontok” I thought was way too similar to the title of the book.. There were characters in the book which didn’t affect the storyline at all and were no use to the book, but they were still there. It made it really confusing every time the main character, Samkad, said a name. I had to force myself to read it because it took so long to get to the better parts in the book. The book is about this 10 year old boy and his friend Luki. Samkad was supposed to get the cut, to become a man/warrior. But he couldn’t. So his dad risks his life, to help Samkad. The book did have a few good parts. But overall, I didn’t like the book. I give it a 2/5

Bone Talk

By Candy Gourlay

This book instantly made me want to read more of it. I found it very interesting learning more about Samkad’s beliefs. I also liked how the book conveyed emotions. You felt happy when he adopted Chuka, you felt sad when his father left.

The book is about a boy called Samkad who lives in a mountain village. He really wants to become a man and one day the ancients say that the ritual will be done. However, he has a soul brother who must return for him to become a man. His father leaves to get Kinyo, his soul brother. When Kinyo returns he brings news of Americans who are taking over. Soon, the americans arrive and after some gifts everyone accepts them but Samkad doesn’t like them.

Some words to describe it are: adventurous, mysterious, interesting and enjoyable.

The book kind of bored me, as it seemed to go on... however it is a very good insight to tribal traditions which are unlike modern life. It’s cover also didn’t suit it very well, and to me, neither did the title.

Bone Talk is in my opinion a very good insight into tribal life and traditions with a violent undertone arriving in the form of the Americans who are a new thing in the area who are having a war. This leads to the main character learning that the world is not as nice as it seems with great character development which helps to build a realistic environment.

I love the way the writer has shown the Americans in a new light showing what it could have been like for some tribes.

All of the characters are believable making the book very easy to read and also helping the story to accumulate in a good cliff-hanger ending, which makes you want to read more!

I will definitely read the next book in the series.

this book wasn't really my favourite book and the exciting cover didn't reflect the story inside. in my opinion this book was quite boring and even though i am sure there are many people who really enjoy this book, i found myself not reaching for the book as muck as i have for the other books.

The plot is that a young boy called Samkad who wants to be a man and one day he got told he could get 'the cut' but events unfolded before him and he wasn't able to become a man until a strange boy that he didn't even know existed.

the book started quite slowly and by the end i had forgotten nearly everything that had happened earlier in the book because it had all just not sunken in and the plot was a little fuzzy in my head.

altogether it wasn't my favourite but i have read worse books and i think people with different taste will have thoroughly enjoyed this book.

It was an interesting book because it was told from the perspective of the natives and there was some mystery and drama. It was fun to read and I liked it because it was not to easy to read and quite interesting. I would recommend it to people my age an maybe some adults.

I thought the book was excellent as it was so exciting and interesting that I couldn't put it down. I also liked how it didn't have a rushed ending and explained what became of the characters at the end. It would have been nice if Lulu had had a bigger part in the book but apppart from that the book was fine,I would definitely recommend to someone my age.

I hate giving books such low reviews but this book was just so boring. Whilst, yes it gains some excitement from chapter 5 onwards. If i had this book and it wasn't exciting from the start, I'd put it down right awsy.

For a book to be good, you shouldn't have to force yourself to read you should be able to flow between the pages like water but with this book, i just couldn't. The immense boringness just can't be justified by it getting more exciting further on.

To add on, this book just really isn't for me. I do like the idea of it but I personally think it needs more excitement and a little pizazz. However, I am highly confident that there are people who would love this book but it just wasn't for me.

I am not one to judge a book by its cover but it wasn’t a very inviting book cover but some could argue with that.

At first I wasn’t sure if I was going to like it after the 4th chapter I began to like it and when I had done I loved it.

Some books I thought I didn’t like and I thought the same with this but actually I loved it.

I was entranced by this book from its thrilling battles with the mangilli to the disappointment of luki because of her role as a girl. I couldn’t put this book down i would definitely recommend it to 11 to adults !

I really liked the plot of this book. It was about Samkad, a young boy who is ready to become a man and his bestfriend Luki who is disappointed with her role as a girl.

I liked this book because of the exciting adventures and plot twists that happen throughout the story. I felt like these were exciting and made the plot a lot more interesting. This is also what helped me to keep reading as I feel like a lot of this book was quite boring.

What I didnt like about this book was it wasnt the best start and until I got to around chapter 5, I found it hard to pick up as it wasnt a book that I was particularly interested in.

Altogether, it was a good book with a good story but I would have liked it to be a little more interesting at the start.

This book was about Samkad who is becoming a man by getting the cut. This book was good but it didn't suit my type of genre.

It was good, however at first I didn't really like the main character, but grew to tolerate him over time. Also, at one point, a character was angry at his father for lying, but then later he did the same thing, which infuriated me! The ending didn't really make sense and felt a little unresolved. Finally, I felt like the father character existed just so bad things could happen to him.

This book is about a boy called Samakad who want to get 'the cut' so he can prove he is man. I was interested in the tree of dead bones where people went to pray and to ask for things.

Unfortunately this book didn't suit me as it's not the sort of story that I enjoy.

I enjoyed reading bone talk because it is a very good book.

100 years ago there was a boy called Samkad who heard that a new boy was going to arrive in the village and then everything would change.

I enjoyed reading the beginning of Bone Talk because it was interesting but then the excitement tailed off.

this was a well written book that would be very exiting for someone who likes that sort of stuff. Unfortunately i am not into this genre so it wasn't my sort of book however it was a good book.

I think that this is an excellent book as I love the attention to detail with the historical accuracy. I think that reader feels immersed in the book with the level of detail and how all the senses are used, almost making it feel like VR with the vivid imagery and the first-person perspective. One criticism of the first-person writing is that if the main character is in grave danger then you know they must survive unless it is at the very end of the book. Although, many would say that you become so encompassed by the book that the reader does not think of this.

Another strong factor of the book is that the description of the “lowlanders” seems just like anyone who had never seen the outside world would see it, as a strange person in foreign garments of clothing and with different weapons. You really begin to build up a level of intimacy with the other characters, loving the father and hating the Mangili. This, again, adds to the immersion.

Surprisingly good with a great plot - great read!

It was very interesting and informative and told a good story. It was accurate and explained everything from the native’s point of view instead of the American’s, which is nice for a change. It was a great story and I would recommend it.

I like how it sets the scene and then goes into the story. Everything seems to happen at a steady pace except when something important happens. Its interesting to see what they do in that culture.

This book was set for 100 years ago in the Philippines. Its about a young boy named Samkads who is about to become a man. I love this book and this is my favorite so far in this collection. There are some drawbacks but its not massive so its OK.

Thank you for reading see you later!

Bonetalk isn’t a very good, I wasn’t enthusiastic about it, well out of the ones I’ve read so far. It wasn’t as adventurous as memorable as the other books in the competition.

It is about a boy called Samkad who is a boy that wants to be just like is father who is a brave warrior. Samkad also has a good friend called little Luki who is a girl who also wants to be a warrior but can’t because most girls aren’t strong enough to be a true warrior.

A boy turns up though, a lowland boy who can speak many tongues. He tells the two about the life outside of their village and how he lives and what it is like and what you can do there. How you can even change sometimes. Is very complicated for someone like me though.

Samkad lives deep in the Philippine jungle, and has never encountered anyone from outside his own tribe before. He's about to become a man, and while he's desperate to grow up, he's worried that this will take him away from his best friend, Little Luki, who isn't ready for the traditions and ceremonies of being a girl in her tribe.

I personally do not like the book because it is too gruesome. I think it is for a older age.

I found this book very boring and it took a long time to get to the plot of the story. The characters and the setting were unique which was the only good part of the story. I didn't really enjoy the ending either. Overall I think this book is boring and I wouldn't recommend it.

This book was set for 100 years ago in the Philippines. Its about a young boy named Samkads who is about to become a man.Then i would say its a plot twist of how he had a blood brother.His father felt bad and set off to find him.When they do find him they head back to bontok wear some people trick them in doing some work for them.

I really liked it and found it very different to what the front cover makes you think its about.I would defiantly recommend this book.

This book is about a boy named Samkad's rite of passage but just when he is about to become a man his father upsets the spirits. Then when the elders check to see how the elders were upset they found that Samkad had a blood brother. Feeling that he has failed his son, Samkad's father set off on a journey to find his son's blood brother. A little while later Samkad and Little Luki ,his best friend, run into Sam's blood brother, his aunt and a man who claims to be something called an American. When they finnaly get back to their village called Bontok they find a suprise set of guests who trick them into doing their dirty work. This book is a good read but the ending could be better and that is why i rate it a 3 . if you are looking for a book that will take you for a ride through a childs problem filled rite of passage.

This book gives us a taste of what is was like 100 years ago it educates on the culture and religion of the Philippines I think this book was a great idea I enjoyed it but I didn’t love it some things about it I love somethings I absolutely hate I thought this could be improved but overall it was a decent book

I really enjoyed this book. I liked the mysterious feel behind the thought of there being spirit's watching over them and deciding their future. It was also interesting to learn about the facts behind how the American's attacked smaller villages. My favourite character is Luki because I think even though she is a girl it's very cool how she still wanted to help out and be a warrior. Very well written.

I found this book to be an interesting read and I think it does a great job at telling the sad truth of the atrocities committed by the American people in the late 19th Centaury. The protagonists were interesting and fun. My problems with this book stem from the villains, for a form of media with a hero and villain to be good it has to have a relatable villain with clear motives, in this book the villains are quite forgettable and we don't get told the reason for them acting violently towards Samkads' people other than that 'they are evil'. However I did enjoy the narrative and the main characters.

Honestly this is just one of the best books I have read. I have never read a book by a filipino author and now that I have I plan to read more. The book just gets better and better.

I thought this book was different to anything I have ever read before, but in a very good way. It is a lovely book about coming of age and friendships but it wasn’t as simple as that. It includes lots of twists which are very unexpected and I enjoyed the aspect of mystery which surrounds it. My favourite character is Luki and I liked seeing her develop and mature throughout the book. I hope there be a sequel as I can’t wait to read more ?

This book starts off very innocent however it suddenly turns and becomes very real. It shows a young boy turning man trying to understand how people work/nations of people and discovering that the world is not black and white.It is very well written and has history incorporated in it which makes even more real.

It was very gripping and it incorporated history and literature. If you want to learn new information and have a gripping story at the same time, this is made for you!

I enjoyed the way this was written, but I would have enjoyed a more exciting and adventurous plot line.

This book defines the meaning of religion and it gives some kind of feeling to the reader and how it gives a kind of touch in the heart.

Set 100 years ago in the Philippines the story deals with a young boy who is ready to go through the ceremony to become a man and receive his weapons.

Fate intervenes and he discovers so much about himself, his family & friends and his tribe as the story progresses. It is a real coming of age novel.

I found the book to be really interesting, I knew nothing of the history of the Philippines and although the author says she’s had to rely on tenuous historical details I would love to hear more from her.

This book is more than just a book. It's about how humans effect each other from different cultures and religions. It defines the meaning of equality.I loved how I learnt lessons throughout the book. This book was lovely to read.

This book gives a slice of history on subject of conquering land for an empire. I would recommend this book to people who like history but don’t really want to know the real facts, only to know what it was like. I really enjoyed reading this book even though I thought I wouldn’t like it at first as it isn’t really part of the genre I usually read.

What I don’t understand is why the book ended in the way it did because I found it really confusing. It suddenly goes from a lot of action to a happy ending so I think it could have been a bit more less confusing if it wasn’t so sudden.

Overall it is a good book that you should definitely read.

Personally, I felt that this book was not for me, although I loved the way that Candy Gourlay incorporated her culture in to the book. I definitely thought that this book was aimed at older audiences, simply because of the tricky concept to understand. Altogether, I would rate this book 3/5.

this book looked interesting and I thought it didn't live up to my expectation and ended up being not very interesting though the setting was an interesting idea

It is a good book with lots of action and adventure, the characters showed a lot of different personality and the plot told you a lot of history and what Americans did 100 years ago, good book would recommend for people who like action

The book is about a tribe who lived in the Philippines 100 years ago. Samkad has just become a warrior and wants to earn his shield, spear and axe.

I enjoyed it because it was interesting, I didn’t know about the Philippines before. The story is about families protecting each other.

This novel is about a young boy called Samkad and his tribe in Bontok. His tribe lives in the mountains and they are very religious, they would often sacrifice animals to their god Lumawig. One day Samkad was called by the ancients and his Father to the House of Men, the ancients told him he is going to become a man. They received a news that Americans had invaded.

I kind of like this book because I never knew there were tribes in the Philippines before and I didn’t know they could be that religious. But I kind of dislike this book because it really wasn’t by type. Overall it is pretty good.

Really good book but sadly not for me. I love how she used tribal culture as inspiration and enjoyed reading the book but overall I just couldn't get the plot

I think that the book was exhilarating and 10-16 year olds could read it with pleasure(although I personally wish that I had read it sooner.

It is about a young boy called Samkad who simply wants to grow up but when his father kills a snake(a messenger warning them of danger) all hell breaks loose. Can his friend,Luki,and his ancestors save him and will he have to make a few sacrifices along the way.

This is a wonderful story that will touch even the toughest of hearts. As it is from Samkad's perspective it shows how he feels along his journey: loss, fright and regret are just a few of many examples. My favourite character is definitely Luki as she is determined not to be forced to act like a 'lady'when almost The whole village is determined to make her. The only negative thing about it is that it nearly made me cry on more than one occasion.

If there are any of the older children reading this then I would suggest that after reading your books you should definitely try it.

Finally, I would like to say that I wondered how, in such tough times, Samkad and most of his friends and family stuck to their religion.

This book was really got and I could not put it down so I ended up reading it in a day! I really enjoyed it and I think this book is one of the best! I also liked the fact that it was set in the olden days. I felt all the feelings that the characters felt and I also now like the name Samkad!

I didn't enjoy this book to start with but I started to enjoy it from about half way through when the pace quickened.It is a really interesting account of how a sleepy village with it's own rituals and beliefs can have that turned upside down when Westerners arrive. I think it brings up some interesting questions about whether this is right or not? It is based on fact so if you wanted to find out more about this point in history then I would recommend it.

Bone talk is about a boy that’s called Samkad who lives in the a small village in the middle of nowhere. Once you reach a certain age you have to get a cut which makes you become a man. So Samkad really wants to become a man however something really upsetting happens which means Samkad has to wait to become a man.

The story is in first person which creates a good effect because we can see how the character feels and his emotions throughout the book.

Personally I disliked the book because it didn’t have the greatest ending which made me dislike the book. However in the book there is a some really fascinating parts of the book which can make you laugh and be upset. This book is a rollercoaster.

My favourite character was Samkad, purely because of his strength and bravery.

The story was good for my age group because it didn’t have and graphic or scary bits of the book.

Young Samkad is desperate to become a man. His father is a valued and respected warrior within the Bontoc community, and, to Samkad, the epitome of what it means to be a man. If only Samkad could prove to the elders that he too possesses such physical and inner strength. However, when a spiral of events prevents the ceremony that would establish Samkad’s manhood from taking place, the protagonist can only feel rage and bitterness at the injustice. But, with passing time and impending danger, Samkad learns that he must put others before himself, that the security of his culture and people is of far higher importance than his manhood.

This book is thrilling shows the human instinct to protect what is yours really well, it keeps you lurking for more and keeps you on the edge of your seat the whole time. It shows how a strong heart can be put before an iron fist. This book was absolutely thrilling, had the perfect balance of adventure and moral, I think lots of people could learn from this book what it’s like to be a leader, with a good heart, rather than a leader with a lust for blood.

I really liked it as it is more of a fantasy book, I would say though, that if you don’t like adventure and fantasy this book is definitely not for you. Although, you should give it a try because it has a captivating storyline and an important message is written in this book.

I personally really loved Bone Talk! It definitely showed a completely new side of storytelling and different backgrounds which I fell in love with more and more with each turn of a page.

I loved the different characters’ personalities and beliefs; it really pulled the entire story together into one big masterpiece. I really liked the entire new culture introduced which sparked a real interest in me. The book really intrigued me and has definitely inspired me to read more about the history behind the story. It is something I think is worth reading about because it will allow me to understand more of the story as well as gain a deeper understanding of the time period, which would enable me to empathise with the characters and storyline even more.

My favourite character definitely would be Samkad’s father. He really had his personality shown off in 3D. I saw his tough side, loving side, brave side, and ruthless side which really made me empathise with his character. However, every single character had their characteristics presented in such a way where I really understood how they felt at each moment, and could really build a bond with each one. Gourlay’s words simply engulfed me into the world of Bone Talk.

Candy Gourlay’s methods of finishing a chapter were really what kept my head in the book. Each chapter ended so smoothly and perfectly that it made me addicted to turning each page and being swallowed by Gourlay’s majestic words.

This lovely book covers the spiritual rituals, traditions and primitive ways of the tribe living in the Philippines at the time of the American invasion in 1899.

Samdak is a ten-year-old boy who is desperate to become a man and prove to his father that he is ready to be a true warrior. He soon learns the difference between being a boy and being a man when he puts his tribe at risk by putting himself first.

It's a great coming of age story about trust, faith, hope and friendship.

Some parts of the story are a little graphic for younger readers but it's a real eye-opener into the life of the Bontoc tribe.

A great historical adventure!

This book opened my eyes to see life in lots of different ways and to more truly notice different types of religions and cultures, and how humans effect each other. In addition to this, the book shows equality and is packed full of language features, and is crammed full of emotion high and low. I enjoyed the fact of mystery and the unknown in this book. A great book!