Gillian Cross

I have loved this book since primary school, and still love it rereading it in my thirties. Mostly for really self indulgent reasons - a girl hero who is a genius at maths! A story of how a family adapts to having a foster kid turn up! A school where the headmaster can control you with hypnosis and punish you terribly if you misbehave! The bravery of doing the right thing even when you know you and those you love will be hurt for it! I also think it's really nicely crafted - tightly plotted, show more and really page turning. Obviously a book I adore because I read it at just the right time, but I did, and I do. show less

Lloyd and Harry Harvey worry that their new foster-sister Dinah will become one of "them" - the oddly well-behaved children at their school. Children who act in a strangely robotic fashion, and who when asked, will invariably respond "He (the headmaster) is a marvellous man and this is the best school I've ever been to"(31). Their concern seems warranted at first, as Dinah appears to fall into step with the majority. But no one, not Lloyd and Harvey, not their small group of misfit friends, show more and certainly not the headmaster, counted on Dinah's stubborn streak, and it soon emerges that the headmaster is using hypnotism to control the students and teachers. But to what end?

This is an interesting exploration, in school-story format, of the conflict between order and freedom. The headmaster's motto: "The man who can keep order can rule the world," is as succinct an expression of this polar antagonism as the novel achieves. Despite its philosophical underpinnings however, I found that I didn't really enjoy The Demon Headmaster as a story. The characters felt a little flat, and I couldn't work up any sense of excitement or suspense. This may be one of those titles that doesn't translate well for adults. show less

There aren't many novels written about Somalia and targeted toward teens. When Khadija is smuggled into England she goes to live with Abdi and his family. One day a famous fashion designer spots her on the street and wants her as a model. Khadija agrees because her brother has just been kidnapped in Somalia and she needs to pay his ransom.
This is a slow moving story told in three alternating points of view. It is about families and homeland and what you'll do to save them.

I read this in primary school and it's stuck with me ever since; I was delighted a couple of years back to discover there were sequels and even more delighted today to discover my friends' son head-deep reading the original. When he'd finished I got to re-read and was even more delighted to discover that it was just as good (though a much quicker read!) as I remembered.

It was also fascinating to read the "Headmaster is a marvellous man" line which I'd forgotten, and realise I'd written show more something very similar into a short story just a few years ago. Funny how the brain works!

Now, just as the first time I read it, I'm frustrated that Dinah couldn't have just... turned the tape player on and then taken her hand out of her pocket. But other than that the kid characters make a pretty good job of figuring out things to try, and their failures (and successes) are believable. show less