Crossover: age groups 6–10 and 11–13

The Great Sea Dragon Discovery by Pippa Goodhart was the 2019 winner in the Young Quills 11–13 years category. 
Find out more about the winning entries here

Parandeep’s review (Primary)
What happens? Did you find the plot interesting? Are there any plot twists?
A boy called Bill is bullied by a newcomer who he later discovers to be his cousin, but the big twist comes when his mum, nor is his dad. He finds out he is a Smith and twins with his cousin Alf, who go on to be best friends.

Who are the main characters?
Alf and Bill.

Who was your favourite character? Why?
My favourite is Bill because he has so much going on in his head with the baby, his Mum being ill, and his Dad losing his job, and still he finds a solution.

Did you like the book? What was your favourite part, and why?
It was amazing when Bill finds out his is twins with his former arch-enemy and I loved it when Bill was fighting to get out of the trench and he accidentally finds “Croccy”.

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?
Yes, especially ones who love a huge sudden twist at the end which changes the perspective of the book.

Star rating ★★★★★

Kiran’s review
What happens? Did you find the plot interesting? Are there any plot twists?
Bill Ellwood goes digging for fossils against his mother’s wishes. There are lots of plot twists, like, what was it they needed? His mum and dad didn’t get angry with Bill after he found the sea dragon and made the money. I enjoyed the plot very much.

Who are the main characters?
The main characters are Bill Ellwood, his dad, and his friend Alf.

Did you like the book? What was your favourite part, and why?
I enjoyed reading this book because of the use of detail and the way it was written. My favourite part was when Bill found the sea dragon because it helped them make their lives different and it proved that he could do something right.

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?
I would recommend this book to a year 6 reader because of the use of language and detail.

Star rating ★★★★★

Claudia F’s review
I liked Aunty Lil because she was very kind. I didn’t like the mother because she was annoying. I learnt about burial sites from the past. It was an interesting time period because it shows country poverty. It was quite realistic. The plot was exciting and interesting. The determination of Bill to make things right stands out. I might recommend it.

Star rating ★★★★

Rhea J-P’s review
My favourite character is Alf because he was kind and caring, but you can also understand why he does what he does when he does it. I didn’t like the owner of the flower fields because he was a bit irrational and doesn’t really care about his workers. I didn’t learn anything new about the past in this because I didn’t know when it was set. I enjoyed the plot because it was exciting and engaging. I enjoyed the book and would recommend it.

Star rating ★★★★★

Ronnie’s review
The plot in one sentence: The Great Sea Dragon Discovery is about a boy called Billy finding a sea dragon.

Yes, it is a good read and it has good historical content and factual information. History is a proper part of the story and it inspires people to find out more about the period and people. The best thing I learned from it is that fossils are very rare to find.

Brett’s review
I found this book very interesting, and would rate it a solid 9/10. My favourite character would be Alf because of his hysterical personality. I really didn’t like Mr. O’Brien because of his how he tried to condescend Bill and Alf. I have learned that there actually was understanding of Pangea in the 1800s, which actually surprised me. The time it was set made it interesting for me because I really like 1800s America because of how rapidly it had changed. The plot, I feel was very thought-provoking and it also gave the readers their own questions to ponder. The part of the book which stood out the most for me was the whole idea of history being applied in an already historic time. I definitely would recommend it to my friends.

Isabella A’s review
I enjoyed this book. But in my opinion, the title gave away too much of the story because without even reading the blurb I knew that a young boy would find a sea dragon. The book had some intriguing twists but for quite a foreseeable plotline and these twists made no difference to how the book would end. In terms of characters, I think that a reader gets most attached to Bill and his friendships and family ties with other characters in the book.

Star rating ★★★

Lewis’s review
To begin this review, I would like to mention that all I say is unbiased and my honest opinion of the book.

Personally, I believe this book (The Great Sea Dragon Discovery) is incredibly underrated as it incorporated American history with an interesting plot line with developing characters and unexpected twists. At particular points in the book, I almost felt immersed inside of the era in which this was set, giving my experience a great joy a very little amount of books can give. Pippa Goodhart definitely wrote the character of Bill’s Ma incredibly well as the character seems to have some deep regret/secret which (no spoilers) was amazing and made complete sense. What stands out most about this book is the fact that no other book that I’ve read had this theme and era, making this book incredibly unique and beautifully written.

I would completely and utterly recommend this book to anyone who has an interest in history.

Magisha’s review
Personally I enjoyed this book, I recommend this book to 8 – 12 year olds who enjoy reading about digging up dinosaurs. Bill, who is one the main characters, has a lot going on his life for example his mother is sick and his father lost his job. In order to support the family, he takes a job at Coprolite Diggings where he finds a fossil with his friend Alf and they nickname the fossil Croccy. In order to make money for their families they have to keep the fossil safe away from thieves so they can sell it to Cambridge scholar. Overall, I enjoyed this book.

Valine’s review
I vastly enjoyed reading this book due to the gripping detail and plot. I never found myself bored and was always entertained by a shocking, new twist in the story. The tricky and intriguing plot is what makes this book stand out to me!

My preferred characters were Alf and his mother because they always had a positive sight of things even when it seemed the world was against them. They were always very friendly, welcoming, and open; they were also civil and extremely selfless. Their life, compared to mine, helped widen my view on how people and children forced to work hard to stay alive, which in some situations was caused by the injustice.

Personally, I did not like Ms Coddle very much since she seemed to have the wrong attitude at the wrong times. I see her as rather sketchy and, perhaps, not to be trusted. In some parts of the book, she sees serious moments as jokes and usually ignores the current atmosphere and instead creates her own.

The Great Sea Dragon Discovery showed me what life was like during the Industrial Revolution, where scientists were discovering evolution for life, work, and families. The time set was very interesting because they were constantly on the edge of uncovering and understanding new things. It was eye-opening to see how they lived and how they find things, such as work or factories, so interesting and wonderful.

I would recommend this book knowing that it would be a fascinating and engrossing ride for someone to read. In conclusion, I found that this exciting book gave me many different views on life then and life now. It shows how protected we are especially in the western world and how things have evolved for the best.

Peter’s review
About the book
Although I did not like the book it was very interesting. Just thinking about date and time this book was set made me feel like I was there.

What I learnt
Throughout this book I learnt a lot about the old times and how people would excavate for bones of dinosaurs and sell them for a lot of money. I think I might go excavating as well.

Plot
I would describe the plot as interesting and a bit exciting. I may have not liked it but it was good. I would recommend this book for pupils at year 5 and 6 who enjoy dinosaur excavations or history of dinosaurs.

Georgio’s review
The Great Sea Dragon Discovery is a fascinating book. It is set in the past and very historically accurate. Only two characters are fake, everything else is real – the town, the people. It also does not get boring. I promised myself I will read ten more pages one night and I ended up reading for one hour. The book is interesting and has an excellent twist near the end but I won't spoil it. Also it is an excellent children's story from 9 – 12. As you possibly know from the title, it is based around two kids finding a sea dragon fossil. I got excited when they created a show like on the front cover. This is a book for all ages.

[Unnamed reviewer]’s review
The plot:
A brief summary is that the main character in the story is a small boy called Billy. Everything is going wrong: his Dad has lost his job and his Mum is unwell. Billy is extremely interested in fossils and starts work at the coprolite diggings to make money for his family. He then found something special, “The Great Sea Dragon”.

The characters:
I found Mr Seeley (a man who worked for the museum) the most interesting because he knows so much about what he did and he never judged anybody, no matter what they did. I didn't particularly like Billy's Mum, who was in the story called “Ma”, because she kept secrets from Billy and blamed everything on him when it wasn't even his fault, or she accused him of things he didn't do.

Did you learn anything new about the past?
I learned a few things such as that sixpence was a lot of money back in the time the book was set, and that children were allowed to drop out of school and get jobs quite young and the last thing is that they had no electricity when this book was set.

What made the history of the time it was set in interesting to you?
It made it interesting because the way the characters talked in the book is different to how we would talk know; the most interesting was when they talked slang.

Was the plot exciting, thought-provoking, serious, light-hearted?
The plot was exciting because you never knew what could happen next in the plan. There were lots of sudden twists, which made it exciting.

What stands out most?
What stands out for me is how many believed in God in this time and believed in Christianity and not Buddhism or Islam, perhaps.

Would you recommend it?
I would definitely recommend it to pupils who like history and are interested in fossils.

Eva’s review
The plot:
Bill's mum is ill and his dad lost his job so Bill wants to make everything OK. So he and his friend Alf start working at the coprolite digging. Bill and Alf find an amazing sea dragon that was hidden underground and at the end, his family was all OK and they were happy again.

The characters:
I found Bill the most interesting character because he dropped out of school and got a job just for his family to be happy. I liked all the characters because they were all nice.

Did you learn anything new about the past?
I learned that there are amazing fossils under the ocean that no one has found.

What made the history of the time it was set in interesting to you?
In the time it was set, a lot of families didn't have enough money to survive and children helped to make a living.

Was the plot exciting, thought-provoking, serious, light-hearted?
I think the plot was light-hearted and exciting at times – occasionally it was quite sad but it was mostly a happy story.

What stands out most?
I think how Bill wanted to make his family happy is the part that stood out for me the most.

Would you recommend it?
Yes, it's a great story for people to read.

Luke’s review
The plot:
A kid called Billy goes to school who's interested in flowers. Some people move in round the block who are his unknown family. Billy makes his dad lose his job, so he goes and works at the diggings. He thought he found a dragon head – well, it sort of is, it's real name is an ichthyosaur, called a Sea Dragon. He finds a smaller one inside it. He doesn't end up selling it.

The characters:
I found Billy quite interesting because in the end he isn't his mum's son, because Billy (or his other name is William) is adopted. He is Auntie Lil's son because Auntie Lil gave birth to him. I didn't really like Fred who is Auntie Lil's husband because he poached rabbits, even though it is for the bake it is still cruel.

Did you learn anything new about the past?
Yes, I did learn something new. I learned that ichthyosaurs could give birth like humans instead of laying eggs.

What made the history of the time it was set in interesting to you?
It didn't really make me think much about history or the time it was set in.

Was the plot exciting, thought-provoking, serious, light-hearted?
It made me want to go digging for fossils like Billy.

What stands out most?
I think the thing that stood out for me is that Grantchester is an actual place and not a made-up one.

Would you recommend it?
I would recommend this book to people who like digging fossils and anyone who likes animals to do with water.

Willow’s review
The plot:
A boy called Bill, who is a very curious boy, is fascinated by the natural world and when one of his experiments causes his dad to lose his job, he feels it's all up to him to provide for the family, as his mum is unwell as well. One evening while Bill was digging the ground he found something special – the great sea dragon.

The characters:
I found Bill the most interesting character because he never gave up on anything, especially his family. I didn't like Bill's mum because she was really mean to him.

Did you learn anything new about the past?
I learned that when you needed a job you were allowed to start it when you were really young.

What made the history of the time it was set in interesting to you?
I found the fossil history interesting as I didn't know as much about fossils before.

Was the plot exciting, thought-provoking, serious, light-hearted?
I thought the plot was thought-provoking.

What stands out most?
The things that stood out most for me was that Bill cared so much about his family that he went and got a job to help them.

Would you recommend it?
I would recommend it to other pupils who like fossils and rock history.

Liv’s review
The plot:
This story is about a boy called Bill whose mum was ill and his dad was about to lose his job. In it Bill makes an amazing sea dragon discovery whilst trying to help his mum and dad.

The characters:
I liked Bill as he was a curious, fascinated by all the nature type of boy. A bit like me! I liked all the characters but if I had to choose one I didn't like it would be mum as she was ill and it made me feel sad.

Did you learn anything new about the past?
Yes, I learned about the scenery at the time it was set in, 1820.

What made the history of the time it was set in interesting to you?
It interested me as the scenery of the time it was set in was very different and interesting to what our scenery looks like now!

Was the plot exciting, thought-provoking, serious, light-hearted?
I think the plot was quite serious as Mum was very ill and his dad was about to lose his job.

What stands out most?
What stands out is how well Bill is working to help his family.

Would you recommend it?
Yes, maybe to people in high primary and low high school children.

Isabel’s review
Characters:
I found Alf the most interesting because at first he was mean to Bill but then they were great friends. I didn’t like the mother because she didn’t believe anything Bill said.

Did you learn anything new about the past from this book?
I learnt that you could drop out of school early then.

When was the book set? What made the history or the time it was set in interesting?
The book was set in Victorian times. It talked about Victorian schools.

Was the plot exciting, thought-provoking, serious, or light-hearted?
It was exciting, but serious as well, because Bill was on a serious mission to protect his mum, but the mission was exciting.

What stands out most for you from the book?
The difference between rich and poor people.

Would you recommend it to other pupils?
Sometimes, because it is a very long book and some people might not be bothered to carry on.

Any other comments?
Towards the end, it is very intriguing. 8.5 out of 10 stars.