Book Review – Jimmy Coates: Killer by Joe Craig

Earlier this year, D had an author visit at his school. That is one of the things I love about his school, they do regularly get authors in to inspire and encourage the children. I hate the idea of reading for readings sake...kids have got to enjoy reading a book, otherwise WHAT IS THE POINT!

J has always been an avid reader for as long as I can remember. Even as a baby he would love picking up books and I would read them to him and he would point out the pictures. But D wasn't the same. I don't remember him particularly enjoying books when he was younger.

He struggled to learn to read when he started school. Once we homeschooled him the reading came on in leaps and bounds and he was reading within a couple of weeks of starting homeschooling. I think it is because we never 'forced' him to learn to read. We wanted it to be fun for him.

I remember getting to the point of visiting the library and both boys would pick up a huge pile of books and then that afternoon would be spent sat on the windowsill together reading them. Any other homeschool work I had planned would just go out the window but none of us minded as they were so excited and happy to be reading.

Since being back at school since year 3, D has kept up his love of reading but we are really flexible with what he reads. I am just as happy for him to read his beano comics, which he loves, as if he picks up a book with 50 chapters.

Back to the author visits. I think the latest author visit has inspired D the most. Joe Craig visited his school and whatever he said or did made a huge impact on those kids. D bought the first book in the Jimmy Coates series straight away and then came home and said he wanted to spend his own savings to buy the whole set of Jimmy Coates books. I think there are 7 in total.

He's now onto reading the third book in the series, spending every spare moment reading it. But to give you a little taster, he has reviewed the first Jimmy Coates book. It is called Jimmy Coates: Killer and despite the sinister sounding title, D assures me that it is a suitable book for his age group. He is now 10 years old and his older brother J, nearly 12 is also enjoying reading the books too.

Review by D, age 10.

I give this book a ten star rating because it is full of action and mystery and every chapter has more suspense. I would recommend this book for age 9 up to adult. Jimmy Coates: Killer is about a boy called Jimmy who can do all of this cool stuff when he’s in danger or in trouble. Jimmy also has another secret – he is not all human.

In every chapter it gets more and more exciting. Hundreds of men in suits are coming after him. But why? Do they want to kill him? Is it something to do with his cool power? Find out in…

Jimmy Coates: Killer. 

A short while after, I spotted this tweet from Joe Craig. What a utterly wonderful aim to have!

My aim with every visit is to be the one thing from their time at school that those kids will never forget #ukmgchat https://t.co/ZQV97ewny4

— Joe Craig (@joecraiguk) March 23, 2016

You can buy signed copies of the Jimmy Coates series of books here.

We've not been asked to review this book but it is something D wanted to do because of his enjoyment of these books.