At the end of last term, year 8 and year 9 students voted for their favourite Cheney Choice title and the results are in. Year 8 voted for Welcome to Camp Killer, a cautionary tale of murder and mysticism set at a summer camp. Year 9 voted for Five Survive, which features five young people pinned down by a mysterious gunman. Both titles are firmly in the murder mystery/thriller genre, which was the genre of book that was voted as the school's favourite in the recent whole-school reading survey.
Looking at the loan records for this academic year thus far, the eight Cheney Choice titles feature strongly. All eight titles are listed in the top ten most loaned books for the respective year groups and just over 150 students have read at least one Cheney Choice title this academic year. Previous Cheney Choice titles, such as Run Rebel by Manjeet Mann, Liccle Bit by Alex Wheatle, Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds and When I See Blue by Lily Bailey have now become Cheney classic titles, which are discovered and enjoyed by new students year on year. I am confident that this year's selection will have the same impact in the future.
I am currently preparing next year's selection, which will be launched in October 2024.
The Cheney Book Choice is an annual selection of four books recommended for students in Y8 and Y9. They will explore them in reading lessons, are encouraged to read the full set for pleasure and on World Book Day 2024 they vote on which should be this year’s ‘Cheney Choice’. For more on the 2024 selection click here.
Cheney School Librarian