Opinions about The Boy and the Spy

Disclaimer: The writing has my opinions and mine alone, whilst the quotes are other people’s opinions, and the description about the story is based upon notes, not the story itself.

So, because of teachers, confusing tasks and capitalism, I’m doing a review about ‘The Boy and The Spy’:a tale of two people meeting in Sicily underneath a cliff in a cavern.

In this story there is an orphan named Antonio, who was adopted and raised by a woman named Nina. When the boy is around twelve years old, he draws a picture of Hitler and Mussolini with their heads on pigs’ bodies. After he places the image on a car owned by the Italian soldiers, the soldier who was nearby chases Antonio, with Antonio jumping off a cliff into the water below. The boy finds a cave beneath the cliff and swims inside. Inside the cave is an American spy named Chris, who crash-landed and is gravely injured. This meeting spawns a tale of sadness, anger and peace. A tale of happiness, grief and war. In other words it’s a great story that blends emotions & events into wonderfully woven tapestry.

By Pieter Sillis 5/6M

Here are some comments from some of my classmates about how they found the book:

‘I think The Boy and The Spy is interesting because it tells you all about the Second World War, who was involved and the history of it.’ Sam Webster

‘It is action packed with the author creating twists through characters’ choices. It is worth the read.’ Riley Hudson-Gardner

‘I really enjoyed ‘The Boy and The Spy’ as it was an engaging and interesting storyline. Every chapter would leave a cliffhanger making me want to hear more. It’s also set in the timezone of World War Two, which I find super interesting. I would definitely recommend it this to an older audience and I would rate 8.5/10 stars.’ Zoe Carroll.

‘I thought the narrative was good. However, it wasn’t my favourite as I am not into war-themed books. Antonio is a boy in World War Two that has come across a spy. They have adventures together to try to get the spy back to America. It’s a good book that I think it is worth reading.’ Nadine Jassani

‘I absolutely loved the Boy and The Spy, it was filled to the brim with action, adventure and surprises. This book was amazing, I would rate it 11/10 stars.’ Ryan Lemay

‘I think that The Boy and the Spy was exciting because after every chapter there was a cliffhanger. It has also given me lots of information about World War Two.’ Claudia Maple-Brown

‘I think the book called The Boy and The Spy was very engaging and hooked me. The Boy and The Spy takes you back to World War 2.’ Thomas Cunningham

“I thought ‘The Boy and The Spy’ was fabulous! It had a lot of amazing tension at the end of some chapters. I loved it because I love the adventure genre. Suspense was built around every corner of this book! I would recommend this to Years 4-6 or teachers to read to the class. Chris is an American spy and Antonio is the boy that finds him and helps him.If you choose to read this book, I have one word for you: ENJOY!”  Bridie Carey

‘I like the part of the puppet show from ‘The Boy and the Spy’. It is entertaining, sad and funny.’ Kayla Picker

‘The Boy and The Spy was fantastic it really got me on the edge of my seat! The only part I didn’t of this amazing book was when my teacher Mr Moss stopped reading!’ Teagan Crooks

‘I think The Boy and The Spy was a great book because you have thrillers around every corner with intensity and pages of the book that will leave you guessing.’ Carthew Small

‘I think The Boy and The Spy is pretty good: the drama, the suspense and the way it was laid out, like at the puppet theater when the German soldiers barged in, in the middle of the show. If I could rate this, it would be a 9/10. I would recommend this book to future readers.’ Max Stephenson

‘I think Felice Arena was pretty accurate about what happened in World War 2. Especially the bomb mentioned in the book (at that point that raised the suspense for me). I think The Boy And The Spy is a really unique book and I think it should be in our school library.’ Vasilios Papazoglou

‘I thought the The Boy and The Spy was really good, I recommend it for Year Three and up. It was based in World War Two. It’s not my favourite book in the world but it still was good. It is a good reading challenge, it had Italian words with German and English too. The Boy and The Spy had to face challenges. There were lots of characters in the book, the two main characters names were Antonio and Chris. I really enjoyed the book.’ Bobby Remington

‘It’s an okay story, but would be better for older kids.’ Thomas Watson

‘My opinion for The Boy and The Spy is that it is a good book but not my favorite because I didn't find it too entertaining, but I do recommend it to people that like to adventure and have a good imagination.’ Elsie Apps

‘I really liked the Boy and The Spy. Why? Well it is very adventurous and it keeps you reading. You just want more and there's a mystery around every corner.

Characters: Chris,Antonio,Simonetta,Franco, Antonio’s Aunty,Viper and Mama Nina.’ Molly Chamberlain

‘I thought The Boy and The Spy was  amazing, it really hooked me . It was great how it was involved with World War 2.’ Callum Muldrew

‘So The Boy and the Spy was a fantastic book. There was a cliffhanger at the end of every chapter so it leaves you curious about what happens next. But if you dive to deep you get stuck in World War 2 with Chris the spy, Antonio the boy and all his other friends to help Chris escape, I recommend this book to anyone who likes adventure.’ Thomas Ratcliff