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Describe A Story Or Novel That Was Interesting To You: IELTS Speaking Cue Card

You should say

  • What story or novel was it?
  • Where did you come to know about it?
  • When did you read it?
  • How did you feel about it?
Show all 80 answers

Cue 1:What story or novel was it?

  • Begin by mentioning the title of the story or novel clearly.
  • Briefly describe the main theme or genre of the book.

Example

The novel I found particularly interesting is 'The Alchemist' by Paulo Coelho. It is a philosophical story about a young shepherd named Santiago who dreams of finding treasure in Egypt.

Cue 2:Where did you come to know about it?

  • Share how you first heard about the book, whether through a friend, school, or online.
  • Mention any specific recommendations or reviews that influenced your decision to read it.

Example

I first came to know about 'The Alchemist' from a friend who recommended it during our college days. She spoke highly of its inspirational messages, which piqued my interest.

Cue 3:When did you read it?

  • State the time period when you read the book, such as during a specific year or season.
  • You can also mention any particular circumstances that made you choose to read it at that time.

Example

I read this novel about two years ago during my summer vacation. I had some free time, and I wanted to read something that could motivate me.

Cue 4:How did you feel about it?

  • Express your emotions and thoughts after reading the book.
  • Discuss any lessons learned or how it impacted your perspective on life.

Example

After finishing 'The Alchemist', I felt inspired and hopeful. The story taught me about following my dreams and listening to my heart, which has influenced my decisions since then.

Conclusion

    Example

    In conclusion, 'The Alchemist' is not just a novel; it’s a journey of self-discovery that resonates with many readers. Its timeless message encourages us to pursue our dreams, making it a memorable read for me.

    Following this structure will ensure you cover all the essential points while providing a clear and engaging response to the cue card topic.

    Tips to answer this Cue Card

    1: Avoid Vague Descriptions

    Using vague language can make your answer less engaging and informative. It’s important to provide specific details about the story or novel to capture the examiner's interest.

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    Tip

    Include key plot points, character names, and specific themes to make your description vivid and memorable.

    2: Don't Rush Your Response

    Rushing through your answer can lead to unclear explanations and missed details. Take your time to think about each cue and structure your response logically.

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    Tip

    Pause briefly to organize your thoughts before answering each cue, ensuring clarity and coherence in your response.

    Neglecting Personal Feelings

    Failing to express your personal feelings about the story can make your answer less relatable. The examiner wants to hear your unique perspective and emotional connection.

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    Tip

    Share how the story impacted you personally, discussing your feelings and thoughts to create a more engaging narrative.

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    IELTS Cue Cards asked last week

    Reported by Leap students who gave IELTS

    Describe your favourite food at a traditional festival or a special event in your country
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    Reported by

    Anonymous student Band 7.5

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    Pitampura Test Centre, New Delhi

    Answer

    I like to taste different types of cuisine. Here I would like to talk about my favorite dish at my traditional festival of Onam which is Sadya. Sadya is popular in my city. We are experimenting these cuisines on Onam festival day. Onam is a famous festival in my city. All family members get together in my home and we make a delicious Sadya. There are many ingredients includes that Sadya. Moreover, we make a big feast that day as well as we create a lot of memories together and we wear that day the traditional dress called Sari and men wear the Dhotis. That festival is really important to us because the whole day we are conducting different kinds of games at our homes and all the family members came together. It's a memorable day in my life. This is the festival. We are making the Sambar and Aviyal. These all the kinds of foods are making with the vegetables.
    Talk about a toy you liked in your childhood
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    Reported by

    Anonymous student Band 8

    location icon

    Sector 34 Test Centre, Chandigarh

    Answer

    The toy which I liked in my childhood was a panda doll, which makes me pleasant and makes me more blush. The pandas are the most beautiful creatures of the world, which looks gigantic and has pooshy cheeks and they are like stars in the clouds and they dream in me. Furthermore, these have been given by my father. My father is a very very beautiful artistic person, who makes me think of that. Every day you will face every difficulties and make you suffer and move forward. Pandas are always seen in Japanese countries. It is my lifelong dream to visit a Japanese country and click a photo with the original pandas, which makes sounds better.
    Describe a time you were in a place where you didn't know the local language
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    Reported by

    Anonymous student Band 6.5

    location icon

    Whitefield Test Center, Bengaluru

    Answer

    As India is a very large country full of diversity, so there are many places which have their own language and speak their native language. The place which I visited and I didn't know about their language was Leladakh, which is about 300 km away from my hometown and it is a very good place as it consists of different kind of trees, animals and have many scenic views and I visited over there last year in summers as it was the best time to visit because it has many, it was cold over there and we had summers in our area so it was the best time to visit over there and I went over there with my whole family.
    Describe a time when your friend damaged something you owned
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    Reported by

    Anonymous student Band 7

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    Begumpet Test Centre, Hyderabad

    Answer

    When I was a kid, I had a little pencil box which had these four buttons which gave the pencil box an operative use. When you press the button, the box would open up. When you press the second button, a little part of it would slide out. Basically it was just a little electronical and a fun thing to have and I owned it when I was in 6th. One day after break, I was standing and talking there with one of my friends and another friend of mine was running through the hallway and accidentally she pushed my shoulder and my pencil box hit the ground and it broke into multiple pieces to the point that it was not functional anymore.
    Describe a book you recently read
    anonymous person icon

    Reported by

    Anonymous student Band 7.5

    location icon

    CBD Belapur Test Centre, Navi Mumbai

    Answer

    It Ends With Us is a book I read recently. It's by the author Colleen Hoare. It's mainly a story about two teenagers, Atlas and Lily, and how they just handle their life going through high school, adolescence, and just domestic violence at home. Both of them come from very, very different families. However, they have one common determining factor between them, which is domestic violence. The abuse that they've seen their moms go through is just insane, and they connect through that on a different level. They're actually in the same high school, but they never speak to each other until Atlas actually crashes into an empty house next to Lily's villa. When Atlas is homeless and he doesn't have anywhere to go, he just comes and breaks into the house next to Lily's, and Lily helps him with all the daily necessities like clothes and food, medicines and stuff. Furthermore, their friendship blossoms into love, but it doesn't really fructify as Atlas has to leave. This book really gave me a lot of knowledge about domestic abuse and how to deal with it.

    All Answers

    Here are all the answers by real-users practicing speaking for IELTS Cue Cards on our IELTS Prep App.

    Band 7

    A story or novel that I found interesting was the Da Vinci Code, a book written by Dan Brown. I first saw its movie on Netflix and then I got to know that it's actually a book which has been converted into a film. So I then decided that I would read the book first. Then I read it in around, just in a week, last year. The thing I liked about it the most is the narrative which has been used. It uses Christianity as its base, but the facts and historical concepts used, even the fictional, make you question the real facts as well as the things that have happened. It is really interesting. The mystery has been built really well so that you are really excited and want to turn the page around and know about the story more. It doesn't insult Christianity, but it also makes you familiar to a whole new concept which could be true.

    Band 7

    Talking about the novel that I found interesting would definitely, no, no, no, I'd like to talk about a novel that I read recently, it was called, I'd like to talk about a novel that I read recently, in summer this year, it was called We Were Liars by the author named E. Lockhart. This novel was absolutely one of the best books that I have ever read in my entire life, I can say this very confidently. The one feeling I think that I would like to describe thinking about this novel in retrospect would definitely be the feeling of being overwhelmed. I got to know about this novel from my friend who had watched the same series that were based on this novel. I got to know about it from him, I watched the whole series and then I started reading the novel. It was, it was absolutely the craziest novel. It contains, it is a story of basically four friends and these friends live in a huge mansion during their summer vacations with their families and it's a whole big deal with a lot of family drama and a friend and the twist, this whole novel is filled with mind boggling twists and I was so heartbroken at the end. I remember sobbing on my bed and like 3 in the morning, I could not know, I could not feel anything, I didn't know what to do. I was so moved by the whole concept, by the idea of, by the idea of friendship. I would not like to reveal the whole plot of the novel because I would like other people to read it as well and to enjoy it as much as I did. I think that I would love to read some more.

    Band 7

    The novel that I read was The Immortals of Meluha, which was written by Amish Tripathi. This is one of the most special book that will stay very close to my heart. I came across this book in the year 2020 during the time of COVID. I was preparing for my boards, so I used to take out time in the night to read. I came across this book through my cousin. He used to read this book and I saw him get drawn to Lord Shiva and I wondered what exactly was in the book that made him so close to him. So that was when I picked up the book. When I read it, it made me realize that how we consider God as super beings when they are just humans. It tells us about the fact that even Gods had their own issues, had their own way of tackling the problems and they were just as humans. I have read multiple books in the past, however, this book was like a gateway to heaven. This is how I entered into the world of reading and I have not looked back. I would highly recommend this book to each and everyone. This book is really inspiring, the way it is written, the way the sentences are formed, the way the feelings are expressed is beautiful and I have learnt a lot from this book.

    Band 7

    Two years ago I came across this novel called Shatter Me. I really love it. It's a dystopian adult fantasy book. It really attracted me because of the main characters. Their names are Juliet Ferrars and Aaron Warner. They are such interesting characters that they intrigue me so much. I feel like the story has a very interesting plot and plot twists that makes the reader want to know more about it. It talks about how Juliet was born and how she gained powers and it also talks about Aaron Warner's life and so many other things.

    Band 7

    A story or novel that I was really intrigued in the recent times would be a book called The Silent Patient. It was given to me by a dear friend called Bhanavi. She also shares the same interest that I have in books. The genre we really love is crime thrillers and something that keeps us engrossed while we are reading the book. She had given it to me on a Saturday and I started reading it on that day itself. The book was so engrossed and captivating that I finished it over the weekend. The plot revolves around a famous painter who has had some trouble in childhood but eventually made her way to the top. She is accused of killing her husband in the living room of their house and since then she does not utter a word from the trial to the end of the book, justifying the title of the book. The novel is written in the perspective of the psychiatrist who is trying to help her come back to her original self and possibly find a few clues about what happened. The writing is brilliant in this book particularly because there is a clue at the end of every chapter. Generally, in books that have crime or suspense in them, there is suspense every few chapters to keep you engrossed and captivated but in this book, there are certain clues that are revealed at the end of every chapter, keeping you at the edge of the seat and wanting you to read more at the end of every chapter, so that is something I really liked in the book. There is a lot of twists and turns throughout the book but the main twist that comes at the end of the book is mind-boggling, it can be something you have never ever even imagined and that is something I really enjoyed.

    Band 6-7

    The novel which I am interested in or is fascinating for me is Shiv Charitra Manas. It is basically the life structure of Chhatrapati Shri Shivaji Maharaj. It consists of all events related, happened in the past in the life of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj. From beginning of the age of 16 to at the age of 51 years, how he conquered the kingdoms, how he defeated Mughals and how he became the king and built the empire known as Swaraj. I came through this novel from my mother. Since I was a child, my mother used to tell me the story of Shri Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj which fascinated me most. And then when I was 16 years old, on my birthday, my father gifted me the novel and I started reading it. The novel is basically written by his disciples and it consists of his whole life story. It is very interesting and based on true events, the novel is quite inspiring. Also, the novel consists of his childhood, the oath of Swaraj, the incarnation ceremony of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, the concurrence, the downfall of Mughals and the powers in Maharashtra and how he became the most successful ruler of India and the father of Indian Navy.

    Band 6-7

    The story which I learned in my school days was the pie. The pie is a story between a child, a boy and a lion, where they are in the center of the ocean. Therefore, there is no food to eat in the center of the ocean. Both are in one boat, the lion and the boy. They are hunting the fish and eating it. The lion was so hungry and the boy was so hungry. The boy was so feared due to there is a lion. Therefore, the boy thought that the lion was going to eat us. So, he made a sound using a stick against the lion.

    Band 6-7

    Ramayana, the Indian epic novel, has fascinated me the most. I have been learning about Ramayana since childhood, but I had never gotten the chance to read it thoroughly. So this time when I went to the bookstore, I got myself a book of the authentic Indian Ramayana. It is a big storybook with about a thousand pages, but it has a lot of illustrations and the language is simpler, so that you can read it properly. The story is about Lord Rama, who is supposed to be the incarnation of Indian god Vishnu. It starts with his childhood and how he entered his middle age and what all problems he had to face in order to become what he was. And finally, how the battle of Ramayana happened, how his wife, that is goddess Sita, got kidnapped by a demon and how he had to fight the demon to get his wife back from him. So this is an interesting tale. It not only tells you the story, but it also uplifts your values in a way that you understand what is right and what is wrong and what are the values of a good human being.

    Band 6-7

    Yeah, coming to the story and novel, during my childhood, my grandma used to tell me some stories about Vikramaditya, that is a very, one of the famous stories in my area, in Andhra. I used to be so fascinated to hear about that, so like to read about that story, we used to have comic books and during my 10th standard, I was little oriented to Huckleberry Finn and this thing. So, in my graduation days, I heard, read a novel, I didn't remember his name as of now and it is a love story, it is regarding a guy who fell in love with a girl and he used to be so obsessed with her, suddenly she met an accident and she expires and that made him very sad and depressed. So, it's not a good ending but the way they portrayed the story, that itself is so interesting, that made me feel about that person and during my post-graduation days, I happened to read self-help books, especially Atomic Habits, Compound Effect, so that really helped me to go through my post-graduation days.

    Band 6-7

    The novel that touched my heart a decade ago is Aad Jeevidam, which is written by Benyamin. He is a notable novelist and the book was actually got, the book was bestseller. It is still a bestselling book today also and lot of people are reading it, lot of students, lot of general population reading the novel. The novel name is Aad Jeevidam, which is written by Benyamin. And I read it a decade ago when I was in school. I read it and the book was about a person called Najib and his life. The story tells about the life of Najib who was a labourer who was working in the gulf countries. And the story is very much heart touching.
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