LOSER

Spinelli, Jerry. LOSER. New York: Harper Collins, 2003. 218 pages. (Humor/Fiction)


The main character in my story is a kid named Donald Zinkoff. This story takes place at John W. Satterfield Elementary. The problem in this story is that Zinkoff is never a winner, and an example of him never being a winner is when he was in fourth grade at the field days. How he wasn’t a winner was that in the final race of the field days he was the last leg to run, and he was the first one to start running toward the finish line but he ended coming in dead last. How he goes about solving this problem is not by becoming a winner but never losing hope in himself, and by trying new things no matter if he losses or not.

How I felt about this book was I thought that it was very well written and explained. The character that I think is most like me in this book is Zinkoff. I think this because in one of the chapters Zinkoff had gotten sugary and had to stay home for three weeks and he wasn’t allowed out of the house. He is like me because while he was in the house he got very bored and wanted to go outside and that is the same way I would feel if I was cooped up inside of the house for three weeks. Also there are many other books written by Jerry Spinelli and I would most defiantly read another book by this author because I really enjoyed reading Loser so I think I will enjoy others by him.

Reviewed By: Anawanasakian

The Turkey That Ate My Father

Marney, Dean. The Turkey That Ate My Father. NY: Broadway, 1995. 115 pages. (Humor)

The book is about a little girl about ten years old, her father, and her brother Booker. It all started when Booker wanted a stupid drum stick and he couldn’t have it, so then he grabbed it and got it anyway. After that weird things started to happen- again. It seems like every holiday that Elizabeth’s family is involved in, things go weird. One day Elizabeth’s dad goes missing. It was on Thanksgiving and they think that the giant turkey in their living room might have something to do with it. So, did the turkey eat their father or not? It’s a mystery.


I think that Booker is like my three year old sister  because if she doesn’t get what she wants, she will either take it or just cry until she gets it. I would recommend this book to a younger kid because its all fiction and it’s a mystery book . The scene that had the greatest impact on me as a reader was when the turkey that was giant was standing in the living room and that’s when their dad went missing. Once again I would recommend this book to younger children.

Reviewed by: CookieMonster

Stormbreaker

Horowitz, Anthony. Stormbreaker. New York: Penguin Putnum Inc, 2002. 192 pages. (Adventure Series)


There are two very important characters in my book. There is a 14 year old boy named Alex Rider, this boy has a uncle Ian Rider who was a secret spy. When on a mission he was killed by a hired agent. The agency that his uncle worked for now wanted to have Alex as a spy for a special mission. Alex has almost no choice but to say yes, the company that he is now working for is very powerful and can have the only person close to him (his maid Jackie) not thrown out and sent back to America for and expired visa. The other main character is Herod Sayle; he is an adopted boy from Egypt who grew up in England. Herod has created a new special computer that he has offered to given to every school in England for free. M16 the spy agency has a bad felling so they send Ian andAlex Rider.
The reason I chose this book was that I heard it was good and I thought it sounded good. A friend had told me that the book was very good. When I read the back it seemed like an action book and I like that so that’s why I chose.

Reviewed by: masterchief40

Among The Hidden

Naddix, Margaret. Among the Hidden. New York: Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing Division, 1998. 153. (Sci-Fi Series)

Luke is the main character in the book Among The Hidden, by Margaret Peterson Haddix. Luke is a third child and he has to hide from the population police. The population police will take Luke away if they found him. Luke has two brothers that are able to go school and go to town. This story takes place in Luke’s neighborhood. Luke has to stay in the attic every day to hide from the houses that have been put up next to his house.

Six months after the houses are put up Luke sees a face in the sports family’s house that already has two children. Luke makes a plan to get in the house and meet the other third child. When he gets in he breaks threw the screen door and gets in and sees another girl at a computer. Who is she? Another third child? Read to find out!
I would recommend this book for someone to read because it was suspenseful and the book kept you guessing what was going to happen next. I would read another book by this author.

Reviewed by: MossMan

Inside the Walls of Troy

McLauren, Clemence. Inside the Walls of Troy. NY: Bantam, 1996. 199 pages. (Greek Myths / Poem Review)


Inside the walls of troy

Kidnapped
She was taken on a wild journey
Helen's her name

12 she was taken
And arranged to be married
Because of her beauty

Helen true love
has a sister named
Cassandra

As their friend ship grows
They wonder if this
Is a gift or curse

As she in living in Troy
She still lives
As a beauty

This book is a great book and that has to do with drama and love and action. When things happen things are not small they are fun and exciting .When Helen was taken at the age on 12 she was taken because she was the most beautiful girl in the city. Every one wanted her to be there bride .i would tell anyone to read this book.

By: Rockem!Sockem!Robot!

Bone, Crown of Horns

Smith, Jeff. Bone, Crown of Horns. NY: Cartoon Books, 2004. 184 pages. (Graphic Novel / Haiku Review)

Enemy surrounds
City guarded by soldiers
Gran’ma Ben escaped

Thorn must break out to
Locate the Crown of Horns
Buried underground

Phoney and Smiley
Find some treasure in a well
Nobody can know

Thorn finds Crown of Horns
She finds kindok to battle
Fone helps set her free

The city was saved
They rejoice and went back home
People welcomed them

They went to gran’ma’s
For Bone’s final decision
He chose to go home

I thought this book was really good. It was detailed and magical. I like magical books, so I recommend this book to anyone who likes fairy tails and magical creatures.

Reviewed by: Throw Me One

The Titan’s Curse

Riordan, Rick. The Titan’s Curse. New York: Miramax Books, 2007. 312 pages. (Fantasy Series)

The main characters in The Titan’s Curse are: Percy, Grover, Zoe, Bianca, and Thalia. This story takes place all across the United States. The main problem that these people faced was that Annabeth, Percy’s friend, was missing, because she was kidnapped by a monster. How the main characters solved this problem was by going all the way across the country to San Francisco to search for her, and found her on top of a mountain. Another interesting thing that happens in this novel is: some sea animal called an Ophiotauras, who Percy named Bessie, has the power to destroy the gods.
This book is the third book in the series of Percy Jackson and the Olympians. It is followed by The Lightning Thief and The Sea Of Monsters. Nothing in the book, or any in the series, has ever happened to me. I definitely recommend this book for readers who like fantasy, because it is very strange, and very exciting. I selected this because I liked the first two books in the series, and I thought I would like this one too. {And I did.} I would read any book by this author, since he has a very good imagination. If I had to give this book a one word label, I would say fantastic. I like fantasy, and it is a very good fantasy book.

Reviewed by: Biter

Inside the Walls of Troy

McLauren, Clemence. Inside the Walls of Troy. NY: Laurel Leaf, 1996. 199 pages. (Myths / Poem Review)


Kidnapped

She was taken on a wild journey
Helen's her name

12, she was taken
And arranged to be married
Because of her beauty

Helen's true love
Has a sister named
Cassandra

As their friendship grows
They wonder if
It's a gift or curse

Lving in troy
She still lives
As a beauty

This book is a great book and that has to do with drama and love and action. When things happen they are not small events but fun and exciting .When Helen was taken at age 12, she was taken because she was the most beautiful girl in the city. Every one wanted her to be her bride. I would tell anyone to read this book.

Reviewed by LexiLuthor

Knucklehead

Scieszka, Jon. Knucklehead. NY: Penguin Group, 2008. 106 pages. (Humor-Memoir / Acrostic Review)

Knuckleheads do
Not
Usually
Come six in a family, mostly come in ones. When six
Knuckleheads run free, doing things
Like burning model tanks in the basement, to
Even trying to sell a brother their own shirt; they
Have broken the same brother’s collarbone four times playing football.
Even though having six boys babysit each other may sound like
A good idea, it’s not, that’s how Greg got tied to the bed with their
Dad’s ties.

I thought this was a great book and at times it was laugh-out-loud funny. It’s short, but it’s still a must read. I would recommend this book to anybody who is willing to laugh-out-loud.

Reviewed by: Gumby

Tick Tock

Koontz, Dean. Tick Tock. New York: Random House Inc., 1996. 335 pages. (Horror) 

Meet Tommy Phan and detective novelist living his dream in southern California. His family is from Vietnam and terribly disappointed that he had not become a doctor or worked at the family bakery. After buying his new Corvette he drives around for awhile, and then he stops a diner to get something to eat and goes home. Once inside he hears a knock at the door but no one except for a ten inch doll was there. The doll had two big black stitched for eyes, five small stitches for a mouth, and a big black stitch over the heart. So Tommy brings the strange looking doll inside and opens the note attached to its hand but, it was all in Vietnamese which he did not know enough of to read it. He settles down at his computer to start writing when he heard a noise, like fabric ripping, and when he turns around he sees the doll come to life. The big black stitches were now bright green eyes and the five small stitches were tiny sharp teeth! It left a message on his computer screen that read: The dead is dawn, Tick Tock. Tommy knew he had to get out of the house when he did he drove off just to find the doll was in the car so Tommy crashed it, that’s when he met Del Payne. He told her the whole story and she agreed to help him make it until dawn, which raises the question will Tommy make it until dawn? Find out by reading Tick Tock.

I liked this book because it is action packed and full of surprises, it will keep you on the edge of your seat and it’s extremely hard to put down. It’s a great story to read in the dark and use to scare your friends. My favorite character was Del because she was never surprised at any of the events in the book, like a killer doll, and always kept her cool. I think anyone who likes scary or action packed stories should read this.

Reviewed by: Dobby

The Battle of the Labyrinth.

Riordan, Rick. The Battle of the Labyrinth. New York: Hyperion Books for Children, 2008. 361 pages. (Fantasy Series / Poem Review)

These young, brave
Heroes don’t have
Enough to get ready to

Battle their arch nemesis, Luke.
Although,
They have to get ready for
The attack at camp which all the enemies are coming through the
Labyrinth, an underground, dangerous filled, maze.
Even though it's dangerous, Percy is part of the prophecy of the

Oracle that means either life or death
For the entire world. Percy must find the person that created the

Labyrinth
And ask him to navigate them through for the
Battle against evil monsters, and
You get the whole experience in this book for the
Race against Luke to save camp.
In this novel, they have defenses for camp, but it will
Not be enough.
They
Have to find the creator of the maze before it is too late.


A ten word label for this novel would be: A race against time to save the world against evil. I would recommend this book to readers who like a world- saving experience against evil monsters. I would and have read another book by this author since he is great at writing fantasy and mystery novels. The one scene that had the greatest impact on me as a reader was the part where he saw Nico, a kid who Percy had let his sister die last summer on a quest.

Reviewed by: Biter

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

Rowling, J.K.  Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. New York: Scholastic, 1999. 341 pages. (Fantasy Series)

The main character of the book is Harry Potter. He lives with his aunt and uncle and their son Dudley.The story takes place in hogwarts .Harrys name gets placed in the goblet of fire so he is now in the tri wizard tunument .harry and his rival molfoy get into loads of fights. He fears Voldermort and Serius Black until he finds out that he told Voldermort where his parents were and Voldermort killed them. His frustration builds he hope Black finds him because Harry prepares to kill him.

I’m most like Ron Wesley because I don’t like school. I despise Malfow because he’s mean. I would share this book with my parents because they are good books. I got this book when I was bored one day and kept reading the series. I would describe this book as fun, energetic, and cool, a best seller.

Reviewed by: YoungerThanDirt

What My Girlfriend Doesn’t Know

Sones, Sonya. What My Girlfriend Doesn’t Know. Simon & Schuster: New York, 2007. 291 pages. (Romance In-Verse / Poem Review)


Meet Robin Murphy.
He is the loser at school.
But, doesn’t care much.

And now meet Sophie.
The prettiest girl at school.
And most popular.

The two fall in love.
But Robin knows it can’t last.
They’re too different.

Sophie’s determined.
She loves Robin with her heart.
But people are cruel.

Can they make it last?
Will they break under pressure?
Is their love enough?

This is a great book! It is set up in poetry, which sets it out from all other books. It’s a modern twist on Romeo and Juliet, in a way. This book is hysterical! Anyone will love it, I guarantee! This is a sequel to What My Mother Doesn’t Know which tells Sophie’s side of the story. Sonya Sones is amazing.

~Britt Lit

The Glorious Cause

Shaara, Jeff. The Glorious Cause. NY: Random House, 2002. 680 pages. (Non-Fiction / War History)

This is the second of a two volume series that tells the story of the American Revolution from the view points of several key participants. This story follows a time line that begins in August 1776, shortly after the signing of the Declaration of Independence, and goes to the conclusion of the war. It is not a history text book but rather a book of historical fiction. This book does not use made up information, but rather a compiling mix of letters diaries and biographies written at that time. I feel that whenever you read about the Revolution it’s always one sided, always about the Americans.This book however tells both about the Americans and their British foes as well. This is the ultimate book for the person who really wants to learn their facts about the revolution.

Reviewed by: “Super Reader 22”

Z Platt

 Z Platt (Student Literary Journal of Plattsburgh State)

The Plattsburg students
Back and writing for this year
Zplatt is here again

Drunken lullabies
My sisters writing read
The weather in hell

Miles of brimstone
Satan and Balthazar fight
Do not mention Christ

Shots or soldiers
Us singing those great
Drunken lullabies

Poetry, Fiction
Art, Play writes photography
In one collection
Tammy Daniels-bridge
Ice feathers
Fill the gap between earth
And concrete

Reviewed by: SplatMatt

Ark Angel

Horowitz, Anthony. Ark Angel. NY: Scholastic Inc, 2006. 323 pages. (Action Adventure / Thriller Series)

The book Ark Angel and the story inside takes place in New York City, London, England, outer space, in the first outerspase hotel, and the Caribbean. The main characters in this book are Alex Rider, an MI6 spy, Jack Starbright, Alex’s guardian, Nikolei Drevin, the richest man in England, and Paul Drevin, Nikolei’s son. In Ark Angel, Alex Rider has to save the world once again by stopping a mad man who’s trying to blow up his outer space hotel and the moon with it. By blowing up the moon and the hotel the craters from the moon will hit and destroy Planet Earth. To stop the moon from blowing up Alex has to go to the hotel, fight a maniac in zero gravity, and relocate a bomb. Some other interesting events in Ark Angel are that Alex has to deal with an eco-terrorist group that’s not even real, and that he gets locked into a submarine a couple hundred feet down in the ocean with only a couple minutes of air to spare.

I would recommend Ark Angel to anyone who likes to read a good book. I think anyone would read Ark Angel because it is exciting, action packed, and in some parts mysterious. Ark Angel is a fun book to read, and it goes fast because you just can’t put it down.

Reviewed by: Pablo

The Book Thief

Zuszck, Markus. The Book Thief. NY: Knopf, 2005. Pages 552. (Historic Fiction; Poem Review)


The Book Thief,
Narrated by Death,
Nazi Germany.

Liesel little,
Brother died on train,
lost her mother too.

Moved to a,
Foster home with new,
Father and mother.

She leans read,
With father Hans and,
steals books ‘cause loves words.

But when Hans,
Takes in a Jew, Max,
World turns upside down.

This is an amazing, can’t put it down book that captures the heart of everyone who reads it. True it is a bit slow and weird in the beginning, but I guarantee you will like this book so much it will be one of your favorites. This really helps to show what it was like during the war and show a different side of thought. It is also narrated by Death what more does a person want?

Reviewed by: naturegrl

Scat

Hiaasen, Carl. Scat. New York: Random House, 2009. 371 pages. (Fiction and Mystery)


The story, Scat, has four main characters, Nick, Marta, Mrs. Starch, and Duane. The story takes place in Florida and at Truman School. When the science class takes an all day field trip to the Black Vine Swamp, their teacher, Mrs. Starch, goes missing! Nick and Marta are excited but after a while things start to turn weird… So they decide to investigate the mysterious disappearance. They end up getting into a mound of trouble! The only one to help them is Mrs. Starch. What will they do?

I thought this book was really good because as I was reading it, I got more and more interested in the book and I had a hard time putting it down. I would read another book by this author in a heart-beat! The concepts in the book are amazing! I was on the edge of my seat the whole time I was reading! I couldn’t put it down.

Reviewed by: FrogRocker11

Animal Ignorance

Lloyd, John. Animal Ignorance. New York: Harmony Books. 2007, 241 pages. (Non-Fiction / Animals; Acrostic Review)

Amazing
Neat
Incredible facts about
Mammals
Amphibians and
Lots more

If you thought you knew a lot about animals,
Get ready for a surprise
Nothing is false
Or
iRrational
And
Nothing will
Cease to
amazE you

Reviewed by: Fenton

Yellow Flag

Lipsyte, Robert. Yellow Flag. New York City: Harper Collins, 2007. 234 pages. (NASCAR, Sports Fiction)

In the book Yellow Flag, by Robert Lipsyte, The main charactars are Kyle; Kyle’s older brother brother, Chris; their father, no name; their grandfather, Walter; and their great-grandfather. This story occurs at a race track and a school. The problem is that Kyle is upset about an upcoming race. This problem is resolved by Kyle’s grandfather offering to help him. One interesting fact is that Kyle can end a racing dream by hitting his brakes and letting everyone pass him.

I selected this book from the school library and the story looked good. The book also seemed to fit one of my interests. That interest is “CARS”. I would recommend this book who is really into cars and racing.

Reviewed by: OJ

Abduction

Keheret, Peg. Abduction. New York City: Puffin Books, 2004. (Mystery)

In the book Abduction, Matt leaves his classroom at the end of the day to go to the bathroom when he meets a “UPS man” who is really his father who he never knew existed. His father, Denny, is here, at the school, to kidnap his son into his car to take him to show his sister and brother-in-law that he does have a son. He is kidnapping Matt because he doesn’t have custody over his son. When Matt doesn’t meet his sister, Bonnie, at the bus stop as he normally does Bonnie goes to his classroom and she can’t find him anywhere then the staff of the school go searching to when they can’t find him either they decide to call the police and get them involved with it. Later on in the book when Bonnie goes to the baseball game she notices someone who looks like her brother but is wearing glasses and has dark hair. So to figure this out she tells her friends that she’s going to see a friend when she follows Matt and he eventually sees her he yells to her and then she sees who he’s with, Denny. So that Bonnie won’t go and tell the police Denny also take Bonnie with him. As the story comes to an end some things work out for the better some for the worst.

In Abduction the person that I despise the most would be Denny because he is very rude and neglectful to Matt after he kidnaps him. All Denny wants to do is use him to show his family that he really does have a son because he’s jealous of them with their children since they clam he doesn’t have any children. Denny is also a big gambler so he wins a lot of money then will buy Matt toys then when he loses a bet he returns all of the toys and games for money which upsets Matt. Denny also threatens Matt with a gun that he carries around with him in case Matt does something he doesn’t want him to do or if Matt is annoying Denny he will put his hand in his coat so Matt knows that he must stop. If I had to explain this book in ten words it would be…page turning and an adventures story about two very brave children.

Reviewed By~urbs518

The Silent Room

Sorrells, Walter. The Silent Room. NY:Dutton Children’s Books, 2006. 233 pages. (Thriller)

Oz is a fairly normal fourteen years old. After his father’s death, he is still doing well in school until his mom marries again. Oz’s stepfather is a controlling bully that is set on framing Oz. After pulling off framing Oz for drug possession, he gets sent to a “school” which turns out to be a prison for troubled boys in the middle of nowhere. At this school, Oz rooms with a group of guys who are set on breaking out of the controlling grasp of an evil overseer. Discovering that his evil stepfather is behind it all, Oz feels like his mother and him are in danger. While trying to escape from this island of swamps that the prison is located on, one of Oz’s buddies stumbles upon an old broken down boat. Can Oz and his friends fix it up in time before one of them gets hurt? Can Oz get out alive or will something happen in the Silent Room?

This book keeps you guessing right up until the last page. When you think you’ve figured it all out, the story changes in a matter of sentences. I would recommend this book to anyone who isn’t afraid to be taken away by this creepy thriller.

Reviewed by: CupcakeSALT

Princess Academy

Hale, Shannon. Princess Academy. New York: Bloomsbury Publishing, 2005. 314 pages. (Fantasy)

The main character of the book, Princess Academy, is Miri. There are many other secondary characters that wouldn’t be the same if the story didn’t have them, but Miri is the main one. The story takes place at Mount Eskel, there is an isolated village on this mountain were mostly quarry workers and their families live. Miri’s mother died in the quarry while collecting linder to trade so Miri’s dad won’t let Miri work in the quarry. She doesn’t like being the only girl who is fourteen and not working in the quarry. Then, by surprise some lowlanders came to tell all girls under age seventeen that they have to go to an academy and that a year from then a prince would come and pick a girl to marry to live with in the lowlands. Olana, the teacher at the academy, is very strict and I mean REALLY strict but the girls still find a little hope that they might be a princess. Many bad and good things happen at the quarry and when Miri finds out a way to do quarry speech, (a way of talking to people in their minds without saying anything) some of their problems are worked out. The girls become good friends and work things out together when they need to. Many things happen in this book while Miri goes through her life. She and Peder are now acting differently around each other and Miri knows after all of her troubles that she is home and she really wants nothing more.

I would recommend this book for someone to read because there isn’t just one character in the story. Even just a small character has a big part and has to be there so the story can be told. When I read this book, I felt I was right there being one of the girls going through the same obstacles they were going through. When you start reading you think you can guess easily exactly what might happen, so it seems a little boring. You finally get to that part in the story, and it is totally different from what you suspected, but it still comes out to be a great ending. Everything in this book hits you by surprise and that is why I liked this book so much.

Reviewed by: irishdance64

Stray

Vincent, Rachel. Stray, Hortonville, WI: Mira, 2007. 624 pages. (Fantasy Series / Romance)

The main character in Stray is Faythe Sanders; Faythe is a werecat who can transform into a wild cat, something much like a panther. Faythe is the daughter of Greg Sanders, who is the leader of the Pride in the United States. Greg makes sure no one finds out about the cats, as well as making sure they’re safe. Faythe attends collage but soon has to move back to her house. At her house Faythe lives with her father, Greg Sanders, her mother, her three brothers –Ethan, Parker, and Ryan, some guards, and a few friends of the family. One of the guards who lives with Faythe is Marc; Marc is an extremely strong and fast black werecat. Another guard who lives with Faythe is a man named Jace who has always been, and always will be a flirt. The story takes place in present time in the Southern part of the United States.

One of the problems that Faythe faces is that two of her fellow tabbies, her cousin Abby and friend Sara, have been kidnapped. Faythe also faces a bigger problem, should she become the new leader of the Pride?  One type of interesting event that happens throughout the novel is the battles in human form and also in cat form. Another is the steps that the werecats go through in order to transform from human to cat. One more interesting type of event that happens throughout the novel is the romance, especially the “love triangles.”

The character that’s most like me is probably Faythe because she cares about her friends a lot, likes to help her friends, sometimes likes to take matters into her own hands, likes the same style of fashion as me, and some other small reasons. The characters I despise are the group of Strays who kidnapped Faythe, Abby, Sara, and also murdered many human women. I recommend this book for people who love action and romance books, but they should have it approved by their parents for people under the age of fourteen because there are parts that should only be read by young adults because of certain topics throughout the story. I selected this book because my eighteen year old sister was reading it and told me I would like it because it had werecats. After she was done reading the book I began to read it. I would read and look forward to reading another book by this author because I thought this book was amazing and I never wanted to put the book down because it was so great. This book is by far my all time favorite book, and I cannot wait until the sequel, Rogue, comes out.

Reviewed by: Kirby

To The Last Man

Shaara, Jeff. To The Last Man. NY: Random House Publishing Group, 2004. 636 pages. (WWI Nonfiction)

Have you ever wondered what was going through the mind of an average soldier during the adrenalin rush of battle? Jeff Shaara does an excellent job of bringing battle to life. In To The Last Man, Jeff tells the story of four people who went through the bloodshed of WW1. Raoul Lufbery, Roscoe Temple, John J. Pershing, and Baron Manfred von Richthofen are the 4 soldiers chronicled. Raoul is a French immigrant who came to America in search of his father. He joins a squadron of pilots who fight for France but are truly American. Roscoe is the son of farm owners in Virginia. When war breaks out, he joins the U.S. Marines (Semper Fi). Richthofen is the son of a professional soldier and joins the Eastern front as a cable layer then he transferred to the air force. Pershing is in charge of the AEF or American Expeditionary Force. This book really gets deep into the minds and emotions of the common soldier. I would recommend this book to all history buffs and especially those who enjoy military history.

Reviewed by: AusieMax

Twelve

Myracle, Lauren. Twelve. N.Y.: Penguin Group, 2007. 214 pages. (Realistic Fiction)

It's just that thing about birthdays and especially the very day that you turn twelve, it’s always about the glamour. And because twelve is almost thirteen and thirteen is a teenager you have to make a point. I mean teenagers can’t be walking around in public with holes in their jeans and ketchup on their shirts,we all have to grow up and that’s exactly what Winnie had to do, she had to grow up. It was Winnie's first day of seventh grade and her first day in Westminster. On her first day Winnie and her best friend Dinah not only gained a new best friend but they gained a new worst enemy. Winnie and her best friend Dinah and now their new best friend Cinnamon have a worst enemy, Gail Grayson, who is the meanest girl in school according to Cinnamon. Now well Winnie, Dinah, and Cinnamon are trying to get along with Gail Grayson Winnies sister Sandra is off with her new boyfriend Bo and is no help to Winnie because Sandra is always at the mall or off on a date with Bo, and certainly her parents are no help because if you tell your parents every day their just going to want more and more information. Can Winnie handle the pressure?

I thought the book was fantastic! most girls that just turn twelve are really going to like this book.This book always kept you wondering what knid of crazy thing Winnie, Dinah, or Cinnamon were going to do next. I can't wait to read the next book Thriteen. "Myracle['s] narrative remains fresh and lively, inviting the audiance to commiserate and laugh along with Winnie as advances toard her 12th year." - Publishers Weekly, on Eleven

So catch up with Winnie, Dinah, Cinnamon and the rest of the crew when you read the book Twelve.

Reviewed by: RainyDay

Raise Your Voice

Wasserman, Robin. Raise Your Voice. NY: Scholastic, 2004. 187 pages. (Realistic Fiction)

The book I read was Raise Your Voice. The main characters in the story are Terri, Jay, Paul, Simon, Aunt Nina and Frances. The title of the book is Raise Your Voice because Terri has a great voice and loves to sing in the school choir and just about anywhere. Terri also loves to sing and write her own songs. Terri got invited to Bristol-Hillman Music Conservatory. Only the best people in the country were invited to this summer music school. Her dad, Simon, was not allowing her to go to this school because he didn’t want her in LA all by herself. Since her brother just graduated from school, Terri wanted to get him something for graduating so she got him two tickets to see a band. Terri and her brother Paul snuck out of the house and saw the band. When they were driving on the way back to their house a car went through a red light and smashed into their car. Terri lived but her Paul did not.

I would recommend this book to anyone because if a bad event happened to them like it did in the story, then they might relate to the book and realize that they are not the only one that is feeling bad. In the beginning I despised the father for not letting his daughter go to the school, but then I realized that he didn’t let her go because he loved her and didn’t want her to leave because she was his only daughter left. I would read another book by this author because it was a nice topic to write about and had a lot of feeling written in the book.

Reviewed by: April Girl

Pretties

Westerfeld, Scott. Pretties. New York City: Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing Division, 2005. 370 pages. (Sci-Fi Series)


Tally is finally gorgeous. She has a hot boyfriend, fashionable clothes, a popular clique, and her best friends with her to help her out. She has everything she could imagine. But that all changes one morning when Tally receives a note from herself… only she can’t remember writing it. That’s when her past comes to haunt her She will soon realize that there is more to being pretty than just the good looks, that it goes deeper than that. Literally.

I love this series!!!!!!! It is full of love and regret, friendship and enemies, and betrayal. On a scale of one through ten, this series is an eleven!!!

Reviewed by: DancingPenguins96

20,000 Leagues Under the Sea

Verne, Jules. 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea New York: Baronet Books, 1992. 237 pages. (Steampunk)

The book I read was 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, by Jules Verne. I really enjoyed this book, because I too enjoy sea life. The story starts off with a “sea monster” that seems to be around 60 feet long and indestructible. It even went through another ship! A sea life expert, Professor Aronnax, and his friends Conseil, and Ned go out on a boat to find this sea monster, which takes them around three months to find. When they see it Ned fires at it, and when it doesn’t die, they knew it wasn’t an animal. It ended up being some of the most advanced technology ever seen in their time. Being able to take people under water for about 4 days was very impressive, (It had to go back up to collect more air, but could eventually go back down for another 4 days). I don’t think I’d be so thrilled being sentenced in the ship for life, so that no one knew about it, but being able to see all the things of the deep that no people on land have gotten to see would be one of my greatest adventures. I think most people that read this book would enjoy it, because of the thrilling ride the book takes you through. It’s safe to say this was one of my favorite books yet, and I hope other readers enjoy it as much as I did.

Mator1313

Maximum Ride: The Angel Expeirement

Patterson, James. Maximum Ride: The Angel Expeirement. NY: Time Warner Book Group, 2005. 422 pages. (Sci-Fi / Thriller Series / Poem Review)

Meet Maximum Ride,

She lives with her “family,”
But there is a twist.

Wolf/Humans will chase,
Max and friends will fly away,
with wings on their backs.

Eating not a lot,
as they run from Erasers,
Have to keep alive.

Many Adventures,
Ambushes everywhere,
There’s no time to waste.

Life is maybe short,
Come fly away into clouds
with Maximum Ride.

This “half science fiction book,” as I’m calling it, is packed with drama, plot twists, sadistic villains, and much more as Max and her five friends soar through the book. I give it a four out of five. The following books are also very exciting. Friends and Foes, Spies and Traitors, and more when you join Maximum Ride.

Reviewed by: ShadowSlicer

Pandora’s Daughter

Johansen, Iris. Pandora’s Daughter. New York: St. Martin’s Press, 2007. 364 pages. (Mystery/Thriller)

This book by Iris Johansen is EXCELLENT! This is one of the best books I have read by this author. This book is about a woman who discovers that she has special psychic ability. All of the sudden all of her memories that have been withheld from her by another psychic, come flooding back. Along with the memories, a killer, who has his mind set on murdering her, also comes with the package. He wants to get revenge because of her mother, also a psychic, making his son insane. Now his goal in life is to kill all the people who he considers “freaks.” All he needs to find all these people with psychic abilities is a book with the names and location of all the “special” people with these abilities who are around the world. From healers to listeners and everything in between, in his mind, must die. Will he get hold of the book? Will the woman live? To find out, read Pandora’s Daughter by Iris Johansen.


On a scale from 1-10, I give this book a 9. This book is excellent and a great page-turner. Make sure you pick a rainy or snowy day to pick this book up because you wont be able to put it down.

“TheClutz”

Rogue

Vincent, Rachel. Rogue. Ontario, Canada: Mira, 2008. 394 pages. (Mystery / Romance)

The main characters in Rogue are Faythe, Greg; Faythe’s father, her three brothers – Ethan, Parker, and Ryan – her friend Jace, her boyfriend Marc, and her ex-boyfriend Andrew. The story takes place somewhere in Southern Texas.

The problem that Faythe faces is trying to find out who is killing Toms and why. Faythe also needs to find out if she’s ready to be the Pride leader and if she can handle the consequences if she makes a mistake. Faythe goes about solving these problems by taking things as they come – not knowing how to take them or not – and by showing everyone what she can do. Interesting events that happen throughout the novel are the mysterious phone calls, the secret murderer, and all the little mistakes Faythe makes that turn into disasters.

The character I’m most like is Faythe because she cares a lot about others, we both have the same fashion, we’re both paranoid, and we both make tons of mistakes. Nothing from this novel has ever happened to me, except the fact that Faythe becomes very paranoid throughout it. There are many scenes in this novel that have a very big impact on me: whenever Marc and Faythe get into arguments. The reason they have a big impact on me is because their very depressing, and at times they don’t make me want to read anymore of the story. The one thing that disappointed me with this book was the fact that – for the most part – the same thing happened over and over, and that it was very depressing, boring, and really wasn’t half as good as the first book, Stray.


Reviewed by: Buffy

The Misery

King, Stephen. Misery. New York. Penguin, 1988. (Horror)


The book that I read was called Steven Kings The Misery. It is about this evil woman who takes a man named Paul in after he has been in an accident. She takes him in and nurtures him back to health. When he gets better she does not let him leave. The woman straps him into a wheelchair so he could not escape her house. After a while of him being trapped, he starts to snoop around her house when she goes to town. Paul finds several documents on her and they said that she had gone to prison for doing something bad when she was a nurse. Later that day when she came home she could tell that he had been snooping around because some of her things were out of place. Then the woman pushed him into a room and strapped him down onto a bed so that he could not get away. Then to top things off, she took a thick block of wood and put it between his feet and then took a sledge hammer and hit both of his ankles with it. That broke his ankles and assured her that there was no way he would ever escape. To find out what happens next you have to read the book called, The Misery.

I would defiantly recommend this book to anyone who likes horror books. It was very good and it made me want to keep reading when I would put the book down to do something. And for anyone who likes horror it will do the very same thing to you. So read the book.

Reviewed by: IfUDare

The 39 Clues the Maze of Bones

Riordan, Rick. The 39 Clues the Maze of Bones. New York: Scholastic, 2008. 220 pages. (Adventure/Mystery Fiction)

Amy and Dan Cahill were living a poor but normal life in their apartment with their au pair Nellie Gomez. Then when their grandmother Grace Cahill died, they were hoping they could gain a few bucks by going to her funeral. Later they find out that their family is the most powerful family in the world! Amy, Dan, and several other teams all go around the world to hunt for the 39 Clues. The Holts who could bench twice their own weight and the Starlings who ended up being taken out of the competition after a fatal bomb were a couple of the teams in the big hunt.

This is an amazing packed with action book that I just could not put down. It had tones of details which just made it that much easier to read! I selected this book because I saw the website 39clues.com and I wanted to read it so I could know about the website.

Reviewed By: YankeesBoy22

Maximum Ride: The Angel Experiment

Patterson, James. Maximum Ride: The Angel Experiment. New York City: Time Warner Book Group, 2006. 413

In Maximum Ride the Angel Experiment max and her adopted brothers Gasman, Iggy, and Fang. And her sisters Angel and Nudge. They are all different they were made to fly. They were raised in a place named The School; until one scientist took them away from the awful experiments the scientist did on them. His name was Jeb. Jeb had trained max and her friends to be always to look out for Erasers they were like wolf-men they were trained to kill they gang of Max and her friends. For years they had never been found in their house in the mountains. That is about to change when the erasers take Angel ands sends Max and her friends all around the U.S. looking for her. Max finds new friends and foes on her quest to find Angel, some in unlikely places.

I think the author would be a good teacher because he is very good at describing things and how they work. I liked this book because it was filled with action, suspense, and unexpected twists from the beginning to the end.

Reviewed by: GaleStorm

The Serpent’s Shadow

Riordan, Rick. The Serpent’s Shadow. New York: Hyperion Books, 2012. 406. (Fantasy Series)

Carter and Sadie Kane have, in the loosest sense, an irregular life. Well, it’s chaotic. Literally. Both of their parents are descended from Egyptian magicians, their mother’s dead, and their father is the host of Osiris, the god of the dead. Apart from that, they have to run the whole 21st Nome by themselves, and their Uncle, the Chief Lector, has to deal with most of the Nomes turning against him with the belief that he is conspiring with the god that is the least of their problems, Set, god of evil. Carter, a fifteen-year-old boy who recently hosted the war god, Horus, is, like his sister, still affected by the time sharing a mind, and is focusing all his attention on training his initiates, keeping them from dying, and looking for the Chaos snake, Apophis. His sister, Sadie, who hosted the magic goddess, Isis, is concerned with one of her initiates and her crush, Walt Stone, practically living at death’s door, her other crush, Anubis, god of death, being kept from her, and her personal scolder, Isis, nagging her about joining together again to defeat Apophis. The count is on for the fall equinox, and Carter and Sadie are running out of time to find a way to defeat Apophis.

I strongly recommend this book to any teen looking for an exciting, unpredictable, and slightly violent book. Even though the first two books in the series should be read first, it is sufficient by itself. It is a perfect book.

Reviewed by: Creative Cricket