The River

Paulsen, Gary. The River, NY: Dell, 1991. 137 pages. (Survival Series / Poem Review)

Brian Robison
Is back in the woods again
Derek is with him

They land in the woods
Then again it’s going well
Then three days out good

Is hit by lighting
In need of medical help
Brian builds a raft

Tree hits him dead on
He is put in a coma
Will be close to death

Miles down the stream
The time is running out fast
Now will he make it?

The book The River I think is a great squeal to the book Hatchet because it continues at a great point after the Hatchet ended and continues it. The book is shorter then Hatchet but I think it was just as good. If I had to give it a score one though ten, I would give it an eight.

Reviewed by Flight of the Dodo

Far North

Hobbs, Will. Far North. New York: Harper Trophy, 2004. 278 pages. (Adventure / Survival)

Gabriel has finished high school in Texas while living with his grandparents. Now that Gabe is out of high school, he is moving to the North West Territories in Canada to be with his father. His father is now working on an oil rig in the cold waters of the north. Meanwhile, Gabe is attending a college in Yellow Knife. When Gabe is not in school, he and his father are able to spend time together. On one weekend Gabe, his friend Raymond, and an elder from the same town as Raymond, named Johnny Raven, decide to take a sight seeing tour from a plane, down on the Nahanni River.

When the planes engine fails on the river, with the plane rushing towards the falls, Gabe, Raymond, and Johnny make it safely to shore with only a little supplies. However, the plane and the pilot get swept swiftly down over the falls. From then on Gabe, Raymond, and Johnny Raven are forced to get by with minimal supplies. They are about to face the brutal subzero winter that is to come. All three have to work hard to stay warm and get enough to eat, while waiting to be rescued.

I believe Will Hobbs has done a great job with this book. He is an award winning author which can include many intricate details into this book. Most of all I liked reading about the north and how he describes it. I also liked reading about all the struggles that Gabe, Raymond, and Johnny go through. I really think this is a great book for anyone that wanted to read a thrilling novel on the wilderness.

Reviewed by Me

Girlhearts

Mazer, Norma Fox. Girlhearts. NY. New York. Scholastic, 2001. 210 pages. (Realistic Fiction / Poem Review)

Rain came down all night.
Morning light came and with it
A special feeling.

Under the pressure.
"What will we do now mom?"

"I don’t know, honey.
Dying and grieving.
Take the chance, just let go."

"I can't it’s too hard.
How can I live now?"

"It’s all a part of the life.
Come, don’t be sad."

"Living is harder.
The weeks ahead will be tough.
We will get through it."

All a part of girl hearts.

This book is packed with a roller coaster of emotion. The mother whose name is Jane is caught with a heart attack at 29. Her daughter Sarabeth is over whelmed with what has happened to her mother. Skipping school just to go see her doesn’t pay off in the long haul. After all the chaos in that matter, her mother dies. Read the book Girl hearts to see what has happened to Sarabeth after her mother’s death and the other mischief that she gets in. It would lead to a good sequel also to see what will come again.

Reviewed by: ReadingLight