Frindle

Clements, Andrew. Frindle. N.Y.: Alladin Paperbacks, 1996. 105 pages. (Realistic Fiction)

The main characters in this book are Nick, a fifth grade boy, and his fifth grade English teacher, Mrs. Granger. The story takes place in a town called Westfield, in an intermediate school. The problem Nick faces is that he and his teacher disagree about a new word that he invents. His teacher loves using the dictionary and always encourages her students to do the same. One day Nick asked Mrs. Granger why words are called what they are called. She responded by saying “Words are what they are because we say they are.” While walking home from school one day, Nick saw a pen on the side of the road. He picked it up and came up with a great idea. He would call it a “frindle” and use that word all day in school the next day. To do this, Nick called all his friends over to his house and made them sign an oath saying that from now on they would use the word “frindle” instead of “pen.” One interesting event that happened in this book is that in the middle of Nick’s battle with Mrs. Granger over his use of the word “frindle” Mrs. Granger put a notice up on the school bulletin board that said that any kid who used the word “frindle” had to stay after school and write “I am writing this punishment with a pen.”

I thought this book was one of the most interesting books I’ve ever read. I would recommend it with anyone who likes stories about mean English teachers who give you homework on the first day of school. This book was so well written that I would read any other book by Andrew Clements. The characters in this book were very easy to picture and the story very easy to follow. This made the book interesting to read. This book made me want to keep reading and reading until I finished it.

Dangling on the Edge

Learning to Breathe Again

Trent, Tammy. Learning to Breathe Again. NYC: Thomas Nelson, 224 pages. (Non-Fiction / Self Help)

The book Learning to Breathe Again is a biography about the life of Tammy Trent, a Christian singer. The main charters are Tammy, Trent Tammy’s husband, and their families and friends. This book has a lot of settings because it is a bibliography. A lot of it took place in Hawaii though. Tammy’s husband Trent died in Hawaii on a cruise. He went scuba diving and never came back up. Tammy had to try solving this problem by moving on and becoming a Christian singer. I myself have met her in person and have gone to a few of her concerts. The day before Trent died; they were talking about having kids. Trent proposed to Tammy with a Happy Meal at McDonalds. The girls who worked there all knew what was going on, so they were all laughing and smiling at Trent. Tammy thought they were flirting with him, so she got really angry. I mean until she found the ring. Tammy Trent had to change her name, so she took his first name as a last name.

The charter that I liked most and look up to was Tammy, because she has a lot of perseverance. I myself know what it feels like to lose someone so close to you: my mom died when I was only about four years old. My whole family including my new mom helped me right through this. I would recommend this book to anyone in the mood for a sad, happy, heart breaking, and most amazing book.

Reviewed By: Reed254

The Wide Window

Snicket, Lemony. A Series of Unfortunate Events: The Wide Window. New York City: HarperCollins publishers, 2000. 214 pages. (Suspense)

Violet, Klaus, and Sunny Baudelaire are three orphans with a huge fortune that their parents left behind on a new adventure. They are going to live with their Aunt Josephine, who is a widow. Their aunt lives on a hill towering above Lake Lachrymose held up partially by the cliff, and partially by wooden stilts. Josephine has an obsession with grammar, and has many irrational fears, some including the doormat to her house, because someone could trip on it and break their neck. Another is touching any doorknob, because she is afraid of it shattering into a million pieces, and one of them will hit her eye. She will not answer the telephone, because she fears electrocution. Aunt Josephine will also not turn on the oven, because she fears it will burst into flames, and she is afraid of realtors for no apparent reason.When the orphans arrive at Aunt Josephine's house, Hurricane Herman is about to arrive.

I liked this book a lot, because I think that it was a short book, but all the things happening make it seem much longer than it is. Also, since the book is full of activity, it keeps your interest, and you can read it very quickly. The book uses many big words, and I am very glad that they define them right after they use them. I also like how many of the names of things are alliterations- such as “Curdled Cave,” and “Damocles Dock.” The suspense keeps moving because Count Olaf never gets captured. I would certainly recommend this book to anyone who likes fantasy- fiction books.

Reviewed By: Scooterocks87

The Island of the Blue Dolphin

O’Dell, Scott. The Island of the Blue Dolphin. NY: Dell Yearling, 1960. 184 pages.(Historic Fiction / Survival)

This story takes place on an island in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. The island is said to look like a fish that is sunning itself in the vast sea. There are many dolphins and otters swimming around the island while sea elephants and sea birds walk around on land. Many Indians once lived on this island. They lived a happy life until one day when they left for the east, one girl was left behind. This is the story of Karanan, a young Indian girl just trying to survive and waiting for her family to come back and find her. Year after year she waits for the ship to return to the island, but it never comes. While she waits, she has to find food, build a shelter, make weapons, and most important, fight off her enemies, which are the wild dogs that live on the island. This story is a tale of her survival and her adventure on The Island of the Blue Dolphins.

I selected this book because I love a great adventure book and this book was more than great. Once I thought I knew what was going to happen next, the book took the story and turned it right around. This book kept me on my toes the whole story.

Reviewed By: hockeysniper13