Angels and Demons By Dan Brown

CERN's director, Maximilian Kohler, finds that one of CERN's best scientist, Leonardo Vetra, has been killed. Left on Leonardo's chest is the word "Illuminati", formed as an ambigram, using a hot iron. Kohler then calls Harvard symbologist, Robert Langdon, to investigate this case. When Leonardo's daughter, Vittoria Vetra, arrives at CERN, she tells Kohler about the project that her father and her were working on, which is trying to create anti-matter. They soon find out that the anti-matter had been stolen. When the canister the anti-matter is in leaves it's charger for more than 24 hours, the magnetic field inside will drop leaving the anti-matter in contact with matter, which will then cause an enormous explosion to occur. It is then up to Langdon and Vittoria to retrieve the anti-matter before it is too late!

This was a pretty good book, not the best one I have ever read, but it's pretty good. What ruined the book for me was all the scientific and informational stuff in the book. I prefer a book with more action than information. I mean, I could always pick up my science book and read that. The book also had pretty good characters, but not many that I liked. Vittoria seemed too bossy, and she showed off a lot. Kohler thought he was more important than the president. The one I liked best was Langdon because he didn't think he was everything. I also liked the fact that he talked to himself in his head and made jokes about others. This usually happened when others didn't understand what he was saying. Overall this was a pretty good book. It could have been better though and I'm pretty sure that the sequel,The Da Vinici Code, is a much better book.

Written and Published by: Manuel L.

Lilys Ghosts by Cheryl Drake Harris

Lily's Ghosts is a book I read that I found quite amazing. If you like intriguing novels with mystery set basis then you will love to read Lily's Ghosts. The characters are realistic with very emotional backgrounds that are played into the characters dialogue.
Lily is a young girl of 13 years who has to move away from her last home for the eighth time. This destination is now near Cape May. She's dreary at the thought of moving again, and none the less, it's into her creepy great-uncle's vacationing home, but her sadness doesn't stay for long. Homeschooling is not new to her, neither public school, but she decides on homeschooling as a way to escape making new friends...or enemies. Lily doesn't know much of her mothers side of the family, maybe because she didn't want to, or maybe because it had never occurred to her that other people exist beyond her broken home after her father left and never returned. As a way of coping with her loss she began habits of strange origin. She would hide her distress by going to the beach and building sand castles on the shores of Cape May,or go exploring places she should not have.
During the process of exploring her new home she started experiencing coldness, extreme heat, running water that disappeared in an instant, and a Kewpie doll that loved to toy with her mind. In an attempt to flee the house she literally ran into a Greek boy her age. Adventures began after that. Ghosts begin appearing to her, and a mystery in uncovered about her family's past. Maybe it's good, and maybe it's something she doesn't want to hear.
The plot of this great book is something personally I have never read anything like before. Lily thinks and acts just like a 13 year old girl, and it's absolutely amazing to see such precise decisions from an older writer.
So, after Lily meets the charming Vasilios, the Greek boy she ran into, they discover new things about Lily's past that would've taken her years to figure out on her own. Maybe even decades. Things like; What is my mothers side of the family like? Why does Vasilios take such an effort to accompany me everywhere? How did my great-uncle Max die? etc..
Maybe this book is only meant for a younger crowd, but on a scale of 1-10, I'd have to give it an 8-9. The reason is because Lily is such an interesting person from the beginning. Every page I turn, I need to keep turning! Multiple mysteries are racking my brain as to whether or not they're true. How will I know unless I keep reading? Perhaps you will find this book unrealistic, and a corny love story, but any book that can keep me reading until the very end definitely must have some potential.
So, DOES Lily get Vasilios? Does Lily find the mystery to her great-uncles death? Do you find out the connection between a librarian, a Kewpie doll, a psychic , buried treasure , and a jewelry maker?
To find out you'll have to read Lily's Ghosts by Cheryl Drake Harris


written and published by HANNAH

The Cheat

Have you ever been tempted to cheat and get a good grade? Most teens today would do anything to get a good grade in a test or atleast pass. What happens when you cheat ona test? You think everything is going like you planned until you get called into the office. What would you do? if I were in that situation I would try to act normal but you just can't. It's just really hard to hide your nervousness. Four students have a geography midterm. They all have on wish and that is to pass their midterm. It's all about Sarah,Rob,Dan and Katie. They all memorize different thmes rhy or songs to pass the mid term. The question is how did they all ge the answers from the last years exam? This is just the beginning but you'll never imagine the consequences!
This is book has a little bit of everything. It has mystery and a little bit of love. Who do you think is truly the person that sent the answers to Sarah,Rob,Dan? Sarah thinks it is Katie, her best friend and blame her, but did Katie really tell or might it of been Rob, Dan or even Sarah?
The characters in this book are incredible. Not only can you learn from them, but you can also learn what teens would do to pass a test. I learned many things from this book! One thing that I learned is that it's best not to cheat because every bad thing has a consequence to it.
On page (123) we can see how one of the students feels for cheating. He says, "So why couldn't I just forget the whole stupid psychodrama and get on wuth studying for my one midterm?" On page (52) we can see how another student who cheated feels.
He says "wouldn't be all bad if their brakes fail. If one hits me, it would take care of everything, for good. We can see how ashamed this student feels for cheating. Would we feeel the same way, how would you react and what would your actions be? This student doesn't mind if a car ran over him.Would this be your reation?
The only frustrating or annoying part of book is the last part. The reason why I say that is because at the end there's this student that confesses to the principal. What confession do you think he made? At the end the student suffers it's consequences but when he/she returns to school everyone is glad of their return. I highly recommend this book and hope you find it interesting!
written and published by: Nelly

Surviving Hitler

Surviving Hitler, by Andrea Warren is one of the best books I have ever read. I learned more in that book than I have in any other book. To like this book you need to be interested in World War II. It's the only war I'm actually interested in.

The main character in the book is Jack Mandelbaum. He was an ordinary person living in Gdynia (ga-DIN-ya), Poland when the Nazis took all the jews to Auschwitz. There, Jack helped jews do work for the Nazis. He knew an electrician who got him a paper that had a Nazi stamp on it to show he was a good worker and worked for the Nazis. Later, Nazis came in at five o' clock and took all of the jewish families and lined them up. Jack's mother and brother were taken to a death camp but Jack showed the Nazis his Nazi stamp and went to a working camp. After a few years in the camps the war ended. Jack was free and wanted to reunite with his family. To know the ending you'll have to read it yourself. I already told too much.

I would definately recommend this book. Normally I hate reading and never want to continue when I start a book, but when I started reading this one I didn't want to stop because I was so interested. Because there are so many facts in this book, it is by far the best non-fiction story I've ever read. If you like non-fiction books you have to read this, you will love it guaranteed. It shows how extraordinary things can happen to ordinary people. The description of the life in concentration camps is so detailed. It tells how the food was, how the beds were, how the camps were crawling with lice, the diseases, the people, the exhausting work, and how to survive. I have nothing bad to say about this book.

Written and Published by: Chris M.

Beyond the Deepwoods by Paul Stewart and ChrisRiddel

The Book I read was The edge chronicals Beyond the Deepwoods The authors of the book are Paul Stewart and Chris Riddel.

I thought that the book was great, it had alot of twists and turns. You also don't really know whats going to happen next. There are 2 other sequals to the book. There was also many types of creatures and characters in the book. The plot was good, well ok, it wasn't the best but anyway it was about this boy named Twig and his adventures of the place called The Deepwoods. He encounters many bugs and dangerous creatures, but he also meets friends and people who help him along the way.

The book showed alot about the people he meets along the journey, I also liked how it described the setting, how it would be swampy marsh land and then suddenly change to a dense forest. I would definetly recommend for others to read, I would give it 4.5 stars. I dont really connect to the book that much because it's fiction and most things that happen would not happen in real life. In the book it mentioned him being a "WoodTroll" but he was very different from them. At the end of the book it showed Twig flying off into a sky ship and became a sky pirate like he always wanted to do. Though some of Twigs friends had died along the way, but atleast it had a happy ending, and a little bit of a cliffhanger. The book also had alot of different types of fruits,plants, and trees, I thought that it was neat how the author could think of all of those things.

By Alex R

The House Of The Scorpion by: Nancy Farmer

House of the Scorpion is a book filled with excitment and suspens. It is a thriller. Matteo Alacran is a boy who is a clone of one of the richest men on earth El Patron. Matt is treated like a king by El Patron but he is not very welcomed by everybody else in the Alacran Mansion. This includes El Patron's power hungry family. As Matt strugg;es to understand his existence, he is surpriesd by many things that he discovers. By reading this book you will discover how Matteo Alacran is forced to resist with all the "Eyes" focused on him.

The characters in this book where prety creepy and some were pretty nice and really brought a good feeling to the book. Matt was regular kid but most people didnt think of him that way. I would have to say he, along with El Patron, were one of the best charcters. The author of the book did an awsome job with the details. I would say it almost felt as if you where in the book.

The plot was awsome, again maybe it felt that way beacuse of the author giving so much detail. This story was actionpacked story that you wont want to stop reading. One reason is matt trying to survive with all yhe odds stacked against him. Another is the twisted turns the story takes, especially one in specific. By: Jose

Evean though I have not completed the book I would still recomend it by what I have read so far. Hopefully you will be as excited as I was when you get into the book. Well I got to go because three more chapters await me. Hopefully this book will end how I expect it to end, and I hope the end isn't stupid like in most stories.

"The Terrorist" By Caroline B. Cooney

This book has a very intresting plot! Throught the entire book you feel many mixed emotions, sadness, pitty, frustration, anger and anxious! It is about a girl named Laura Williams, who is determined to find the terrorist who blew-up her little brother Billy. Along the way she finds out that she can trust no one, but looses a few friends on the way! This book takes place in a very rich part of London. Laura attends a school called London International Acadamy(L.I.A. for short). At L.I.A. there are students from all around the world and she wants to only find the bad in everyone. She WANTS to find the terrorist in everyone!
This book really relates with the world today because of all the things that have been happening over-seas with terrorists! Because this book relates alot with the world today, I found that the plot seemed to be more realistic. If I had to chose one thing that I didn't like about this book, it would be that I don't like the main characters atitude in the beging, but there is a dramatic change in the end.
The book switches points of veiw all the time, and I really liked that! It enabled me to know what was going on in the other characters heads. You also got to learn more about their personality and life style! All of the characters at first were suspisious, but then twards the end, her real friends shine!
I love the style that was used to write this book! it not only switches charecters, but also describes things wonderfuly! I could imagine all of the settings and details and characters! Also, the way the book really hooks you in the begining is a huge factor of what made me love this book so much!
I would defidently recomend this outsanding book to others! It makes you experience lots of diferent emotions and hooks you in ffrom the start!!



Written By: Ashley B.

The Looking-Glass Wars

There's a place where the garden can take you
Through the looking glass
Find a way with the plants - they can take you
To your path
Chase away all the funny pain
Down the rabbit hole
And another world awaits behind the little door

Fantasy just declared war on reality. Alyss, better know as Alice in Lewis Carolls 'Alice In Wonderland' and 'Through the Looking Glass' is ashamed of what was put into the book. Honestly, that wasn't the truth. The queen of hearts never would tell her heir, Alyss, "off with her head!" what mother would?

You can go ask Alice
Just why the hatter is mad

A girl, in love, but taken away when her aunt Redd decides to take over the palace of wondtropolis, also know as wonderland. Alyss, after watching the slaughter of her mother, the queen of hearts, she takes a dive into the pool of tears. Only to whined up in London. Her birthday dress was the only clothes on her back.

All are welcome in wonderland
'Till the queen screams off with your head
And life will always get twisted
When you're living it through the looking glass

Then you have Hatter Madigan, a top hat wearing, wrist blade wielding, someone you wouldn't want to get on the bad side of. His top hat, most discussed topic of him in the book, contains, when thrown the right way, and S-shaped blade. He served the queen of hearts before her murder.

There's a that cat smiles like
The crescent moon
And the caterpillar that needs a light
On top of his mushroom

Attempting to fulfill his majesty orders, Hatter Madigan takes a dive through the pool of tears as well. Ending up in France. Now, I won’t say if he finds her that would be a waste of a blog and giving the book away. His dreams to find her, well, you decide.

You can go ask Alice
Just why the hatter is mad

Bitwit Harte, Alyss's tutor. He taught her how to be a queen, to use imagination for the good of the people, also know as white magic. He forms a group of wonderlanders that don't like 'Queen' Redd on the throne. This group is called the 'Alyssians'. They formed in hopes that Alyss will, in fact, do the unthinkable to return back to Wondtropolis to save them from black magic.

Next time you see the white rabbit run free
You might not want to follow
Lose your youth, cause beauty is truth
It's just harder to swallow

I wont give away any of the book, and I wouldn't recommend it to novice readers. This is a book for readers who can free their mind of the normal. People who have imagination, who can get into a book. There is a sequel to the book called, Seeing Redd. I'd tell you why it's called that, but it would make me have to tell you the ending of the book. I loved this book and almost couldn't put it down.

So go and ask Alice
Why the hatter is mad
She'll turn when you see her
And laugh

Song: Looking Glass - Hypnogaja
~Pixie Rayn
(Sierra)

Life In Prison

Life In Prison, which was written by Stanley Tookie Williams, was a very intriguing book for me to read. I am very glad that I chose to read this book for my project in literacy this trimester. I hope that maybe after you read my review on this book you might want to take some time to read this book also. I think you could learn a thing or two from reading what Tookie has to teach the young people in our world today. I know I certainly learned a lot. Throughout the chapter in Life In Prison, Tookie Williams describes various aspects of daily prison life as he has seen it thus far.

This book is not the only one of its kind that has been written by Tookie. Tookie, with help from a few others, has put together a whole series of books for children. The books are about how he wishes that the kids today make good choices in life and avoid the mistakes that he has been unfortunate enough to make in his lifetime. Tookie took the time to really put his heart and soul into these books. Because of t his, he was also nominated for a Nobel peace prize. Tookie Williams was the co-founder of the Notorious crips gang that originated in California over twenty years ago. He was sent to death row in San Quentin in 1981. He was convicted because he pleaded guilty to being part of an armed robbery where some people were murdered. Although these facts may painjavascript:void(0)t a gruesome and nearly unforgivable picture and overall image of Tookie, there's much more to who he was as a person than that. I think that these books really showcase that.

The book wasn't exactly like a regular story though. There were characters that were briefly mentioned throughout the story, but the main characters remained, in my perspective, Tookie and his reader. That was one of my favorite things about the book. At the beginning of each chapter, Tookie described a sort of 'at home experiment' for people to try that could help them imagine what he was talking about in a clearer and more realistic manner. He described his living space like being locked in your bathroom all of the time...or worse. This helped me imagine how oppressive life in prison must really be.

What amazed me even more as I read the story, was how Tookie proceeded to make it through all of this and really find himself when it would have been so easy for him to get completely lost in the whole mess. I think that Tookie's story is one that represents the true redemption that we are all capable of, even in the worst circumstances. Unfortunately, Tookie is no longer with us. He was executed after he had a number of books published. There was also a movie made about his story (which I highly reccomend seeing) called Redemption. All in all, I learned a lot through reading about Tookie and his life both in and out of Prison. Like I mentioned before, his story has helped me regain faith in the process of healing and redemption that each of us are capable of. Rest In Peace Stanley Tookie Wiliams.

Vampire plagues by Sebastian Rook

I though this book was a good book. It was about three friends that need to stop an evil vampire befor he turns everyone into vampires. I like these tyeps because I like to watch scary movies like this. I also liked that they did dire to tell what their trip was about. The book takes place mostly in the town of londom but some is in Mexico. It does seem believable because it is about what the mians beleved. There is a second book too, this one is called paris and I think I'm going to read that one because you really want to find out what happends after the first one. I do recommend this to others if you find being attacked by vampires interesting like me. The book also takes place in 1850. SO it is not our time. They use wagons to travel around and sail boats. When only the three kids know about the vampires it is hard for them to explain to others that the vampires are real. They also need somthing to kill the vampires, and only one withing will work. But somthing I didn't like about the book is that the vampires are really stroung and they can turn into a bat form, but the vampires can't kill them when they are alot weeker. The vampires seem kind of dum because they can't catch the kids but everyone elce they can. So if you think you might want to get this book the full name of it is Vampire Plagues London 1850. I reccomend this book to all ages.

by Kevin c.

Starman

Starman, by Sara Douglass is a great book to read and I would recommend it to anyone my age and older, but it does have some unbelievable things in it.The main characters, Axis (Starman) and Azhure (Enchantress), are a great addition to the story and make the book a great read. There is a really good plot in the book and it is very interesting.


I really like the main characters, Axis and Azhure, because they made the book what it is. Axis, the great hero, rides to defeat his evil brother, while Azhure discovers mysteries about herself. They make the book exciting, interesting, and bloody. They both are involved in the prophecy of the Destroyer, which the book is focused around. These are some ways that Axis and Azhure helped the story.


One thing that I thought was not very believable was the star dance. I think the name was sort of stupid and the way it was used in the story wasn't very believable. The words used to describe the star dance were sort of phony when you read them from the text. Some of these words are flood,crackle, and shatter. I just didn't like the whole idea of the star dance.Other than the star dance, there are no other parts about the book.


The plot is very good and is on several different levels, Axis battling his brother is one, Azhure discovering herself is the second, Faraday planting trees is the third, and the sentinels traveling to make the rainbow scepter is the fourth. The book switches between these four constantly and they are all very interesting to read. They all eventually come together to reach the climax of the story.


I really like the writing style and it is probable because of that that I have read the book multiple times. Sara Douglass' writing style has a good way of communicating ideas and feelings throughout the book. It is really fun to read this book and once I start i can't stop.


I don't really connect to the story, but there are some things about it that I can connect to other books I have read. This book is very violent and many of the other books I have read are similar in this factor. One of these books is Eragon by Christopher Paolini. Over all this was a great book and I would recommend it to people my age and (14) up.

BY: Nolan Hollis

The Book without Words By: AVI

I really thought this was an awesome book. This story "The Book Without Words" was an exciting and, at some points, scary book. The book is rather slow at first but then starts getting more exciting and thrilling towards the end.


It is set in the middle ages when sorcery and alchemy was illegal. This comes to be a problem for the main characters, Sybil, Odo and Master Thorston. Not only does Thorston get himself in trouble, he also gets in trouble with the city reeve or authority.


This story gets a little odd at some points. For example, Odo is a crow. Oh, I forgot to mention that he is a talking crow that can't fly. Later you find out he was transformed from a goat to a crow. Another example is when Master Thorston "dies" and then comes back to life overnight and acts as if nothing happened. This happens several more times in the book.


The characters in this book are what really make it interesting to read. They all have very diverse personalities. Thorston is a grouchy old sack of skin and bones. Sybil is a caring servant whose only wish is to not live in the streets and be poor. And then there is Odo. His goal in life is to find out Master Thorstons gold making secret. He is unkind but then grows loyal to Sybil later on.


The grammar and speech that the book used really led me to believe that I was in the middle ages. Just that little bit of speech helps the story out alot, in my opinion.


This book was totally unbelievable. Between Odo the talking crow and the "dead" Master Thorston coming to life it is outrageously unbelievable. Every once in a while books like this are fun to get into. It adds a little fun to reading.


I would recommend this book to anyone who likes a good story plot and a book that has awesome word choices and writing style. I would give this book a rating of 6 out of 10.


Writen and published by:Cameron

My sisters keeper written by: Jodi Picoult student: Jazmin

The book my sisters keeper is a very interesting book that makes you not want to stop it is about a family that struggles allot because one daughter is dying of a cancer that kills her white cells. The mom of the little girl named Kate tries to save her by getting pregnet of another girl that would have everything the same as her daughter dying because the little girl's brother can't help her because they don't have the same size of organs and blood to cure Kate. Jesse is Kate's brother and Brain is her dad. The dad doesn't agree with her wive to just make another baby to help kate stay alive, although a doctor examines the mom and matches up Kate's genes to the baby that is to be born. Then Kate's little sister is born and was named Anna she had to donate blood when she was born and I think that was cruel.
I told you about the book now I will tell you what I thought about the book. I thought the book my sisters keeper is a very suspencing book that makes you wonder if these novel could really be real that just makes you want to read the book more and more. What I liked about these book was that if you didn't know a word like kidneys they would explain it to you and that way you would be comfortable reading it. If you feel your comfortable with the book then you will read it and it will seem very interesting because you will get in the book. I also liked that the book had different points of view that let you understand the characters more. Everything I liked just for a few little things I got really confused when I started the book.
There was another thing I forgot to say that was good about these book was that the Arthur made the story so interesting I could not stop reading the book. In the book I disagreed with some things that I didn't like was that the mom was really selfish because she wanted her younger daughter to give up her life for her older sister and that is just selfish. Another thing I didn't like was that the mom never ask anna if she wanted to help her sister the mom just did what she wanted with Anna's body. I thought every Character had a side on was Anna's to stop her mother from using her body and the other was to make Anna understand that she is supposed to view her life for Kate. Campbell Anna's lawyer is on Anna's side and her dad and brother was also on Anna's side. On the mom's side was her sister and her as far as I am in the book only those people are on their side.
All the characters have something in common and that is that you can really get to know them and learn from them and that is one of the best things a good book does. Believable was these book because we all know no one is perfect and can make errors and that makes you realize that a book that wouldn't be believable would have the characters have a perfect life and everyone be perfect and we all know that no one can be perfect. Another reason why these book is believable is because the author used real world facts and problems the author did these by making the disease of kate be a real one and that really makes you wonder if the story is real and I almost fell for that, but I know that today there is no doctor that can make a baby exactly the same genes as another.
I made lots of connections with these book and one of many was that moms are not perfect and trying to show you are right is very hard, but you need to keep to try. I think that the example to change someone's point of view is similar to Martin Luther King trying to stop raises for blacks. In conclusion I would really recommend these book so far as I have read it's a really good book.

ZACH'S LIE By:Roland Smith

If you take the "v" out of Lives what do you get?
Zach's Lie is book that's full of exciment, mysteries, and confusions that pretty much anyone will enjoy. As soon as the Osborne know that they are in trouble they emidiatly have to move, change their names, change the way they look, an never talk to the people that they knew,and start from scratch. When they arrive to their new house they dont like it at first but at the end they start to like it. The only thing that sucks about their new life is that they have to lie about their lifes and they can't talk about their past. In other words their lives are complete lies!
The characters in this book are incredible because they are all unique but you can still find some similar stuff that will connect them. The characters in the book really do go with the theme,plot, and setting of the book. All the characters in the book really care for one another and they try to help each other in anyway they can even if it means getting yourself KILLED!
One of the reasons why I really liked the book was because the book was very believable and intresting. Alot of the things that happened in the book can be related to real life situations because things that happened to the people in the book can happen to anyone at anytime. One of the things that I liked about the book is that after reading a chapter I wanted to keep on reading. The more I read the more I wanted to read and finish the book to find out what would happened to the Grangers and the other characters.
I really do recommend this book to everyone because you will like the book when your finished and while your reading it, even people you dont like to read will enjoy reading it! The book is easy to read and understand what its about.
One of the most frustrating things about the book is the end because something that you weren't expecting to happen actually does. After you know what happens to the Grangers, first known as the Osborne, and now know as the Greene you will wish that there could be a second part, believe me you will!

Camp X by: Eric Walters

Camp X was a great book it was about two boys that just moved to Whitiby, Ontario. One day George and Jack were playing with fake guns out in the woods pretending to fight the war, they stumbled upon three guards with real guns taking them away then making them vacate the premmisis. which starts there curiosity of what is going on there that makes the book have twist and turns.


My opinion on the book is that it was great but was a little corny because jack is basicly this big mean tough kid and the worst thing he might say is crap. I just got kinda lost if im reading a book for 8 year olds or a book for a teen. I thought the book also needed a little more push in it although it was a really exciting and supriseing book it needed one more thing but i cant quite put my finger on it.

Another thing I liked about the book was all the people who seemed to not have a huge part in the book were minched through out the book like Mr.Krum to me he didnt seem like he knew alot and as the story progressed I figured out that he played a pretty serious role.

In conclussion I really liked the book although i would change a couple things i cant so I would recomened this book to a big crowd of student although i said it really didnt seem like a teen book all in all its a great book and its one i would like to read again because the charcters really caught me attenition of some of there hard ships they went through I can realate.

Dakota P

Small Steps By Louis Sachar

After coming back from Camp Green Lake, Armpit returns home to Austin, Texas to have another chance to change his life. This book, Small Steps, the sequel to HOLES, is a very interesting and good book. I really liked this book because it shows a great meaning in life and how it is important to make the right decisions. It was very exciting and funny to read.


The characters in the story are incredible and very realistic. Armpit, the main character, is just a dogmatic teenager who's trying to accomplish many things. One is to graduate from high school. Two is to attend two years of Austin Community College. Three is to do well enough to transfer to the University of Texas. Four is don't do anything stupid. And five is to lose the name Armpit. He would need to take small steps for him to reach his goals. Another main character in the book is X-Ray, a buddy of Armpit's at Camp Green Lake. They happen to me each other again. X-Ray runs his mouth every time and gets himself in trouble. He's the person you can't fully trust. My favorite character throughout this book would probably be Kaira De Leon. She is so realistic and fun. Not only she is a famous pop star, but also a lovable and funny person. Another favorite would be Ginny, Armpit's neighbor who has a disability. She is a very strong person and always persevere. Even if they have an age difference and color, Ginny always have Armpit's trust.

The plot of the book was interesting. It was very exciting and believable. Not only it tells how Armpit and X-Ray risks their lives again, but also tells a love story between Armpit and Kaira De Leon and the drama.

I recommend this book to others because it is a really good book but not as good as HOLES. Not only it gets you excited but teaches you a lot in life and the decisions you'll make. I would give this book five stars.


Written and published by Mark

Dreamland by Sarah Dessen

When I first was introduced to this project I knew I wanted a book with love, excitment, and something to keep me guessing. At first I was not sure if "Dreamland" would be that book with all thoses characteristics. I soon found out I was compleatly wrong about "Dreamland". I guess now it makes sense when people say "don't judge a book by its cover."

In my opinion this book is the best book I have ever read, I can also say that "Dreamland" is the first book to make me feel all my emotions at one time. There were points in my reading when I wanted to cry, yell, or jump for joy, to me that is one spectacular book, I strongly encourage anyone who reads this review to read "Dreamland" and expericance what I have felt.

I have to admit that when I was reding this nook I couldn't put it down. There were so many nights when I would push my homework aside to read it, it was so irrisitable with its mystery, hurt, nad painful love adventures. I expecially liked how the author, Sarah Dessen, really got into each character, each their own person with their own stories to tell. I felt like I knew each person and what they looked like with all thier different emotions. One persons angry emotion really caught me off gaurd, though. That person is Rogerson.

Rogerson Biscoe, at first, was your most perfect guy. He was sweet, intellagent, mysterious, powerful, dangers, and yet gental and loving. He came from a wealthy family, with a realitor mother adn a abusive father. Needless to say, Rogerson picked up some traits from his father that led Caitlin to Evergreen Hospital. But the thing I liked most about Rogerson, was that you could never tell what he was thinking or what he was going to do next.

There is so much to say about "Dreamland," if I said what I want to say you wouldn't have to read the book, I would tell you everything. Between Cass' runing away and Caitlin and her family. I will just say that I feel this book should get an award, becaue it has all the great qualities a great book should have. I think anyone will absolutly love this book and will deffenently encourage their friends to read like I am doing in this review. So what are you waiting for, get reading!!

The Lost Years Of Merlin, by T. A. Barron

Washed upon the shores of ancient Wales with no parents, no name, no memory of his past, a five year old boy must find his way. He lives with a woman who, although she insists she is, cannot possibly be his mother. She is too lovely, too powerful in magic, and above all, too secretive to be a mother. No parent would keep secrets from their child as she does, for she will not even tell the boy she has named Emrys who his father is, where he is from, or anything about his past.

But Emrys is determined. After discovering his own magical powers and losing his eyesight almost simultaneously, Emrys sets off to find his home, a journey that will ultimately uncover far more than what he hoped to find.

I really loved this book. It was a great read, and just at my level. The plot was smooth and flawless, the voice loud and clear, never fumbling. This is definitely the work of an experienced writer. I couldn't put it down, this book was so enchanting. I was on the edge of my seat the entire time. The ending tied off nicely, but left it open enough for a sequel. I think this would be a great read for eighth or ninth grade students who are looking for a good series to pick up. It's also great for people who want some imagination in what they read. This book is full of magic and wonder, and even though it's fantasy through and through, there are no plot holes, or questions left unanswered.

Emrys is smart and brave, and I really liked him as a main character. I usually hate the main character of any book or movie, but he was believable, sensible, and far less annoying than some heroes I've read about. His companion, Rhia, was vivacious and lovely. She was an excellent heroine, even though she made only a few appearances throughout the book. Full of life and laughter, she reminded me of my sister. Shim - a tiny giant who also follows Emrys throughout the book - was also one of the best sidekicks I've ever seen. He was charming, and the perfect balance of annoying and loyal. He longs to be the size of his ancestors, who can pass as mountains - for he is but a few feet tall. However, he ends up accomplishing the greatest feat of all, and finally reaches his dream - so to speak.

The setting was incredibly beautiful. There were no illustrations in the book except for a small, not very detailed map to help outline the size and outlay of Fincayra, but the language used to describe the scenery was imaginative and colorful enough to completely display the flowing landscape of Fincayra. It was incredible.

In all, I recommend this book to people with a starving imagination. Great for 7th to 12th graders. I think people who want a good series and a bit of fantasy should really look into this. Happy reading!

Written by Emma Buonocore

Zach's Lie, by Roland smith

This book has a lot of mysteries and surprises. Zach's life is all wrong. He doesn't know why his dads in jail. He has to change schools,town and his appearance. He hates everything that is happening to him. But then something happens, he meets Catalin and sam,the custodian. If you would like more information read the book yourself and find out what happens next. This book will keep you wanting to know more. I liked this book a lot because it is easy to understand. There wasn't one part that I didn't like about the book.I thought that the characters were really good. I like the way they put the journal that Zach was writing in each chapter. This book was believable because this situation could happen to anyone. I would totally recommend this book to other kids that like mysteries.


"My room is more like an enclosed hallway than a bedroom. I can stand in the middle of it with my arms spread and touch two of the walls with my fingertips"(pg.61).I like this passage because you can tell that he didn't have enough room were he was living."We are kept like prisoners in our new hotel"."They have taken the phones away"(pg.45). Almost all their life they have to hid and tell lies all the time. They can't easily go out to where ever they want because they are in danger. I would feel really bad if my dad was in jail and I didn't know why or if he was a drug dealer.


Zach disagrees with what his family says. He never wanted to move from were he lived and didn't believe that his fathers was a bad guy. This book is scary,fun and sad at the same time. I think that this is a good book for kids all ages because it is kind of easy to read. This book will keep you reading that's how you know that it is a good book.A connection that i made with the book was that I had a uncle in jail. Take my advice and read the book. If you really like the book then you are probably goging to like Roland smith's books like Thunder cave,Jaguar, Sasquatch and The Last Lobo.


written and published by Tania

Green Jasper

Green Jasper, by K.M.Grant. Author of Blood Red Horse, this book is number two of the Granville Trilogy. This well written book is about 249 pages in length. You may say that is a big one, but not really. This book takes place in the past. It is a good book, i would not say it is my favorite, but it is a good one to read.

Okay, well at first the book for me it seemed kind of confusing. It had a very insipid feeling to it. I thought "Maybe i could get another book;" i didn't though, i remembered that allot of books don't start as good as they seem, and that is what this book was. In the middle of the story its where it starts getting a little better, of course in my opinion. If you are looking for a good book, i would recommend it. I'm just left inquisitive because this book includes good description and i want to read her other book, just to see how the description can make a three dimensional image in your head.

The part of this book that got part of my attention was the cover. States pretty much a was against two kings that are brothers. One of the things i found intriguing was the descriptive writing, as i stated before. It really got me imagining in one of my favorite parts of the book. Which was when one of them was stuck under water. That's all I'm going to say, it's a good part and i don't like being a spoiler.

Over all, out of 5. I would give it a 4/5. Because it can get kind of hard and confusing at some points, but i still loved it. so i hope you get a copy or just check it out at your local library some time :)

By: Benito,G,G.

City of Masks by Mary Hoffman

Ever find yourself in another timeline on another world? Lucien did! Lucien is on chemo therapy, is always exhausted and can't do anything. Lucien's dad brings haome a mysterious diary; just sleeping with it transports Lucien to an alternate dimension of Venice. He makes new friends: the duchessa, a magician, and even maybe the love of his life. Now he must travel back between worlds trying to save the city of Bellezza and to recover from cancer.

These facinating characters feel so real. Lucien is a guy who justs happens to be in the wrong place at the right time. He really wants to learn how to use his powers, but he is also scared of them. He really cares about his family, so he is torn between comforting his worried parents and protecting the city of Bellezza. Ariana is a girl who always wanted to be a mandolier, the person who steers the duchessa's boat. She is really stubborn and wants to start a life off her boring island home. She learns secrets about her past that change her life forever! Mary Hoffman does an excellent job creating characters you feel you could talk to, people with ordinary lives in extraordinary circumstances.


I could not set this book down. I would have to keep reading and reading with the thought of "Just one last page," but when I would finally stop it would be ten o'clock. It has adventure, romance, and heart stopping action, like when Lucien first goes the Bellezza. I would recomend this book to all readers. When I chose this book I thought "Oh,look a book about masks." When I checked it out, it took me only two nights to read it because I was so facinated by the story.It may seem like it has a lousy title, but as you read the book you understand why she chose the title.

There is some romance in it, but it is mostly action. I really liked the action in the book, because it feels like you could be in the action. The book may seem short, but you will feel like you are in the same place as Lucien.
Written and published by Spencer

Escaping the Giant Wave

Escaping the Giant Wave
by Peg Kehret
It was a reasonably quick read, only topping about 150 pages. The text was medium sized, so no glasses. That also meant that the pages went by rather quickly. I liked this because of the deadline we had to read the book was only three weeks, and it took me a week of reading to finish it. That's 5 days of 15 minute reads, and a half hour read at home to finish. That's 105 minutes, or 1 hour and 45 minutes for you math impaired. : )

The detail for the book was unique. It had the feel of a children's book, but the detail of a young adult novel. I liked this style because it gave you the rough outline, with supporting details that were important to the story, instead of going on and on about things that have no meaning to them whatsoever! I'll give you an example, if I were describing a piece of paper I was writing on, I would describe maybe the red or blue lines on. I might tell you about the wet spot in the corner, but would I tell you about a small dent that the naked eye couldn't see, no because it's not important!

A rough summary of the book is about a family that takes a vacation, and it goes terribly wrong. I'm not talking, slasher flick wrong, but an Earthquake hits followed by deadly tsunamis. The main character Kyle, and his little math genius BeeBee must go by their own instinct and escape these giant waves before they get killed, and did I mention they're hungry because their pizza and milkshake were lost in the earthquake?

Overall, the book is a good read. The style is what I like in a book, but unless you truly like these kind of books, then I wouldn't recommend it. It's not much of a hooker, because I felt myself only wanting to finish the sentence. The story itself is quite predictable, with only minor things that are surprises.

I'll give this book a 3/5.

-Nick G.

The floating island by Elizabeth Haydon

This is a book about a nain kid (A ancient race) who's name is Ven. He gets thrown in jail to decide if he will live for his "Big mistake".

I really liked this book, it was and adventure of him and his friends and how he will live the rest of his life, in part of this tale there is a small mystery involving a ghost that kills and a man who lets his dogs kill people. I liked how the author of this book (Elizabeth Haydon) writes, in this book she has it so that there are some pictures of this adventure, and some notes from the journals of Ven. I would have to say that the character i like the most would be Char, hes the cooks mate, because he is always the one that doesn't want to be involved but somehow becomes involved. The place this story takes its tole is on two islands and a mysterious floating one... There are some interesting passages in this book from the beginning to the end, its full of adventure and mystery.

If i would have to choose a book from this blog at blogger.com i would choose one of these and many others, the reason is that this book is a really good book that i have read,and i have read many,this book is also really easy to read. I really think that this book is a really good book for a young read, or a ready of any age in matter of fact, the main character is unusual for his race, most nain prefer to work with ground, but Ven really likes the water and he is one of the only nain that can swim. This is about all i have to say for this book and i hope you will like it. Thanks for reading! :)

~Alejandro [ Alex ] E. Benberg

Paul Mcartney by Kates Boyes

I read the book Paul McCartney and it's a very good book. I think that you really have to like the beatles or at least Paul McCartney to enjoy the book. I do and the book was very good. It exlplains his very good with the events throughout his life. I don't think that it leaves anything out of his life cause it seems complete the way it is. I would have liked it more if it was a little longer cause they don't really say that much about each event. I sumarizes mostly everything they say. The best part about this book is that most of the stuff was pretty accurate. The worste part about this book is that it doesn't go to the end of his life cause he's not dead. Thats not the writters fault though.

He has a pretty different life than most people you know because he became the most succesful musician. Hardly anyone has that happen to them. It also seemes like he is amazing at everything he tries. He was a succesful painter, musician in two bands, and he was also good at classical music. At one point his classical album was the most wanted in the U.S. That is good because he was a British band. The other people in the beatles were also successful like John Lennon. After the life with the beatles he made another album just by himself. Same with George Harrison. I'm not sure how successful they were though.

I would recommend this book to other people cause I enjoyed it. Like I said before, you probably have to like the beatles before you can like the book. They are not my favorite band either and I still liked it, so they don't have to be you favorite band of all time. Even though they were close to that according to other people, not including me.

by nathan s.

Acceleration

Oh, what to do on a hot, hot summer day, when there's nowhere to go and your Dad's forced you to take a nine-to-five job in the dank subway system, rifling through people's misplaced umbrellas and eyeglasses? Well, that's the question of the day - everyday - for Duncan, who spends his free time - and is there ever a lot of it! - trying on lost jackets, shooting lost basketballs into cardboard boxes, and ultimately discovering the lost diary of a would-be serial murderer. From the moment he picks the book up - near the beginning I find what looks like notes from a science experiment.... It's an experiment to find out how long it takes for mice to drown in different liquids - he knows it's something really sick. As days wear on and he finds himself reading farther and farther into the journal, he learns that this psycho is out to actually step up from the kids' stuff - do more than just mutilate animals and set buildings on fire. He's going to murder a woman.


The author did some really great stuff with the characters in this book. Not only was I interested, I felt like I was reading about people I knew, people I had known all my life, yet still wanted to find out more about. From Duncan's nightmares about the girl he couldn't save from drowning, to his friends, all struggling with their own personal battles, everyone seems so alive and real. Though I wasn't too fond of Duncan himself, I was absolutely enraptured with his friends, and overall I felt just like Duncan, unable to wait for the next chapter, to get past the boredom of the dusty lost-and-found station and on to the next stage of the plot.

Normally, I'm not a fan of mysteries. At all. This book was a bit of an exception for me, because though you really feel like you can predict the ending of the book just by reading the summary - DUNCAN CATCHES MURDERER, FINDS RECOGNITION FROM POLICE AND PARENTS, GETS PAST HIS OWN INNER DEMONS, WINS HEART OF EX-GIRLFRIEND, STRIKES IMPRESSIVE POSE - in the end it's very realistic. It seems much more like a real-life account, of something that actually happened, not some cheesy superhero comic like most mysteries I've read.

All I can complain about is Duncan's incredible lack of judgement, deciding to try and catch the murderer himself... It is worth noting that such endings - including a dark basement, a crazy man with a knife, and a head-on collision with a train, all of which Duncan survives - only happen in fiction, and though obvious effort was made to have a basis in reality, it's just a little unbelievable.

sapo y sepo son amigos

This book is about two friend's that are frogs one of them is Sapo and the other one is Sepo. They are very happy with each other because there all ways together and they are basically brothers because of how much respect they have for each other. I like this book because this kind of reminds me of my self and my friend's we all respect each other and help each other out when we need it. I don't like disrespectful my friends because there all ways there when I need them, I its just something you never want to lose. That's what most of us count on and have left most of my friends are closer then my parents are.
Or even most of my other family members. We are like them in many ways because we like being together and that means most of the time and as much as possible.

And we don't get bored of each other because we always find something to do even if we don't have money. Because most of the people say you need money to have fun but I know that not true . We hardly have any money in are pockets but we have fun. Like Sapo y Sepo they always find something to do and they don't have money because they are frogs or have any pockets. Its almost the same thing so we are very alike. Even thought this book is very childish you may say its pretty fun well at least I did. This book has been around for a long time buy its pretty fun. So if you don't have anything to do and you feel like reading a book. Sapo y Sepo is going to be handy to have around when you feel like reading a book. And I read the Spanish version to. So it was kind of hard because I'm not a really good Spanish reader even though I'm Mexican. So it made it even more fun because I had to go over it and check if I was reading the words right. So it was kind of difficult for me even though its a child book.

You try reading a Spanish book when your not really good at reading Spanish. I think that have friends is one of the most important things a young teen could have. And if you have a best friend like them to are you can have a best friend for ever. And all ways have fun with him no matter how poor or how rich you are when you grow up. If he is a true friend he will always be there for you in the good times and bad times to. But you to have to be there for your friend like he is for you. And your bond will never brake and always be friends and be happy with your friends or your best friend. This book shows all this because they all help each other in any way the can even if it means take most of your day up just to help out a friend in need. And after a while you will see him as a brother and not like a friend any more.

Stones from the River, by Ursula Hegi

Stones from the River, by Ursula Hegi was an interesting book. It takes place in the early twentieth century (1915-1952), in Germany. It descibes the life of a zwerg girl, or a dwarf, named Trudi Montag. From the very beginning of her life, from when she was first born, her mother knew there was something different about her. She wouldn't touch her own child for the longest time. Her mother suffered from severe post-pardoned depression, although it never actually clarifies that in the book. She would run away from her house in the middle of the night, and end up stark naked in from of the town church. She did that on more than one occasion, among other things. Eventually, Trudi's father had to lock her up to keep her from hurting herself or running around. That only worked for a time though, because she eventually learned how to escape from the sewing room that she was locked in.

As Trudi got older, her mother learned to accept her, and started treating her as a mother should treat their child. That only lasted for a time though, because she was in and out of asylums and then died when Trudi was around four years old.

Since Trudi is a dwarf, she is not accepted by the other children her age. She struggles with this for awhile, praying day and night for her to grow, and even trying to stretch herself out by hanging from doorways until her arms hurt. Her first friend, Georg Weiler, the neighbor boy whose mother dresses as a girl and is therefore unaccpeted as well as Trudi, is the only person there for Trudi. They would play games together and were basically inseparable. Then, once they started school, Georg befriends other, "normal" children and Trudi is once again left on her own.

Trudi goes through few friendships, and suffers through many hardships before learning how she fits into society. She learns that by becoming the town gossip, people will come to her for information about goings-on in the town and about other people. She has a natural talent for this, having been able to tell what people are really thinking, what they are really up to, right off the bat.

During World War II, Trudi watches as her lifelong neighbors, acquaintances and friends are taken from their homes in the middle of the night, simply for saying something about Adolf Hitler, the Furher, or the government, for supporting the Jews, or for being Jewish. She does what she can to help these people by finding out beforehand if there is going to be an arrest or offering to store their belonging in the pay-library that she and her father run.

As I said before, this was an interesting book. It was written in an odd style that is very descriptive rather than action-filled and exciting. It didn’t have the normal plot, with the problem, the climax, then the solution. It was more the entire life story of Trudi, and what she had to go through with being different. It also includes some bits and pieces of other people’s stories, as sidebars from Trudi’s life. I would recommend this book only if you were a very patient reader and had a lot of time on your hands to sit and read for long periods of time. Although, it was a very good book and if it weren’t so long I would recommend it for anyone.

Written and Published by Amy Sutton

The House of the Scorpion. By Nancy Farmer

"I'm a lonely, small boy in this old creepy house. I have no contact to whatever is out there." That's probably what Matt, a clone, is thinking as he lies in a beat down house, miles away from any civilazation, until one day three shadows past by the bolted window. That is the first contact of human beings Matt has ever had, other than with his "Mom." That was the begining of Matt, A.K.A the Beast, according to the Alacran families dad.
Matt is a small clone of a teribble man. He hardly knows any english, and he' clueless about anything, even how he was born and how he got to the house hes in now. Matt is left in the dark until a sweet girl named Maria, of the Alacrans, finds him when his "Mom" is away working. She helps Matt with reading, speaking and all the basic things a human needs to know to survive.But Maria has no idea about what Matt really is.
My favorite part in the book is in the begining when Matt breaks the window on his house and jumps out to meet the Alacran kids. He so dumb that he jumps into the broken glass and hits the floor as quikly as he jumped out the window.The author was so descriptive in describing the situation and saying how the samll fragments of glass were piercing his feet so he couldn't move made it all the better.
All though this book is long it's worth reading because of all the suspense and action.
written and published by Matthew Hernandez

The Mayor Of Central Park By Avi

Ther is a squirrel named Oscar Westerwit and he lives in New York. He also is the mayor of Central Park, also the short-stop and maneger of the Central Park Green Sox. Mostaly the whole book is about Oscar and his baseball team. He looses his best pitcher and cant find him, the downtown gangsters told him to leave or he would die. So then the gangsters find out about the Central Park and that they have a lot of money that they can steal so they move up there. When they get there his daughter runs off and later finds Oscar. The gangsters whan to take over the whole park so they tell everybody to get off the park. After that they form an army and plan to take it back over, and at the same time Oscar's friend Sam was trying to see what was happening at the park and got shot. Thats how Oscar and the gangsters daughter Maud met, Maud was a nerse and heard that his friend needed help so she went with to help. Then Oscar and his army's plans got told to Mr. Dudds the big gangster by Oscars uncle and so it was no longer a suprise attack. So after they got defeted Oscar asked Dudds to make a deal and the deal was if Oscar won in a baseball game then they get the park back and if he looses then they will leave them alone. So Maud said she would find a really good pitcher just like the one that got sent away. The next day they all were waiting at the baseball field for the good player and then she came out in a baseball uniform, and the Central Park Green Sox won and got there land back.
I liked mostally this whole book it was actually like one of those books that you start to read and get into unlike how some of the teachers say, but what i kind of didn't like was that the pitcher didn't come back. The charecters were pretty tight Oscar wasn't scared and went into battle anyways,Mr.Dudds was a gangster, and his little hench men knew what to know when to know it.It was also pretty easy read, it wasn't hard to read and it was at a slow pase so there wasn't really hard words. I thought the book was pretty believable because it sounds like something everybody would do besides the war part.I recomend this book to others because it is not to challengy and its really interesting.

By COREY WOOD

Exile by R.A Salvatore

Exile! Drizzt Do' Urdan of House Do'Urdan has been exiled from his family,city, and Race. He know lives in the Underdark( a vast series of tunnels) with only his magical Panther. His race puts a extrememly high bounty on his head, and his family does an extremely powerful ritual to animate his fathers dead corpse as a wraith and send him to kill Drizzt.

This book is one of my favorites that R.A Salvatore has written. I really enjoy fantasy and his books are truly wonderful. They are full of Exitement and Suspense. Each ending leave you wondering whats gonna happen next and makes you want to read the next novel.

Each series of books leads you on another chapter of Drizzt Do'Urdans life and another adventure. I would recommend this book to anyone that likes fantasy. I give this book 5 stars because I really enjoyed it.


~Bryan Atlee

The Da Vinci Code by: Dan Brown

Robert Langon, a college professor and cryptologist, is in Paris for a speech, that night he gets a call informing him that the Curator at the Louvre has been murdered. The crime scene is surreal, the Curator has left a mystery for Langdon and the Curator's granddaughter, Sophie Neveu, to solve. Robert later that night discovers that he himself is a suspect for the murder and that's where the action begins.
The Da Vinci Code was a brilliant book. This was one of those types of books that once you start, you can't put it down. The author, Dan Brown, put the perfect amount of puzzles, art, history, and twists to make this novel perfect.
The characters in this book were one of the reasons it was so good. Robert Langdon was a very smart character that was able to figure out secret codes in the art that the average person could only dream to be able to unriddle. He was probably my favorite character in this story because of his brilliance. Another character that was intriguing was Sophie Neveu or Princess Sophie :). She too was able to unsolve huge mysteries. I also enjoyed Sophie's character for she had such a huge past which all ended up tying into her grandfather's death. One character I wasn't very fond of was Silas. It wasn't because he was in a sense a 'bad guy', but he just seemed like the kind of person that would creep me out in real life, though he did add a good effect to the story.
This book is probably my favorite book ever now. It was filled with such mystery and suspense that I couldn't stop reading. The story line was very clever and I thought it was amazing how Dan Brown could find a way to add such clever riddles in the story and still apply history to make them realistic.
I would most definately recommend this book to anyone and everyone. It is a page turner and though it can be almost too suspenseful at times, it is probably the most exciting novel that I've read. Dan Brown proves himself to be an excellent author in this book and honestly I don't think you can go wrong with it.


Written and published by: Megan Ann (Maggie)

Saving Private Ryan by Max Allan Collins

Private James Ryan wasn't any different from any other soilder but beside the fact he had three brothers in the war, he was dropped behind enemy lines into the brutal war going on in Normady with the 101st airborne infantry, while his three brothers were helping fight the war else were. But little did he know that his three brothers were all killed in action. After the invasion of Omaha Beach, Captain Miller and his small group of eight men are assigned to go deep into the middle of the war and tell Private Ryan about his brothers and bring him back home, and even though they save him, all eight men die trying to rescue one soilder.

I really enjoyed this book it was well written, and realistic. The author kept you at the edge of your seat though out the whole book and the characters are what made the book even better. And the book was loaded with all the usually stuff that makes a good war novel, guns, death and F-bombs. when I first started reading this book I thought it would be different from the movie but the only thing different was the movie was filmed and the book was written.

I would probaly recommend the movie over the book, even though the book was good, because they were very similar and you could spend two hours watcing the movie and the book takes like a couple days to read.



Written and published by Matt Gutierrez

Life in prison, by Stanley Tookie Williams

Tookie Williams had a ruff life at 17 hanging out with his friend Raymond Lee Washington they decided to make a street gang in south central L.A. that would protect them from other rival gangs. They got the first thirty people all there friends and made the gang called "Crips"

Raymond in 1979 was killed by a rival gang two years later Stan was found guilty of killing four people in two bank robberies. Stan was sent to San Quentin's Death row on April 20,1981.

when in prison Tookie keeps track of growing copycat Crips gangs across the nation and around the world they are 43 states and in parts of western Africa,south Africa,Sweden,Canada,Germany, and France. Now Stan greatly regrets the violent history of the Crips gang while he spends his last years of life on death row writing books to change kids minds about starting gangs.

As for me I thought the book was believable and that Tookie try his hardest to make his wrongs turn to wrights as he wrote these books to educate his reader about how starting gangs and ending up in prison or dead is not a good thing to do and why you should avoid being in a gang and making sure what happened to Tookie does not happen to you.

on the day Tookie Williams was to be put to death hundreds of people came out to protest and tell them that Tookie should not be executed because he wrote these books that would change peoples lives and make sure that there wont be any more gangs as long and the children of the future read these books and understand the consequences that can hurt you for the rest of your life.

Tookie Williams Sentenced to death in San Quentins Death row on April 20,1981 Executed with lethal injection on December 13,2005. People say "Goodbye Tookie Williams"

Tookie Williams gets 2001 Nobel Peace Prize for extraordinary youth violence prevention and intervention work he has created from a "condemned Row" Prison cell in Californians san Quentin state prison.

by, Matthew Palmer

To Kill A Mockingbird, by Harper Lee

Just like every young child, innocent Scout lived a carefree life filled with exploring and playing with her older brother, Jem and friend Dill. Her summer days also included acting out the mysterious life of the never-seen Boo Radley, who they were so intrigued by. Soon Scout and her companions would come to learn the evils of the world, the injustice of human nature, and just how unfair people can be because of the color of someone's skin. When Scout's father, a lawyer, is assigned to defend a black man for a crime he did not commit, the reality of discrimination really comes into play for Jem and Scout. They see how cruel people can really be to others, and are forced to face the evils of mankind. Atticus tells his kids, "As you grow older, you'll see white men cheat black men every day of your life, but let me tell you something and don't you forget it - whenever a white man does that to a black man, no matter who he is, how rich he is, or how fine a family he comes from, that white man is trash." (Pg.220) Their father's guidence help these kids make sense of these difficult issues. As you can see, their father's wise instruction plays a significant role in their childhood.

I really admire the characters in this book. The author gives them such unique personalities that really come alive throughout the whole story. She does such a great job of capturing the kind of characters and attitudes the book needed to make it the kind of story it was. There's Scout, the feisty tomboy girl who doesn't understand why things are so unfair. She looks up to her older brother, Jem, who's learning to comprehend some of the darker aspects of human nature. He's smart, and wants to be just like his dad. Also, he's very protective and understanding of his little sister, and can always explain to her what's going on. Then of course there's Atticus who's the dry humored, hands off, yet unconditionally loving and caring father who sometimes thinks, "I'm a total failure as a parent, but I'm all they've got." (Pg. 288) People say that, "Atticus Finch is the same in this house as he is on the public streets." (Pg. 46) This shows that he's a consistent man. He's also very respected. His children look up to him and believe in everything he is. He is an extremely calm and wise man who fights for justice and does the right thing no matter what people think of him. He doesn't tend to worry, and has impacted his children more than he'll ever know.

This book is exceptionally good at showing you just how humans really are. It teaches so many great lessons, and the author did an amazing job of capturing those lessons and themes without telling you too much. Scout, Jem, and Dill learn the hard way that people don't accept, and are cruel about things and people that they don't understand. They're scared of them and therefore assume the worst, like the characters did with Tom Robinson, the black man who was accused of rape, and Boo Radley because he never came outside. In this book you see how prejudiced most people are, and deals with a lot of issues involving racism, and discrimination, which really has an effect on the outcome of certain issues. This book definitely opens your eyes and lets you walk around in each person's shoes, allowing you to see things from a variety of perspectives. And that's really kind of cool because all the characters have their own opinion about things, and they're all so different, yet also alike.

Yes, it's true. This book does start off slow. It seems as though the narrator is just rambling on. But then towards the middle, the random observations and stories are intertwined with more of a purposeful storyline. Later you see that the narrator was actually skillfully setting the stage for the kinds of people there are in Maycomb, and all the major events that take place. So really, all the little things are actually very important to the story.

Harper Lee did such a fabulous job writing this book. She used very colorful writing that got her many points across, and helped capture what the book was saying in just a few sweet, well-chosen words. It was a really unique style of writing that was partly what made this book so phenomenal. "Somehow, it was hotter then: a black dog suffered on a summer's day; bony mules hitched to Hoover carts flicked flies in the sweltering shade of the live oaks on the square. Men's stiff collars wilted by nine in the morning. Ladies bathed before noon, after their three-o'clock naps, and by nightfall were like soft teacakes with frostings of sweat and sweet talcum." (Scout) (Pg. 11) I also liked the way the book was laid out. At the end of each chapter, the author/narrator would leave you hanging about what unbelievable thing just occurred, or how so-and-so reacted, which made it so you had to immediately start in on the next chapter. You never really knew what to expect next, or what the next amazingly- written chapter would bring. It was hard to put this epic story down.

Set in the early 1830's, this timeless classic went above and beyond. It was just so believable, and was written with such care. Harper Lee really captured the mood of the period. She did a wonderful job of keeping me intrigued, and every time I opened the book, I was taken back to a nostalgic time. Also, I really liked how the book included so many different events that caused a variety of emotions and responses. Not only did this book teach many great and useful lessons, it also dealt with many regular life issues that we can all relate to, and does it with thought-provoking insight. I most definitely recommend it to those who can grasp some of the deeper issues of life, and who want to really get something out of a good book. I found it perfect for snuggling up on the couch with on a rainy day, and for a breezy sun-filled day out on the lawn. You won't regret reading this American classic.

The Greatest, Muhammad Ali by Walter Dean Meyers

The Greatest, Muhammad Ali by Walter Dean Meyers is one of the best books I have ever read. If you like to read biographies like I do, you should read this one. I like this book a lot because you do not only learn about his boxing career, but about his life. You learn about his childhood, why he got into boxing, his stand against the Viet Nam war, and the problems he had to face in his life. One of his biggest problems was dealing with racism. Even though he won the gold medal in the Olympics for boxing, he was not allowed to eat in some restaurants in the South because he is Black.

Muhammad Ali is one of my heroes because he has done a lot of great things even though it was very difficult for African Americans to live in the United States when he was growing up. The way Walter Dean Meyers describes Muhammad Ali’s life is very believable. It almost feels as if you are experiencing his life along with him. The author’s writing style flows easily and keeps you interested. There are many actual photographs of Muhammad Ali from when he was a teenager all the way through his fighting career.

I thought that the book was believable because the book is a biography. I had huge connections with the book because Muhammad Ali is one of my heroes. He is my hero because I am Black and when he was famous there were still a lot of racist things going on. I am interested in knowing the kinds of things Black people went through back then. He is also my hero because he got drafted to the army and he did not want to kill anybody or shoot a gun. I agree with his decision to face jail instead of going to war. I would recommend this book to whoever likes boxing and whoever likes Black history. The reason why I would like to recommend this book is because this is the only book that I have read and wanted to read again.

First French Kiss, by Adam Bagdasarian

Will,basically like everyone. This is the basic story of everyone's lives that we cant get enough of hearing just to make ourselves sound normal. Will is the main character of this story, he is like everyone else, he endures the same school, girl, and those long thoughts off what's the point, or what's the bigger picture (in other words the slight depressed thoughts of who knows) problems. He moved away from his young life without even really knowing it. He then moved into a big house that just keeps getting smaller as he grows psychilogically and physically as you follow his life through multiple short stories.

In this story there were many of important characters, but of course the most important is Will. I thought will was a lot like myself with the same thoughts as me and of course middle school fights and other familiar problems. This book almost scared me about how he and I thought about a lot of the same things, such as going so deep into thought that you wonder what its really all about.

I thought the strories that were told in this novel were good representation of what everyone goes through. I also thought most of the stories were kind of funny. I have even gone through a lot of the same scenerios as Will except some changed around slightly, like when my sister left the house, and how I got into a fight just like him kind of for no clear reason.

Overall I thought this book was very good. It was kind of short but in that small amount of text there was a whole life, which I though wast awsome. This book kept me reading late into the night until I crashed with the book over my chest. I thought it was a definate page turner, and it was somewhat exciting because I was always waiting for what was next, in some instances it was a like a reality TV show. And don't judge it by its cover (guys), its about a guy going through all those boy to man situations we experiance in life
by Ben Bachelor

Slam! by Walter Dean Meyers

Growing up in the hood can be rough. Greg "Slam" Harris has all the skills he needs on his domain. The basketball court. On the court he's the man and he knows it. But his game is struggling off the court. He knows when the ball is in his hands the games under control. So does everyone else. But his hot-headed temper causes him trouble with his coach and teammates. But off of the court the ball is right in his hands and he can't handle it. His grades are pretty bad and he knows it. His school tries to help him but he doesn't want to take it. Slam has to deal with troubles from his girlfriend, his main man Ice, and his parents.

I loved everything about this book. I could sense how "Slam" was feeling at times. Slam narrated the story so there was a young sounding voice that was easy to understand. I never felt like i could get bored with this book and it always kept me wanting to read more. I like that i could relate to most of the topics in the book. The characters in this book were great. I could visualize every character in my head and they were identifiable with me. I could feel what all of the characters were going through. Any great story about basketball would make my day. But "Slam!" gave me a positive feel about reading. The author was very descriptive about every scene and I could visualize everything. The in depth thoughts going through his head while he is playing in his basketball games really elavated the heartracing writing in the story. "Slam!" is the most unique book I've read yet.

There was no real specific plot in "Slam!". His whole life living day to day was the plot of the book. This made the story line more believable. The problems that Slam went through in the story were problems that many people deal with every day. Even if they're not in the hood. "When I got home it was like my whole head was going to explode. Moms wanted me to talk about it, but I didn't have enough words to say how i felt. Bad wasn't enough. Terrible wasn't even enough."(pg. 260). I really liked that passage because it shows some of his feelings while being overloaded with issues he couldn't explain. I know many, including myself, have felt that way before.

I definately recommend this book to anyone looking for a great book with great characters and great story line. Not only does this story talk about the rough life of an athlete growing up in the hood with many distractions, but it has writing that will make u never stop reading


by FINCH (Bilal Finch)

First French Kiss, by Adam Bagdasarian

"Will", whose last name was never told in the book, had many odd incidents throughout his life. These incidents are being told by himself in the book I read, "first French Kiss." Everyone knows about the good, the bad, and the ugly times that have occurred in there life. Although, know one has had experiences quite like will. Because Will is the younger than his brother, he feels, well, a lot of things. When he goes from being the least popular, to the most popular, and then back down to the least popular kid in school, it's always hard to keep up with how Will really feels. His brother tortures him by once putting duck tape in his hair, to getting his first "French kiss", he's still trying to figure out where he really belongs in life.

This book I thought was odd but yet unique at the same time. Odd in ways like never putting the short stories that occurred throughout the book together. Never having a plot, setting, or time. Unique in ways like keeping the reader always on the edge of their seat,never understanding Wills personality, still trying to figure out what's going on.

I think that the author did a good job of never ending the chapter, or the short story being told. It seemed like the reader would always be ready to move on to the next chapter, ready for the ending of the previous story, and then, nothing, just a whole new story. I also think that the author did a good job having Will, the main character, tell each story. It made it seem like you were at the scene , always in Wills shoes.

Not only is this an up beat, always on the edge of your seat book, it's allso an adventure of one boys life. I like how it never went off of his life, foccussed on his life at all times. No good book would be good without a good ending right? Wrong. This book was fine without an ending at all, just short stories, and ended at a certain point. I definately wish that this book would continue. If only there were a few more short stories on Will's life. Adam Bagdasarian should definately make a sequel, maybe a when he has grown up. I reccomend this book to those who love a good thriller, comedy, drama, and real life situations all in one book.

By: Spencer B.

The Maze By Will Hobbs

Sitting, wasting away, just waiting for your break to come. “Hey,” people say, “at least you’re normal. Your one of the ones who turned out okay.” Turned out okay? Sure, Rick may have turned out better some of the others that are also in his situation, but still, he is in the Blue Canyon Youth Detention Center. How can he possibly be “okay” and still be in a place such as this? Rick Walker is just 14 years old. His only real parent figure he ever had that actually cared for him was his Grandma, who raised him since birth. After his mother gave birth to him, being only 15, she panicked, leaving Rick with her mother -his grandmother- and gallivanting off to Los Angeles. After his Grandmother passed away, Rick was sent to numerous different foster homes and orphanages, but never seemed to find the right fit. He ended up in a youth detention center, a center that housed kids with problems that ranged from petty theft to murder. When Rick’s name shows up “on the cigs” Rick comes to think that staying at Blue Canyon is out of the question. He escapes from Blue Canyon and finds his way into the bed of a pick-up truck, rolling across a broad expanse of slick rock -in the middle of nowhere- with canyon walls towering hundreds of feet above him. When it all comes together, Rick finds himself working closely with the mysterious Lon Peregrine, a government employee working to help save the endangered California Condor, and finds that bird-watching is riskier then he first thought. It could mean his life.

The way the characters in this story are portrayed is incredible. The way you come to learn about their lives and perspectives on life, it seems to put you directly into the story. You feel almost as though you are a character, watching from the spires of the nearby canyon walls. I think that was what really drew me into this book. The way Rick sees life is so uplifting after he meets Lon. He has been waiting his whole life for the one time when he can break out and become his own person. He is always searching for his way out of ‘The Maze.” I could not stop reading the book. It was so enthralling, it just dragged me in and kept me turning the pages.

The plot in this novel was unbelievable. The way that it included all the feelings of passion, hope, caring, intensity and adventure was truly awe-inspiring. The story is not that of the stereotypical adventure novel, and the unexpected twists and turns really give the book character, a character that most books do not contain.

If you are worried about reading a book that does not seem to capture your imagination and your mind right off the bat, worry no more. The intensity of the book continues throughout, cover-to-cover. The book never has a dull moment.

The only frustrating part about this book for me, was that Will Hobbs has not come out with a sequel as of yet. I am sure that if -or when- he does, it will be just as riveting as its prequel.

Don’t get stuck in the maze. Find your way out.

Written and published by Ryan Bakken

An Owl Too Many

Wednesday, May 3, 2006
An Owl Too Many
by Charlotte Macleod

Meet Professor Peter Shandy. He, like most Professors at Balaclava Agricultural College, Farms. But he also has a very strange hobby. Detecting. And not just any kind of it either, it usually involves a murder. So, no big surprise when a so-called site engineer gets pulled up in a net, stabbed to death in the back of the neck, and gets dropped back down, out of the tree, like a hot potato, right? Well, not really. So how, later in the book, do the Norse President of the college and Professor Shandy find themselves being swept down a swollen river in a runway Tugboat? Well, you will just have to read this totally awesome book to find out.

I thought that this book was great. The characters were clearly well planned and thought out. I mean, for example, the Norse president, Thorkjeld Svenson. Said to be just as tall and burly as his Viking ancestors, who, like most Norsemen, can be extremely frightening at times. Then there is Professor Shandy. He has a wife and one cat, invented the Balaclava Buster. Those two along with countless others have back grounds from other books and this one. So to get the full effect of the characters, you need to read four or five Peter Shandy mysteries, by Charlotte Macleod.

The plot and story are stupendous. Not only is it a murder mystery, but it is also a mystery involving financial fraud. As you will find out when you read this. It is based around a person who has just inherited a bunch of money from her Grandfather. It involves two other people. One trying at all costs to get money and support out of her, and keep her from helping the other the other. The other, trying to keep the support they already have.

I hope that you will enjoy this book as much as I did , and that you will check out more from books from the same series from the library. Enjoy!

Written and published by Zachary.