Ranger's Apprentice, by John Flangagan

This is an excellent book. It was recommended to me by a friend
who likes J.R.R. Tolkien's Lord of the Rings a lot. It is a story that
takes place in a world of fiefs and kings. Will, the main
character, is a 15-year-old orphan boy who wards with Baron
Arald. At the age of 15 all of the castle wards are "chosen" for
their lifetime job. Will is chosen to be apprenticed to Ranger
Halt. He learns a lot about life and a lot more about the world
around him. It is an excellent read full of adventure, suspense, humor, and friendship. It really keeps you on the edge of your
seat while reading about heroes battle fearsome monsters and
evil enemies. It is a great book and I recommend it for all teen
adventure lovers. I highly recommend it. :)

5 Stars,
Suni

The Frog Princess, by E.D. Baker

This story is about a princess named Emma who runs to a swamp after her mother tells her that she has plans to have her married at the end of the summer to an evil prince.She meets a frog who claims to be a prince and that if she kissed him he would turn into a handsome prince.When she agrees she herself turn into a frog herself.Will she ever be human?

3 Stars,
Lucynda

Gaia Girls: Way of Water, by Lee Welles

I felt the beginning of this book was very sad because the main
character, Miho's parents died. The sadness was stressed all
throughout the book but it faded away as Miho received the power
to talk to dolphins, the power to ride the sound of a whale, and
many other powers. I learned about how water pollution and the
annual Japanese dolphin hunt harm the dolphin population. The
Gaia Girls series is very interesting because it is both fiction and
something that helps you learn about the environment.

5 Stars,
Anna

Gaia Girls: Enter the Earth, by Lee Welles

I felt that this was an extremely good book. Every chapter had
something interesting in it. It was fascinating when the main
character, Elizabeth, discovered lots of information on factory
farming. I had no idea that people could possibly contaminate the
ground with so much pig poop and not do anything about it. I
personally thought that it was quite amusing to have the whole of
the earth represented by an otter. After I read this book, I couldn't
wait to read the second book.

5 Stars,
Anna

The Secret Life of Bees, by Sue Monk Kidd

This book is really good. Shows how things really used to be with racism in the sixties. A girl growing up without a mother and an African American house keeper is exposed to this more then most kids. Great book. Read it!!

4 Stars,
Emily

Girlosophy, by Anthea Paul

This book was amazing! So inspirational for every teenage girl. All different aspects of life are adressed. Really helpful in many situations. Read it!

5 Stars,
Emily

Zooman Sam, by Lois Lowry

This is a great book for younger children. Lois Lowry does a great job of detail in this book. There is a Future Job Day in Sam's Kindergarten class. He wants to be a zookeeper when he grows up. and he gets alot of baseball hats from a friend that have names of alot animals. If you don't like this book, try some of Lois Lowry's other gret books.
3 stars,
Josiah

Wild Pitch, by Mike Lupica

Everyone deserves a second chance, right? Charlie Stoddard, the Boston Red Sox baseball star pitcher of late, messed up his arm and has never been able to pitch like he has before. Five years have passed and while getting drunk most every night and having one night stands with numerous girls, Charlie meets this mysterious physical therapist who "fixes" Charlies arm. Charlie goes back to pitch for Boston alongside his son who absolutely loathes him and stars again for the time being. Although centered around a Boston pitcher, Mike Lupica does a nice job of creating a baseball fiction based story.
4 stars,
Ethan

Candyfreak, by Steve Almond

This book was interesting in a few different ways. Steve Almond goes around the country describing his visits to various candy collectors, candy factories, etc. He brings back and describes many different types of old candy (many of which i have never heard of)that have never been mass produced. I would recommend this book to people who are interested about candy bars and would like to learn how different types of candy are made.
3 stars,
Ethan

What My Mother Doesn't Know, by Sonya Sones

What My Mother Doesn't Know is written as a verse novel but it reads like a diary. The novel follows the ups and downs of Sophie's love life. This was a quick but very enjoyable summer read. I can't wait to read the next book to see how it compares!

5 Stars,
Erin

Holes, by Louis Sachar

This is a very good book about a innocent boy named stanley. He is convicted of a crime that he had no idea about. There is a curse on his family, and he ends going to a detention centre called Camp Green Lake. There Stanley and the rest of the criminals have to dig one hole each day in search of a treasure. Eventually Stanleys lawyer comes to say he was innocent but by that time Stanley ran away in search of Gods thumb. But by the end of the book Stanley is home with a treasure. I really liked this book because it was very interesting.

4 Stars,
Dillon

The Hero and the Crown, by robin mckinley

I LOVED THIS BOOK!! (well parts of it.) If you read this book, be warned, it starts out boring and then gets exciting and then gets boring and then gets exciting again so don't get discouraged by the boring parts!
It's about a girl names Aerin whose father is the King but her late mother was said to be a witch woman, but more than that she was foreigner and wasn't really ever supposed to merry the king. So Aerin is always in the castle and everything, but nobody treats her with respect (kind of the opposite.) They fear her because she may possess her mother abilities, but they also just treat her very unfairly. You should definitely read this book! It's an adventure book, and a romance book, and an incredible fantasy book. READ!!!

5 Stars,
Selly

Breathing Underwater, by Alex Flinn

This is a very intense book about a guy who hit his girl friend and had to go to court for it. The judge ordered him to keep a journal, so he wrote about how and why he hit his girlfriend. This book varies between entries from his journal and his life right now. I think this book was alright, but the topic is simultaneously depressing and, for lack of a better term, nauseating. Don't read it unprepared for some real messed up stuff.
2 Stars,
Windingpath77

Things Not Seen, by Andrew Clements

I have recently read the great book Things Not Seen by the consistently fun author Andrew Clements.
This book is about a boy named Bobby who, one day, becomes invisible. One day he’s there, the next he’s not; there’s no explanation.
Bobby’s father insists, however, that everything has a cause and he searches ceaselessly for an answer.
Along the way there are many perils and problems such as the fact that if Bobby wishes to go about in public without drawing attention he must go completely naked.
As the plot unfolds and the authorities start searching for Bobby (who has been deemed “missing”) everything hangs on the hope that what ever happened to Bobby will unhappen before the police arrest Bobby’s parents.
This book is truly worth a read.
4 stars,
Selly

Holes, by Louis Sachar

I recently read the interesting book Holes by Louis Sachar. The plot in this book unfolds steadily.
The main character’s family has had bad luck ever since his no-good-dirty-pig-stealing-great-great-grand-father broke a deal to a Gypsy. He gets caught in the wrong place at the wrong time and is sentenced to a year at Camp Green Lake, a detention facility for “bad boys.” There is no lake at Camp Green Lake; instead all the kids there have to dig a hole every day. The warden says that this is to build character, but soon Stanley (the main character) finds out that she is looking for something. For a while Stanley faces many obstacles and challenges, which make up the meat of the story. In the end Stanley is a free millionaire who happens to be friends with a very famous base-ball player.
How did this happen? You might ask. To find out you’ll have to read the book.
4 Stars,
Selly

The School Story, by Andrew Clements

I have recently read the book The School Story by the audacious Andrew Clements. In this book the main character, Natalie, writes a great book and her mischievous friend eggs her into trying to get it published. On the way they encounter many obstacles which Natalie (with the help of her loyal friend) must batter down to achieve her dreams.
I can relate to this story because, I, too, wish to publish my writing one day and I’m hoping to accomplish this at a young age.
All in all I think The School Story is a great book, a short read, but great all the same…
4 Stars
Selly

The Goblet of Fire, J.K. Rowling

I’m currently reading the book Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by the just plain awesome J.K. Rowling.
In this book Harry is entered in an extremely dangerous tournament against his will. He’s pretty much forced to try as hard as he can… or get seriously injured facing the unknown that lies ahead. His motivation during this book is to survive, although sometimes he acts just so that he doesn’t embarrass himself, like when he tries really, really hard to get a date for the Yule Ball. In that part he just wants to make sure that he’s not the only champion that hasn’t got a dance partner.
In my opinion, Harry is pretty much forced to act until the end, when the plot unfolds and his life hangs in the balance as well as many others.

5 Stars,
Selly

Search for the Red Dragon, by James A. Owen

I have recently read the interesting book Search for the Red Dragon by James A. Owen.
One of the things that I really like about James’s writing is that he takes simple, solid facts from the past and he creates a very interesting story about how that thing came to be. Like when he took the fact that James Barry wrote the book (or play?) Peter Pan and he made a whole background telling how Barry went to live with the lost boys in another world and came back and wrote a book about his adventures.
James does this many times in his book. I like it when he puts things like that in the book because it makes it seem more real, like these things really happened and were recorded in history, but people never got the whole story. It also makes me think when he does things like that. Who knows what could have happened?
This is a really delightful book and I would highly recommend it to anyone.
4 Stars,
Selly

Daja's Book, by Tamora Pierce

I have recently read the splendid novel called Daja’s Book by Tamora Pierce. The main character (Daja) has a sad past. She used to belong to a certain race of people called traders, but the ship she was sailing on sunk devastatingly drowning her whole family and leaving only her still drawing breath. It is the trader’s tradition to outcast the only survivor of a ship wreck or fire because it is their belief that that person is the bearer of terrible bad luck, which evidently, they do not want to catch.
Stranded in her grief and bad circumstances Daja is brought to an academy of magic by a mage who appears mysteriously to help her. I’m glad to say that from here on Daja’s luck does seem to improve despite the trader’s scorn. She learns that she herself possesses magic, albeit an unusual kind. She also finds a warm home, kind teachers and magnificent friends waiting for her at the academy.
On through this book Daja Kisubo triumphs over her fear and grief creating new light for her future.
It’s probably my favorite book in the whole, stunning Magic Circle series.
You should read this book if you enjoy reading about people who do not solely forget their tragic past, but come to terms with it and move on to another day.

5 Stars,
Selly

The Series of Unfortunate Events, by Lemony Snicket

I have recently read The Series of Unfortunate Events by the brilliantly mysterious author Lemony Snicket. This is a tale of three very resourceful children: Violet, Klaus and Sunny Baudelaire who each have very distinct interests and hobbies which aid them greatly in (quite frankly) surviving.
Violet is an inventor, Klaus a researcher and Sunny a biter. Whenever Violet is thinking up an invention she ties up her hair in a long black ribbon. Whenever Klaus is thinking very hard about something he pays little to no attention to what he’s doing and his surroundings. Sunny is an infant and communicates mostly in words unrecognizable in English or any other language for that matter (though her siblings have learned to understand her perfectly.)
These characters have many flaws, interests and hobbies to which I can-if not relate to-certainly understand. Despite the very real traits of the Baudelaire’s the thing that makes me believe in the events they endure without question the most is that things do not always work out in the end. The next morning they do not wake up to find their troubles all solved for them and the sun shining bright.
In my opinion, Lemony Snicket has written a story that has many truths demonstrating the brutal unfairness of life, though he always remembers to add a bit of hope at the bottom of the heap of unfortunate events…
4 Stars,
Selly

Harry Potter and the Order of the Pheonix, by J.K. Rowling

I have recently read the (wonderful) book Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix by the eminent J.K. Rowling.
In this book Harry’s main problem is that there is a new teacher at school who’s nearly as nice as a particularly nasty slug badly disguised in pink lace.
She thinks Harry is a “nasty attention seeking liar” and gives him detention for it. It turns out that what she tells people to do in detention is cut open the backs of their hands with a very sharp quill. For most of the book there is a silent battle of wills raging between Umbridge (the teacher) and Harry.
Harry often struggles to remain resolute despite Umbridge’s taunts and various punishments. He could complain to the staff and have the torture stopped, but he doesn’t want to give her the satisfaction of knowing that she’s gotten to him.
Can you imagine hating someone so much that you would go and slice open the back of your hand for a couple hours each night just so they wouldn’t get a bit of satisfaction?
It sounds pretty unrealistic, but J.K. Rowling has a magic touch that turns the outrageously unbelievable in to, quite simply, the truth.
After her description of the battles taking place in Harry’s mind I will never doubt that he made a perfectly sensible choice.
You should definitely read this book! (Matter of fact, I think they should make a law saying that everyone in the United States has to read the entire Harry Potter series by the time they’re nine…)

Selly,
5 Stars

Things Hoped For, by Andrew Clements

I have recently read the book Things Hoped For by the miraculous Andrew Clements. The main character in this book is Gwen: a determined girl from the country who lives with her grandfather in New York City in order to pursue her dream of becoming a world-famous violinist.
The excitement in this story begins when Gwen gets a message from her grandfather saying that he’s going to be gone for a while, but that she should make sure that no one knows he’s away.
As Gwen’s big college auditions draw nearer and her Uncle continues to come and demand to see her grandfather she befriends an interesting trumpet player who helps her through this hard time. Amidst all this Gwen discovers just how much she means to her Grandfather. The only question is: where is he? Will he ever come back?
You should read this book, and trust me; you’ll keep reading until you find the answers.

3 Stars,
Selly

The Chamber of Secrets, by J.K. Rowing

Recently I have read the book Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by the awe inspiring J.K. Rowling. In this book Jo does an excellent job of providing many questions in which to ponder and answering only a few, not exactly leaving you hanging, but leaving you with just a taste of what is yet to come. At the end of a chapter entitled, coincidently, The Chamber of Secrets Jo leaves us with this: “Open,” said Harry in a low, faint hiss. The serpents parted as the wall cracked open, the halves slid smoothly out of sight, and Harry, shaking from head to foot, walked inside”
Of course, I didn’t hesitate to continue reading. Nor did I at the end of the next chapter, or the next for that matter. How could I when Jo always ends so spectacularly?
I would recommend this book (this series, for that matter) to anyone and everyone, but that’s just because I love it so much!


5 Stars,
Selly

The Golden Compass, Philip Pullman

Recently I have read the absolutely charming book The Golden Compass by Philip Pullman.
In this book the main character (Lyra) faces many challenges.
The best way to describe Lyra is wild, though deep inside she is very noble and will go through anything to help her friends and loved ones. Once when one of Lyra’s dearest friends was in danger she risked her neck for him by tricking a very fearsome king into facing him in one-on-one combat.
I can relate to Lyra because I too occasionally do very extravagant and wild things, but in the end I always try to make amends and I value friendship beyond all else.
Philip Pullman creates a very intriguing character to read about! I recommend this book to anyone whose imagination likes to stretch beyond our world and ponder the impossible.


4 Stars,
Selly

The End, by Lemony Snicket

I have recently read a book called The End by the awesome Lemony Snicket. In this book there are three siblings who each have different traits, hobbies and interests. Violet, the oldest, is an amazing inventor as well as a very resourceful person. Klaus, the middle child, is a reader and a researcher. Sunny, the youngest, is a biter and a chef.
I can relate to Klaus mainly, but I can always picture Sunny the clearest. In this series Sunny grows out of babyhood in a very realistic and truthful manner. The author describes her journey wonderfully, slipping in small things that seem unimportant, but in The End they mean that she is no longer an infant, but a much larger person (metaphorically speaking.)
Though this book tends to be eccentric at times, I highly recommend it to anyone who loves reading books with clever plot twists, highly descriptive language and never ending adventure.

4 Stars,
Selly

Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott

This book set in the Civil War betrays the life of
4 girls and their mother while their father too old too fight went to war as a champman.While he's away
the girls learn to care for others before themselves
and make friends with their rich neighbors.
5 Stars,
Lucynda

Shug, by Jenny Han

The book Shug by Jenny Han was a fabulous story about a girl named Annemarie Wilcox called Shug.It is about fitting in and having your first kiss.This book is filled with excitement and romance making it a perfect summer read.
5 Stars,
Lucynda

elsewhere, by Gabrielle Zevin

15 year old Liz Hall has recently died of head trauma. Elsewhere is the story of her journey in the afterlife. Liz finds herself in a mixed-up world where she feels like she dosn't fit in. Thia novel is part science fiction and part realistic fiction.
The excellent plot keeps you thinking about what might happen next. Even if you think you don't like science fiction you must read Elsewhere. I couldn't put the book down! This novel will have you rethinking everything you thought you knew about death.
5 Stars,
Erin

The Bellmaker, by Brian Jacques

Joseph the Bellmaker is worried about his daughter, Mariel, who had gone off fighting evil because no one has seen her since. One night, Joseph dreams that the Redwall spirit-Martin the Warrior- tells Joseph that Mariel and her friend Dandin are in great danger. Five creatures set of from Redwall to help them battle against the evil Urgan Nargu, a fox. I recommend this book to people who enjoy action and comedy.
4 Stars,
Jesse

the blueford series, by anne schraff

The series is a compelling literature break through that involves natural high school situations such as first love, grieving for a lost one, and even gang violence and peer pressure. This book opened my eyes it showed me that maybe I am not the only person who feels this way. It made me feel like there is someone out there just like me. It is remarkable some of the situations this lady wrote about were meant for me. I just cant believe that there are people who go through these situations every day. There is no way to describe this book except for redeeming. I suggest this book to children and adults of all ages.
5 Stars,
Gavin

Body Check, by Matt Christopher

This book is about a 13 year old boy named Brent Mullen. Brent's hockey team has a very good coach, that Brent likes alot. But when a new player joins the team, him and his dad are full of trouble. The dad ends up being the new assistant coach, and he cares about one thing - winning. He teaches all the players to learn how to get away with illegal plays, and Brent dosent like it. I really liked this book, and i would recommened this book to anyone who likes hockey or sports.
4 Stars,
Dillon

The Legend of Holly Claus, by Brittney Ryan

The Legend of Holly Claus is the story of what happens when a 10 year boy writes to ask what Santa Claus would wish for Christmas. Santa wishes for a daughter and soon after Holly is born. An evil worlock places a curse on the newborn Holly. When she turns seventeen, Holly sets out to earn her place in the world and finds that the world is much different than she imagined. This 500 page novel was engrossing and well worth the time it took to read it. I think that adults would also enjoy reading this book.
4 Stars,
Erin

Fear Street, by R.L. Stine

Okay.We're talking high school.A nice high school with football players and beautiful cheerleaders.A girl name Courtney,a nerdy girl,she's a teachers pet,was ran over by Brittany and her friend Megan.Megan and Brittany accidently made a medicine that brings anything back to life.Earlier Brittany and Megan was toying around with chemicals in science lab,and they discovered a formula that brings people back to life,and they didn't know until they gave a dead frog some and the frog began moving with life,and ate all of the other frogs.When Britt and Meg ran Courtney over after a dramatic party,they gave Courtney the medicine,and when she came back,she wanted to kill......Brittany and Megan for bringing her back to life.And Courtney couldn't and wouldn't die no matter what.But Brittany got her so angry and angry until Courtney blew u and died,the way the vicious frog did.It's a nice book you really will like it if you read it.
4 Stars,
Charles

Fallen ANgels, by Walter Dean Myers

My opinion about this book is a wonderful book is a realistic fiction it is based on five friends who go to a war in vietnam war
5 Stars,
Big Bizzle

Harry Potter and the Order of the Pheonix, by J.K. Rowling

My opinion about this book is that it is very good for kids to read i reccommend it for 8th grade and above.J.k Rowling has a imagination of her own and a very good one to harry potter is a good series so far i have to read two more though im a little bit into the 6th and its interesting so far.
5 Stars,
Big bizzle

Into the Abyss, by Victor Appleton

Tom is with his father on a ship to test a new submersable, everything is going just fine when an unexpected storm hits and they lose contact with his father. Tom gets in hi research sub and goes down to look for his father. time is limiteed for tom and he must find him quick. Tom finally finds the location where his father is and sees that his fathers sub is stuck, so Tom must get it out. after a while of trying to get it out, he finally does and gets his father to safety.
I loved it, you should read it
5 Stars,
Jason

Soldier Boys, by Dean Hughes

At age fifteen DIeter gets enrolled into the German army. He thinks he can prove that he is brave and strong, and can make an impact on people. SPence is sixteen, and he dropped out of his Utah high school to become a paratrooper. His family doesn't think he can do it so he wants to prove that he can really be something.
One problem with both of them is they think the war is going to end before they can make any difference to the world and even to themselves.
Spence tried telling his father that he was going to the army and his father didn't think he can do it. He went and enrolled to the army and by the time war came, he was very nervous.
Dieter wanted to stand up for his country and gain freedom so he went to the German army to prove that he was something anyone can be. He to was powerful and brave until the war started.
They both were really frightened and scared with having to kill alot of innocent people and watch the look on their faces; in their eyes before they died. they were very depressed troughout the whole war. It was something they thought, they would never see; never want to see.
I loved this book. as soon as I started reading it, it brought me into it and it was great.

5 Stars,
Jason

nancy drew series, carolyn keene

carolyn keene
i am in 10th grade these books are childish for my reading level but they are great. I am a huge mystery fan. one minute nacy drew is having fun the next she is being knocked out by clorophome. Carolyn keene has a specific form of writting and so does the hardy boys author. i have a feeling that she wrote a male name as the hardy boys author so boys will read her books just like j k rowling didnt write her first name. they are a greaty series to read. ttfn, i have to go read nancy drew and the mystery of the crime lab case.

sincerly
4, 9, 26, 26, 25
d i z z y

5 Stars,
dizzy

cirque du freak, by Darren Shann

i liked the series of the cirque du freak it showed how a boy gave up everything to help someone he loved even thought the loved ones feelings were hurt. i have only read the first 9 i cant wait to get the rest i suggest this book to any reader of the ages 10 +.
3 Stars,
Dizzy

Dragon Ball Z "Good Bye", by Akira Toriyama

The book Dragon Ball Z "Good Bye" is a good book.
I particularly liked the book because of the action, the drawings,and includes life lessons and decision making.
5 Stars,
Chris

THe Pigman, by Paul Zindel

lorraine, and John are making prank calls to any random number in the phone book when Lorraine makes a phone call to Angelo Pignati. Lorraine described herself as a charity program for herself and John and asked for a ten dollar donation to help them out. Mr. pignati agreed, then offered them to come over. They went over and found that his wife had passed away. They noticed that he looked very lonely so they became very good friends with him. They ended up having alot of fun and went to his house alot, until one night, "the pigman", as they called him because of the pigs he and his wife used to collect until she passed away, Mr. pignati was on his way back from the hospital after having a heart attack, and John didn't know so he threw a party. The kids ended up breaking all of the pigmans pigs and mr. pignati passed away, a day later. John and lorraine were very sad and depressed.
I loved reading this bokk. it was fun and had alot of irony.
4 Stars,
Jaosn

Hairstyles of the Damned, by Joe Meno

This is the story of a teenage boy named Brian Oswald, who is trying to find himself. He falls in love with his best friend, Gretchen, and is trying to win her over with something very unique- a mix-tape of songs, with secret meanings, like how her feels about her. I think this book is absoulutley amazing, and it can relate to any teenager, who likes someone that doesnt really like them back, and how every teenager tries to find themselves at some point in their teen years.
5 Stars,
Kayleigh