The Hunger Games

I just read the Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. It takes place in a future where the US has collapsed and been replaced with Panem, a country made up of a capital and twelve districts. Every year, each district is forced to send one boy and one girl called "tributes" to the capital to compete in the hunger games, a competition where the 24 tributes are put into a giant outdoor area and have to fight to the death until the one remaining tribute is crowned victor. In the book, 16-year-old Katniss Everdeen volunteers to take her younger sister Prim's place in the games. Now Katniss will have to face 23 other tributes in a fight to make it back home. There's also a little bit of an interesting love story that questions what your feelings will tell you when loving someone is the difference between life and death.
I absolutely LOVED this book! It is so suspenseful and exciting that I finished it in two days and the sequel in three! I'm a person that is easily repulsed by guts and gore, but although people are killed, the book never gets too gory. I'd rate this book a 9 or 9.5 and can't wait for the third one next fall!

~Lily

Unwind

Unwind is probably the best book I have ever read. Unwind is about a world where human body parts are harvested from people when they turn thirteen. Not everyone is unwound, only the unwanted or problematic children. Unwind is from the prospective of three main characters. Two of the characters are "normal" unwinds, which were chosen to be unwound because they were unneeded, but the other one, named Lev is a tithe. Tithes are honorary unwinds. Their unwinding is looked at as a privilege, rather than a death sentence. So the story follows the three main characters, and their struggle to escape their doomed fate, but meet constant snags.
I read this book from a suggestion in library by Ellen, and reinforced my decision from raves by Lily.I loved Unwind because all of the problems they face seem impossible to avoid, and some don't get avoided, which makes unwind a very unpredictable book to read. Unwind was a thoroughly riveting book that twisted and turned too many times to count. For your own sake, READ IT!!!

I just finished a book called Drivers Ed. By it's title you would think it is a book about driving and that is part of the concept but really not what it is about. 

It's a bout a girl named Remy who is a no-body. She is in a Drivers Ed class. One day a boy is talking about how he steals signs from bike paths. Remy her best friend Lark and a boy named Morgan who she has a crush on. A couple days later they find one of Morgan's friend Nicky to drive them around. Lark can't go though because her mom is sick. In the end Morgan and Remy flirt in the car and make out. But the next night they see on the news someone was killed because a stop sign was stolen. They see that the stop sign they took was the one that killed the lady. 

 From then on it is sad and Remy and Morgan both don't know what to tell there parents or if they should tell them at all.

I really liked this book for the suspense and the ending is good. So if you like a book with some suspense and kind of a mystery you would love this!

Cheating Fate

Cheating Fate, a realistic fiction novel by Audrery Pfitzenmaier tells the story of four teenagers living in BC, all whom have grown up together as the best of friends, since kindergarten. After recovering from a snow accident that happened the previous year, they discover that the same frightening flashbacks and memories they shared, occurred amongst them all, while they were in a near death state. Uncovering the scary truth that their futures hold they decide to split up; Cassidy with Kyle and Jeremy with Sukh, in order to cheat fate. The night they part tension rises between Kyle, Jeremy and Cassidy when a love triangle slowly comes into play. Later, as Cassidy is dating Kyle she realizes what she wants might not be with Kyle after all.

I thought that this book was packed with action and suspense which made it a fun read and a definite page turner. I found that the way Audrey Pfitzenmaier described events that took place in the book, created a totally realistic plot and allowed me to connect with each character as well as visualize what was happening. Personally i would rate this book a 5 out of 5 because it was well written and interesting. Also i would certainly recommend it to my classmates.

Howl's Moving Castle

Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones is about a teenage girl named Sophie, (maybe eighteen or nineteen years old) who works in her fathers hat shop. Her Father married another woman named Fanny who is her step mother and she has two younger sisters. Being the oldest of three she always though that she would be the most unlucky, working in the hat shop until she died, never getting married. But one day, the Wicked Witch of the Waste comes to the hat shop and isn't happy with what she finds. In return the witch turns her into an old woman! She sets of to find Howl, the evil wizard who eats girls hearts. When she finds him he doesn't turn out to be so mean. They have crazy adventures and battles with witches and all sorts of things.

I'd give this book a 10/10 because 1) I love fantasy 2) I love the movie and 3) it's funny. So if you like fantasy and humor this book is for you. I also recommend it to anyone who likes adventure stories.

Mortal Engines

"Mortal Engines" by Philip Reeve is a VERY GOOD BOOK I read over the summer. If you like Sci-Fi novels in which humanity totally screws up the world, then this is your kind of book.
The premise of the book is that it takes place at least two thousand years in the future, but the actual time period isn't mentioned. It takes place in a world where cities, many of which are from today's world, have all become individual nations that move around like tanks, boats, planes, etc. Each city wants to come out on top of the others, and the way the cities sustain themselves in the ruined world is by "eating" other cities and taking their resources.
The story follows an orphaned teenager named Tom. He has dark hair, is very skinny, and has few friends *cough* Harry Potter *cough.* He witnesses an failed assassination, carried out by a girl with a mutilated face. This encounter leads him to something that could reveal the horrible truth about the "traction cities." For this, he and the assassin are exiled from the city, and that's when it gets good...
I thought this was a REALLY GOOD BOOK. I haven't gotten around to reading the sequel yet, but this is the first in a series of four and I want to soon.
- Sam

The Rules of Survival

The Rules of Survival by Nancy Werlin tells the a story of three siblings trying to survive living with their heartless, brutal mother. Matt, Callie, and Emmy have a very strong bond with each other, perhaps this is what kept them going for so long, fighting for a better life. One night, in a convenience store Matt, the oldest witnesses a man named Murdoch coming to a child's aid. This experience gives Matt hope, for him and his sisters. Astonishingly Matt's mother, Nikki starts to date Murdoch. When Murdoch breaks up with Nikki, she starts to gets very malicious towards her children. Matt, and his siblings must be strong willed during this time, if they are ever to free themselves of their mother. 

I thought this book was very intense. I will say Matt, Callie, an Emmys mother is a horrible person, and shouldn't be able to call herself a mother. It is very shocking how she treats them. I think this book is well written. After reading this book I thought how surprising it is that parents can treat their children so viciously, and get away with it. I would give this book an 8. 

bone chiller

a boy is walking home in northern canada in one of the coldest winters known.

suddenly he hears something moving around in the forest to his left, is it a dog?

Suddenly out jumps a monster that is big pale and has absolutely no fur,

the boy tries to run but cant, the monster has him in complete control it jumps into him knocking him into a ditch, it then pricks his hand with its tongue and leaves him.

The boy wonders why it didn't eat him.

He feels very warm even thought its -20 degrees

Bone chiller is a very scary and enthralling book

It is written by Graham. McNamee

Black Box

Black Box by Julie Schumacher is about two sisters, Elena and Dora who have gone through their whole lives together as best friends. When the older sister Dora is hospitalized and diagnosed with a mental heath problem, Elena is worried about her sister and is also wondering why her sister didn't tell her about anything she was going through. As the story progresses, Dora goes through her up's and down's with her rehab. While all of this is happening to Dora, it is also very tough on her sister Elena. Elena finds her-self building a strong friendship with a so called "bad boy" named Jimmy. Jimmy gives her some tips on how to get through the rough times and he reveals a secret to Elena that she never expected. As the story keeps going, Dora seems to start trusting Elena with more and more detail and information on what is going on with her. Elena has to manage keeping her sister's secrets while making sure that her sister doesn't hurt herself more that she already has. In the midst of that, every night, she hears her parents fighting. All of this might just be as hard for Elena as it is for Dora.

This book is a page turner and isn't very long. I think that the plot was very good and was well written. It really grabbed my attention and kept me interested. I would give this book about a 8 out of 10. As I said before, it really kept my attention and kept me wondering and wanting more.

The Knife of Never Letting Go

The Knife of Never Letting Go, by Patrick Ness is about a young boy, Todd Hewitt about to become a "man," living in an environment were women don't exist. One day Todd, along with his dog Manchee travel along the outskirts of town, and accidentaly come across their very first girl to see. Todd is then told to leave Prentisstown, the very place were he grew up. It is after that the intense and thrilling adventure begins. Todd and his dog find themselves running for their lives from the men of Prentisstown; accompanied by the girl they found, who's name is later revealed as Viola. The three journey very long trying to survive dangers from crocodiles, to a murderous maniac; all in order to reach Haven, the place where they were supposedly told they'd be safe. 

After reading this book I found that I was very interested in reading the second book of the trilogy, because it ended in such a cliff hanger. I thought this book was very adventurous, and tense. I liked the layout of the book because it really got me intrigued. You are always predicting what is going to happen, and for the really shocking parts you just want to keep reading. 

I will probably read the last book in the trilogy given how exciting the first two are. 

Leviathan

Leviathan is by Scott Westerfeild, and is about an alternate world war one. In this alternate time line, the world is split into two factions. Darwinest, and Clanker. The Darwinests use geneticly fabricated animals (courtisy of darwin), and the Clankers use large machines bristling with weaponry. The main character is Alek, the prince of Austro- Hungary. One night Alek's teacher takes him on a practice run of a Clanker machine. And reveals to him that his parents have been asassinated. His country turned against him, Alek, his teacher, and a small crew of loyal men escape to the allied west, and are taken aboard the living airship Leviathan. On the other side, a commoner named Darryn Sharp joins the British air force, and joins forces with the exiled prince aboard the Leviathan. Although the plot is at times very generic, the book is very good and rivating, and anyone who likes steampunk and/or Sci-Fi should read it.

Life of Pi

Life of pi, Written by Yann Martel is about a boy who's name is Picene Molitor Patel (Pi Patel) who lives in India and loves exploring the different cultures and religions of the world. His father is a zoo keeper. When Pi and his father decide that there is a better political and social life somewhere else, they set off on a boat to Toronto, Canada, to set up a new zoo there. When the boat they are on sinks, pi goes on a wild adventure on a rescue boat in the middle of the ocean with a hyena, zebra and a Bengal tiger he calls Richard Parker. It all comes down to whether he can survive without getting eaten. This book is for people who like surprises and description. It is a very thought provoking and mystical. Not magical, but very strange. This book is also very adventurous, even though he is on a boat for the majority of the book.


I absolutely loved this book. It's beginning might bore people, but the rest is fabulous. It's main character, Pi, was a "not your average character" character. After I read this book, I closed it, stopped in silence for a minute, and said "WOW." I was recommended this book by my mother. She too, said wow. I'm sure, even if you don't like very descriptive books, a part of you will just say, "WOW!!!!!!!!!!!!"

-Grace M-H

Crank

Crank is by Ellen Hopkins. It is about a girl named Kristina. She hasn't spoken or seen her dad in several years and wants to reconnect with him again. She goes to visit him in Chicago. When she arrives at his apartment she didn't expect what she sees. Her dad is a drug and alcoholic who works at a bowling alley. After she tries to settle in to the disgusting bed which who can see her dad didn't put in work in fixing up for her she meets a guy named Adam who like to be called Buddy. He asks her what her name is and she says Bree. Adam "Buddy" snorts crank, smokes and drinks as well changes her. When she goes back home she is a totally different person and doesn't know what to do...

I really liked this book even though it had dark and somewhat scary topics for some people. It is very intense and has secrets.

Angels & Demons

Angels & Demons, by Dan Brown
A Harvard symbolist named Robert Langdon (the same protagonist as Dan Brown’s The Lost Symbol and The Da Vinci Code) attempts to solve a murder mystery and foil an anti-Vatican bomb plot. He meets a beautiful physicist named Vittoria Vetra, whose father, Leonardo Vetra, is the victim of the homicide. Together they follow the not-always-figurative trail to the Vatican, where cardinals from all over the world have gathered to elect the new Pope. Langdon meets the a vivid host of characters, and with Vetra, they try to 1) track down the killer of Leonardo Vetra; 2)disable the bomb before time runs out; 3)decipher ancient booklets; and 4) find the mysterious leader of the Illuminati. All in 24 HOURS.

I thought that this book was written on a formula, like some other Dan Brown books I could name. I had the "formula", or shared plot, told to me before I had read very many of Brown's books. Knowing the formula, while informative, definitely ruined the reading experience for me. Through all 480 pages, I kept thinking, "Wow, this matches exactly. I now know what is going to happen next." Boring....

And despite having two flawless main characters, I thought Angels and Demons was very suspenseful and written well enough. I would rate this book a 7 or 8 out of 10.

A Book NEEDed in The Library

The compelling book Need by Carrie Jones is about a girl who is sent to her grandmother’s house, when her stepfather dies. The girl, Zara White, becomes drawn into a world, in a small town Maine, which has mystical creatures like weres and pixies. The pixie king is looking for a mate so he goes for Zara as bate. The pixie king need a mate so when is he is out he leaves a small gold dust around wherever he is. If the pixie king doesn’t have a mate by a certain time he has to kill boys in order to stay alive. And if the pixies don’t have a king than they can take advantage of the opportunity and try to find their own mate. Doing this would then make them able to become the pixie king.

This book also includes about 55 phobias that you have probably never heard of! For example cacophobia which is the fear of ugliness!

This is one of my favorite books because it took me into the story. The sequel to the book will be arriving in stores in January 5, 2010!

Attention Twilight fans!

Wondrous Strange by Lesley Livingston
Main characters:
Kelley – 17 year old living on her own in NYC, understudy to the role of Titania in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, actually the long lost daughter of Auberon the Winter King
Sonny – looks like a 19 year old, handsome dark-haired, silver-eyed, but was stolen by the fairies as a baby and is really centuries old. His job is to guard the Samhain Gate between the fairy and mortal worlds. Conveniently this gate is located in Central Park, near where Kelley goes to practice her lines.

Wondrous Strange is one of those dark “tales of faerie” that seem to abound these days – think Holly Black & Melissa Marr in particular. Sonny is set to guard the Samhain Gate during the 9 days before Halloween. There is intrigue, adventure, romance, and lots of NYC settings.
On a more positive note, Kelley is not as annoying of a heroine as Bella (of Twlight fame), and their relationship while suitably angst-ridden is not as ineqitable as Edward & Bella’s.

New Additions to the Library

Understanding Comics by Scott McCloud
Scott McCloud wrote about comics before comics were cool. In this groundbreaking comic book, McCloud dissects the intricacies and detail of how comics create story and convey emotion. A lot to expect, for sure; but this book makes the case. Not only does McCloud draw the connection between comics and cave art, but he argues for their rightful standing in art, literature and communication. In doing so, he can prove many of his own points, for this thoughtful, well-crafted comic book is an example of the heights to which comics can reach. If you have ever read a comic or ever plan to (that includes the newspaper cartoons, comic books, graphic novels, even airline safety cards!), you owe it to yourself to give Scott McCloud a look.

Graceling by Kristin Cashore

Katsa is graced, although not in a good way. Her special skill is killing people. She's not particularly happy about this, but what can she really do about it? Her uncle uses her services for his own political gains, while she tries to use her unusual abilities to protect those in opposition to her uncle's tyrannical rule. On one of her assignments, she encounters Prince Po who seems to be graced with a fighting ability which equals, or at least challenges her own skills. She knocks him out, hoping that she has seen the last of him (and his lovely eyes), but that is not the case. This book could have been so much less than what it seems in the beginning, although it's a fairly good start, but what it turns into is one of the best books I've read in 2008. It's not so much the plot, or the great characters, or even the fully realized fantasy realm that's created. It's that something other that makes one put a book down, sigh, and say " Wow, that was really really good!"