A.D. 62: Pompeii by: Rebecca East

A twenty-first century woman named Miranda is stranded in A.D. 62 Pompeii as a house slave of a wealthy family. True, that's what she came to do, get an up close and personal look into the lives of first century Romans. However, with no way to get back home, it looks like she'll be there forever, or at least until Mt. Vesuvius covers the entire city with 20 feet of lava, mud, and ash. Slowly through the help of storytelling and music she makes her way up the ladder of slaves so instead of scrubbing floors and cleaning chamber pots she is playing her flute for guests at dinner parties. Soon she finds her self attracted to the master of the house, but love between a slave and her master is absolutely unheard of. Truly a different kind of love story.

The beginning was good, the middle was a bit slow, but the end was TERRIFIC! The beginning was packed with detail about her surroundings. The middle was the day to day life of a slave with the same thoughts, ideas, and actions repeated over and over. The end was filled to the brim with action and plot. The book also tends to deal with rather mature ideas. Set some time aside for the end because you won't want to stop until you have finished the last page.

Rating (0 - 10 scale): 8

Reviewer Age: 13

Reviewed by: KA

Nasty Book by: Barry Yourgrau

This book is as collection of stories. The stories are comical, creepy, gorey, scary, gross, and nasty. Some of them have a mission to scare you, while others just live up to the name "nasty". They are all good for a sleepless night.

This book was okay. The author did a good job on making up nasty stories. Many of them were too unbeleivable. They weren't that nasty, becuase I know some of the events couldn't happen. However, some of them really sent the hair on my neck rising.

Rating (0 - 10 scale): 6

Reviewer Age: 12

Reviewed by: RC

Orphans of Chaos by: John C. Wright

"Orphans of Chaos" involves five children, Amelia, Quentin, Victor, Colin, and Vanity, who are living in a British orphanage. As time goes on, the children discover unusual, unbelievable things about themselves. They can do incredible things like walk on air, unlock bolted doors, and reach into the fourth dimension. It becomes evident that they are not humans at all, but rather supernatural beings whose memories and powers have been stripped away from them and who have been trapped within the boundaries of the orphanage. Where are they from? Who has confined them here, and why?

Like a master chef sprinkling seasoning over a dish, Wright has flavored his fantasy with hints of science, mythology, and mystery. The plot was enthralling, and the characters multi-layered. As the story progresses and questions from previous chapters are answered, new questions arise, keeping you spellbound from cover to cover. There were a few parts in the book, usually pretty short, with scientific concepts that went a little over my head, but they did not detract at all from my enjoyment of the book, and might make it more fun to read through a second time. I thought this book was very well written, and genuinely regreted to set it down once I was finished. I'd love to read the sequel. It is a good read for most young adults who like fantasy.

Rating (0 - 10 scale): 9

Reviewer Age: 13

Reviewed by: SV

Dustin Grubbs, One Man Show by: John J. Bonk

In his first novel "Dustin Grubbs, One Man Show", John J. Bonk examines the intersection of dreams and reality in middle school. The hero, Dustin Grubbs, wants to change the world through his stage performances. Unfortunately, Dustin has no acting experience since his mother does not approve of the theater because his father deserted the family three years ago to become a stand-up comic. When sixth grade teacher Miss Honeywell proposes a play, Dustin ignores his mother’s expected disapproval and pursues his goal. Then reality sets in. Calamity becomes the star of The Castle of the Crooked Crowns as a fire drill stops the show. On the day of the rescheduled performance Dustin manages to get locked in the boys’ bathroom. When the janitor finally rescues him, his entire class and new student TV child star Jeremy Jason Wilder watch him appear from the stall. A public bathroom rescue should be the worst event ever, but it isn’t. A broken piano isn’t the worst either. Neither is Principal Futterman’s giving the starring role to Jeremy. The worst part is when Dustin almost let his fascination with Jeremy damage his friendship with Wally Dorkin, Ellen Mennopi aka LMNOP, and the other kids at Buttermilk Falls Middle School. Although few middle school students have TV stars in their school, many have dreamed of the friendship of an unresponsive someone and will identify with Dustin’s attempt to understand friendship, trust, and loyalty. John Bonk has created a believable middle school atmosphere with its puns, alliteration, and bathroom humor. Readers may welcome another visit to Buttermilk Falls when the sequel comes out in 2006.

John Bonk has captured the drama of middle school with its emphasis on friendships and peer pressure. The characters are believable and a little goofy, just like middle schoolers. I liked visiting Buttermilk Falls Middle School and wonder what the kids will be up to in the sequel. I would recommend this book to folks with a sense of humor.

Rating (0 - 10 scale): 9

This book was reviewed by a Graduate Student

The Lace Dowry by: Andrea Cheng

When Juli and her mama go to Halas to order an elegant lace tablecloth for Juli's dowry, she finds a new friend named Roza, otherwise known as the best lacemaker's daughter. They return every two months to the lacemaker's shop to check up on the progress of the tablecloth and to make payments on it. Juli's mama doesn't want her having a friend from the country. So when her mama finds out Juli and Roza have become friends, Juli's mama forces her to go to dance class instead of going to Halas with her. Juli is afraid that Roza might go blind like her (Roza's) mama and she decides to help her. How, you ask? Well, instead of using the money her mama gave her for white dance shoes, Juli uses it to buy something that she thinks will help Roza not to go blind from making lace, but will Juli ever see Roza again to give it to her? Find out in one of the greatest books ever, called "The Lace Dowry".

I loved this book so much that I wished it would never end. The Lace Dowry is set in 1933 in the city in Budapest. This book has magnificent characters that are interesting to read about. I enjoyed reading this book very much because it had a wonderful plot and the setting was unusual. This book also has a moral question: Is it ok to tell lies and steal to help someone else who is in need? Everything about this book is awesome, and I recommend "The Lace Dowry" to everybody.

Rating (0 - 10 scale): 10

Reviewer Age: 11

Reviewed by CMy

His Oldest Friend by Sonny Kleinfeld

When Elvis started volunteering at the nursing home, it was to keep out of trouble. He was a poor, Hispanic young man living in a not-so safe neighborhood in New York City, and everyday just trying to stay alive. But when Elvis is hired look in on Ms. Oliver, a resident of the home, their weekly check-ups gradually turn into daily visits, and a rare and strong relationship is formed. While Elvis brings light into Ms. Oliver's dull world at the nursing home, she gives him the strength and wisdom to better his life day by day.

His Oldest Friend is not a book that I will pick up again any time soon. Though Kleinfield is a renowned journalist, when it comes to books geared for young adults, his work is not up to expectations. The story itself is a bit cliché, an elderly person enlightening a troubled youth and vice-versa, but also, the use of vocabulary did not seem to fit the age group the book was written for. By the time the book was over, I not only didn't particularly care what became of the characters, but I wasn't able to absorb any points that Kleinfield was trying to make with this story, which left me feeling that I went through the trouble of reading the book for nothing.

Rating (0 - 10 scale): 4

Reviewer Age: 15

Gulliver Zone by: Stephen Baxter

In the world of "The Web" series, people are hooked up to the internet by using suits that take their minds to the web. Sarah is one of the many users on the Web, and on world peace day takes a friend and her annoying little brother on a trip to the Gulliver Zone, a virtual magical kingdom. However, after meeting a small race of people called lilliputians, Sarah and her brother are shrunk down to the lilliputian's size. Now Sarah, George, and a lillputian named Cefven must go to the castle of the sorceress, grow back to normal, save her friend, and save a race of people from an evil tyrant before they are all stuck in the Gulliver Zone.

"The Gulliver Zone," set in a not so distant future, begins and ends as a great book. The plot is really good and it made me not want put the book down. The premise for the book, though not original, makes a lot of sense and the writer did a good job of playing that out.

Rating (0 - 10 scale): 9

Reviewer Age: 14

Reviewed by: RF

Poppy's Return by: Avi

When Poppy's sister, Lily, unexpectedly arrives in Dimwood Forest with bad news that her family's and friends' home will be destroyed, Poppy decides to go back to her old home and try to save Gray House. How will she manage taking along her bratty teenage son, Ragweed Jr. (a mouse) and his best friend, Mephitis. When Poppy returns to Gray House, will she accept her father's plans for her, and will she be able to stop the bulldozer from wrecking the house? If not, what will happen to all the mice that live there? Find out in this amazing story of "Poppy's Return".

I thought this book was exciting to read. I didn't want to put it down when it was time for bed but I had to. The book had amazing characters with many different personalities. This book was a real page turner but I only gave it an eight because of the weird stuff Ereth (a porcupine) says. The illustrations were drawn by Brian Floca and are detailed black and white pictures. I really liked the ones that had Poppy in the picture; she's a really cute mouse. The plot was interesting, and my favorite character was Ragweed Jr. because he did hilarious things. I recommend this book for kids ages 8-12 because the language is fairly easy.

Rating (0 - 10 scale): 8

Reviewer Age: 11

Reviewed by: CMy

The Foretelling by: Alice Hoffman

This novel is a coming of age story centered around the life of a young Amazon queen-to-be, Rain. It tells of her relationship, or lack therof, with her mother, the Queen of the Amazon women, and all of the things that are expected of her as the future Queen. The novel starts with Rain being absolutely sure of what she wants and the course that her life should take. Throughout the novel, however, she slowly begins considering what life can be like outside of the never-ending war that is the empire of the Amazon women.

The overall idea and plot of the novel is both original and creative while tying in themes that most young adults can relate to. Alice Hoffman also did a good job of using symbols consistently throughout the novel. Although the novel is exciting because of its originality, at the same time you finish it with a feeling of incompleteness and sadness-- as if the entire journey you have taken with Rain is pointless. Although Rain does age in the novel by many years, the content of her thoughts seem to remain the same. Had the author not written that she had gotten older, I would not have thought so. Besides this fact, I do feel that the novel is interesting and worth reading, just don't expect to finish it feeling as though you have taken a meaningful journey along with the main character.

Rating (0 - 10 scale): 6

Reviewer Age: 15

Reviewed by: ACC

The Printer's Devil by: Paul Bajoria

It all starts when the Printer's Devil is making wanted posters of an ugly convict named Cockburn. Mog Winter had stayed up late one night after printing 100 copies of the poster. Once done with that, the orphan had to deliver a bill to one of Mr. Cramplock's customers (he's Mog's employer). The man who is to receive the bill's name is Mr. Flethick. Mog finds Flethick in his room with several other men smoking and speaking of things like "The Sun of Calcutta" and "The Bonsun". Before you could blink and eye Mog is whisked away in a grand adventure involving thieves, camels, deception, and a mysterious past.

I thought that "The Printer's Devil" was good, but definitely a book you might want to use a notecard as a bookmark to keep track of who's who. At times it can be dreadfully confusing as to who's doing what and how they're involved in the first place. I thought the writing was inconsistent at times. One chapter would be smooth and the next it would take a while to catch up with the plot line. It was almost as if you missed something important. Warning: When reading this book be prepared for the weird little twists and turn that could utimately change the plot for somthing totally different. Assume nothing.

Rating (0 - 10 scale): 7

Reviewer Age: 13

Reviewed by: KA