In the sixth Alex Rider Adventure, Alex is recovering from his encounter with a sniper who had been sent to kill him. In the hospital, he meets Paul Drevin, son of multibillionaire Nikolei Drevin. While in the hospital, kidnappers come for Paul. The kidnappers are part of Force Three, a group of eco-terrorists who are angry that Nikolei Drevin caused the extinction of several species of birds during rocket launches for his latest project, Ark Angel, a space hotel. However, Alex defends Paul against Force Three and prevents them from kidnapping him. Rewarding Alex for protecting his son, Nikolei Drevin invites Alex to spend some time with Paul and him in their extraordinary homes, leading up to the launch of one of the most important pieces of the space hotel. Alex finds that Force Three, Ark Angel, and Nikolei Drevin are not what they seem to be and despite Alex’s refusal to once again become involved in the world of deception, and spying, he finds himself working to defeat “the biggest criminal in the world.”
I generally find that books in the Alex Rider series tend to get a touch too repetitive. However, in ARK ANGEL, although it did have some parallels to other books in the series, Anthony Horowitz successfully threw twists into the plot that set the book apart from its predecessors. I also congratulate Mr. Horowitz on the great amount of research he did on topics covered in the book. He even threw in some physics, explaining rotational inertia and some nice examples of Newton’s Laws! The setting for the end of the book was very unique and gave the book an exciting ending, but I wish that Anthony Horowitz did not put Alex Rider in so many life or death situations. I enjoy the creative ways Alex Rider slips away from his enemies, but it starts to get a little old when I find that for the third time in the book Alex has dodged a bullet that passes centimeters over his shoulder. ARK ANGEL as a whole has more positives than negatives and definitely is an enjoyable book that Alex Rider fans will love as a great addition to the series.
S C
Age: 15
Maryland, USA
Saturday, April 01, 2006
Defining Dulcie by Paul Acampora
Dulcie's father, a janitor, just died. Her mother decides to move her and Dulcie cross country to California from Connecticut. As soon as Dulcie steps foot in CA, she knows that's not where she belongs. She steals her mother's truck and makes her way back to Newbury, to her grandfather and her home. Dulcie's grandfather, Frank, lets her come back and work for him, without pay, as punishment for worrying her mother when she left. Frank has already hired another helper, Roxanne. Soon, Roxanne and Dulcie become friends. When Dulcie and Frank discover the truth about Roxanne's relationship with her abusive mother, they have to figure out a way to help her.
When I first picked up this book, I thought it would be a sad story about death and moving on. It was sad, but the novel also had a feeling of hope and looking towards the future. Aside from death, Defining Dulcie also dealt with serious issues like abuse. This book was pretty good, especially for a debut novel. I'll be looking forward to reading more books by the author.
Rating (0 - 10 scale): 7
Reviewer Age: 19
Reviewer City, State and Country: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania USA
When I first picked up this book, I thought it would be a sad story about death and moving on. It was sad, but the novel also had a feeling of hope and looking towards the future. Aside from death, Defining Dulcie also dealt with serious issues like abuse. This book was pretty good, especially for a debut novel. I'll be looking forward to reading more books by the author.
Rating (0 - 10 scale): 7
Reviewer Age: 19
Reviewer City, State and Country: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania USA
M or F? by L. Papademetriou and C. Tebbetts
M or F? by Lisa Papademetriou and Chris Tebbetts defies the format of most typical high school romance stories. Like many, it combines a story of friendship with a story of romance. Frannie falls for an attractive guy that her best friend Marcus actually approves of. His name is Jeffrey Osborne and he’s all too perfect: popular, smart, gorgeous, and sincere. Frannie even has the opportunity to speak to him online. Here’s the twist, though: Frannie gets too queasy to talk to him by herself. So instead, her gay best friend does the talking for her. Eventually, while things are getting hot, Marcus gets out of control and starts chatting with Jeffrey without Frannie knowing. This tests Frannie and Marcus’s friendship, and makes both of them struggle to learn which is stronger: friendship or love?
It was a pleasure to read M or F? and I recently recommended it to friends of mine who are members of our school’s GSA. Not being able relate to Frannie’s struggle of deciding whether Jeffrey is falling for her or for her “brain twin,” Marcus, shouldn’t stop you from reading the book. No one I know escapes fights with friends over what type of relationship is most important. Organized into chapters from both Frannie and Marcus’s perspectives, it is easy and enjoyable to hear both sides of the story for once. As your eyes latch onto the neon-colored cover, your natural paranoia and compassion will latch onto Frannie’s mind in this realistic high school setting.
Rating (0 - 10 scale): 9
Reviewer Age: 16
Reviewer City, State and Country: Farmington, CT USA
It was a pleasure to read M or F? and I recently recommended it to friends of mine who are members of our school’s GSA. Not being able relate to Frannie’s struggle of deciding whether Jeffrey is falling for her or for her “brain twin,” Marcus, shouldn’t stop you from reading the book. No one I know escapes fights with friends over what type of relationship is most important. Organized into chapters from both Frannie and Marcus’s perspectives, it is easy and enjoyable to hear both sides of the story for once. As your eyes latch onto the neon-colored cover, your natural paranoia and compassion will latch onto Frannie’s mind in this realistic high school setting.
Rating (0 - 10 scale): 9
Reviewer Age: 16
Reviewer City, State and Country: Farmington, CT USA
Wednesday, March 22, 2006
The Land of Debris and the Home of Alfredo by Kenn Amdahl
A man walks through the deserted prairie of Oklahoma. He knows he is missing something, but he can’t quite figure out what it is. Suddenly, in a moment of breakthrough, he realizes he has no memories left. Who is he? Why is he in the middle of nowhere? He finds a gas station and tries to call the one number that he remembers and gets an answering machine to “The Land of Debris and Home of Alfredo”. Progressing through the most ludicrous of situations, the man finds himself in such places as New Mexico, Mexico City, Oregon, Las Vegas, Lousiana, and Kansas. The man is the accomplice to drug trades, casino scams, police cover-ups, and voodoo ceremonies by total default.
I found the book to be enthralling, but not super coherent. It was just plausible enough to keep a story and yet it somehow kept me reading it. It was laced with drug references and innuendo, but it still keeps its main objective in sight: to find out the identity of the protagonist. Its storytelling was superb, and I found it digging deep into me and finding the vagabond hidden in my personality. The book built up to a fantastic ending, but it left me with nothing. I really hated the ending, but the incredible body of the book almost totally made up for the overly demure ending.
Rating (0 - 10 scale): 6
Reviewer Age: 13
Reviewer City, State and Country: Greencastle, PA USA
I found the book to be enthralling, but not super coherent. It was just plausible enough to keep a story and yet it somehow kept me reading it. It was laced with drug references and innuendo, but it still keeps its main objective in sight: to find out the identity of the protagonist. Its storytelling was superb, and I found it digging deep into me and finding the vagabond hidden in my personality. The book built up to a fantastic ending, but it left me with nothing. I really hated the ending, but the incredible body of the book almost totally made up for the overly demure ending.
Rating (0 - 10 scale): 6
Reviewer Age: 13
Reviewer City, State and Country: Greencastle, PA USA
Tuesday, March 21, 2006
Dreamhunter by Elizabeth Knox
The Place, a land that seems utterly different from the real world, but it is so close. Laura and her cousin, Rose, are both fifteen. At fifteen they are qualified to go into the Place but they must past the test first, the Try. But before they could enter, they dicover a dark secret hidden in the Place. As Laura and Rose try to figure out the secret, Laura's father disappears. Now Laura and Rose have to find Laura's father and the secret before time runs out...
I thought this book was fairly good. I loved the plot and how the setting connected with the story line. All the characters had their distinct features and personalities about themselves. However, I wish the story was told in someone's point of veiw, not third person. It was a little difficult to get a sense of their emotions. Overall, Elizabeth Knox kept the story in line and did not go off track. It was a good book!
Rating (0 - 10 scale): 8
Reviewer Age: 14
Reviewer City, State and Country: Villa Hills, Kentucky United States of America
I thought this book was fairly good. I loved the plot and how the setting connected with the story line. All the characters had their distinct features and personalities about themselves. However, I wish the story was told in someone's point of veiw, not third person. It was a little difficult to get a sense of their emotions. Overall, Elizabeth Knox kept the story in line and did not go off track. It was a good book!
Rating (0 - 10 scale): 8
Reviewer Age: 14
Reviewer City, State and Country: Villa Hills, Kentucky United States of America
Maggie's Dare by Norma Jean Lutz
When twelve-year-old Maggie Baldwin goes to her friend, Adelaide’s, house, for her weekly dance lessons that occur on Thursdays, she is in for a big surprise! While waiting for her dad after dance lessons Adelaide breaks the big news that Maggie is invited to travel with her to Salem in a fancy stagecoach. Adelaide is getting a slave girl for a Christmas present, but Maggie disagrees with the whole idea of owning slaves. After seeing that Adelaide treats the girl poorly, Maggie decides to help her and the less fortunate against Adelaide’s wishes. Will the girls be able to stay friends after having conflicts about almost everything or will they give up trying and go their separate ways?
Maggie’s Dare is one of the many books in the Sisters In Time Series, which are all about girls living in different time periods. I loved Maggie’s Dare so much that I couldn’t put it down; it was a real page-turner. This is a wonderful Christian-based book that can keep you up all night long trying to find out what will happen next. I really liked the character named Jacob because he brought life to the story and it made the story all the better. Maggie’s Dare is recommended for kids ages 8-12.
Rating (0 - 10 scale): 10
Reviewer Age: 12
Reviewer City, State and Country: Upper Strasburg, PA US
Maggie’s Dare is one of the many books in the Sisters In Time Series, which are all about girls living in different time periods. I loved Maggie’s Dare so much that I couldn’t put it down; it was a real page-turner. This is a wonderful Christian-based book that can keep you up all night long trying to find out what will happen next. I really liked the character named Jacob because he brought life to the story and it made the story all the better. Maggie’s Dare is recommended for kids ages 8-12.
Rating (0 - 10 scale): 10
Reviewer Age: 12
Reviewer City, State and Country: Upper Strasburg, PA US
Monday, March 20, 2006
So Super Stylish by Rose Wilkins
Octavia Clairbrook-Cleeve, daughter of a famous actress and director, has no wish to be in the spotlight. After leaving her glitzy school behind, she enters the local high school. For a while, she believes that she has gotten away from her former life. Unfortunately, she is mistaken. Bud, her mother's boyfriend, decides to pack up and move to live with them, bringing his son, Milton, along. While that causes some excitement, nothing can compare to the fact that India Withers, Octavia's nemesis, comes to her school claiming that she's doing research for her next acting gig. And India is in to cause as much harm as possible to Octavia's somewhat calmer life.
I really liked reading So Super Stylish. I wish that I had started with it's prequel, So Super Starry, first. It was interesting to read about the life of someone famous. While this reminded me of the Introducing Vivian Leigh Reid and the A-List, So Super Stylish is original in it's own way. The story kept me interested as soon as I read the first page. I would recommend this book as a fun, quick read for the summer.
Rating (0 - 10 scale): 8
Reviewer Age: 19
Reviewer City, State and Country: Philadelphia, PA USA
I really liked reading So Super Stylish. I wish that I had started with it's prequel, So Super Starry, first. It was interesting to read about the life of someone famous. While this reminded me of the Introducing Vivian Leigh Reid and the A-List, So Super Stylish is original in it's own way. The story kept me interested as soon as I read the first page. I would recommend this book as a fun, quick read for the summer.
Rating (0 - 10 scale): 8
Reviewer Age: 19
Reviewer City, State and Country: Philadelphia, PA USA
Sunday, March 19, 2006
First Impressions by Marilyn Sachs
Alice, the middle child in a family of 5, understands what it's like to be forgotten. When reading Pride and Prejudice, she immediately connects with Mary, the forgotten sister and bases her opinion of the novel on her character's impact on the story. When she receives a C on her book report, she is given the chance to reread the novel and write a new report for a better grade. As she reads Pride and Prejudice again, she sees things in a different light. First, she begins by trying to rewrite the story by changing Mary's personality. Then, her life begins to change. She gets her first boyfriend, she learns about true friendship, and her relationship with her parents and siblings change. Slowly, she learns about her purpose in life, as well as the importance of leaving Mary's character the way she is.
I thought that First Impressions was a cute book. It was clever how the author incorporated Pride and Prejudice into this story. I have not read Pride and Prejudice before, and reading this made me want to read the classic. I would recommend this for younger teens, as the main character is younger, but anyone can relate to Alice's problems. This is definitely a book that should not be overlooked.
Rating (0 - 10 scale): 6
Reviewer Age: 19
Reviewer City, State and Country: Philadelphia, PA USA
I thought that First Impressions was a cute book. It was clever how the author incorporated Pride and Prejudice into this story. I have not read Pride and Prejudice before, and reading this made me want to read the classic. I would recommend this for younger teens, as the main character is younger, but anyone can relate to Alice's problems. This is definitely a book that should not be overlooked.
Rating (0 - 10 scale): 6
Reviewer Age: 19
Reviewer City, State and Country: Philadelphia, PA USA
As Simple As Snow by Gregory Galloway
This isn't a run-of-the-mill mystery, nor a cautionary tale. It's a story about a boy, a girl, a town, a code. It's a story about that time in your life when you realize nothing is as simple as it seems. Once you realize that, you can't go back, no matter how hard you try. You can only go forward.
"As Simple as Snow" will be haunting me for a long, long time. Some say that all stories can be narrowed down to one of two plots. This story employs the "new person moves to town" plot - but it's far more complex than that. Anna, a high school student, is more than what she seems. She likes to write obituaries for people who are still alive - for every person in town, even though she's just moved there with her parents. She wears black clothes, black boots, dark makeup, offsetting her blond hair. She loves Lovecraft, making mix CDs, and discussing the codes Houdini and his wife shared. She can argue both sides of a debate with equal passion and knowledge, thus making it unclear which side she herself would support. She insists that people call her Anastasia. The narrator calls her Anna. He's a high school student as well. His name is unknown; it is unimportant. What is important is their relationship. He finds himself intrigued with Anna, despite her status as a "Goth," and the two begin dating. Her ideas challenge him; her intelligence impresses him; and, seven months later, her disappearance baffles him. Author Gregory Galloway has created a stunning and haunting tale. Just as Anna herself, this book is hard to categorize. Many would call "As Simple as Snow" a mystery, but just as many might refer to it as a coming-of-age story. The writing is engrossing, placing the reader on the same page (no pun intended) as the narrator, trying to figure out Anna herself as well the codes she used. Readers will be looking for clues in the grand design while falling for this strong, willful character and wondering why she left. It even has an appropriately creepy website, where you may download the mix CDs Anna created and watch a unique trailer for the book. If the trailer doesn't make you want to read the book immediately, I don't know what will.
Rating (0 - 10 scale): 10
Reviewer Age: 23
Reviewer City, State and Country: , California USA
"As Simple as Snow" will be haunting me for a long, long time. Some say that all stories can be narrowed down to one of two plots. This story employs the "new person moves to town" plot - but it's far more complex than that. Anna, a high school student, is more than what she seems. She likes to write obituaries for people who are still alive - for every person in town, even though she's just moved there with her parents. She wears black clothes, black boots, dark makeup, offsetting her blond hair. She loves Lovecraft, making mix CDs, and discussing the codes Houdini and his wife shared. She can argue both sides of a debate with equal passion and knowledge, thus making it unclear which side she herself would support. She insists that people call her Anastasia. The narrator calls her Anna. He's a high school student as well. His name is unknown; it is unimportant. What is important is their relationship. He finds himself intrigued with Anna, despite her status as a "Goth," and the two begin dating. Her ideas challenge him; her intelligence impresses him; and, seven months later, her disappearance baffles him. Author Gregory Galloway has created a stunning and haunting tale. Just as Anna herself, this book is hard to categorize. Many would call "As Simple as Snow" a mystery, but just as many might refer to it as a coming-of-age story. The writing is engrossing, placing the reader on the same page (no pun intended) as the narrator, trying to figure out Anna herself as well the codes she used. Readers will be looking for clues in the grand design while falling for this strong, willful character and wondering why she left. It even has an appropriately creepy website, where you may download the mix CDs Anna created and watch a unique trailer for the book. If the trailer doesn't make you want to read the book immediately, I don't know what will.
Rating (0 - 10 scale): 10
Reviewer Age: 23
Reviewer City, State and Country: , California USA
Small Steps by Louis Sachar
It’s been two years since Armpit’s (now preferring his given name, Theodore) release from the juvenile correction facility, Camp Green Lake. Armpit is living a great life; he has a well paying job, he’s attending summer school to make up for the schooling he’s missed, it appears that his life seems back on track. His greatest obstacle is trying to have a nice reputation when everyone knows you as a ‘big bully’. That’s where Ginny, Armpit’s ten-year-old neighbor, comes in. Ginny has cerebral palsy and together, Ginny and Armpit are learning it takes small steps to go great distances. Armpit is tested in his new life when an old friend from Camp Green Lake shows up with a moneymaking scam. Scalping tickets for the latest teenage sensation, Kaira DeLeon, Armpit finds himself meeting this young star and beginning a chain of events that throws his life out of whack. Will Armpit’s new girlfriend be as perfect as he dreams, or will she be a nightmare he can’t wake up from? Be sure to read Louis Sachar’s sequel to Holes, Small Steps.
Small Steps, Sachar’s sequel to Holes, proves just as entertaining as the original best seller. With its creative plot and satisfying climax this book is an easy read, and a great story if you are in search of a relaxing novel to enjoy. The book is a great read-aloud with simple language, and kids of elementary grades will love it, but I don’t necessarily recommend it to children over 13 or for someone searching for a complex plotline. The book’s best quality, in my opinion, was its theme: Any problem can be solved or fixed, and if you take small steps towards correcting the problem, it proves a lot easier.
Rating (0 - 10 scale): 9
Reviewer Age: 13
Reviewer City, State and Country: Chambersburg, PA USA
Small Steps, Sachar’s sequel to Holes, proves just as entertaining as the original best seller. With its creative plot and satisfying climax this book is an easy read, and a great story if you are in search of a relaxing novel to enjoy. The book is a great read-aloud with simple language, and kids of elementary grades will love it, but I don’t necessarily recommend it to children over 13 or for someone searching for a complex plotline. The book’s best quality, in my opinion, was its theme: Any problem can be solved or fixed, and if you take small steps towards correcting the problem, it proves a lot easier.
Rating (0 - 10 scale): 9
Reviewer Age: 13
Reviewer City, State and Country: Chambersburg, PA USA
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