Kichi in Jungle Jeopardy, by Lila Guzmán, takes place in Chilaam, an ancient temple, where Kichi, a rare blue Chihuahua, is pampered by Fortune Teller and everyone else in the Mayan City. Kichi is so happy in Chilaam, he does not know what he is in for! One day, Ah Tok, Fortune Teller’s brother, comes back from a raid with a slave named Uxmal. Kichi is delighted to see that Uxmal can speak Dog. After so many years of trying to get Fortune Teller to understand his language, he almost gave up on having anyone to talk to! Kichi takes a liking to Uxmal, and they meet every day. Until . . . an army attacks Chilaam and kidnaps Uxmal. Kichi sets out into the jungle, a scary place for such a small dog. Kichi has adventure after adventure, eventually learning a big surprise about Uxmal that turns out to be very important for Kichi and the future of his friends.
This story was great. It was exciting around the edges and mild in the middle. My favorite part was when Uxmal was captured and Kichi is sent on his journey into the jungle. I would highly recommend this book to anyone who likes talking animals who behave like people, and slight wars (without too much violence). The theme of this book, in a sense, was friendship, and sticking by a friend in a difficult situation. Also, I learned some of what it is like to have a really good friend. I really enjoyed this book!
Rating (0 - 10 scale): 8
Reviewer Age: 11
Reviewer City, State and Country: Saugerties, NY USA
Monday, March 12, 2007
Summer of Love by Emily Franklin
Summer of Love, by Emily Franklin, is part of a series about a girl named Love Bukowski, this time focusing on the summer before her senior year. As the book begins she looks forward to a great summer with her best friend and to using the summer to discover the mysteries of her past, like the whereabouts of her previously absent mother. She soon finds some of the fun she was seeking but with it comes new confusion about her past. As she tries to live in the moment, she is thrown into even more confusing situations and faced with new obstacles, like choosing a good college and making important decisions about her future goals. The book ends with a new set of revelations, and therefore a new set of questions for Love to answer in the next book.
This book was sprinkled with a plethora of musical references from the Talking Heads to the Beatles and everyone in between. It was an easy read; information from previous books in the series wasn’t necessary to understand what was happening. Love seemed like a real character, however, the circumstances of her life were a bit too unrealistic. The book floated along but without any real substance to hold onto, relying instead on clichéd situations. Some parts screamed potential but then were left with the surfaces unscratched. Franklin’s characters are easily related to but the plot was so quick and implausible that they could not be empathized. The plot was nothing too exciting or new but it wasn’t horrible because it was expected. Overall, it was an easy and semi-enjoyable read, but lacked potential depth that it could have held.
This book was sprinkled with a plethora of musical references from the Talking Heads to the Beatles and everyone in between. It was an easy read; information from previous books in the series wasn’t necessary to understand what was happening. Love seemed like a real character, however, the circumstances of her life were a bit too unrealistic. The book floated along but without any real substance to hold onto, relying instead on clichéd situations. Some parts screamed potential but then were left with the surfaces unscratched. Franklin’s characters are easily related to but the plot was so quick and implausible that they could not be empathized. The plot was nothing too exciting or new but it wasn’t horrible because it was expected. Overall, it was an easy and semi-enjoyable read, but lacked potential depth that it could have held.
The Invisible by Mats Wahl
A high school boy, Hilmer Eriksson, becomes invisible on a Monday morning, and is the main character in a murder mystery. Once he realizes it, he becomes dependent on the detective investigating his disappearance; Detective Fors. Hilmer stays invisible through Monday morning to Tuesday afternoon, following Fors in hopes of becoming visible again. But, as the detective uncovers more clues, Hilmer suffers invisibly, where no one can help him. In the visible world, Detective Fors finds information on Hilmer's troublesome classmates. In the end, he discovers just who caused Hilmer to be where he is now.
This is one of the best mysteries I have ever read! It is quite literally a book that you cannot put down! If you are a mystery lover, whether you care if it is a murder mystery or not, this book will have you hooked and wanting more! It includes wonderful dry humor, engaging interrogations, and, several flashbacks between the past and present. The author clearly wound these three key attributes around an original plot, to create a fantastic book.
Content:Has some extreme violence and vague sexual content, but I do not think it should be restricted to a mature reader.
Rating (0 - 10 scale): 9
Reviewer Age: 12
Reviewer City, State and Country: Eagle Creek, OR USA
This is one of the best mysteries I have ever read! It is quite literally a book that you cannot put down! If you are a mystery lover, whether you care if it is a murder mystery or not, this book will have you hooked and wanting more! It includes wonderful dry humor, engaging interrogations, and, several flashbacks between the past and present. The author clearly wound these three key attributes around an original plot, to create a fantastic book.
Content:Has some extreme violence and vague sexual content, but I do not think it should be restricted to a mature reader.
Rating (0 - 10 scale): 9
Reviewer Age: 12
Reviewer City, State and Country: Eagle Creek, OR USA
Sunday, March 04, 2007
Penelope Bailey Takes the Stage by Susanna Reich
Penelope Bailey is an 11 year old girl who is absolutely obsessed with acting. She lives, thinks, and talks acting. If you haven’t guessed already her dream is to be a famous actress on stage. Penelope and her best friend, Cassie are planning on practicing scenes from Romeo and Juliet over the summer to perform at their school in the fall. But, Penelope’s mom decides to go and help her dad on a scientific experiment and sends Penelope to live with her aunt and three cousins. Penelope is horrified. She can stand her bratty cousins, but not her aunt. Her aunt thinks that anything and anyone to do with the theater is vulgar and shouldn’t be on the earth. Penelope doesn’t think she will survive. Then she befriends a girl at her new school, a professional actor next door, and a flamboyant dancer/actress who has a totally different life style then Penelope has ever seen or heard of before. With their help and encouragement Penelope learns to follow her dreams and to never ever give them up.
Named by Scripps Howard News Service as One of the Best Kid’s Books of 2006, this book is definitely one of my favorites. I am an aspiring actress and this book was perfect for me. It gave me encouragement, self confidence, and even some useful tips on acting. I believe any performer, actress, dancer, or singer will eat this book up just as much as I did. I applaud Susanna Reich.
Rating (0 - 10 scale): 9
Reviewer Age: 15
Reviewer City, State and Country: Moscow, Idaho United States of America
Named by Scripps Howard News Service as One of the Best Kid’s Books of 2006, this book is definitely one of my favorites. I am an aspiring actress and this book was perfect for me. It gave me encouragement, self confidence, and even some useful tips on acting. I believe any performer, actress, dancer, or singer will eat this book up just as much as I did. I applaud Susanna Reich.
Rating (0 - 10 scale): 9
Reviewer Age: 15
Reviewer City, State and Country: Moscow, Idaho United States of America
Such A Pretty Face
"Such a Pretty Face" is a collection of stories about beauty. The first story is about a beautiful, seemingly perfect girl wanting to just be ugly and fit in with everyone else. The second about a girl living in another country where everyone she sees seems beautiful, making her feel like an outsider. The third a story of a boy stuck in the hospital with a broken back and falling in love with a nurse he can't evem see. The fourth is a story of a girl who has a a hair on her chin that keeps growing longer and thicker, and on the day of prom too. The fifth is a story of boy going to a circus freak show, and finding a beauty he did not expect. The sixth story is about a girl trying to find her own look, a look that does not parallel her mother's looks. The seventh of a very hairy boy nicknamed "ape," who just wants to get a date with his dream girl. The eigth is of a a beautiful girl whose mom wants her to be a model, but who doesn't want to draw attention to herslef. The nineth is about a depressed boy whose best friend is trying to make him feel better by making up a bingo game with him. The tenth is about a girl named Beauty, but is considered anything but a beauty. The elventh is about a depressed, suicidal girl who is getting therapy from a short comedian. And the twelfth is about moments in a girl's life when her perceptiona of beauty does not include her.
First of all, I am sorry about my summary, it's just that it is hard to convey the plots of every story in this book in a couple of sentences. I liked this book because although every story in this book is very short, all the stories are long enough to send the reader a message about beauty, not always outward beauty but sometimes inner beauty and perceived beauty. I especially liked how every story offered something different, told something different about beauty, which made it so the book was not a repitition of the same idea. The book was good because every writer wrote kind of heart warming characters that you could somehow relate to because of their perception of beauty. Some of the stories in the book left you hanging, though, but it wasn't a necessarily bad thing not to know what happened to each charater, and those stories left the future of the charater's and their ideals up to the reader to decide, which I think made those stories better. This book was also good because it made you think about beauty and how you define it, which before I read this book I never actually considered anything outside of the magezine definition of beauty. I thought this was a great book that you should at least read once.
Rating (0 - 10 scale): 9
Reviewer Age: 15
Reviewer City, State and Country: Tucson, Arizona U.S.A.
First of all, I am sorry about my summary, it's just that it is hard to convey the plots of every story in this book in a couple of sentences. I liked this book because although every story in this book is very short, all the stories are long enough to send the reader a message about beauty, not always outward beauty but sometimes inner beauty and perceived beauty. I especially liked how every story offered something different, told something different about beauty, which made it so the book was not a repitition of the same idea. The book was good because every writer wrote kind of heart warming characters that you could somehow relate to because of their perception of beauty. Some of the stories in the book left you hanging, though, but it wasn't a necessarily bad thing not to know what happened to each charater, and those stories left the future of the charater's and their ideals up to the reader to decide, which I think made those stories better. This book was also good because it made you think about beauty and how you define it, which before I read this book I never actually considered anything outside of the magezine definition of beauty. I thought this was a great book that you should at least read once.
Rating (0 - 10 scale): 9
Reviewer Age: 15
Reviewer City, State and Country: Tucson, Arizona U.S.A.
Stuff - The Life of a Cool Demented Dude by Jeremy Strong
Life isn’t always easy, and never has that saying been truer for Simon. His parents are divorced, and now Simons house has been taken over by GIRLS(Sherry Trifle, his dads girlfriend, and Natasha, his new stepsister)!!! What’s more is that there is an evil man-obsessed rabbit that wants to kill Simon and his dad! But Simon finds solace in his comic book drawings and dreaming about a new girl in his class, Sky. But when Simons art teacher has him draw an anonymous comic strip for the schools magazine, what is everybody going to do when they realize the people in the comic strip are based on them? Will Simon survive having to live with girls in him home? Will Sky, the love of his life, ever like Simon back? Will Pankhurst, the rabbit, kill Simon before he has had a chance to live?? Find out in Stuff: The Life of A Cool Demented Dude.
I did not really like the book at the beginning. It was confusing at first, and some of the English sayings (like thing thong and Citroen)were driving me nuts, because I did not know what they meant ( I didn’t know about the glossary in the back). But after the first few chapters, I started to really get into it, and couldn’t stop reading it! I felt that a lot of the things in the book were true, about the way Middle school is in real life. Overall, It was a good book, with a lot of surprises!
Rating (0 - 10 scale): 7
Reviewer Age: 12
Reviewer City, State and Country: Casa Grande, AZ United States of America
I did not really like the book at the beginning. It was confusing at first, and some of the English sayings (like thing thong and Citroen)were driving me nuts, because I did not know what they meant ( I didn’t know about the glossary in the back). But after the first few chapters, I started to really get into it, and couldn’t stop reading it! I felt that a lot of the things in the book were true, about the way Middle school is in real life. Overall, It was a good book, with a lot of surprises!
Rating (0 - 10 scale): 7
Reviewer Age: 12
Reviewer City, State and Country: Casa Grande, AZ United States of America
The Chaos King by Laura Ruby
Georgie may be the Richest Girl in the World, but she may also be one of the most unhappy. Her parents are being overly protective and won't let her use her invisibility skill anymore. Her best friend Bug is now a superstar, constantly blabbering about the latest commercials and movies he's been in. Being a teenager is pretty hard when you feel so alone. It isn't long, though, until Georgie is caught up in fresh adventures. Weird things keep occurring around Bug and herself, but all of the events are seemingly unconnected. Not wanting to scare her parents, she lies whenever they worriedly ask about her life. In the end she realizes that this was not a good idea, and that her parents are protecting her because they love her.
Laura Ruby's brilliant writing caused me to fairly zip through this book. She creates all sorts of subplots and inventive circumstances, somehow making everything flow smoothly and perfectly. A fantastic and colorful read, The Chaos King is at least as good as its predecessor The Wall and the Wing, if not better. Highly recommended!
Rating (0 - 10 scale): 8
Reviewer Age: 16
Reviewer City, State and Country: Moscow, ID USA
Laura Ruby's brilliant writing caused me to fairly zip through this book. She creates all sorts of subplots and inventive circumstances, somehow making everything flow smoothly and perfectly. A fantastic and colorful read, The Chaos King is at least as good as its predecessor The Wall and the Wing, if not better. Highly recommended!
Rating (0 - 10 scale): 8
Reviewer Age: 16
Reviewer City, State and Country: Moscow, ID USA
Tuesday, February 27, 2007
The Book of Lies by James Moloney
The story begins with four mysterious men carrying a boy, Marcel, to an orphanage close to Fallside. When he gets there, Lord Alwyn, an evil magician, makes him listen to a book that tells a story. The book is called the book of lies and anything you say that is a lie, will be recorded in it. When the truth is told, it glows golden. Bea, another orphan, secretly places cotton balls into Marcel's ears to help him not hear the story. If he does hear it, then he will forget everything he has ever known and believe that this is his true story. The book told him his name was Robert before his ears were plugged so he believed that. When two men get ahold of Marcel, he leaves the orphanage with Bea, Nicola, and Fergus. However, that is not so easy because Lord Alwyn has placed a ring on his finger that will not come off until he finds the courage to get it off, and if he leaves the orphanage, Termagant will come. Termagant is Lord Alwyn's evil beast that will cause destruction and death. Marcel leaves anyway, eager to find out how his life actually was before he was taken. He finds out he is related to Nicola and Fergus and that they are royalty. Their mission now, is to throw King Pelham out of power because Marcel, Fergus, and Nicola's parents are the rightful king and queen. Do they manage to succede?
The Book of Lies is a very entertaining book. While I was very interested in it, it wasn't a page turner for me. I can't compare this book to any other book because it is so different. It is fantasy, however there are many other features that make it its' own genre. The book was written in third person, and it flowed really well. If it was written in first person it may not have shown all of the wonderful details it does now. Lastly, The Book of Lies ended in a way that gives you enough knowledge to know what happened, but you want more.Content:
Rating (0 - 10 scale): 7
Reviewer Age: 13
Reviewer City, State and Country: Carlisle, PA U.S.A.
The Book of Lies is a very entertaining book. While I was very interested in it, it wasn't a page turner for me. I can't compare this book to any other book because it is so different. It is fantasy, however there are many other features that make it its' own genre. The book was written in third person, and it flowed really well. If it was written in first person it may not have shown all of the wonderful details it does now. Lastly, The Book of Lies ended in a way that gives you enough knowledge to know what happened, but you want more.Content:
Rating (0 - 10 scale): 7
Reviewer Age: 13
Reviewer City, State and Country: Carlisle, PA U.S.A.
Friday, February 23, 2007
Titans of Chaos by John C. Wright
Titans of Chaos revolves around the story of five orphans, Amanda, Colin, Vanity, Quentin and Victor who are running away from their parents mythological deities. Each orphan has a unique power which they have to use to save the universe.
Titans of Chaos is an "unique" book about five "unique" orphans with "unique" powers but what makes this book special..... Titans of Chaos revolves around the story of five orphans, Amanda, Colin, Vanity, Quentin and Victor who are running away from their parents mythological deities. Sounds interesting, well yeah it is, the idea anyway but the story is brought down by poor execution. The author gives each orphan a special power. Colin has super strength, Vanity can see doors through solid objects and Quentin can see dead people and summon them. Other than that I'm not really sure what their powers are let alone how they work the author cuts their powers on and off at a whim. He does attempt a rudimentary explanation concerning their powers that leaves a lot to be desired. This failed explanation leads to a lot of confusion during the action scenes when they are actually using their power. Frankly you don't know what going on. You would at least think you would know what planet the characters are on and then you find out that their on Mars. I will give the author points for unpredictability you never know what going to happen which is good and kinda bad because not knowing whats happening, whats going to happen, or what has happened leaves you wondering a lot. Overall I would compare this book to the Super Bowl XLI . "Assuming" the Chicago Bears came into the Super Bowl with a plan to win the plan was brought down by poor execution and of course by Peyton Manning.
Content:Some profanity and sexual comments worthy of a surprised smiley face.
Rating (0 - 10 scale): 5
Reviewer Age: 17
Reviewer City, State and Country: Starkville, Mississippi USA
Titans of Chaos is an "unique" book about five "unique" orphans with "unique" powers but what makes this book special..... Titans of Chaos revolves around the story of five orphans, Amanda, Colin, Vanity, Quentin and Victor who are running away from their parents mythological deities. Sounds interesting, well yeah it is, the idea anyway but the story is brought down by poor execution. The author gives each orphan a special power. Colin has super strength, Vanity can see doors through solid objects and Quentin can see dead people and summon them. Other than that I'm not really sure what their powers are let alone how they work the author cuts their powers on and off at a whim. He does attempt a rudimentary explanation concerning their powers that leaves a lot to be desired. This failed explanation leads to a lot of confusion during the action scenes when they are actually using their power. Frankly you don't know what going on. You would at least think you would know what planet the characters are on and then you find out that their on Mars. I will give the author points for unpredictability you never know what going to happen which is good and kinda bad because not knowing whats happening, whats going to happen, or what has happened leaves you wondering a lot. Overall I would compare this book to the Super Bowl XLI . "Assuming" the Chicago Bears came into the Super Bowl with a plan to win the plan was brought down by poor execution and of course by Peyton Manning.
Content:Some profanity and sexual comments worthy of a surprised smiley face.
Rating (0 - 10 scale): 5
Reviewer Age: 17
Reviewer City, State and Country: Starkville, Mississippi USA
How to Be a Budget Fashionista by Kathryn Finney
Are you on a tight budget and want fashionable things? Are you a fan of Dooney & Bourke but have the budget for Wal Mart? If so, then this book is for you. It's an easy guide to show you that you can shop til you drop without dropping your wallet. It also compares side by side the expenisve and inexpensie and sometimes the only difference is the price tag. How to Be a Budget Fashionista also shows the new style trends that anybody can afford. It also gives great tips on easy to make facials, creams, conditioners, etc. If you are a shopaholic, you will go crazy over this guide.
At first when I received the book, I was kind of surprised. I was expecting a twenty page book that says "Watch your budget" over and over again. But, to my surprise, it gives the reader an in depth look on how to save. I got some great tips that I used on getting makeup and some online stores. What did turn me off was that it seemed like it was written for a 30 year old women. Most of the time it talks about salaries and how to balance one's mortgage and spending. Most teenagers don't have to worry about that. Some of the stores I haven't even heard of and when I looked at them online, they were for high class business women, not teenage girls looking to save a dollar or two here and there. Overall, the book was good, but not for a 16 year old.
Content:There were a couple of curse words but that was the extent of it.
Rating (0 - 10 scale): 4
Reviewer Age: 15
Reviewer City, State and Country: Villa Hills, Kentucky United States
At first when I received the book, I was kind of surprised. I was expecting a twenty page book that says "Watch your budget" over and over again. But, to my surprise, it gives the reader an in depth look on how to save. I got some great tips that I used on getting makeup and some online stores. What did turn me off was that it seemed like it was written for a 30 year old women. Most of the time it talks about salaries and how to balance one's mortgage and spending. Most teenagers don't have to worry about that. Some of the stores I haven't even heard of and when I looked at them online, they were for high class business women, not teenage girls looking to save a dollar or two here and there. Overall, the book was good, but not for a 16 year old.
Content:There were a couple of curse words but that was the extent of it.
Rating (0 - 10 scale): 4
Reviewer Age: 15
Reviewer City, State and Country: Villa Hills, Kentucky United States
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