Being born undead, she didn’t exactly have too many options to what she could do with her life. Fortunately, a witch named Ghastly Edna rescued her from her cellar to come live with her and taught her how to hide her flawless beauty behind the disguise of an old crone. However, events turn against her and the witch is forced to move to Fort Stalwart with a demonic duck named Newt, a troll named Gwurm, and an enchanted broom. When a White Knight arrives with the warning of a horde of goblings that are approaching the Fort, the witch realizes that great and terrible events are coming about. The witch and the White Knight must combine forces on a quest to stop an insane sorcerer from destroying the present world and recreating his own while learning more about their true inner selves.
Funny, witty, and filled with black humor, “Nameless Witch” was an amusing book to read. Although some parts may have progressed a bit slow, it was definitely a “page-turner” for me. This book does very well with detailed use of imagery but in some cases, the vocabulary and descriptions may not be appropriate for younger readers. However, the book is still written very well and even though there are many books about quests to stop evil, A. Lee Martinez wrote an original version of this common theme. The ending was a bit disappointing to me because the book was set up to lead towards a different sort of ending, but it was refreshing to read a book that was not cliché. I think this is a great book to read for fun and amusement and is sure to put a smile on your face.
Rating (0 - 10 scale): 7
Reviewer Age: 14
Reviewer City, State and Country: Tucson, Arizona United States
Tuesday, September 25, 2007
Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher
Clay Jensen finds thirteen mysterious tapes on his doorstep. When he starts listening to them, he is suprised to hear Hannah Baker's voice, since she committed suicide recently. As he listens, he learns that the tapes reveal the thirteen reasons why Hannah committed suicide. The most shocking part is that he was one of the reasons, even though he was in love with her. Listening to these tapes could change how he views his classmates and how he remembers Hannah forever.
This book was written very well and was a very good book. The way the story was told partly through tapes added to the story. The story was very depressing and at some spots it almost seemed vindictive. However, the ending is sweet as well as sad. It made me want to cry but also smile. I would recommend it only if you are prepared for a deep, bittersweet novel.
Content: I would only recommend this book to mature readers who are willing to read about and deal with the thought of suicide. It was very thought-provoking and depressing at parts, so make sure that you are prepared to read it.
Rating (0 - 10 scale): 8
Reviewer Age: 13
Reviewer City, State and Country: Royersford, Pa United States
This book was written very well and was a very good book. The way the story was told partly through tapes added to the story. The story was very depressing and at some spots it almost seemed vindictive. However, the ending is sweet as well as sad. It made me want to cry but also smile. I would recommend it only if you are prepared for a deep, bittersweet novel.
Content: I would only recommend this book to mature readers who are willing to read about and deal with the thought of suicide. It was very thought-provoking and depressing at parts, so make sure that you are prepared to read it.
Rating (0 - 10 scale): 8
Reviewer Age: 13
Reviewer City, State and Country: Royersford, Pa United States
Sunday, September 23, 2007
Taken by Edward Bloor
Taken by Edward Bloor is a very gripping novel about the kidnapping of Charity Meyers. Charity is a young girl living in a wealthy neighborhood called The Highlands in 2035 when kidnapping is a dominant business around the country. Normally, the kidnappers give the parents twenty-four hours to pay the ransom, or else they kill the child and send home a body part. But for some reason, Charity's kidnapping does not follow the normal procedure, something has gone terribly wrong. Did her parents not pay the ransom? Or were they not following the rules set by the kidnappers? In her life changing experience Charity finds out who she is and what her place in the world is.
Taken is a very gripping and suspenseful book that keeps you hanging until the last sentence. The plot is very intriguing and holds on to you, making you want to just keep reading. The story is very well-written but I felt that some of it was kind of confusing. The ending, especially, was enigmatic and I had to read it over a few times before I understood what had really happened. Other than that the book is an amusing read that is entertaining and enjoyable.
Rating (0 - 10 scale): 6
Reviewer Age: 13
Reviewer City, State and Country: Champaign, Illinois USA
Taken is a very gripping and suspenseful book that keeps you hanging until the last sentence. The plot is very intriguing and holds on to you, making you want to just keep reading. The story is very well-written but I felt that some of it was kind of confusing. The ending, especially, was enigmatic and I had to read it over a few times before I understood what had really happened. Other than that the book is an amusing read that is entertaining and enjoyable.
Rating (0 - 10 scale): 6
Reviewer Age: 13
Reviewer City, State and Country: Champaign, Illinois USA
Saturday, September 22, 2007
101 Things You Need to Know...and Some Things You Don't by Richar and Tracey Turner
Have you ever wondered why we dream? Or maybe why cockroaches can live for weeks without its head? These are just 2 of the 101 things you need to know (and some you don’t) in this book. Every single entry in this book is true, and will mostly be liked by younger kids. This book is very interactive, and there is a “form” to fill in after each of the 101 things discussed in this book. If you complete a form, you can take a star sticker from the back of the book, and put it on that page! A very colorful book, each page asks a question, which is answered in a few brief paragraphs below. The questions touch many different subjects and ideas, and therefore, you are bound to come across interesting facts you have never heard about before. Amaze your friends! Quiz your parents! Most importantly, have fun!
Even though there are many amusing items I had no idea about before, I believe that the authors did not target the older audience. Throughout this book, the mood of the book seemed to be appropriate for kids from 10-12. It is a bit complicated for most people younger and too relaxed for those that are older. The forms make the book very interactive. Even though I did not complete the forms, it would take much longer to complete it than to read the short paragraph descriptions right beside it. Therefore, in my opinion, the balance in this book is questioned. Furthermore, the facts are presented in random page numbers even though they are categorized, which makes the flow of this book more complicated to grasp. All and all, this book is colorful, interactive, and fun. It gets the general ideas across, which you can use to amuse and quiz your friends and families.
Rating (0 - 10 scale): 7
Reviewer Age: 13
Reviewer City, State and Country: Urbana, IL USA
Even though there are many amusing items I had no idea about before, I believe that the authors did not target the older audience. Throughout this book, the mood of the book seemed to be appropriate for kids from 10-12. It is a bit complicated for most people younger and too relaxed for those that are older. The forms make the book very interactive. Even though I did not complete the forms, it would take much longer to complete it than to read the short paragraph descriptions right beside it. Therefore, in my opinion, the balance in this book is questioned. Furthermore, the facts are presented in random page numbers even though they are categorized, which makes the flow of this book more complicated to grasp. All and all, this book is colorful, interactive, and fun. It gets the general ideas across, which you can use to amuse and quiz your friends and families.
Rating (0 - 10 scale): 7
Reviewer Age: 13
Reviewer City, State and Country: Urbana, IL USA
Thursday, September 20, 2007
The Education of T.C. Mits by Lillian R. Lieber
T.C Mits stands for The Celebrated Man In The Street, so this book applies to people with minimal knowlage of math. This book is writen in freeverse poetry and is written in two parts. The first part talks about the old way of math: algebra,geometry, calculus, and trig, so if you haven't studied these branches of math yet, you might not get the book. The second part talks about integrating math into the real world. The second portion of the book explains how math can fit into politics and other subjects of that nature.
I was confused most of the entire way. I do not believe that the boook was writen for young adults because, unless you have taken Calculus before, you are lost on page one. One positive thing about the book was the fact that there was a math problem at almost every chapter, so it kept you interested and wanting to find out the answers. Unfortunatly for the readers, the book was written a long time ago, so there might be some issues currently with the computation of the math. This book does go into detail about math and how math applies to politics, so I would not recomend this book for anyone who dislikes math OR has never taken any kind of math besides Algebra 2.
Rating (0 - 10 scale): 3
Reviewer Age: 14
Reviewer City, State and Country: Pottstown, PA United States
I was confused most of the entire way. I do not believe that the boook was writen for young adults because, unless you have taken Calculus before, you are lost on page one. One positive thing about the book was the fact that there was a math problem at almost every chapter, so it kept you interested and wanting to find out the answers. Unfortunatly for the readers, the book was written a long time ago, so there might be some issues currently with the computation of the math. This book does go into detail about math and how math applies to politics, so I would not recomend this book for anyone who dislikes math OR has never taken any kind of math besides Algebra 2.
Rating (0 - 10 scale): 3
Reviewer Age: 14
Reviewer City, State and Country: Pottstown, PA United States
Betwixt by Tara Bray Smith
There are three seventeen-year-olds that are not so normal. A mystery has always been with them while sleeping and when awake. Paintings with butterflies always seem to be alive under Ondine Mason's gaze. Another problem is her violet colored eyes. Morgan D'Amici is a beautiful girl who wakes up in her trailerpark home with blood and dirt under her fingernails. Runaway Nix Saint-Michael sees halos of light around people that are about to die. The brighter the ring, the closer it is to their death. Lastly, they seem to never get sick. When they go to a summer party, they learn all about their origins and their linked destinies.
Betwixt was a great book for young adults. It showed a little bit of fantasy that was enough to make me happy. I really only had one trouble while reading this book. That was that in the beginning when Tara Smith was introducing all of the characters, there were too many brought in at once so I quicky forgot who was who and what they were all about. If you read slowly and twice over those parts then you can understand a little bit better. Something I loved was how there were three main characters who were extemely unique and had their own personalities. Overall, the book was a wonderful debut novel for her.
Rating (0 - 10 scale): 7
Reviewer Age: 14
Reviewer City, State and Country: Carlisle, Pennsylvania United States of America
Betwixt was a great book for young adults. It showed a little bit of fantasy that was enough to make me happy. I really only had one trouble while reading this book. That was that in the beginning when Tara Smith was introducing all of the characters, there were too many brought in at once so I quicky forgot who was who and what they were all about. If you read slowly and twice over those parts then you can understand a little bit better. Something I loved was how there were three main characters who were extemely unique and had their own personalities. Overall, the book was a wonderful debut novel for her.
Rating (0 - 10 scale): 7
Reviewer Age: 14
Reviewer City, State and Country: Carlisle, Pennsylvania United States of America
Big Slick by Eric Luper
Big Slick begins with Andrew Lang stealing money from his dad’s dry cleaning company. After he loses that money in a Texas Hold’em game, Andrew steals more in the hopes of winning it back in another poker game. Andrew digs himself in deeper when he finds some “crack” and tries to sell it on the street. This causes Andrew even more trouble and he ends up selling it back to the drug dealer. With his new stash of cash, Andrew takes off to another casino to try to make enough to payback his dad. Andrew wins at the tables and returns home only to find out he’s too late. His Dad already discovered the missing money and punishes Andrew.
Big Slick started slow with details of each poker hand he played. The book gets going then has a few unexpected twists and turns. The book has some questionable content. There are drugs, drinking, gambling, and bad choices. Besides the bad content, the author provides an interesting storyline.
Content: Between drugs and questonable choies this book is for mature readers.
Rating (0 - 10 scale):
Age: 13
Reviewer City, State and Country: Hamilton, OH USA
Big Slick started slow with details of each poker hand he played. The book gets going then has a few unexpected twists and turns. The book has some questionable content. There are drugs, drinking, gambling, and bad choices. Besides the bad content, the author provides an interesting storyline.
Content: Between drugs and questonable choies this book is for mature readers.
Rating (0 - 10 scale):
Age: 13
Reviewer City, State and Country: Hamilton, OH USA
Drama Club: The Big Production by Peter Lerangis
Drama Club is getting ready for another big production Grease! Everyone is frantic, auditions are going crazy, things are going wrong with the props, and Brianna, Drama Club co president is feeling the pressure. What with auditions swamped, actors going crazy, will Brianna finally burst, and will the show go on despite all this madness?
Drama Club was definitely interesting. I kind of missed out due to it being a series and not reading the previous books but I caught on quick. I enjoyed the drama Drama Club had to go through, ironically enough. I caught myself being caught up in the emotions of everyone. I had lots of fun reading about friendship, hardship, and drama.
Rating (0 - 10 scale): 8
Reviewer Age: 12
Reviewer City, State and Country: Minooka, IL
Drama Club was definitely interesting. I kind of missed out due to it being a series and not reading the previous books but I caught on quick. I enjoyed the drama Drama Club had to go through, ironically enough. I caught myself being caught up in the emotions of everyone. I had lots of fun reading about friendship, hardship, and drama.
Rating (0 - 10 scale): 8
Reviewer Age: 12
Reviewer City, State and Country: Minooka, IL
Foundling by D. M. Cornish
This book is about an intelligent boy who is (unfornunately)named Rosamund. Teased by his fellow orphans at Madam Opera's Estimable Marine Society for Foundling Boys and Girls Rosamund is an outcast who dreams of leaving the Society for good. He gets his chance when a mysterious man named Mister Sebastipole offers him a job as a lamplighter (a person who goes out and lights the lamp that connect the highways). But Rosamund's world is fraught with danger and before long he finds himself in situations he could have never imagined with people that possess powers most of us can only dream of.
This book was excellent. Containing strange places and fantastic creatures this book is worth reading. The characters are a perfect blend of the extraordinary and human. It is exciting and fast paced with lot of interesting plot twists. It was exceptional and the illastrations are amazing. I would reccomend it of fans of fantasy.
Content: There is mild violence.
Rating (0 - 10 scale): 9
Reviewer Age: 13
Reviewer City, State and Country: Chambersburg, PA
This book was excellent. Containing strange places and fantastic creatures this book is worth reading. The characters are a perfect blend of the extraordinary and human. It is exciting and fast paced with lot of interesting plot twists. It was exceptional and the illastrations are amazing. I would reccomend it of fans of fantasy.
Content: There is mild violence.
Rating (0 - 10 scale): 9
Reviewer Age: 13
Reviewer City, State and Country: Chambersburg, PA
Real Princesses by Valerie Wilding
“What is a princess? It’s a favorite dream of many girls to be a beautiful princess, to live in a fairy-tale palace, to wear diamond tiaras, and to dress in fabulous clothes.”
Not quite. Princesses have lots of rules, requirements and expectations burdened on them. They are constantly being watched and judged by the public and they usually don’t get exactly what they want. Most people think princesses are girls who don’t have a care in the world, but that’s not true, they have their problems and things to deal with just like you and I. But, there are also fun aspects of being a “princess”. They usually have opportunities to pursue their interests, sometimes even professionally because they usually have unlimited resources. Some examples in the book include modeling, acting, professional horseback riding, bee keeping, and even the military.
This bright pink and purple non-fiction princess guide was a blast to read! I learned lots about the lifestyles of princesses all around the world. It’s amazing how different African princesses are compared to British princesses. Please don’t let the terms “princess” or “pink” scare you away, once you read this book you’ll realize that they have to deal with a lot and aren’t just frilly pink cover girls. Well, maybe one or two are…
Content:0Rating (0 - 10 scale): 5
Reviewer Age: 15
Reviewer City, State and Country: , North Carolina USA
Not quite. Princesses have lots of rules, requirements and expectations burdened on them. They are constantly being watched and judged by the public and they usually don’t get exactly what they want. Most people think princesses are girls who don’t have a care in the world, but that’s not true, they have their problems and things to deal with just like you and I. But, there are also fun aspects of being a “princess”. They usually have opportunities to pursue their interests, sometimes even professionally because they usually have unlimited resources. Some examples in the book include modeling, acting, professional horseback riding, bee keeping, and even the military.
This bright pink and purple non-fiction princess guide was a blast to read! I learned lots about the lifestyles of princesses all around the world. It’s amazing how different African princesses are compared to British princesses. Please don’t let the terms “princess” or “pink” scare you away, once you read this book you’ll realize that they have to deal with a lot and aren’t just frilly pink cover girls. Well, maybe one or two are…
Content:0Rating (0 - 10 scale): 5
Reviewer Age: 15
Reviewer City, State and Country: , North Carolina USA
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