Spud

John Milton soon finds a new world through his scholarship to boarding school. He spends his five workdays away from home, and returns to his psychotic parents on the weekends. As a fourteen year-old boy, "Spud" Milton acquires friends and enemies alike, including several simultaneous girlfriends. Spud deals with birthday punishments and death threats each day, new ways to life's challenges appearing right after he needs them. His particular journey through South Africa's political dilemma complicates his troubles, and his miraculous adventure through adolescence begins and continues throughout the novel.

The beginning of Spud landed me in the very middle of the plot, sucking my attention into the first of many chapters. Finding the humor in an adolescent's struggle can be challenging, but John Van De Ruit did a fantastic job of doing so. By finding the root of Spud's problems and twisting them into a comfortable tale, any reader would find new boundaries for a comedy. Enjoying the language of the British was different, and I learned a good deal of foreign terminology.

Language and sexual themes.

Rating: 8

Reviewer Age: 13

Reviewer City, State and Country: Eagle Creek, OR USA

The Corps of the Bare-Boned Plane

When Meline and Jocelyn are left orphaned in a train accident, they are both shipped off to live with their genius uncle on an island famous for its morbid history of airplane crashes. The two girls have completely conflicting personalities, and their uncle only exacerbates matters by ignoring them entirely. Life on the island is miserable for all involved-- that is, until one fateful day when a revelation occurs to Meline: "I know how to build a plane."

When you start this book, it may seem familiar, as if it were an odd mix of Lemony Snicket's "Series of Unfortunate Events," MT Anderson's "Game of Sunken Places," and Laura Numeroff's "If You Give a Mouse a Cookie." This observation would be entirely logical, because Polly Horvath's plot takes elements from all three of these stories, whether deliberately or not, creating a final work that is unsettlingly recognizable. Horvath's tone is great, easy to read and at times intriguing, but her use of multiple points of view means that even the characters cannot be interesting to the reader, because all are over-explained and become redundant by the end of the novel. The children's uncle is perhaps the best example of where Horvath has missed the mark with her characters-- he is known as an extraordinary genius, but in his eyes and the view of others, he comes across as, at best, eccentric and socially inept. These flaws are even more disappointing when one looks at the potential that the book held-- but it can't be denied that as talented as Horvath is, she has finally created a book that is just plain long.

Reviewer Age:15
Reviewer City, State and Country: Maryland, United States

Fancy White Trash by Marjetta Geerling

Abby Savage lives in a one bathroom house with her sister, her niece, her other pregnant sister, her mom, and her moms boyfriend (who, by the way, might be the father of her sister's child). As you can imagine, life is not so pretty. Abby is left babysitting and cleaning up after her unruly family while they go along fighting and creating an embarrassing scene wherever they go. The only sensible people in sight are her best friend Cody and his brother Jackson, and lately Jackson's been away saving kids in another country. Abby struggles through her troubles at home and at school trying to discover herself and hoping that she is not going to turn out like the rest of her family.

Fancy White Trash is a wonderful book that will keep anyone turning pages to find out what Abby Savages quirky family will do next. It brings you into a world of a teenage girl being held back from who she wants to be by her family. The book explores common topics of teenage life such as family troubles, teenage pregnancy, relationships, and exploring ones sexual orientation. It was filled with vivid descriptions, hilarious content, and characters that were easy to relate to. Overall it was a lot of fun to read and I would recommend it for girls ages 12 and up.

Reviewer Age:14
Reviewer City, State and Country: Marblehead, Massachusetts USA

Looks

Meet Meghan, that is, if you can spot her. Even though she's enormously overweight, Meghan is practically invisible to everyone around her. Everyone except for J-Bar, who has been relentlessly tormenting her since junior high. Now meet Aimee Zorn. She has the opposite problem as Meghan, anorexia having made her rail thin. Despite her size, (or maybe because of it) poet Aimee is seen by perfectly peppy Cara Roy, who convinces Aimee to join the literature club. Meghan wants nothing more than to befriend Aimee, and a hate for one particular girl brings them together.

This beautifully written book is very true to life. While reading it, I could easily pick out the Aimee, Meghan, Cara, and J-Bar at my school. Madeleine George did an amazing job making all of the characters seem alive and I often had to remind myself that I'm not Aimee or Meghan. Although this book was slightly predictable, the poetic style in which Looks was written makes up for the plot. This book was fun to read and I will definitely read Looks again.

Rating: 10/10

Reviewer Age:12

Reviewer City, State and Country: Phoenixville, PA

Jack: Secret Histories by F. Paul Wilson

When 14 year old Jack and his friends, Weezy and Eddy, venture out into the forbidden pine barrens of New Jersey, they find a mysterious sight. Weezy leads her brother Eddy, and Jack to a long mound of crusted sand. Soon rain comes, and the threesome find shelter under a nearby tree, and erosion takes its toll on the eerie mound. After the storm, Weezy comes along a black artifact that can't be opened. Jack looks for one for himself, but doesn't necessarily come up empty handed; he finds the head of a deceased body relaxing in the palm of his hand. They run home as fast as they can, contact the police, but don't realize the mysterious friends, deaths, or suspects, right around the corner, waiting for them in Jack: Secret Histories, by F. Paul Wilson. Jack is confused by the Lodge, a building that contains many secrets. Is the Lodge linked to the corpse? Or what about the so-called old wives' tale, about a misty monster, the Klazen? He also remembered seeing Mrs. Clevenger, the town witch, but what do these links lead to?

I was amazed by the details and descriptions in Jack: Secret Histories, by F. Paul Wilson! It was a mysterious, fiction/legend that was on-the-edge-of-your-seat thrilling! It's one of the best books I've read since joining FlamingNet. I really enjoyed reading about the characters and their different personalities. I recommend this book to anyone who isn't scared of a lot of things! I hope you will experience the same feelings I had when I read this miraculous book.

Reviewer Age:11

Reviewer City, State and Country: Osseo, Wisconsin United States

A Walk Through

This book contains various poems covering a wide scope of
different topics. The author depicts topics such as growing
up, making choices, self-confidence, and how small things
can affect one's day. Many of the subjects of this book's
poems are important for adolescents and young adults.
Carefully chosen words and phrases come together to
illustrate essential messages. It is easy to understand the
point the author wishes to make in each of his sixty poems.
Adolescents and young adults will be able to identify with
many poems and find inspiration in this book.

While I appreciated the messages that A Walk Through
Life attempted to convey, I felt that these messages were
overpowered with the way in which they were presented.
Every poem had precisely the same construction: a rhyme
pattern of AABBCC and so on throughout the poem. This would
not pose a problem if it were not for the rhymes
themselves. Each rhyme was laboriously chosen, resulting in
the fact that the rhythm of each poem was lost in the
effort. It was common in this book for two lines to be of
completely different lengths and simply rhyme at the end.
Despite this, I enjoyed the author's attempt, though the
aforementioned criticism keeps the book from being what it
could be. Hidden within the book are the promises of what
it could be with a bit more effort; there were several
lines that fit perfectly and seemed to light the poems. If
one wishes to seek perspective and better understanding in
their life, I would recommend this book, but not for the
poetry itself.

Reviewer Age:14

Reviewer City, State
and Country: Melrose, MA United States

Not A Happy Camper by Mindy Schneider

Mindy Schneider is going to camp. In the past, she has gone to the strict and oppressive Camp Cicada. This year is going to be different. Mindy is headed to Camp Kin-A-Hurra where she hopes to find friends, fun, and possibly, her first kiss. While at camp Mindy stays with the picture perfect Dana (who's got looks, sings, and plays guitar), Autumn Evening (who can talk to the dead, and has had many boyfriends in her past life) and many other different girls who will form a bond that can only be made at camp.

In the beginning of the book, I wasn't sure if I would get hooked on it. I kept reading and soon fell in love with the characters and the camp. Since this book is a memoir, it made it all that much better. Knowing that all the things that happened in the book actually happened to the author was amazing. Anyone who has gone to a summer camp before will be able to find a little piece of their own camp in Not a Happy Camper.

Reviewer Age:14

Reviewer City, State and Country: Seaside, OR. US.

The Law of Three by Caroline Rennie Pattison

Is it possible to be cursed? Sarah Martin doesn't think so, but apparently Garnet Hopper does. After a misunderstanding, new student Sarah Martin finds herself on the bad list of Garnet Hopper, a notorious delinquent. Garnet, a rumored devil worshiper, curses Sarah. Sarah is determined to find out the truth behind the curse, so she befriends Bryon, Garnet's brother. Not even the rumors about the Hopper family could have prepared her for the mystery that she begins to unravel as she grows closer with Bryon and discovers that his sister may be a murderer.

This engaging tale not only entertains but also informs the reader about the stereotypes about Wicca. Sarah (the character from whose point of view the story is told) talks to the reader in a humorous and casual way. The only reason I gave it an eight was out of personal preference. I expected it to be more of a mystery but was slightly disappointed. However, it provided a good portrayal of both teenage life and the deeper problems that can tear apart families. I thoroughly enjoyed it, right down to the surprising ending.

Reviewer Age:13

Reviewer City, State and Country: Chambersburg, PA United States

King of Bollywood Shah Rukh Khan

Shah Rukh Khan is a middle class Muslim boy from Delhi, India who has always dreamed of being a star. This is the story of how he is thrown out of his fatherless, friendless world into the enthralling and enticing land of Bollywood. He soon learns that not all that glitters is gold- from failing movies to violent mafia members, Bollywood is not for the weak of heart. The book gives the story of Shah Rukh Khan's life, from his birth to the present. It is a biography about Bollywood's number one star.

The first time that I started to read King of Bollywood, it bored me until around page 30 or so. The narrator's voice is purely factual, nothing more, so the book was a bit monotonous at times. It was gripping in a few spots, but dull the rest of the way. I haven't read many other biographies like this and therefore cannot compare it to others. From a reader's point of view, the main character was really full of himself. From this book, I learned that what we read in the papers and magazines is a smokescreen of what Holly/Bollywood really is. This book is perfect for Hindi movie fans and Bollywood fans. I would only recommend this book to people who are interested in filmmaking and the history of it.

Mild depictions of adult situations, violence, and explicit threats by the mafia.

Reviewer Age:13
Reviewer City, State and Country: Coleyville, Texas USA

Two Moon Princess

This book is the story of a princess named Andrea who does not want to be a lady. Andrea mistakenly discovers a way to travel into our modern world. She loves life in California, but she accidentally returns to her world with a friend from California. The outsider is a threat to her secret world. Before Andrea can return her friend to our world, a war breaks out in her world. She must attempt to stop the war and save her friend. This story blends the modern world with a fairy tale. Its sole purpose is to entertain.

The ideas behind this book were unique. It mixes two opposite worlds in one story focusing on a princess's desire to fit in and find happiness. At times, the story got a bit too sappy for me. At the end, there is lots of confusion over who loves whom. It gets a little absurd. However, I am not into romantic novels of any type, so I am not the best judge. All in all, I liked the book and its unique setting.

Rating: 7

Reviewer Age:14

Reviewer City, State and Country: Royersford, PA