Side by Side edited by Jan Greenberg

Mythical and real interweave
fantastical figures
spirited unicorns, delicate deer,
flying fleeing flocks, fierce falcons
Nature unbound
an overflowing vista
to hold close.

-Excerpt from The Vision, by Nimah

Ismail Nawwab


So begins one of the dreamy, meandering, thought-provoking poems in this excellent compilation of poems inspired by artwork. Side by Side contains poems from such different countries as Bhutan, Syria, Norway, and Guyana, and the collection shows a well-rounded glimpse of culture from around the world. Each poem is translated into English, but the authentic feel of the poems is kept by also including a copy of the poem written in its original language. The piece of art that each poem is based off is also included, riveting any reader's eyes to, if not the fantastic poems, the colorful and often startling artwork. The poetry offers a surprisingly frank look at life, art, and how the two can so easily become intertwined without meaning to be.

Jan Greenberg, as the editor, did a wonderful job of selecting poems for this collection. I loved flipping the book open to a random page and delving into the poem I found, savoring all the different styles of poetry I could find. From humorous to serious to sad, this book had them all. The book provides biographies of all the authors and translators, as well as a map to locate them all. I recommend this book to anyone who likes art, poetry, world cultures, or simply wants to try something new-it was my first book of poems, and I loved it. It offers a unique look at what art is and can be, and I liked simply gazing at the pages, seeing the poems and paintings as though they were one, which is what this book set out to do and accomplished splendidly.

Reviewer Age:14
Reviewer City, State and Country: Richmond, Virginia U.S.A.

The Compound by S.A. Bodeen

America's worst fear has come true, we are at nuclear war. The fallout from this crisis is the setting for The Compound. Eli, our protagonist, has lived six years in the compound, a multi-billion dollar fallout shelter built by his father, one of the most powerful businessmen in the world. One might think Eli would be the happiest nuclear refugee ever, but his father's wealth is not an escape from his grief over his lost twin brother and his life above the ground. As tensions rise underground and Eli's father's plan begins to crumble, Eli must question everything he believes in to save the family from which he has become so detached. Full of suspense and drama, The Compound is a great book for all thrill-seekers.

Besides the many twists and turns by the plot, I really enjoyed the development of Eli, our far-from-perfect protagonist. Readers are able to examine the real person behind Eli's long hair that often covers his face. Eli's twin brother, Eddy, was an interesting addition to Eli's character. I saw Eddy as an example of everything that Eli is not. Eddy is someone that Eli can become, but he is not capable without the opportunity. The end of the story marks Eli's escape from his own personal Compound as he attempts to save his family from his father's physical compound. I recommend The Compound not only for its suspense, but for the rich transformation of a most-unlikely hero.

Reviewer Age:18

Reviewer City, State and Country: Eden Prairie, Minnesota United States

Violet By Design by Melissa Walker

Violet Greenfield was a skinny and awkward wallflower through high school, up until the point where she was thrusted into the modeling industry; changing her life and even her attitude towards life. She took a trip to New York in "Violet on the Runway" and now she's back to leading a quiet life by the pool, with her best friends Roger and Julie, in "Violet by Design". She loved her break from the modeling industry but she spoke too soon. Her agent, Angela, had soon booked her a show in Brazil where she met a young and quite romantic designer named Paulo. True colors of the modeling world had come into vision, some colors not so pretty. Compared to the Tryst girls in competition with Violet, Paulo had more influence on her than she thought. Living wealthy was something Violet could get used to, but the soon to come heartbreak was a change most unwelcome. Soon Myspace blogs, paparazzi, and dangerous habits overwhelm and threaten her career and even her relationship with friends. A downward spiral of young and beautiful, Carolina raised, Violet Greenfield could make or break her international modeling career forever.

I thought this book was one of the best books I have ever read! I lead a very busy life and often I was tempted away from reading, but this book somehow made it so I just couldn't resist! The modeling industry is something I have always dreamt about and the real life references in this book made it oh so believable and surreal at the same time! So many parallels in this book were made between the life a model leads and the effect that it has on modern day children growing up; as well as the effect society and the way our expectations effect not only models. The element of surprise was FANTASTIC in this book. Not only did it present a problem but it presented five more! Where ever Violet traveled, she encountered something new and each and every time it resulted in either another problem, or an unexpected solution, each time stunning myself. I applaud Melissa Walker in her attempt and absolute success to write a MASTERPIECE!

Profanity was a large part of this book's dialogue in addition to eating disorders, sexual behavior, drinking, and other adult content.

Reviewer Age:15

Reviewer City, State and Country: , PA USA

Oh. My. God.

Phoebe is a cross-country star. If she can just keep her grades up and keep up her awesome winning streak, she has a guaranteed scholarship to USC. In fact, her two best friends, Nola and Cesca, are planning on going there, too. Everything is great for Phoebe until her mom returns from a family reunion with a fiance, Damian. Phoebe can't believe that, after four years of mourning the death of her father, her mom is engaged to a man she has known for less than a week. Phoebe doesn't think her life could get any worse, but then her mother announces that they're moving to Greece because of Damian's job. Much to her discontent, Phoebe packs a meager three boxes and heads halfway across the world to a new life.

This new life includes a new school, located on a secret island, where the students are anything but normal - they're descendants of the Greek gods! Phoebe seems to be in over her head, but with the aid of some new friends and a gorgeous model-worthy guy, Phoebe learns that she can fit in just about anywhere - even if her new step-sister is a descendant of Hades.

First, I must say that I love Greek mythology and had really high expectations for this book. Wow! This book surpassed all expectations and was just great. The story line was completely original and I loved all of the references to the Greek gods. It was really neat how the author made all the characters have the traits of the gods and goddesses, but also be your everyday teenager. Phoebe's character was also great. She was funny, sweet and very likeable. Many times throughout the story I found myself cheering her on against all the obstacles that she encountered. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone. It has every element you might be looking for in a book, romance, suspense, and an amazing storyline. All in all, this was a great book that took high school life and mixed it with a little bit of mythology. I very much look forward to what Tera Lynn Childs has in store for us next!

Reviewer Age:15

Reviewer City, State and Country: Currituck, NC U.S.A.

The Celebutantes: In The Club by Antonio Pagliarulo

The school year’s almost over, and Madison, Park and Lexington Hamilton are ready for the summer. Cleopatra, one of Hamilton Holding’s latest business ventures, is opening and everyone is talking about it. They do not know that it will be the last they see of one of their friends and a fellow classmate. Before the end of the night, the body of Damien Kittle is found with a bloody wound on the top of the head and a murder weapon that takes the case for a turn. The girls do everything they can to solve this dangerous mystery, falling into dangerous traps themselves. Read to find out who the real killer is and the drama that comes along with it!!

The Celebutantes: In the Club was a page-turner book and I could hardly put it down. The main characters are Madison, Park, and Lexington, who go undercover to solve the mysterious death of their friend Damien Kittle. The mystery keeps you pulled into the book and very interested. I love the ending of the book because it was not what I expected. It surprised me! Throughout the whole book I thought the murderer was someone else, but in the end, it wasn’t what I expected. I recommend this book to people who enjoy mystery books!!!

Rating:8

Reviewer Age:14

Reviewer City, State and Country: Cumming, Georgia United States

Stealing Bradford

Stealing Bradford is about a group of girls that have
almost nothing in common. The one thing they do share is
that together they form the Carter House Girls. Living in
an old Victorian boarding house with a "stuck in the past"
grandmother as their guardian, drama erupts when Bradford,
boyfriend of Rhiannon, dumps her for spunky Taylor. As
the school year starts, tensions heat up when the Carter
House Girls start taking sides. Did Taylor try to steal
Bradford from Rhiannon? When mysterious pictures of Taylor
appear on MySpace the Carter House is turned upside down.
By the end of the day the Carter House girls learn a
valuable lesson about family and friendship.

The minute I finished Melody Carlson's second book in The
Carter House Girls series, I raced downstairs to the
computer to look up when her third book would be out.
This book had a lot of surprise twists. It kept me
reading for hours and glued my eyes to the pages. This
book sent an important message of family and friendship to
its readers. I greatly recommend this book.

Reviewer Age:12
Reviewer City, State and Country: Potomac, Maryland United
States of America
Rating: 0
Content: 1

The Year of Disappearances by Susan Hubbard

Wouldn't you think being a vampire is fun? Sure there is the constant worry about blood, but that may not be all of Ari's problems. In The Year of Disappearances, someone goes missing in Ari's town of Homosassa Springs, and Ari is one of the prime suspects. With the fear of her secret being found out, she flees Homosassa Springs, and while going to college might not have been on her to-do list at age 14, she gets in by lying about her age. While there, another friend from Homosassa comes to visit her. The visit is brought short, though, because she is mysteriously murdered. With all the pressure of being the prime suspect again, she runs from college to try to find out who, or what, did this.

I truly loved this book. Susan Hubbard really made me feel like I was there in Homosassa Springs with Ari, the way she described everything. I thought Ari was a very powerful person and that she was clearly portrayed. I really think that this book could be one of the next Twilight or Harry Potters. I believe that Susan Hubbard did a fantastic job.

There was a fantasy element and some profane language.

Rating:9

Reviewer Age:13

Reviewer City, State and Country: Minooka, Il United States

The Penderwicks on Garden Street by Jeanne Birdsall

This book was the sequel to The Penderwicks. It was about the Penderwick adventures in the "Save Daddy plan". The save daddy plan is the plan to save Mr. Penderwick from ever having to get married by hooking him up on blind dates with horrific women. After just a few of these hilariously weird women Mr. Penderwick finds his own girlfriend, the mysterious Marianne. Meanwhile, a beautiful new neighbor, Iantha moves in with her adorable little boy, Ben. Who will get to hear wedding bells? Find out in this book.

This is an extremely enjoyable book. This book has the potential to become an instant classic. One of the best things about it was the extremes the author went to to make the book funny. Even though I thoroughly enjoyed the book, it wasn't quite as good as the first one. The first Penderwick book had a certain magic about it that the second one didn't. I very much enjoyed the ending. The only bad thing about the entire book was that it was EXTREMLY predictable. I would recommend this book to my friends because all of my friends loved the first one.

Reviewer Age:11

Reviewer City, State and Country: Exeter, NH USA

Season of the Witch

Season of the Witch is a mystery novel unlike any other. Gabriel Blackstone is a "remote viewer," a skill that allows him to tap into someone else's surrounding energy and "relive" their experiences. However, Gabriel had resigned from the craft after an unfortunate and horrifying experience. Or so he thought. Now a thief and hacker living it big in London, Gabriel receives an offer from a very wealthy man. He asks Gabriel to find out what happened to his son, who has been missing for a while. With much pushing and prodding from Gabriel's ex-girlfriend, Frankie (who is the old man's new wife), Gabriel is convinced to help the couple out. Gabriel's search leads him to the Monk sisters, Minnaloushe and Morrighan; unusual names for unusual women. Entranced by the sisters, Gabriel spends almost every waking moment with them. Then the tide turns. Gabriel learns that the Monk sisters have a very dark and mysterious past, one that Gabriel is now trapped in.

Season of the Witch is an amazing novel that I could not put down. Rich with mystery and intrigue, every character has their own fascinating story. The Monk sisters, although dangerous and dark in every way, are so enthralling that readers cannot help but follow Gabriel in his quest to learn more about them. Gabriel has a strong voice in the novel. One that readers will love. In my opinion, Season of the Witch is comparable to the most popular mysteries, Harry Potter, The Da Vinci Code, and the like. Season of the Witch is a fantastic novel. Try it for yourself.

Season of the Witch has mature content such as sensuality and language. The concepts of the novel are also for a more advanced reader.

Reviewer Age:16
Reviewer City, State and Country: Concord, Massachusetts United States
Rating: 10
Content: 3

Cassandra's Sister by Veronica Bennett

The story of Jane Austen's life is a tale similar to that of Pride and Prejudice and Sense and Sensibility. Cassandra's Sister is the journey of young Jane (Jenny) and her experiences that soon become the inspiration for her novels. Jane Austen is an intelligent woman in her early twenties, who, surrounded by family, recognizes love for what it is, beautiful. Her special relationship with her sister Cassandra is lovingly portrayed and the friendship of the sisters binds stronger as their lives continue. Reality and sadness wound the sisters throughout the story, and readers learn that their lives were not perfect--although sometimes filled with balls and handsome men. Cassandra's Sister portrays the beauty of love, friendship, and fighting for what you want.

Cassandra's Sister is a beautifully written novel. The storyline and plot are both fascinating; Jane Austen lived the lives of her characters and Veronica Bennett alludes to fantastic parallels between Jane and her protagonists. However, the character of Jane is rather dull. She mopes about and spends most of her time desiring the life of her elder sister, Cassandra. Thankfully, Cassandra's character is strong enough to pull the story along and the plot flows steadily. Cassandra's Sister is a wonderful introduction into the novels of Jane Austen and any reader hoping to begin an Austen novel may want to read Veronica Bennett's introduction to her prose. With the Masterpiece Theatre series, Jane Austen's audience has grown once again and Cassandra's Sister is a beautiful addition to the literature on Jane herself.

Rating:7

Reviewer Age:16

Reviewer City, State and Country: Concord, Massachusetts United States