Keeping Score by Linda Sue Park

Maggie, as most people call her, or Margaret Olivia Fortini,
is one of the biggest Brooklyn Dodgers fans there is. Maggie
lives near the firehouse and has some friends in there. She
listens to every game with them at the firehouse, and even
though she doesn't play the game, she knows a lot about it.
She can recite player statistics, batting averages, innings
and she understands all of the plays. She prays so much but
year after agonizing year the Dodgers still don't win the
World Series. When the firehouse gets a new fire fighter,
Jim, Maggie starts to bond with him over baseball. Then Jim
has to go off to the war in Korea, and the only contact
Maggie has with him is through letters. But what can you do
when your new friend stops sending you letters, while you
worry about his health, and all you can do for the Dodgers
is pray? How can Maggie handle it all?

Linda Sue Park did
a good job and I didn't really want to put it down. It was
an interesting read. I liked this book. I'm not a big
baseball fan but overall it was a good book and I would like
to read more. I would recommend this book to people who like
baseball.

Reviewer Age:12
Reviewer City, State and
Country: Oakville, Pennsylvania United States

H.I.V.E. The Overlord Protocol by Mark Walden

The Higher Institute of Villainous Education (H.I.V.E.) is an unusual school that focuses on teaching the world’s future dominators. At this school, they teach all the essentials to make your child the best super villain they can be. Otto Malpenese is one of their promising students. Secretly funded by Global League of Villainous Enterprises (G.L.O.V.E.), this special school is constantly in danger from the authorities or other criminal parties. All the danger begins when Otto’s best friend Wing receives word that his father was mysteriously killed in an accident at his lab. When Otto and Wing go to the funeral, they are suddenly ambushed by one of G.L.O.V.E.’s own members, Cypher. Otto just barely escapes and now he must protect his school while seeking his friend’s kidnapper.

H.I.V.E. The Overlord Protocol is a fantastic book. It is full of constant action and deception. This book is hard to put down. Otto is a fantastic character; with his strange ability to absorb knowledge from books, the possibilities seem endless. Wing, Otto’s friend, is also an enormously brilliant addition to the story. It would have been nice if the character Wing would have been better developed throughout the story.

Rating:9

Reviewer Age:13

Reviewer City, State and Country: Hamilton , Ohio USA

Cicada Summer by Andrea Beaty

In the small town of Olena, lives a quiet girl, named Lily Mathis, with a secret past. When the general store owner's niece, Tinny, comes to visit, everything changes. Tinny steals candy and blames it on Lily. She also tries to steal Lily’s friends and her father's love. Then Tinny disappears and Lily must find her. But it means confronting her hidden past.

This book is terrific! It is very detailed and it feels like you are actually there. I could not put this book down because I wanted to know where Tinny was and how Lily was going to find her! I would go to bed at night dreaming about what I had just read and what would happen next. Of course I was completely wrong about the ending!

Reviewer Age:14

Reviewer City, State and Country: Gearhart, Oregon United States

Embrace the Night by Karen Chance

Cassie Palmer is in trouble. She recently became the Pythia, the most powerful psychic in the world. Unfortunately, she is bound by a spell to a vampire named Mircea. If she completes the spell, she will end up being under his control for the rest of her life. Her only hope is a book named the Codex: a spell book written by Merlin himself that contains the only spell that can release her from Mircea's control. There are only two problems with retrieving the book: the Dark Circle (the bad people) wants the book and the book had disappeared in the seventeenth century. With the help of her friend, Pritkin, can Cassie break the spell and eventually save the world?

The action and the plot in the novel are phenomenal. The author describes a magical scenery and creates many characters. Girls will enjoy the book because of the female heroine, while the boys will enjoy the action. Because this book is the third in a series, it was hard to start off. If you have not read the other books, you may have a difficult time in the beginning, though you will eventually learn who is who and what is what. This book is filled with magic and mystery, yet the level of romance in the book makes in unsuitable for the young adult category. I would have to recommend the book for ages 17 and up.

The romantic content in the book is only suitable for mature readers.

Rating:8

Reviewer Age:14

Reviewer City, State and Country: Pottstown, PA 19464

Throwing Like A Girl by Weezie Kerr Mackey

Ella Kessler moves to Dallas, Texas in the middle of her sophomore year. She expects bland people, country music, and country accents, but she finds more than that. She finds out she has great athletic ability and tries out for the softball team. She makes it but never understands what is going on in the game. On the team, she meets two girls named Mo and Frannie who becime her good friends. Then she meets Sally Fontineau who becomes her enemy. Sally's brother, Nate, is Ella's partner in a marriage project and she tries to avoid girls’ evil looks, and go on with high school with out making any mistakes. She can't keep letting people fight her battles and she has to learn to stick up for herself.

This book was the best. There are several parts in the book when I could not put it down. It also describes in detail how to throw a softball and how to play the game of softball and of life. This is the perfect book for athletes or teens.

Reviewer Age:12
Reviewer City, State and Country: Norristown, Pennsylvania USA

Twisted Sisters by Stephanie Hale

Twisted Sisters by Stephanie Hale is and amazing love/mystery book. It is about an eighteen-year-old girl named Aspen Brooks who keeps finding herself solving mysteries. Aspen is a total twirly girly with a capital "TG" who is starting college at the local community college. This book tells you all about Aspen, her hot boyfriend, her incurable diseases and the lunatic, stalking, psychotic boys who fall in love. While at the school Aspen joins a sorority so that she can try to figure out what happened to the member who went missing last semester. But, will she find her, or will someone, maybe even her supposed "sisters," try to take her out of the game? Find out in this amazing sequel to Revenge of the Homecoming Queen.

I really enjoyed this book. Aspen was perfect. She was full of herself, funny, and an amazingly good friend and girlfriend. This book totally captured me and I never once found myself daydreaming or wishing I had read a different book. I totally got the author's purpose and the point of the book. She explains the book so well that you could read it and not read the first, but I wouldn't recommend it, the first book is every bit as engaging. I am so glad that I read this book and I hope that you will be too.

Rating: 10

Content: 1

Reviewer Age:13

Reviewer City, State and Country: Colleyville, Texas USA

Summerhouse Time by Eileen Spinelli

Everyone at Sophie's house is getting ready for summerhouse time. Then, a new Italian boy, named Jimmy, moves in next to Sophie's real house and she thinks she's in love. When they make it to the summerhouse, everything is normal except Sophie's favorite cousin, Connie, is mean and grumpy. Other than that everything is going great, Cooper is going into the ocean and Jimmy is writing when Orange, the family cat is lost. When you read Summerhouse Time by Eileen Spinelli, you will learn how this family's problem's unravel.

Summerhouse Time by Eileen Spinelli is a great read. I read it in one day because of the adventures Sophie has with her family. I can definitely relate to Sophie because of grumpy relatives, singing relatives, and needy relatives. I like Summerhouse Time because it related to Spinelli's actual experiences in New Jersey. I would recommend this book to anybody who wants a good read and a good laugh.

Reviewer Age:11

Reviewer City, State and Country: Oakmont, Pennsylvania United States

Fly Little Bird, Fly

Fly Little Bird, Fly chronicles the life of Oliver and his younger brother, Edward, when they become orphans in New York City. After living in an orphanage and being separated from each other for a year, the two brothers are chosen to travel on the orphan train together. This train brought orphans from New York City across the country to find them homes in the Western United States. In Kansas, Oliver and Edward are chosen to live in the home of two farmers. Unfortunately, their new foster home is less than exemplary; the boys are forced to do farm chores and are given no affection. After a few years at this home, Oliver and Edward are once again sent away on the orphan train, since their current foster family could no longer care for them. The brothers arrive in a new town, only to be split up into different families. The two brothers now rest all their hopes on seeing each other again.

Fly Little Bird, Fly was an average book. The plotline certainly had potential: the story of the Orphan Trains that raced across the United States in the late 1800s is a fascinating part of history. Unfortunately, I felt that the author did not live up to this plotline. The writing in this book was tolerable, but nothing special. I felt that the author was not able to put herself in the mind of a young boy very well. Many of the thoughts of Oliver didn't seem very accurate; he often seemed too naive for his age. Some of the events also seemed rather improbable that they would actually happen. I would recommend reading other books about the orphan train before you read this one- they would probably be a better use of your time.

Reviewer Age:15

Reviewer City, State and Country: Urbana, IL USA

Mixed Bags by Melody Carlson

Mix six teenage girls and one 60's fashion icon (retired, of course) in an old Victorian-era boarding home. Add boys and dating, a little high-school angst, and throw in a Kate Spade bag or two...and you've got The Carter House Girls, Melody Carlson's new chick lit series for young adults! When her mom died, DJ had to move in with her grandmother, internationally famous '60s fashion model Katherine Carter. Now Mrs. Carter has opened a boarding home for young ladies, and DJ--who would rather wear her basketball team uniform than haute couture--is just sure they'll all be unbearable fashion snobs. One by one, the girls arrive and begin to figure out how to fit into this new family, getting to know each other and forming friendships. Sure, there's an aspiring diva or two, but before long the Carter House girls are dating, fighting, laughing, shopping, and sharing clothes, purses, shoes...and their deepest secrets.

Reading Mixed Bags gave me mixed feelings. I enjoyed reading about all of the unique characters, but the plot seemed unoriginal, just like everything I'd read before. Not only that, some of the events weren't very realistic, yet I could easily relate to the characters. Also, many times I knew exactly what was going to happen, but there were also times when things totally unexpected occurred. All in all, I have to give credit to Melody Carlson because, her writing keeps me interested and wanting to read more. I thought Mixed Bags was a pretty good book, and I look forward to reading the next in the series.

This book contained underage drinking and sexual references. It could also be considered a faith-based book because of the many references to God.

Reviewer Age:16
Reviewer City, State and Country: Leopold, MO 63760

The Rhyme Killer by Judy Gooden & Naomi Helterbran

A serial killer is on the loose in Philadelphia. When Detective Katie Knight, Philadelphia's top serial killer investigator, gets involved, she doesn't know what she was in for. Katie is not prepared for the wild goose chase that ends with a cold trail. When Katie finds the unusual signature of the monster, she realizes she has a problem on her hands. On top of this, the Chief of Detectives, who wants her to leave the homicide division, is hanging over her head. So she and her partner, Avis Rent, set out to find the killer. But when women that look just like Katie start disappearing, she knows she’s in for the most thrilling (and dangerous) time of her life.

Overall, The Rhyme Killers is a well written and a mind-capturing book. The authors, Judy Gooden and Naomi Helterbran, developed the characters so no one was boring. I think a mistrusting and evil mood developed as the plot was set in motion, which was totally appropriate based on the malevolent characteristics of the characters. The killers were given an unfavorable aura which made you want them captured by the desperate police. These characters were the master piece of the book, and they added extra spice to the novel. The only unfavorable aspect of this book was the constant high level of profanity. At first, this profanity seemed totally unnecessary, but I later realized that it shaped the characters and gave them one aspect of true killers.

I think the authors succeeded in displaying the unfolding trauma in a desperate light, but I did not feel as if the writing flowed. I almost felt as if the story jumped from one scene to another too quickly and suddenly. The profanity, as I mentioned earlier, was unnecessary in some parts of the novel. Despite this, The Rhyme Killers plot was definitely well thought out and intricate, and the content of the book shows this. The Rhyme Killers was very different from many other science fiction books that I have read, in that it had a high level of violence and cruelty. Altogether, The Rhyme Killers was a very interesting book. However, even though there is some degree of suspense in the book, I think the author could have infused more. I would recommend this book to anyone who wants to read an out-of-the-ordinary novel.

There is not only profanity, but also some of the things the characters do are for mature readers.

Reviewer Age:11

Reviewer City, State and Country: Baltimore, Maryland United States of America