Fran, The Second Time Around by Amy L. Bernstein

As this book opens, Fran is dreading the first day of high school, a place full of new people she has never met. Mystery surrounds the reasons why she has not continued on with the schoolmates she has known all of her life. Eventually, it emerges that a tragic accident has occurred, one that shocked her family and friends, and dictated her decision to switch schools. The book is divided into three parts, the first describes her life after the accident, the second her life as a popular and carefree middle schooler before, and the third occurs right before, during and after the tragedy. Her parents are supportive, her younger brother Tobey, seems oblivious to her suffering, and her former best friend Tracey has totally rejected her. To help Fran fight her overwhelming depression, her mother introduces her to Peter, who has learned to use meditation to survive the death of both of his parents. Although she initially resists Peters advice, Fran gradually learns to forgive herself. In this book, the reader will discover how people cope with challenges in different ways, and how one girl works to overcome a dreadful situation, and make herself a whole new life.

This book was gripping, from the moment I picked it up, I couldn't put it down. I would highly recommend it, especially to middle schoolers or older. The author pulls you into Fran's life by starting the book in the middle and then working backwards. Sometimes it is a little hard to keep track of the characters and time that everything takes place. However, overall it was a really great book. The ending could have been better, it was a little predictable.

This book includes death so some readers maybe react strongly to it.

Reviewer Age:16
Reviewer City, State and Country: Hingham, MA USA

The SFWA European Hall of Fame by James & Kathryn Morrow

This book is a collection of short science fiction stories from Europe that have been translated from their native language into English. The sixteen contemporary stories are vastly different from each other. Some topics that are covered are time travel, paradoxes, aliens, the future, space flight, and other worlds. Many of these stories are not hard science fiction filled with detailed futuristic technology. They are closer to fantasy. Some of the stories are designed to make you think about society and the issues that face our world. Very few of the stories have a genuinely happy ending.

I had mixed feeling about this book. I enjoyed some of the stories, but not others. I felt that a better collection of more classic stories, with at least a few more happy endings, could have been chosen. However, the purpose of this collection was partially to provoke thought, and all of the stories did this. Each story was unique and created its own setting, though the characters and settings could have been more thoroughly described. The lack of detail is mainly due to the brevity of the stories. All in all, you should only read this if you enjoy philosophical science fiction and fantasy that has sad endings. Otherwise, more mainstream collections may be better.

Most of the stories contain violence or death. Additionally, some contain sexual content not suitable to young readers.

Reviewer Age:14

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

Love Me Tender by Audrey Couloumbis

"Don't let things fall apart once I'm gone."

That's what Elvira's dad tells her as he packs up his car
to go to Las Vegas for an Elvis impersonation contest.
But when he leaves, it seems like everything starts to
fall apart. Her pregnant mother won't leave the couch,
and her eight year old sister is behaving like she's
three. Elvira feels like everything is up to her, and
it's definitely not fair.

Just when things are getting too hard to handle, a phone
call from Aunt Clare brings the family to Memphis, and a
series of events threatens to push the fragile family
apart. But as time goes on, Elvira begins to realize
that family doesn't have to be perfect, and that
sometimes, you just have to take things as they come.
This feel-good novel about family and forgiveness will win
the heart of girls everywhere, and its intriguing plot
will keep any reader hooked.

This heartfelt story is easy to relate to, and brings
insight into the inner workings of a family. I loved that
the storyline was entertaining and full of laugh out loud
moments. Full of southern charm and dynamic
characters, "Love Me Tender" will satisfy any girl who
loves a good story.

Reviewer Age:15
Reviewer City,
State and Country: Tipp City, OH USA

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