Catwalk by Deborah Gregory

In the fashion industry, only the most talented models
make it to the big time. The main characters of this book
go to Fashion International, the school where it doesnt
matter where you come from but it's what you wear that
counts. The Catwalk competition is the only way to get
the true prize or a job working with fashion. This novel
shows the rewards while drama weaves its way through to
see who will truly last to come home with the
prize.

Catwalk used language that truly exemplified the
general feeling of attitude that is shown throughout the
chapters. The characters also carried this attitude
through the way they talked and acted. This book used
terms that were a bit confusing at times such as blang
which is bling squared. This book was a bit of a slow
read for me because it didn't catch my attention.
Cattiness set aside, I would recommend this for a younger
age group and to people who are interested in the fashion
world.

Reviewer Age:14
Reviewer City, State and
Country: Richmond, Virginia United States of America

A Horse of Her Own by Annie Wedekind

There is nothing in the world that fourteen year old Jane loves more than horses. Especially Beau, the horse she rides over at the local barn, Sunny Acres. While she loves Beau to death she still wishes that she had a horse to call her own. Even though Beau is not her own, Jane is excited to learn that she will get to ride him at riding camp this summer. Whats even more exciting is that she gets to spend six weeks with her best friend Robin. The down side is she will have to endure that group of rich girls whose favorite thing is to tease her. Just after camp begins though Jane receives devastating news. Beau has been sold. Janes heart breaks as she realizes her trusted companion is gone and so are her chances of participating in the end of summer show. All hope is not lost though. When Janes trainer offers her the chance to help train a new horse Lancelot, who is a little rough around the edges but has great potential. Jane is a little leery, but eventually she realizes that she cant say no. With the help of the new stable boy Ben, Robin, and her trainer Susan, Jane embarks on a journey of hope and self-discovery that will change the way she sees everything.

A Horse of Her Own was a great book. I really enjoyed the compassion embedded in the pages and felt so connected with Jane. While I am not a horse-savvy person I felt that it was very easy to follow the story. I loved how Jane was able to discover herself in such an original tale. The other characters were also well developed. While Jane is definitely the center of the story I liked how the author put the spotlight on some of the other characters too. It gave a refreshing variety to the story and made me enjoy the book that much more. For fans of horse stories this is definitely a book for you, but even those who arent still pick up the book -it is definitely worth your while. It is a beautifully written novel about truly discovering yourself and learning to get back up when youre pushed down.

Reviewer Age:15
Reviewer City, State and Country: Currituck, NC U.S.A

How To Be Bad by E. Lockhart

After getting her mothers test results back, Jesse needs
to get away from reality. What better way to forget about
it all then a road trip with her crazy, fun loving best
friend Vicks! It's a perfect plan until of course the new
girl invites herself along. With few belongings, and all
the reasons in the world to leave the real world for a
weekend, these three unlikely girls make their way to
Miami Florida. Together, with the help of Jesses moms
beaten up car, some mangos, and a credit card, these polar
opposite girls find love, friendship, and themselves.

E. Lockhart, Sarah Mlynowski, and Lauren Myracle did an
amazing job together on this book. Since each chapter was
from Mel, Vicks, or Jesse's point of view, you really got
the in-depth perception of the road trip. I loved all the
witty remarks between people, and the love is in the air
feel. I thought this book was funny, realistic, and
sweet. If you're looking for a good book, and a good
laugh, you should defiantly read this book!
Inappropriate language, and sexual content.

Reviewer Age:14
Reviewer City, State and Country: Seaside, OR US.

The Book of Names by D. Barkley Briggs

Two brothers, Haydn and Ewan, have to deal with more than
the loss of their mother. One night while they were
sleeping, Ewan had a dream that called him to an arch they
discovered, which turned out to be a portal to a new land
of Karac Tor. His brother followed him into the portal.
They met several people in this new land. Flogg the gnome,
Sorge the warrior monk, Asandra the mirling, and several
other characters become their allies. The boys discover
that this land is slowly falling to the evil sorceress,
Nemesia, and that they were Called to stop her. Working
bravely for the defeat of Nemesia, they face revenge,
kidnapping, deceit, and mysteries that aren't so easy to
solve.

As I started to read The Book of Names I was
overcome with how unique and awesome it was. I can't
exactly put my finger on what was so amazing, but this
book possesses strong qualities that are wonderful for a
fantasy. The characters are extremely diverse in
personality, and there are several with great character
foil. I love the vocabulary because it made me pay
attention better to the words instead of just flying
through the story. The plot is extremely well-developed
through the entire story. However, many events happen near
the end that I couldn't comprehend as much because they
didn't have enough detail. Overall, The Book of Names was
a very good read and I recommend it to any fantasy
lover.

Reviewer Age:14

Reviewer City, State and
Country: Carlisle, Pennsylvania United States of America

A Thousand Never Evers by Shana Burg

Never tell white people what they don't want to hear. This is the motto Addie Ann Pickett has lived by all her life, but now that she is growing up she has more responsibilities and is getting a much clearer picture of how unfair America is to African Americans in 1963. It doesn't matter how ugly Mrs. Worth's hat is, you are not allowed to smirk at it. And if you do, your brother may disappear. And it doesn't matter that Old Man Adams left his garden to everyone in the town of Kuckachoo-whites and Negroes alike. As long as the sheriff and mayor are in charge of the land, you won't ever get to see the vegetables planted in it. But when Addie Ann's Uncle is framed for a crime he did not commit, it's up to her to learn that sometimes you have to speak up if it means doing what's right.

I loved reading A Thousand Never Evers. I got it right when school let out and there was no better way to kick off summer vacation than sitting by the pool with this book and a glass lemonade. This book gave me a better understanding of how racial discrimination was legal as little as forty years ago! This book will be great for anyone who wants a good pool side read, but also wants a book that will make them think. An awesome book, A Thousand Never Evers is a one that will make a lasting impression on how you think about America's history.

Reviewer Age:13

Reviewer City, State and Country: Casa Grande, Arizona USA

Rating: 9

Content Rating: 1

How To Be a Creative Genius by Gary Unger

How To Be A Creative Genius is a book that consists of a very long checklist of what not to do if you wish to be a creative genius. The sarcasm of the book provides an interesting spin to the topic. Embedded within the checklist are De facto sections. These sections actually tell readers what to do to move towards a creative genius status. The combination of what to do and what not to do creates a unique message for those striving to become creative, to become geniuses, or both. How To Be A Creative Genius is a quick read that can be finished in a 20 minute bus ride.

Even though the sarcastic comments are meant to tell readers what not to do, I wonder if some readers will actually take this advice. This insight initiates my reservation with the book. I would have liked more positive ideas from the text, but the sarcasm makes the De facto sections seem more intriguing. While it is a very unique way to look at the concept, I think it falls short in value. At least it is a short read and it provides a few laughs.

Reviewer Age:18

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

Madapple by Christina Meldrum

Told in first person narrative, Madapple chronicles the life of Aslaug Datter. Raised by her mother to have a special appreciation of herbs and plants, Aslaug feels trapped in her home. That is, until her mother dies and she has a chance at freedom. Aslaug runs away from the nosy police officers and nosy social worker, and makes her way to the home of her long lost relatives. Aslaug is quickly pulled in by the ideas of her aunt, Sara, and cousin, Sanne, that she was born of a virgin birth, born to be special. But when Aslaug becomes pregnant, Sara and Sanne turn these ideas to the baby and Aslaug is once again trapped in her life. She must now decide whether to escape and start a life of her own or continue to be imprisoned by others.

I thought Madapple was a very interesting and philosophical book, but it wasn't
something I would typically read. I did really like the format of the book- a chapter of Aslaugs musings followed by excerpts from her trial. It really gave the book a sense of fullness and completeness. Madapple presented some new ideas and stayed interesting, but I was a little bothered by the suggestions of incest.

sexual content and suggestions of incest

Reviewer Age:17

Reviewer City, State and Country: Erlanger, Kentucky United States

Angel by Cliff McNish

Freya has finally recovered from years of seeming insanity, stemming from a memory of seeing an angel. Now she has moved to a new school, given herself a makeover, and befriended a popular girl. She doesn't notice that her father is ill or that her brother is endangering himself by protecting a boy for a bully. To Freya, it seems that her life is finally normal. This quickly changes with the arrival of a dark angel and a strange, angel-obsessed girl named Stephanie, who insists upon befriending her. Freya comes face-to-face with the angel who she saw when she was eight, and learns that she herself is one.

The book Angel veers back and forth between cliche and originality. It is a very character-driven book, with dialogue taking up the majority of the story. While this appeals to me, a fantasy focused on character development must work extra-hard on making the characters believable. The author's depiction of bullies and popular girls borders on stereotypes, with some of the dialogue making me wonder how many teenagers he has actually spoken to within the last three years. Furthermore, he seemed too intent on making the reader understand just how strange Stephanie was, and often managed this by making her utterly irrational. However, at other times, the characters seemed very realistic. Freya's brother Luke, conflicted between a desire to protect a boy named Sam and hesitance to fight, drew me in. The dark angel was one of the most complex characters in the book, far more so than either Freya or Stephanie, and the author did a brilliant job at portraying him.

I enjoyed reading Angel and getting to know the characters, but the pacing threw me off. While offbeat pacing is not necessarily bad, it is difficult to ignore the fact that Freya met Stephanie once before choosing to confide with her, and that the event highlighted in the summaryn--Freya's transformation into an angel--was one of the final events. This could have been forgivable or even an asset, but in the end it felt as if the author had spent too long elaborating on relatively worthless plot points and just ran out of time. The ending, which could have been moving in the right context, felt too rushed. There is a difference between deliberately refusing to wrap everything into a tidy bow and simply ignoring loose ends, and I'm not sure the author realized it.

Very mild references to sexuality.
Reviewer Age:16

Reviewer City, State and Country: Bellevue, WA United States

The Summer of Cotton Candy by Debbie Viguie

The back of the book asks, "Will this be the summer that Candace hoped for?" That question sets the tone for Debbie Viguie’s book. Candace Thompson goes through almost anything you could imagine. She starts off by looking for a job, which she finds at "the Zone," a local theme park. One girl tells her there are people who work at the park, people who visit the park, and people who do both, otherwise known as "Zoners". Will Candace be a Zoner or is this STILL just a summer job? As the story goes on, she finds romance, friendship, competition, faith, and a change in her values and how she looks at life.

This book was truly amazing. Even the name of the book pulled me in. As the book went on, it started becoming an obsession. I just had to finish it! The author's description was pretty good. I mean no one likes too much detail, but there could have been a little more. Yet the characters were so well described, I felt like I was in the room with them. Candace, Josh, Becca, Kurt, and Tamara were amazing characters! My final view is that the author achieved what she set out to do: write a great book!!

Rating:9

Reviewer Age:14

Reviewer City, State and Country: Audubon, New Jersey United States

Front Lines by Denise Little

In the short story collection Front Lines, edited and compiled by Denise Little, Corporal Kenso is a weary soldier fighting to protect Earth's colonies from the fierce, alien "Slimies" that are relentlessly attacking the Milky Way. Mollie is a young girl whose incredible, strange powers of healing force her to be out on a battlefield every day, helping to fight a war she doesn't believe in. Leefa Ka is the warrior daughter of the chieftain in her village who foolishly has ridden into a cursed forest haunted by those dead in battle to prove her courage to her father. Lieutenant Conner Davis is the only man left alive in his unit on Aldebaran, one of Earth's colonies that has rebelled and begun a civil war. All of these people are scarred by the myriad horrors of war, the main theme of Front Lines.

As a fan of most different kinds of genres, I liked this book and was hooked by many of the stories. Like with any short story collection, there is a wide range of styles, from humorous to serious and all kinds in between. Because most of the stories are science fiction, I would recommend it to science fiction fans because many of the stories have to do with futuristic warfare on different planets or against invading alien species. Also, most of the stories aren't clichés that have been written about over and over again; they shed new light on being on the front lines of a battlefield, something that most Americans probably haven't experienced. Warfare is a tough subject to both think about and write about, but most of the stories in Front Lines do a great job of making the subject realistic-you often feel as though you are one of the soldiers fighting a hopeless battle against creatures that seem to have no weak points to strike out at. The book really connects well with its readers, and you want the soldiers to succeed in the wars that they each fight. Although the main theme of the book doesn't, in the end, quite hit home as strongly as it's supposed to, it's still a strong presence throughout and will make you think about it as you read. If you're looking for something that's fast-paced and action-packed, but also thoughtful and serious at the same time, take a look at Front Lines.

There are many scenes of violence, seeing as this is a book about war.

Reviewer Age:14

Reviewer City, State and Country: Richmond, VA USA