Barnaby Grimes and the Curse of the Night Wolf by Paul Stewart and Chris Riddell

Barnaby Grimes and the Curse of the Night Wolf is about a boy, Barnaby Grimes, who is a tick-tock lad, delivering messages to people all over the city of London. He is also a highstacker, meaning he gets around by climbing up houses, chimneys, and things like that. One night, while climbing above the rooftops, Barnaby runs into a wolf! That same night, his good friend Old Benjamin mysteriously disappears. Barnaby knows there must be some link between these odd events, and he is determined to find out what. Then Barnaby meets the suspicious Doctor Cadwallader after receiving a letter that was meant for Old Benjamin from the Doctor.

This book was a good light read. The plot was a little boring because I got the main idea of what was going to happen within the first third of the book. It is a good read for anyone who is looking for an easy book to read in one afternoon. The vocabulary was a little difficult, but not hard enough to ruin the story. Barnaby Grimes was a little scary, so I wouldn't recommend it to anyone who doesn't like to be a little freaked out. Overall, I enjoyed reading Barnaby Grimes and the Curse of the Night Wolf.

Reviewer Age: 12

Reviewer City, State and Country: Harleysville, PA USA

Rating: 8
Content Rating: 1

Lay-ups and Longshots by Joseph Bruchac

This book is about different people's experiences with sports. The stories range from having difficulties playing the sport to how they got treated on the team. There were also stories about how they found confidence in themselves. The author’s purpose was to entertain the reader with stories of other peoples’ experiences. The author did this by having different stories about various sports to keep us hooked and excited for a new story.

This book was interesting because the writers have all kinds of stories. I liked how the author used detail to give me a picture in my head. My favorite story was when a guy could never make two baskets in a row. But when he asked if his grandpa was going to live he made a couple shots in a row. I would recommend this book to people who like realistic fiction and sports. If you like short stories, read this book.

Flamingnet student reviewer
age: 15 St. Paul, MN.

Heir to Sevenwaters

Clodagh and her five sisters are the daughters of a great chief. Their cousin Johnny is next in line to be Heir to Sevenwaters. Then Clodagh's mother has a son, and he is next in line. Then trouble starts to stir. Johnny's men are acting suspicious, and Clodagh's mother,with no strength to get out of bed, leaves the baby in her hands. That is when the baby goes missing, and a changeling is in his place. Now no one trusts Clodagh, and they all think that she is insane because she is the only one that actually realizes that "Finbar" is actually a way to find her brother. Finbar is a baby made of sticks and stones, but he cries, eats, and sleeps just like a normal child. Clodagh sets out on a journey to find the Heir to Sevenwaters.

Overall, I thought that the book was really boring. It would talk about one thing in the whole chapter. She described the changeling in one chapter and described how the sticks looked. I liked the characters and their personalities, but there wasn't very much action. I would recomend this book for older people because some of the words didn't even make since to me!

Reviewer Age:12
Reviewer City, State and Country: Leopold, Missouri, United States

Magic to the Bone

Magic to the Bone by Devon Monk tells the tale of 25-year-old Allison Beckstrom, daughter of the prominent businessman responsible for the discovery and distribution of magic. Though Allie could be living a luxurious life as part of her father's company, she avoids her father entirely along with his magical influence. Instead, she works as a hound, someone who tracks magical "offloads" (placing the consequences of magic on another person), and lives in the one of the worst neighborhoods in Portland. When she is called to hound an offload on a five-year-old boy, Allie finds that the hit has her father's signature. After speaking to her father for the first time in several years, Allie is forced to fight for not only her life, but to prove her innocence in her dad's murder. Along with the help of her few existing friends, Nola and Zavion, Allie runs from the law and tries to protect a man claiming he knows who the real murderer is. She endures many surprises including learning things about herself and magic that she never knew to be possible. The story then ends with a completely unpredictable finale.

I thought this book was very entertaining and exciting. Though some of the language and actions used are geared for more mature readers, it can still be pleasant to read for younger teens. The author's vivid details make you feel like you're part of the story. I found the book's unusual form of magic to be very interesting because of its great contrast to the traditional type in witch and wizard stories. I think Magic to the Bone would be a good read for most teenage science fiction fans.

This story contains some vulgar actions and language.The flamingnet underwriter was Mrs.Bellis.

Reviewer Age:14Reviewer City, State and Country: Marble Hill, Missouri US

Inca Gold is a story where the reader and a girl named Sally both go to an airport in Cuzco, Peru to find the Lost City of the Incas. In this book from the Choose Your Own Adventure Series, the reader gets to make decisions that will determine what happens to them throughout the book as they search for The Lost City of Gold. The book will take the reader through many adventures including through jungles and many other treacherous paths. Be careful because others are out there looking for it too. The decisions you make in this quest could be good or bad. The wrong decisions could end your journey, but you can always go and reroute your path.

I like this book because it feels like you are in the book. You can decide what you want to happen. The author included details that helped me as a reader imagine the sounds and sights of each setting in the book. I like it because it's adventurous. It's the first book I've ever read that you can choose your own path and I really like that. My least favorite path is when I decided to go jump out of an airplane and my parachute would not open. I jerked it roughly and my chute opened, but the jungle was coming too fast and I crashed into what first looked like a soft blanket of green. The closer I got it seemed like an angry porcupine. The book let me know that this wasn't the way I was supposed to go. I had a hard time picking my favorite way to go. There were a lot of great ways.
Reviewer Age:12
Reviewer City, State and Country: Leopold, MO USA

"Navigators: Stars & Planets" by Dr. Mike Goldsmith

Dr. Mike Goldsmith's "Stars and Planets" is a discovery all in its own. It discusses exactly what its eponymous title implies. The book starts out with the simple notions of the solar system and light, and cascades later into the more complex ideas of supernovas and space exploration. Each topic covers two pages and is akin to a poster that spans the left and right side of the book middle. Each section has a fun fact on the bottom of the page, a definition on the left side of the page, and a website to visit on the right side of the page. The middle of the pages are full of glossy, colorful pictures and short explanatory paragraphs. The contents of the book are what anyone could find online, but they are laid out in such a way that they do not seem at all intimidating to the non-PhD-holding reader.

This book is a great, quick read for kids of all ages. The holographic cover excites readers and makes them expectant for what lies on the inside of the book. The pages have plenty of pictures that make concepts understandable, but there are not so many pictures as to make the book seem too rudimentary. The scientific principles are all laid out, but there are only enough facts there for the reader to comprehend what lies within the book. The additional websites provided serve to guide readers to sites that hold more advanced science. Overall, the book is quite informative. In about an hour, it can transform any reader into a novice space connoisseur. From the enigmas of gravity to the wonders of ageless astronauts in hibernating capsules, this book will make you think and leave you with a sense of self-satisfaction when you are done.

Reviewer Age:17

Reviewer City, State and Country: Staten Island, NY, USA

I Am Apache by Tanya Landman

I am Apache by Tanya Landman tells the story of Siki, a fourteen year old Apache girl who chooses the path of a warrior to avenge the death of her brother, Tazhi. During her journey, Siki is pushed to her limits and discovers the truth about her father's dishonorable death. Little did she know, much more awaited her.

Tanya Landman vividly describes the Apache society, using terms such as moons and summers instead of years. Although the story didn't involve many cliffhangers, it was quite motivational and very empowering. She did a superb job in covering the three basics of any good story about a culture: war, society, and religion. The formal, and somewhat informal, language makes it seem as though the reader is merely a stranger being told Siki's life story. Landman excellently describes Siki's mental development after her brother's death and the manner in which she chose to deal with his death. I would recommend this novel to anyone who enjoys reading about Native American or tribal cultures, subtle action stories, and anyone who likes to read about inner struggles.

Reviewer Age:16
Reviewer City, State and Country: Raleigh, North Carolina United States

Models Don't Eat Chocolate Cookies by Erin Dionne

Celeste Harris was like any other chubby 13 year old girl. She had a best friend, Sandra, who defends her against the perfectly popular Lively Carson. Celeste is happy in here life, besides the daily beat-down of Lively's words, she's happy. But being a bridesmaid at her cousins wedding isn't all its cracked up to be. With a fitting for the ugly peach dress, the peach monstrosity, Celeste's Aunt Doreen finds a modeling flyer for PeachWear Industries and automatically forces Celeste into it. When the acceptance letter comes, her mom drags out the P-word; repeating exactly how proud she is. Suddenly the not-so-nice Lively is stealing her best friend, the daily calls and lunchroom talks come to a screeching halt. And the only way Celeste won't be the new face of PeachWear Industries is to lose, or so she thinks. Soon her afternoon stack of chocolate cookies comes to an end, and Sandra is even more distant. How is she supposed to get back to the way things were.
I think that the book is well written and the story is something most teens can relate to. The way the author describes Celestes' troubles make you feel for her and want to help. It was good how the author describes Celeste, because it makes her easier to relate to. The plot was something that was easily kept up with. It wasn't confusing and most people can relate to how Celeste is dealing with things.

Reviewer Age:13
Reviewer City, State and Country: Shippensburg, Pennsylvania USA

Fact of Life #31 by Denise Vega

Kat, 16, is in high school and is known as an outsider. She works at her mom's midwifery, is an artist, and trains for a women's triathlon. Her classmates call her Yoga Girl because she sometimes does yoga in the hallway. She hangs out with her friend Christy known as Hat Girl because of her insane hat collection. She has a secret crush on a popular guy named Manny Cruz since the seventh grade. Her mother, Abra, called her to assist her with a birth (Kat had always wanted to witness a birth; none of the people who were actually supposed to do it were at hand.) Kat didn't do very well with assisting, so she leaves her job at the midwifery. Shortly after telling her mom she quit, Abra gave her two notebooks. One was her mother's old notebook and one was blank and Kat turned it into a book of facts of her life. These Facts of Life helped her keep her morals and traditional values straight.

I really liked this book because of its different twist with a normal theme. It has a constant theme that most books have: girl likes boy, boy and girl have a secret relationship, girl gets hurt, girl organizes her life and is better with out him. Some things that were different about the book though was Christy's hat collection and the wisdom on natural born child birth. These small aspects made the book more fun to read and it got harder and harder to put down.


Reviewer Age:13
Reviewer City, State and Country: Norristown, Pennsylvania USA

Rating: 9
Content rating: 1

Ender in Exile by Orson Scott Card

Intergalactic drama meets juvenile angst in Orson Scott Card's "Ender in Exile." A boy named Ender ensconces the plot. In the future, this boy is conscripted into the military at the age of six. In his preteen years, he capriciously hits a button and fires a missile at the enemy; he is afterward deemed a war hero. One side of the galaxy sees him as this ominously powerful man, while the other side of the galaxy views him as a boy-puppet with an insatiable appetite for blood. Melancholy spelunks deep within the cave of the reader when they realize that a boy has been robbed of his innocence very early in life, catapulted into a world of violence and despair that he does not [and may never quite] fully understand. Further thrills ensue when the boy's parent yearn for his return home and his siblings follow in Ender's footsteps by anonymously documenting his history. Science fiction is in the book, with mystical creatures and the notion of time with regards to relativity. Also, most mentions of war relate to Russia, although no notion of World War II or the Cold War are redundantly regurgitated. The story centers around the boy's internal struggle and is mostly respectful when it comes to discussing present nations in the future.
Young adults will grow from reading this book. There is just enough vocabulary to make readers little semanticists, but there is not so much that they get frustrated and want to put the book down. The narration sticks mostly to first person, although it intermittently changes perspective every couple of chapters. The emails at the start of the chapters make the scenes modern and dependent on computers (as most young readers tend to naturally depict the future). Additionally, there is some romance spun into the plot when Ender meets a girl named Alex. Alex's mother cajoles her into chasing after Ender in hopes of matrimony. Ender toys with Alex's emotions, too young to truly know what love is. There is much drama when Alex confronts her mother, as well as when Ender finally communicates his woes with his abandoned family. The book can best be summed up by one quote towards the end of the novel. "Surround a child with lies, and he clings to them like a teddy bear, like his mother's hand. And the worse, the darker the lie, the more deeply he has to draw it inside himself in order to bear the lie at all" (Card, 360).
Reviewer Age:17
Reviewer City, State and Country: Staten Island, NY USA