In The Ugly Tree, by Tamara Lyon, the protagonist’s world is ripped apart the day she is born. Cane Kallevik is the sole survivor of a car crash that killed her father, mother, and her unborn twin. On one of the early summer days before she turns sixteen, she meets Justice Schaeffer who unknowingly saves her life that night. When the worst twister in history rips through Cane’s small town, it threatens to take away the rest of her world. Her only living relative, and her sole caregiver, Grandma Betty, is knocked unconscious and remains in a coma for months. When Cane’s only option is to move into the Schaeffer house, she learns hard lessons about life and love that help her grow as a person.
The Ugly Tree is one of the most interesting books I have read in a long time. It has an intriguing and original plot line. A reader will easily relate to Cane’s feelings for Justice. It perfectly describes a teenage girl meeting her first love. Her questions about life and why she was the only survivor of the car crash gets the reader thinking about why things happen for any particular reason. Cane’s character seems to be a little advanced for her age in the way she thinks, but most of the time she seems like any other ordinary teen age girl.
I rated this book a “3” because it does have some intense sections involving Cane and Justice together, and there is also some language that should be for older people only. The other reason is because there is some faith in it, but it isn't completely based on faith.
Reviewer Age:14
Reviewer City, State and Country: Makanda, Illinois USA
Sunday, December 05, 2010
Wither by Lauren DeStefano
Rhine lives in a world seemingly devoid of hope -- men now die at the age of twenty-five and females at a meager twenty. When she is kidnapped and sold into a marriage like countless others, Rhine is determined to revolt against the bonds that secure her to this new husband and somehow reunite with the twin brother who was torn away from her. Even in a world like this, opinions and relationships shift and change. But escape -- escape is always on her mind.
I devoured and simply adored this new YA dystopian novel. There are moments when I found myself engrossed, grasping the little paperback and yelling No at the words squiggling across the pages as the story unfolded around me. The plot is captivating and the writing artfully done. The characters were authentic and contained a certain depth that made me love the book just that much more, as I could relate to the pain they experience throughout the book. There is a slight Hunger Games feel to the it, which I do not object to at all. This is definitely one of the books I've read in 2010, and I cannot wait for the next installment of this trilogy.
mild sexual references
Reviewer Age:15
Reviewer City, State and Country: Los Altos, CA US
I devoured and simply adored this new YA dystopian novel. There are moments when I found myself engrossed, grasping the little paperback and yelling No at the words squiggling across the pages as the story unfolded around me. The plot is captivating and the writing artfully done. The characters were authentic and contained a certain depth that made me love the book just that much more, as I could relate to the pain they experience throughout the book. There is a slight Hunger Games feel to the it, which I do not object to at all. This is definitely one of the books I've read in 2010, and I cannot wait for the next installment of this trilogy.
mild sexual references
Reviewer Age:15
Reviewer City, State and Country: Los Altos, CA US
The Storm Witch by Violette Malan
The Storm Witch starts out with a bang. Parno Lionsmane and Dhulyn Wolfshead board a ship to sail away to save their friends when they found out that the ship is infested with Nomads in need of their services. They will kill their captive friends if they don't agree to sail with them. They agree to, and all is good. But something haunts Dhulyn throughout their trip; a foreboding vision could separate Parno and Dhulyn? And Parno is growing closer and closer to their captives. In a freak thunderstorm who knows what will happen.
This book was not very well-written. It took me a long time to understand what was going on, and then it was so boring I could barely finish it. It had a good plot. It was just not written out very well
Reviewer Age:14
Reviewer City, State and Country: Dorr, Michigan United States
This book was not very well-written. It took me a long time to understand what was going on, and then it was so boring I could barely finish it. It had a good plot. It was just not written out very well
Reviewer Age:14
Reviewer City, State and Country: Dorr, Michigan United States
The Haunting of Charles Dickens by Lewis Buzbee
Meg lost her older brother, Orion, 6 months ago. She and
Mr. Dickens, after believing that they saw him one night,
renew their search for him. The clues lead to a mysterious
triangle names. Though, this triangle of names is even
more important when, underground, they found children,
half-dead, half-alive, and press-ganged into work, forging
bolts. Finally, they learn the location of Orion, but can
they rescue him in time?
I thought that, although a good
plot and extremely descriptive detail, there was a little
too much detail. It seemed like there was too much slow
parts in between the exciting. There was not a good
balance between dull and exciting. Otherwise, it was a
good book, as I said before, I liked the plot, and how you
just might be able to figure out the ending, just before
it actually happened.
Reviewer Age:13
Reviewer City, State and Country: Santa Fe, TX USA
Mr. Dickens, after believing that they saw him one night,
renew their search for him. The clues lead to a mysterious
triangle names. Though, this triangle of names is even
more important when, underground, they found children,
half-dead, half-alive, and press-ganged into work, forging
bolts. Finally, they learn the location of Orion, but can
they rescue him in time?
I thought that, although a good
plot and extremely descriptive detail, there was a little
too much detail. It seemed like there was too much slow
parts in between the exciting. There was not a good
balance between dull and exciting. Otherwise, it was a
good book, as I said before, I liked the plot, and how you
just might be able to figure out the ending, just before
it actually happened.
Reviewer Age:13
Reviewer City, State and Country: Santa Fe, TX USA
They Call Themselves The K.K.K. by Susan Campbell Bartoletti
Lynch, betray, murder -- this is what several shameless people decided to do to harmless civilians of a different race. They Called Themselves the K.K.K. provides hefty amounts of information about how the Ku Klux Klan was created and about the people they affected. Surprisingly enough, the basis of the KKK wasn't formed to destroy African Americans and most other races or religions. It was created as a clan that would joke around and crash parties at night. This is just tidbit that readers will find surprising in this book. This book offers glimpses idea of what was going on inside KKK members' heads. The amount of information that is held within They Called Themselves the KKK is immeasurable, and is filled with facts that readers can use for the rest of their lives.
I was disgusted while I read this book, not in a bad way though. I learned so much about the KKK and have been able to use information from the book on several school papers. Normally, when someone writes nonfiction, especially history, the reader is bored as soon as the first page is finished. This book did not do that for me because it was written with such superiority and efficiency that there wasn't a dull moment. I would recommend this book to any history or literature teacher; any student who needs to work on a research paper, or anyone who is interested in the history of the KKK. This is an amazing resource, with easy to understand explanations, so this would be my number one choice for research.
This is nonfiction, therefore original quotes have not been altered; graphic language is used. There is also some graphic material that might concern parents of younger children.
Reviewer Age:14
Reviewer City, State and Country: Osseo, Wisconsin United States
I was disgusted while I read this book, not in a bad way though. I learned so much about the KKK and have been able to use information from the book on several school papers. Normally, when someone writes nonfiction, especially history, the reader is bored as soon as the first page is finished. This book did not do that for me because it was written with such superiority and efficiency that there wasn't a dull moment. I would recommend this book to any history or literature teacher; any student who needs to work on a research paper, or anyone who is interested in the history of the KKK. This is an amazing resource, with easy to understand explanations, so this would be my number one choice for research.
This is nonfiction, therefore original quotes have not been altered; graphic language is used. There is also some graphic material that might concern parents of younger children.
Reviewer Age:14
Reviewer City, State and Country: Osseo, Wisconsin United States
The Properties of Water by Hannah Roberts McKinnon
The Properties of Water is a book about a girl
named Lace who's sister Marni has a medical condition. She
almost drowns underwater after she jumps off Turtle Rock .
Lace's mom and sister are at a far away hospital for
people like Marni. Lace and her dad are home by themselves
and her dad can't handle it, so he hires a helper named
Willa Dodge. Lace thinks that Willa Dodge is a thief, so
she keeps a close eye on her. But Lace finds out something
about Willa besides stolen goods.
At first reading The Properties of Water I didn't
really like it. I thought it was a little unorganized.
But after I found out why Marni and her mom were so far
away I started understanding it and liking it. I
recommend this book for people who like finding things out
later in the story rather than all in the beginning. I
think that The Properties of Water is kind of a mysterious
book.
Reviewer Age:10
Reviewer City, State and Country:
Claremont, N.H U.S.A
named Lace who's sister Marni has a medical condition. She
almost drowns underwater after she jumps off Turtle Rock .
Lace's mom and sister are at a far away hospital for
people like Marni. Lace and her dad are home by themselves
and her dad can't handle it, so he hires a helper named
Willa Dodge. Lace thinks that Willa Dodge is a thief, so
she keeps a close eye on her. But Lace finds out something
about Willa besides stolen goods.
At first reading The Properties of Water I didn't
really like it. I thought it was a little unorganized.
But after I found out why Marni and her mom were so far
away I started understanding it and liking it. I
recommend this book for people who like finding things out
later in the story rather than all in the beginning. I
think that The Properties of Water is kind of a mysterious
book.
Reviewer Age:10
Reviewer City, State and Country:
Claremont, N.H U.S.A
Getting the Girl by Susan Juby
The book starts out talking about the school.s tradition
of defiling girls, which involves getting your picture put
up on all the bathroom mirrors with a D written on it.
The main character is a ninth grade kid, Sherman Mack. He
has a huge crush on this tenth grade girl, Dini. When he
suspects that she might get D-listed, he sets out to find
the culprits of the Defiling, and gets himself into more
that he can handle.
Getting the Girl is one part mystery, two parts funny,
and one part just plain weird. The book starts out talking
about the schools tradition of defiling girls, which
involves getting your picture put up on all the bathroom
mirrors with a D written on it. If a girl is defiled,
then she is socially ruined forever. The main character is
a ninth grade kid, Sherman Mack. He has a huge crush on
this tenth grade girl, Dini. When he suspects that she
might get D-listed he sets out to find the culprits of the
Defiling. His investigation takes him on a wild ride. He
ends up finding out who is the defiler. I bet you can't
figure it out before they tell you. I thought the book was
enjoyable, a fun read, and funny as heck. I love how the
author showed common high school problems. One thing that
bugs me was she made high school seem like a battle zone.
(Ok, it can be; but, it's not that bad.) She over
exaggerated the cliques and groups that kids sort
themselves into. I thought Sherman was a very weird
fifteen year old boy. I have no idea how the male minds
works, but he just seemed a little off to me. Overall, the
book was a very enjoyable read.
Reviewer Age:15
Reviewer City, State and Country:
Carbondale, IL United States
of defiling girls, which involves getting your picture put
up on all the bathroom mirrors with a D written on it.
The main character is a ninth grade kid, Sherman Mack. He
has a huge crush on this tenth grade girl, Dini. When he
suspects that she might get D-listed, he sets out to find
the culprits of the Defiling, and gets himself into more
that he can handle.
Getting the Girl is one part mystery, two parts funny,
and one part just plain weird. The book starts out talking
about the schools tradition of defiling girls, which
involves getting your picture put up on all the bathroom
mirrors with a D written on it. If a girl is defiled,
then she is socially ruined forever. The main character is
a ninth grade kid, Sherman Mack. He has a huge crush on
this tenth grade girl, Dini. When he suspects that she
might get D-listed he sets out to find the culprits of the
Defiling. His investigation takes him on a wild ride. He
ends up finding out who is the defiler. I bet you can't
figure it out before they tell you. I thought the book was
enjoyable, a fun read, and funny as heck. I love how the
author showed common high school problems. One thing that
bugs me was she made high school seem like a battle zone.
(Ok, it can be; but, it's not that bad.) She over
exaggerated the cliques and groups that kids sort
themselves into. I thought Sherman was a very weird
fifteen year old boy. I have no idea how the male minds
works, but he just seemed a little off to me. Overall, the
book was a very enjoyable read.
Reviewer Age:15
Reviewer City, State and Country:
Carbondale, IL United States
Pretty Dead by Francesca Lia Block
Charlotte Emerson has been young, beautiful, and rich for almost a hundred years. She's a vampire, but has been struggling with her existence for almost the entirety of her change. Charlotte's life may seem perfect, but has been keeping a painful list of grief that just gets longer with the suicide of her best friend Emily. Soon after, Charlotte's nail breaks. Something that hasn't happened since she was human. Could Charlotte's deepest wish be coming true?
I was not that impressed with Pretty Dead. First off, it just seems to be another faceless book in the vampire genre. There are way too many now, and if an author doesn't want her book to get lost in the shuffle, it must be extraordinary. I didn't care for any of the characters, which I blame on the fact that Block doesn't go into much detail. Everything is kept on the surface, including some of the plot. I would have liked to learn a lot more about the vampire lore, Charlotte's past and her relationships with the other characters. The only thing I liked about Pretty Dead was that it tried a new idea, with a vampire turning mortal. Normally books deal with the opposite, so I was interested in learning more about this process, but everything was very vague. If you want to read about vampires, I would recommend skipping Pretty Dead and finding another book.
Reviewer Age:18
Reviewer City, State and Country: Aston, Pennsylvania United States
I was not that impressed with Pretty Dead. First off, it just seems to be another faceless book in the vampire genre. There are way too many now, and if an author doesn't want her book to get lost in the shuffle, it must be extraordinary. I didn't care for any of the characters, which I blame on the fact that Block doesn't go into much detail. Everything is kept on the surface, including some of the plot. I would have liked to learn a lot more about the vampire lore, Charlotte's past and her relationships with the other characters. The only thing I liked about Pretty Dead was that it tried a new idea, with a vampire turning mortal. Normally books deal with the opposite, so I was interested in learning more about this process, but everything was very vague. If you want to read about vampires, I would recommend skipping Pretty Dead and finding another book.
Reviewer Age:18
Reviewer City, State and Country: Aston, Pennsylvania United States
Come Fall by A.C.E. Bauer
Salman Page is a foster child bounced from home to home all of his life. Over the years, he has learned how to not be noticed, and to never make friends, because you always have to move away. When he moves to a new school to live with foster parents Ozzy and Tina on their farm, however, that is exactly what he ends up doing. Lu Zimmer has been appointed as Salman's "Designated Buddy", not expecting much from it, but she gets quite a bit more than she bargains for-including two friends. Blos Pease is quite literal and likes things to be "just so". No one really understood or like him, until Salman came along. Little do the three know, however, that while their friendship is forming, there are outside influences on them all. Titania and Oberon- the king and queen of faerie, are fighting amongst themselves because of a promise Titania made to watch Salman until he was grown. Puck, the mischievous messenger, is forced to go back and forth between the two, interfering in the lives of the three unsuspecting friends.
When you throw together three unlikely friends and the tricky messenger of fey, you end up with an interesting and warm tale of friendship and a wonderful read. When reading this book, I was sucked in by the intriguing characters and warm fall feeling, setting an overall tone of warmth. Switching between the perspectives of each character also gave the book a curious feel as you got to see the experiences of each one. The characters were believable and unique, each one with their own quirks and personalities that help shape the odd and indescribable feel of the book. Overall, the writing was lovely, but simple. The book continued to feel warm through the suspenseful bits. Despite this, however, the author still managed to evoke that feeling of anticipation throughout those scenes. I loved the book for what it was, but it isn't exactly the best book I've ever read. I'd recommend this book for readers ages 10 and up.
Reviewer Age:14
Reviewer City, State and Country: Sykesville, Maryland United States
When you throw together three unlikely friends and the tricky messenger of fey, you end up with an interesting and warm tale of friendship and a wonderful read. When reading this book, I was sucked in by the intriguing characters and warm fall feeling, setting an overall tone of warmth. Switching between the perspectives of each character also gave the book a curious feel as you got to see the experiences of each one. The characters were believable and unique, each one with their own quirks and personalities that help shape the odd and indescribable feel of the book. Overall, the writing was lovely, but simple. The book continued to feel warm through the suspenseful bits. Despite this, however, the author still managed to evoke that feeling of anticipation throughout those scenes. I loved the book for what it was, but it isn't exactly the best book I've ever read. I'd recommend this book for readers ages 10 and up.
Reviewer Age:14
Reviewer City, State and Country: Sykesville, Maryland United States
Friday, December 03, 2010
Short Circus by Stephen V. Masse
Jeremy (Jem), is back at school with an assignment to write about his summer. Short Circus is Jem's story. This book is action packed with stories of dirt bike contests, camping trips, and trips with Jesse, Jem's Big Brother, from the Big Brother Association. When Jem and his friends find out that Jesse might have to move, they make a plan to keep his house from being sold. Even after school starts, Jem continues to write about his life and his adventures with his friends.
Short Circus has something for everyone. It is a realistic fiction novel with action and a bit of mystery. The characters all have unique personalities and are believable. Also, the events that take place in the book are original. I especially liked the part when Jesse took Jem and his friends to a festival in a nearby town. I would suggest this book for kids ages 10-12.
Reviewer Age:13
Reviewer City, State and Country: Leawood, KS United States
Short Circus has something for everyone. It is a realistic fiction novel with action and a bit of mystery. The characters all have unique personalities and are believable. Also, the events that take place in the book are original. I especially liked the part when Jesse took Jem and his friends to a festival in a nearby town. I would suggest this book for kids ages 10-12.
Reviewer Age:13
Reviewer City, State and Country: Leawood, KS United States
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