Angel In My Pocket by Ilene Cooper

The book Angel In My Pocket was a fun tale about a girl named Bette who lives with her father and older sister Barbra. Bette goes to a magnet school that studies preforming art. Before Bette's mother died, she would always sing but now she is too depressed to sing any more. One day she and her sister find a rare angel coin and soon Bette's life changes. She meets new friends and finds the courage to sing again. Soon the angel coin ends up in the hands of some of Bette's close friends and their lives change for the better as well. Is there really magic in this one angel coin?
I found the book to start out slow but become more interesting as is progessed. The first chapter was a bit wordy when discribing Bette's past and family, but it turned into an adventure after a couple of chapters. It wasn't one of my favorite books to read and took some time to get into but it turned out to be my kind of book in the end. I recommend to book to people who can get into any reading and people who enjoy realistic fiction. After reading this, I started to belive in angels too.

Reviewer Age:13
Reviewer City, State and Country: Laurel, Maryland United States

Snakes and other Reptiles by Mary Pope Osborne

Dear readers, Snakes and Other Reptiles is a nice little book
and was just what I was looking for! It's purpose is to inform
and educate the reader on reptiles. I learned lots of things
about reptiles such as the skin of a snake being made of
keratin, just like our fingernails. In addition, although you
may have heard of the Black Mamba, but did you know it has
enough venom do kill twenty people or even a cow? Another
snake is the Mozambique snake. This snake can spit venom and
even cause blindness. Snakes and Other Reptiles is my favorite
book yet!
I have a very high opinion of this book. This
book is all about reptiles, and I had fun learning about them.
I would recommend this book to whoever likes learning about
reptiles and I really got a kick out of the book. I even read
how the roadrunner kills snakes by hitting them against the
sand. So if you like learning about reptiles I would recommend
you read the book.

Reviewer Age:11
Reviewer City, State
and Country: Sterling, virginia USA

Sylvia And Aki by Winifred Conkling

Sylvia and Aki is about two girls who fight their ways through their troubles. Aki's family was Japanese, so they had to go to a Japanese camp in Arizona when Pearl Harbor was attacked. Aki's brother was forced to take a test that asked him to either fight against his family in Japan or be a traitor of the U.S. Sylvia was with her family at Aki's family's farm in California. She found Aki's hidden doll and school picture as she looked through her room. Sylvia wasn't allowed to enroll in good school because she was Mexican. She had to walk a long way to Hoover School, which had used desks, old books, and tired teachers. Her dad got furious at the school district, so he filed a lawsuit stating Mexican students should be admitted to Westminster School. Which girl made it through their obstacles?


The book wasn't as fun as it could have been. It lacked suspense throughout the book. It was an unpleasant experience for both of them, but it wasn't presented as a huge crisis. It could have used more details. The story makes a good book, but it isn't very exciting. I would recommend it for 7-10 year-olds.

Rating: 6
Content: 1
Reviewer Age:11
Reviewer City, State and Country: Leesburg, VA USA

The Midnight Gate

Flamingnet Student Book Reviewer LH1111_lcps

Belladonna Johnson is still very nervous on the whole idea of her being a Spellbinder. Her Paladin Steve, who is her assigned protector, goes to Belladonna's school with her. When they go on a field trip to a monastery, Steve meets the last Paladin. He gives Steve a riddle to find nine objects that need to be hidden again in order to stop the Empress of the Dark Spaces from coming back from the darkness to take over the world. Elise, a ghost that Spellbinder Belladonna can see, goes with them back to the monastery to find the nine objects. Only a ghost is capable of seeing them. They find eight out of the nine objects and discover that the objects are coins. The last coin is in the Land of the Dead in the palace which belongs to the Queen of the Dead. Once in the Land of the Dead, they reach the seven gates they have to go through in order to reach the Queen of the Dead. Dothey meet the Queen and if so, is she who they thought she would be? When the Empress of the Dark Spaces tries to escape, will Belladonna and Steve be able to save the world from entering a time of darkness, or will the Earth be plunged into darkness forever?

The Midnight Gate by Helen Stringer was a great read. This book had a lot of twists and surprises in it. I did not read the first book in the Spellbinder series so at times, I felt that this book went a little too quickly for me. A lot of time was spent explaining little details. Not enough time was spent on explaining the important events like Belladonna and Steve's encounter with the Queen of Death.Unfortunately, I didn't know that there was a first book in this series or I definitely would have read it first. This was a good book that had a cliff-hanger ending that left me wanting to read more. I recommend this book to anyone who has an interest in fantasy or mystery type books, but read the first book of the series beforehand.





Reviewer Age:12



Reviewer City, State and Country: Sterling, Virginia United States

The Amanda Project Shattered by Amanda Valentino and Laurie Faria Stolarz

This story is about a girl and her two friends who are trying to find their friend who disappeared, Amanda. Along the way, they discover that her vanishing is a bigger conspiracy than they thought. Also, Amanda leaves cryptic clues to help them understand her past and help track her down. They have all heard different stories about her past, and in order to find her, they must discover the truth. You learn about Amanda's dark past and get to explore the mystery of why it IS a mystery.

This book is absolutely fantastic! I could really relate to characters, and I could depict the setting. I pictured the old shack with overgrown grass, and I could see the dirt roads and cabins as they rode their bikes. I became apart of the story. One bad thing about the book was that at the very end I would liked more closure. I was left a little confused and had to re-read the last couple sentences again to understand what I think just happened. Other than that, it was a great book.

Reviewer Age:13
Reviewer City, State and Country: Enon, Ohio USA

Joining Up by John Jack McGuire

Best friends Will and Bobby have always dreamed of escaping
from the orphanage to join the 14th Regiment. One day, the
opportunity presents itself and they take it. On their
adventure, they meet many people including Dinky Dolan, the
devious merchant, and Daniel, a young African American
teenager who is wise beyond his years. A story of survival,
war, and adventure, 'Joining Up' will keep you on the edge
of your seat!
I did not enjoy  reading 'Joining Up'. The
storyline was very sporadic and it was very hard to follow.
There were also many punctuation and grammatical errors that
were difficult to ignore. The author also had difficulty
bringing harmony into the story.


Reviewer Age:14
Reviewer City, State and Country:
Tatamy, PA USA

Grey by Rachel Karns

After being left alone in the family jewelry shop for her 18th birthday, Maggie becomes intertwined in a mystery she never saw coming. When she reads a newspaper article on the mysterious unnamed "John Doe", she becomes too curious to help herself. After many days, she's too far in to back out. Will her mistakes effect everyone? Who is this man? Is Maggie not ready for the challenges ahead? All of this is answered throughout the mystery of Gray, a novel by Rachel Karns.
I wouldn't put this book in the genre of mystery, but the suspense at times definitely keeps the pages turning. The problem was there are also some parts that were on the boring side. If you're into some mushy romance, this is partly that. But it is also an intense book on how a teenager goes through difficult decisions, and through this finds herself. In that aspect it is a good book, but this still doesn't make it one of my top choices. I did like the way that it was narrarated through the main characters point of view though. It gave a new prospect on the way she saw people and places instead of descriptions where you could interpret your own views. It was a fresh read and there were parts that I did enjoy.

Reviewer Age:14
Reviewer City, State and Country: Hermantown, Minnesota USA

Dead to You by Lisa McMann

Dead To You is the story of Ethan DeWilde. When he was 6 years old he got into a car with total strangers and was abducted, sending not only himself but also his family, into a total nightmarish whirlwind. 9 years later, after scouring the internet in search of his family, Ethan finally finds his way back home. Unfortunately for Ethan and his family, his return isn't quite the happy ending he was hoping for. Unable to remember anything that happened before he was abducted, Ethan is searching for answers to his many questions. Will he uncover something that he wished had stayed hidden?

The author did such an amazing job of weaving the story together along with the character development and all of the raw emotion of what these character's are feeling. I could feel his parents' heartbreak from the loss of their son, and the shock of his return as well as their struggle in how to best handle the situation while getting to know their son all over again without neglecting their other two children. I felt Blake's jealousy when suddenly his long lost brother returns and gains the attention of everyone around them. There was definitely some major middle sibling issues Blake was dealing with, and at times I wanted to reach my hand through the pages and slap some sense into him. I even felt for little Gracie as she struggles to get to know a brother she never met or even knew she had!

Mostly though, my heart ached for Ethan. I cried for the little boy who was taken from his family and far from home. I wanted to hug the young man who no one trusts, and who everyone blames for getting in that car in the first place. His struggles with adjusting to his new life and his family were compelling. I felt like I wanted to protect him from all of the anxiety plaguing him.

Dead To You is a masterfully written journey into the life of a young man who is simply trying to find his way home.

 There was some language in this book and readers should be cautioned that the f word is use several times in the book. Parents may want to take this into consideration when considering this book for their children.
Reviewer Age:26
Reviewer City, State and Country: West Columbia, Texas United States

The Sharp Time by Mary O'Collell

Sandinista Jones isn’t like other girls; she has a punk rock name with a punk rock attitude. Oh, and a dead mom. Sandinista is now living on her own during her senior year with only a few months left till graduation. She’s doing well especially when she lands the job at the Pale Circus, her favorite local vintage clothing shop with a workaholic boss and Bradley, a mysterious boy who claims to be a dedicated Catholic. But one day in Algebra, everything changes. Sandinista turns bitter, buys a little pink gun, and stops going to school. Sandinista’s life isn’t the same anymore; too much has changed and things aren’t the way they used to be.

I enjoyed reading The Sharp Time. It was a little hard to follow at times, so I had to re-read a chapter or two, but once I got more into it, it got easier to understand and sympathize with Sandinista. That was another good thing about this book, the character development. I thought that the author gave everyone a very interesting background story that developed within each new chapter and made it easier to relate to. The plot was also very intriguing. I had predicted in my mind what would happen, but the end result was totally different. Overall, I really liked this book, and am looking forward to any new books that this author may write. 

Explicit language & themes, use of illegal drugs and alcohol. 

Reviewer Age:15

Reviewer City, State and Country: Hopkins, Michigan United States of America

Once Upon A Toad by Heather Vogel Frederick

Catriona (Cat-reen-ah) Starr doesn't want to go to Portland, Oregon to live with her dad and literally evil stepsister while her mom is on the International Space Station.  She likes her stepmother and stepbrother Geoffrey, but Olivia (her stepsister) is horrible.  Eventually, she calls her mom, who sends Great-Aunt Abysinnia to the rescue!...or not.  Things go from bad to worse.  Toads start appearing when Cat speaks, while Olivia gets flowers and diamonds!  When the secret gets out, Geoffrey is kidnapped, and Olivia (a.k.a. Diamond Girl) is wanted for ransom.  Can Cat learn to work with her stepsister so they can save the one thing they both care about?

I have always been a fairy-tale fanatic, and love reading rewrites of the originals.  This new version of Toads and Diamonds wasn't only a rewritten fairy tale, it also touched upon the different aspects of middle school life.  I feel a little bit sorry that Cat's fairy godmother is a little mixed up, but any fairy godmother's better than none, right?  As I read this book, I could hardly stop laughing.  It was absolutely hilarious!  I especially liked the part where the toads came out of her bassoon!  This is my idea of a good teen fiction book.  I think anyone could read this book and love it.

Reviewer Age:13
Reviewer City, State and Country: Lake City, IA USA