Sudden Flash Youth by Christine Perkins-Hazuka, Tom Hazuka, and Mark Bud

The stories of Sudden Flash Youth may all be less than one thousand words, but that doesn't mean they can't pack a punch in those few pages. They're all short, and they all deal with the subject of youth, but it's certainly a diverse compilation, covering all voices and perspectives. In one story, we hear from a young narrator growing up during the Nixon era who is wondering if they he bother being good anymore, in a time when even the president has been caught lying. Then there's a story about a boy raised by wolves, followed by another about a fifteen year old girl wondering what gifts she will received at her quinceanera. The plot and the voices differ, but all the stories deal with the raw and real aspects of growing up. These are stories about first kisses, ugly breakups, wrecking cars, losing virginity and finding religion; about things that no doubt every teenager has experienced in some way. Reading the stories of Sudden Flash Youth is like looking through the scrapbooks of 65 different people. They read like snapshots, like tiny fragments of lives that we want to know more about. They re short and sometimes sweet and sometimes sad, but always satisfying.
   



Sudden Flash Youth truly was one of the best short story anthologies I've read in a long time. These stories spoke to me so much as a teeanger, and I loved reading things that are relatable to my lives and the lives of the other young people around me.The writing was wonderful and strong, and the voices of the narrators pulled me in and held me there, even if it was only for a thousand words of less. When you don't want a story to end, you know you just finished reading something amazing.

Reviewer Age:17
Reviewer City, State and Country: Tarpon Springs, Florida United States

The Poisons of Caux: Book Three by Susannah Appelbaum

When Ivy awakens in an orphanage, she doesn't know what has happened. Everything seems strange and unusual. And when she meets a well keeper (who is amazingly strong), they join forces and begin the journey to where Ivy's evil father is so that she can destroy him once and for all. But will she make it there alive?
I LOVED this book! Every chapter was amazing! The characters were life like as well. I would've rated this book a 10, but there were some difficult words and some parts were a bit confusing. But other then that, it was an amazing book.

Reviewer Age:12
Reviewer City, State and Country: Yucaipa, CA USA

Animal Rescue Team:Show Time by Sue Stauffacher

Keisha Carter is a fifth grade girl who is so getting nervous about her upcoming jump rope competition she can’t focus when she practices. Then another problem comes up. Keisha and her family run an animal rescue called Carters’ Urban Rescue. A lady calls them from Mt. Mercy College petitioning them for help with a squirrel problem. The squirrels on campus are damaging the roofs of buildings and obtaining access to the staff offices. While at the college investing the squirrel predicament, Keisha meets Sarge, an Army officer from the wounded veterans’ hospital on campus. Sarge is re-learning how to walk, this time with a prosthetic leg. He got his artificial limb following his leg amputation after being the victim of an IED (improvised explosive device) outside of Kabul. Keisha hopes Sarge’s story and friendship will help her with her jump roping, but she still can’t perfect her routine. Will she overcome her nervousness in time for the competition? How will she solve the squirrel dilemma?

Opinion: This book was written for 9 and 10 year olds, but it was a good read even for me, a 13 year old. I enjoyed the length of the book, which 147 pages even though it was only ten chapters. I was pleased to find that in the back the author included some facts about squirrels and her experiences with them. Though geared towards 10 year olds, I recommend this book for 9 to 13 year olds or anyone who enjoys jumping rope and/or squirrels.

Content:1

Rating (0 - 10 scale): 10
Reviewer Age: 13
Reviewer City, State and Country: Annandale, Virginia USA

Out of Xibalba by Liz ColeyChel was just another teenage girl until she traveled back in time to the ancient Mayan civilization of her ancestors. Chel has no idea what to do next. She knows the only thing keeping her alive in this society is the fact that all the locals believe she's the godess Ix Chel. She realizes she was sent back to this time to stop the end of the world and the end of the Mayan civilization. Can she do this and more? Could she possibly find love here? This book was really, really good. When you're reading this book you feel like you are Chel. You feel her pain, her joy, and her longing for her family. The plot is slippery: it twists and turns and you never can really tell what the plot is until you've finished the book. Then everything makes sense. Some of the customs in this book seemed rather barbaric to me, such as the blood sacrifices, but that was a very big part of Mayan belief, so unless you're squeamish it isn't much of a problem. I'd recommend this book to just about anyone over 13 who likes historical fiction

Chel was just another teenage girl until she traveled back in time to the ancient Mayan civilization of her ancestors. Chel has no idea what to do next. She knows the only thing keeping her alive in this society is the fact that all the locals believe she's the godess Ix Chel. She realizes she was sent back to this time to stop the end of the world and the end of the Mayan civilization. Can she do this and more? Could she possibly find love here?

This book was really, really good. When you're reading this book you feel like you are Chel. You feel her pain, her joy, and her longing for her family. The plot is slippery: it twists and turns and you never can really tell what the plot is until you've finished the book. Then everything makes sense. Some of the customs in this book seemed rather barbaric to me, such as the blood sacrifices, but that was a very big part of Mayan belief, so unless you're squeamish it isn't much of a problem. I'd recommend this book to just about anyone over 13 who likes historical fiction.

There is some innuendo, including actual sex. However, this does come with the territory of the ancient Mayans.

Reviewer Age:12
Reviewer City, State and Country: Rockwell City, IA USA

Scandalous! by Hallie Fryd

Scandalous by Hallie Fryd recounts fifty of the most controversial scandals of the 20th century.  The scandals range from the Black Sox scandal to the Rosenberg Trials and from the Kent State Shootings to the Bill Clinton's alleged affair with Monica Lewinski.  Fryd presents each scandal in a newspaper-style format that was common in print media.  Numerous sections examined different details of the case.  Sections include an overview of the case, memorable quotes, the aftermath, its impact in our society today, and other related people or events for those who want future research.  When these sections are put together, they provide the reader a comprehensive understanding of the scandal, and the reader will surely be able to impress his/her friends (as the cover states).

While this book may only be appropriate for its target age group, Scandalous delivers a quality overview of fifty memorable scandals of the 20th century.  I was very impressed with the layout and format of each section.  The numerous short sections for each case make the reading more manageable while also creating more suspense and drama.  However, this book is nothing more than fifty stories.  It is fairly brief, and it may leave readers unaccomplished.  While some readers may be disappointed, this book will spark interest in most readers to do more research on cases, and ultimately, it will provide a significant educational experience to the reader.  Therefore, with the right age group in mind, this book holds a great deal of value.  The cover boasts that you will be able to impress your friends with the knowledge with this book, and I certainly agree with that statement.   

Reviewer Age:22
Reviewer City, State and Country: Eden Prairie, Minnesota United States

Save the Pearls Part One, Revealing Eden

Save the Pearls Part One, Revealing Eden, is about 17 year
old Eden Newman. Eden lives in a world where the the threat
of solar radiation is very real, preventing her from ever
traveling to the Earth's surface. Instead, humans live
underground, seperated with a class system that favors the
dark-skinned Coals over the weak, light-skinned Pearls.
Eden's father is the lead scientist at Resources for
Environmental Adaptation, where he eventually figures out a
way to add animal DNA to that of humans, increasing their
chances of survival. However, a Pearl-hating militia group
soon causes Pearl, her father, and the arrogant Coal
Bramford to flee into the jungle, where Eden must find a way
to save the human race from the sun, and fight her growing
attraction to Bramford.
Revealing Eden was a suspenseful,
fun read, but the characters were not fully developed. I
could not get a hold on exactly who Eden was, as she was
portrayed as both a selfish, naive girl who only wants to
get home to her technology and as a lustful girl who only
wanted to stay with the genetically modified man of her
dreams. Eden was hard to like, because she never seemed to
grasp the enormity of their situation and acts in her own
interests without thinking of how she is going to affect
those around her. The plot was creative and interesting, but
got very repetitive as Eden and Bramford fell for eachother.
There were also many loose ends that were not fully
addressed by the end of the book, but I assume that they
will be covered by additional books. I would recommend
Revealing Eden to teenage readers who are looking for an
interesting, quick read.
I have given this book a content
rating of 2 because of the many lustful thoughts of Eden and
Bramford.
Reviewer Age:16
Reviewer City, State and
Country: Harleysville, Pennsylvania USA

No Crystal Stair by Yaunda Micheaux Nelson

In No Crystal Stair , you experience a completely different side of the black rights movement. This is a documentary novel and story of Lewis Michaux, a Harlem bookseller. Although in the beginning of the story Lewis never had an intention of becoming a bookseller, his passion of education later on in life is enchanting. Malcolm X and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. are only mentioned very briefly during the last parts of this novel because this story shows the development of the civil rights movement from the very early beginnings in the 1920's. If you're looking for a book that's out of the ordinary and about real American history, then you've come across the right book.

I absolutely loved this book. I found everything about it very interesting. I'm not the history type at all, but by reading this book I turned into one. I'd heard everything about Malcolm X and Dr.  Martin Luther King Jr., I'd heard the I Have a Dream speech more than twice and, frankly, I was getting bored of the civil rights part of history. So, I chose this book purely at random from a group that I couldn't decide between and I'm glad I got this one. I got to finally see the other side of the civil rights movement; it was like going back stage at your favorite concert. No matter how little they are interested, I highly recommend this book to any middle or high school history student. 
Some language and intense themes
Reviewer Age:15
Reviewer City, State and Country: Hopkins, Michigan United States

The Sound of Red Returning

The Sound of Red Returning


Ever wish that there was just one Christian

suspense novel out there that you could get your hot

little hands on? Well, your dreams have just come true

with Sue Duffy s new manuscript, The Sound of Red

Returning! Prominent concert pianist Liesl Bower has had

plenty of sorrow and danger in her young life. When she

was a child, her alcoholic father caused the death of her

beloved aunt. Her mentor, Professor Schell Devoe, was

brutally murdered before her eyes. Now, just when her

life was finally returning to normal, just when she was at

the peak of her career, she is again sucked into the

whirlwind of her tutor s demise. The CIA believes that

Mr. Devoe had quite a bit more going on than he disclosed

to Liesl and the rest of the world including him being a

crucial Russian spy that almost had the control to

completely wipe out democracy and set the stage for

communism s rise to power once more. Yet there s a

drawback. The information, secretly coded, was gathered

up in an unsuspecting Leisl s arms as she collected her

numerous sheets of music just before the Professor s

death. Now, the undercover Russian agents are out to get

that code at any price. Currently on the run, Liesl must

do everything she can to survive, and with the help of a

life-roughened CIA agent and a straight-minded old-timer

and his grandson, she just might make it. What Liesl

didn t expect was to lose her heart along the way&&&

Her eyes locked on Ava Mullins, and the last

fifteen years that slippery cushion between her and

Devoe' s murder fell away.


I truly did enjoy this book immensely. It had

suspense, mayhem, comedy, and just a hint of romance that

kept me interested all the way through. I loved how I

could relate to some of the predicaments some of the

characters got themselves into even if I haven t exactly

been chased across the country by demented spies. It had

some soul searching moments, but not enough where it got

to be tiresome to read. The characters in this novel

really complemented the plot all coming from different

backgrounds, different lives, and then being thrown

together by fate s twisted path. This book grabbed me

from the very beginning, and drew me into it, until I read

it from beginning to end. The vocabulary was near

perfection too, enough where it wasn t dry but not so

complicated that I would get utterly lost. One thing I

disliked about this book was that some of the Russian

spies had such difficult names that it took me a while to

sort out who was who and what they were doing. Besides

that one little bump in the road, this book was a

fantastic read.

Ava peered out the window, and Liesl heard her

whisper, God help us all.

I would recommend this book for ages seven and up,

because this book is quite long and some of the story plot

might be hard to understand for younger readers. There is

absolutely no profanity in this book, you have my word as

a gentlewoman. Remember, this book is faith based, with

mentions of the LORD frequently. If this offends you, I d

advise not to read this book.

In the midst of all this terror and trauma, will

Liesl be able to get out of the whirlwind of deceit and

chaos that revolves around the Russian underground alive?

Or will she perish and let the Russians take over all of

Europe? If you want to uncover the answer, read The

Sound of Red Returning by Sue Duffy!



Reviewer Age:12
Reviewer City, State and Country:

Leopold, Missouri U.S.A.

The Serpent in the Glass by D.M. Andrews

The Serpent in the Glass takes place in the present. It is about a boy named Thomas Farrell, whose father dies and leaves him a glass with a serpent in it and an already paid for education at Darkledun Manor, a school for gifted children.  Thomas doesn't feel very gifted, but goes anyway, and soon finds out that Darkledun Manor is anything but ordinary. While going to this school he will face challenges, along with his sister and friends. The main theme of this story is Thomas trying to find out who he is and how he fits into Darkledun Manor. This book would most likely be in Adventure, and Fantasy.

The Serpent in the Glass really pulled me in. I was dying to know what happens next, so I didn't want to put it down. Also, I felt like I could actually see everything that was going on like watching a movie. The mood of the story felt like a mystery, but also fun. I really liked the main character, Thomas. I really wanted him to find out who he is. Also, I liked his attitude towards everything. It didn't leave me hanging on any character, but it made me want to know if a second book will be made.


I think the author did achieve his purpose. The writing was effective and age appropriate. The strength of this book was how it pulled you into the book. Its weakness was trying to tell if the dreams where connected, some of them were italic, some were not.  It could become a movie, but I'm not good at telling if a book is good enough or not.  I haven't really read anything by D.M Andrews before now, but I am considering finding books written by him. My over all opinion of this book was it is really good and I am hoping there is a part two. The ending was great, it didn't leave me with any questions or confusion. I would recommend it to anyone who likes adventure, fantasy, or even just a bit of action.


Reviewer Age:18
Reviewer City, State and Country: Oskaloosa, Iowa U.S.A

The Survivors: Point of Origin by Amanda Havard

Point of Origin is a Paranormal Romance centered on Sadie Matthau and her quest for answers. Sadie, however, is not mortal, nor is her main love interest, Everett. Sadie is what is described as a Survivor, or, to humans, considered a Witch. Everett however, is called a Vieczy-a type of vampire. The pair, accompanied by some of Everett's family, travel across the globe researching more about their questions. Sadie yearns to know more about what she is exactly, how to kill a Survivor, if there are Survivors other than her and those in the Survivor City where she came from, and where they really originated from. However their search causes many problems and leads them to many dead ends and obstacles, both external and internal-including Sadie's struggle on whether she wants to be with her supernatural boyfriend Everett, or her old human flame, Cole, who still pines for her.

When I first began Point of Origin, I was actually a bit disappointed. It seemed that every time something exciting happened, it would get pushed aside and the plot would continue on without much mention of it. However, as the story progressed and I learned more about the situation and the characters, I began to get more involved in the book. I also realized that the past predicaments where pushed to the side for a reason. Each would be brought back at its proper time in order to help complete the plot. By the time the story was brought to its cliff hanger conclusion, I was completely engrossed in the book and anxious to know the answers to Sadie's questions-even those that I had previously thought of as somewhat insignificant to me. Overall, this book was suspenseful and thought provoking, and I will be waiting eagerly for the third installment of The Survivors.

Reviewer Age:12
Reviewer City, State and Country: Phillipsburg, New Jersey United States

Rating: 8
Content Rating: 1