A new student review of Mountains Beyond Mountains

AKFeldman posted a new student review of Mountains Beyond Mountains . See the full review.

In Mountains Beyond Mountains, Tracy Kidder manages to portray Dr. Paul Farmer in an astonishing, yet truthful, manner. While Farmer at times seemed almost impossibly kind and generous, I never once doubted his sincerity or legitimacy. Tracy Kidder effectively hooked me into the amazing life of Dr. Paul Farmer, a difficult feat to accomplish. I recommend this book to anyone who likes reading non-fiction, medicine, social justice, or biographies. You will be positively affected by this inspiring tale. 

A new student review of How to Lose Everything by Philipp Mattheis

Gwendolyn posted a new student review of How to Lose Everything by Philipp Mattheis. See the full review.

How To Lose Everything by Philipp Mattheis was an interesting read. The beginning immediately captured my attention and the story isn’t like anything that I have ever read before. It was well written and featured a perspective that I’m still not sure if I like, but was definitely unique. How To Lose Everything felt muddy and blurred, filled with stressful drug and alcohol ridden events. Based on a true-to-life experience that the author had as a teen, Mattheis’ writing appears blunt, truthful, and shockingly realistic. The events in this novel follow the four teenagers as they each separately react to their newly acquired fortune. I think that what strikes me the most about their story is not necessarily the characters, or even their plot line, but watching how each one individually was impacted once they stole the money. None of these boys have a strong sense of ethical behaviour from the start of the book, and the newly discovered fortune seems to add to their steep downhill slide. Each boy was affected differently, some more tragically than others. The characters weren’t meant to be likeable and that made the book realistic though not necessarily attractive. It was definitely interesting story. The book ended somewhat abruptly. I felt that there was no main conclusion to many of the happenings. However, the main protagonist, Jonathan, seemed to achieve a fresh start from these eerie events and found a new sense of purpose. It was an intriguing read but not one that I feel a need to experience more than once. How To Lose Everything by Philipp Mattheis is a curious, virulent, and ominous book.

A new student review of Magical Mix-ups #3: Grasshopper Magic by Lynne Jonell

cowboys1 posted a new student review of Magical Mix-ups #3: Grasshopper Magic by Lynne Jonell. See the full review.

Abner Willow finds out he has to give a big speech in front of the whole town!  He is worried he will mess up.  His siblings decided he needs to practice being brave. One of the things he needs to do is eat some grasshoppers.  These grasshoppers are born from eggs underneath their house.  The soil in the town contains magic, so the grasshoppers have absorbed some of this magic!  When Abner and his sister eat the grasshoppers something magical begins to happen!

A new student review of Life II by Scott Spotson

AudreyCFarrell posted a new student review of Life II by Scott Spotson. See the full review.

This book got me really excited, as I love thinking about time travel and the theories of time, paradoxes, etc. It is a fantastical concept to write a book about. This alone drove me to read all 650 pages of Life II. And the plot is good, it really is. Sadly, this story was approached in a way that didn't really suit the themes that accompany such an emotionally and physically complex plot line. The dialogue felt very wooden, and inhuman. Ironically, some of the most organic dialogue came from the aliens, rather than the human beings.

Character development is always going to be difficult to write when a plot involves time travel, and reliving past experiences, and reading Life II gave me the distinct suspicion that the author was not entirely prepared to write about the main character, Max Thorning. Any emotional reactions that Max had in the book felt wooden, as if they had been copied and pasted directly from a speculative psychology textbook, and not from the author's understanding of their character. 

It is my personal belief that the writer should always know their character as they would a spouse, or close friend. In order to write of the emotional experiences, thoughts, and actions of a real person, you have to understand that person's emotional experiences, thoughts, and actions. The same goes for fictional characters. Life II's description of Max Thorning felt very disconnected, and quite fictional. It was difficult to connect with the character, or even think of him as anything more than a character in a book.

That being said, I respect the author for approaching a story on such a massive scale. Over 26 years pass from the beginning of the novel to the end. Relationships form and are broken, choices are made, consequences are dealt with. It is enormously difficult to compress that much of a life (of multiple lives, in the context of the book) into written form, though, with the concise writing style used throughout Life II, I am surprised that it took 650 pages to do so. The result was a very readable book. Long, but readable. I do disagree with labling this book "science fiction," as the science fiction is only the set up for what is essentially a life, relived.

A new student review of Sticky Fingers: DIY Duct Tape Projects by Sophie Maletsky

sisto8 posted a new student review of Sticky Fingers: DIY Duct Tape Projects by Sophie Maletsky. See the full review.

This book was a pretty interesting book.  My little sisters enjoyed the projects and wanted to do all of them right away.  I think this book is for kids around the age of 9 to use.  The steps were clear and easy to follow.  I have read other books/instructions on projects like these, but they weren’t nearly as good.  The pictures were nice.  They showed what the step is supposed to look like before and after.  All in all, this book is a fun book for art lovers 8+.

A new student review of Kaleidoscope Me by Hillary K. Grigonis

wallace.madi posted a new student review of Kaleidoscope Me by Hillary K. Grigonis. See the full review.

This book was very moving. It had a good balance of action and dialogue. The protagonist, Jadyn, was relatable and very vividly portrayed. I felt like I knew her!

I had trouble at times keeping up with the flashblacks and time switches, which made focusing on the actual present time story difficult. However, the book's ending really wrapped up all the flashbacks and left me satisfied.

Overall, it was a perfect book for helping understand family dynamics after death, with just the right amount of suspense and real emotion to bring it to life. I'd recommend it for any teens or preteens going through a difficult time of loss or just looking for a realistic story to read again and again. 

A new student review of The Turning

R. Mae posted a new student review of The Turning . See the full review.

The Turning was as addicting as it was inspiring. David Bunn's poetic and descriptive writing style flowed effortlessly. I was completely in awe of his characters, who seemed as real as the fact that you can't eat ice cream everyday without getting fat. And while the plot started out slow, it soon became a page turner. 

 

David Bunn designed his cast of characters to be unique yet relatable. They each faced their own problems and learned their own lessons. The content was never bad, but it was definitely meant for a mature age group. Some of the concepts would be difficult for younger teens to understand.  The book tackled the difficult process of overcoming your past and reaching for God. It shed light on the relationship between God and the media. Also, David Bunn asked the question; would you do whatever it takes?

 

The plot did start out slow, but then you reach a point of no return and join the characters on an epic roller coaster ride. It was inspiring, creative, and thought provoking. I began reading the book without a real idea of what it was going to teach me, but in the end I realized that this book indentifys the questions that we are all afraid to ask. The story was full of debate and action in the sense of fighting for what you believe in. It wasn't a YA dystopian, where the characters solve problems by shooting each other. In The Turning they solved problems the way we do in real life, through words and the media. 

 

Above all of those other things, the writing was the best. It was like David Bunn was weaving an exquisite tapestry right before my eyes. Colorful and insightful, the beautiful wording grabbed my attention and held it. I couldn't stop reading. I was transported to David Bunn's world. 

 

So to finish, it was an absolutely beautiful book, with a realistic plot, identifiable characters, and gorgeous writing. I would recommend this book to mature teenagers who are Christians and non-Christians alike. 

 

 

 

A new student review of Solstice: a novel of the Zombie Apocalypse by P.J. Hoover

Zbot4231 posted a new student review of Solstice: a novel of the Zombie Apocalypse by P.J. Hoover. See the full review.

 It was a really good book. I thought that it was filled with suspense and a good amount of action. If you're looking for a book where you never know when someone could die or someone could save the entire human race, then this is the book for you.

A new student review of Counting to D by Kate Scott

isabel123 posted a new student review of Counting to D by Kate Scott. See the full review.

My opinion is that this novel is interesting because it talks about a teenage girl with dyslexia. I think if you like love/romance novel you should get this book. 

A new student review of Get Psyched by Janet McLaughlin

hannah_marie3701 posted a new student review of Get Psyched by Janet McLaughlin. See the full review.

My opinion about this book is it's very good. I loved it a lot, and I would definitely read it again. Usually I don't like reading, but something about this book sucked me in. I would really recommend this book to my friends.