Danger Boy, By Mark London Williams

The book that I read over the summer is called Danger Boy, By Mark London Williams. This was the first book in the series and it is about a boy named Eli. Eli’s dad used to work for a company called DARPA. Eli’s dad use to make machines that used something called a WOMPER charge to travel things through time. After Eli’s mom gets sucked into a time sphere, Eli’s dad decides to try to run away from DARPA. They move to a place in the country named Valley of The Moon, and although they try hard, the company agents find them. Then Eli’s dad starts to work again because of a new discovery. There is an outburst of small pox and Eli has to go back to ancient Alexandria to try to find out how it started (In order to find a cure). While he is there he finds a young girl who is accused of being a witch and a futuristic lizard boy from a different dimension. The three of them have many adventures together. At the beginning of every chapter the author tells you who is telling the story in that chapter, where it is, and when it is. This is important because the book is about time travel. You need to know who is speaking and what year and dimension you are in. for example, throughout the book the characters are in ancient Alexandria, present time, and a different dimension. The book uses foreshadowing. In this book the author gives subtle hints to what is going to happen in the next book in the series. This is also a form on cliffhanger. Every book ends with a question or a big event that makes you want to read the next book. There is much internal conflict in the book. Eli lost his mom in an accident a long time ago and throughout the book he is hoping that he will find her. He is drawn sometimes between trying to save his friends, and trying to rescue his mother. I would recommend this book to anyone who loves adventure books. The first book is great and the books get better as the series progresses.

2099 Betrayal

During the summer of 2010 I read the book 2099 Betrayal by John Peel. It is the second book of the 2099 Series. It is an action science fiction thriller that is about a teenager (Devon) and a unique terrorist organization called Quietus outside of earth trying to destroy this computerized planet. The external conflict is the main character Tristan, Devon’s supposed clone is being chased by the police because they think he let out the Doomsday virus which Devon did. The internal conflict in the novel is that Tristan’s girlfriend Mora is also led to believe he set out the virus. Mora was the closet person to Tristan so Tristan has to find a way to clear is name with all the mental problems. The mane characters in this story are Tristan (already mentioned), Devon (mentioned), Mora (mentioned), Genia- an underworld, genius girl who is amazing with computers and was able to get a sample of the virus on a chip. Inspector Shamoda who is high up a high up police operative assigned to track down the person who set off the doomsday device but she is going after Tristan, mistakenly when she should be going after Devon.
Some incredibly important details in this story details in this story are-Tristan manages to contain the internet virus by making a virtual blockade but it can’t hold up for much longer. Tristan escapes from Quietus terrorists by slashing at one of their necks and running. But when Shamoda comes to save him (before she thought it was him) the identified the skin in Tristan’s nails from when he scratches his neck and the DNA shows up as Shamoda’s boss’s DNA. Tristan’s girlfriend tries to hand him into the cops betraying him (hens the name of the book Betrayal). Genia helps Shamoda track down Tristan when she gives her the virus sample but Shimoda’s boss sees Genia and sends her to jail. He sent her to jail but Shamoda is curios how mysteriously her boss knew she was from the Underworld. Devon leaves his home for the first time in his life.
John Peel uses makes this story unique from the multiple points of view he shows from the characters. This is the reason why there are so many main characters. The author also uses many literary devices to enhance the story. He uses setting with every character (except Devon) currently in the suburbs of Manhattan while the “Net” (computer systems) is getting destroyed their. The year is also a big piece in this story because so much has change in this world thus affecting the mood. The year is 2099 and the world is soon to crumble. Peel uses foil character making Devon and Quietus the evil characters and the rest good.
This book was definitely one of my favorite books. It is the second book of a 2099 series. I read the first book is called 2099 Doomsday Fear the Year and it was so good I continued on to 2099 Betrayal. And I plan on reading the rest of the series and you should too.

Sea of Monsters Blog

                         Have you ever wondered about the mysteries of Greek mythology? Have you ever wondered what would happen if all those myths appeared into the actual world itself? I got to see this occur, not in real life, but in the pages of a book. The book (The Sea of Monsters) by Rick Riordan moves things along as the sequel to (The Lightning Thief) and starts another chapter in the Percy Jackson series. People might remember the past events taken in (The Lightning Thief.) People who have already read the series already know about Percy Jackson, he is a demi-god (half human, half god) who is the son of Poseidon and has ADHD. Most of the time he doesn’t do well in school because most of the written English letters can be easily read by regular humans themselves, but to Percy, the letters start to scramble all over the chalkboard like little kids on the playground. After the incidents held in (The Lightning Thief.), it has already reached the end of Percy’s school year. But some strange things have been going on because Percy has been having strange dreams which are revealed as messages from his friend Grover, a satyr that has helped Percy in the past events. Grover says that he has been held captive by a Cyclops who mistook Grover as a lovely Cyclops that he wants to marry, and says that if he ever spilled the beans that he was indeed a satyr, and not a Cyclops, the one-eyed beast would eat him. After a brawl with monsters on a dodge ball court, he reunites with Annabeth (another one of Percy’s friends, she is also a demi-god.) and Tyson comes along to accompany him in his adventures. Percy is guided back to Camp-Half Blood, a place he has treasured since the first time he has been there. After taking care of business there, he encounters an internal conflict. Tyson was in fact a Cyclops, and Percy was shocked by the fact that he was actually his brother, and so, in one day, Percy, who was once a hero after the events in the past book turned into a person that people didn’t really honor anymore. Along with the internal conflict, he has noticed that a tree that keeps Camp Half- Blood was poisoned, and that the only cure was a golden fleece that was in the Sea of Monsters. That’s how Percy started a journey to the Sea of Monsters, in order to save Grover, and Camp Half-Blood.

                 Rick Riordan features many scenes that will blow your mind in this book. The word choice and the events that will happen in the book will make you think more about other events that may have happened in (The Lightning Thief

Eclipse by Stephanie Meyer

Over the summer, a really book I read was Eclipse, written by Stephanie Meyer. It’s a magical realism that can make you smile, cry, and make you want to read it over and over again. The book is about how Bella Swan, a stubborn, yet confused teenager is once again surrounded with danger. She has to choose between Edward Cullen, her vampire boyfriend, or Jacob Black, one of her best friends. Although Bella and Edward are in a big relationship, Jacob thinks that he might be better for her. The only problem is, is that one of the decisions she’s making either ends to life or death. The thing that is really unique and special about this book is how the author puts so much vivid imagery and detail. She makes all the characters seem to come alive.
A really huge conflict throughout the book is external and internal conflict with Jacob and Edward. It seems to be a man vs. man situation. Jacob and Edward both don’t like and agree with each other, and they are both fighting for Bella’s love. While Edward seems a bit unsure of himself and how he and Bella’s relationship would turn out, Jacob seems to feel a bit jealous of how Bella and Edward have a stronger relationship. The overall message of this book seems to be, that although people can go through tough and hard situations, don’t worry that much, because it usually turns out alright.
I really loved and enjoyed this book!! I wouldn’t really recommend it for little kids, but I would definitely recommend it for teenagers and adults. (they would understand it a lot better) =)

Over the summer i read a book from one of the best series ever, The sisters grimm. The book in the series was Tales From the hood. The book is about two girls sabrina, and daffny. They are living with there grandma, Granny Relda. Then there's Mr. Canis. Mr canis is the big bad wolf in human form, at any given moment he can turn into the big bad wolf. Then there's puck. Puck is an elf that looks like a boy but is really 2000 years old.
In the book The sisters Grimm Tales From the hood, Mr. Canis is on trial for murder. The rest of the charachters are searching for the real killer. Through the book Sabrina thinks it's better that Mr. Canis stays in jail for the safety of there family. Sabrina tells Daffny, so they get into a fight about how nice a man Mr.Canis is and why he should/ shouldn't go. This book is very intreging right at the moment.
THE END OF THE BOOK WILL SHOCK YOU.
-Paul Damiano

The novel Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer is the last book in the Twilight series. Throughout the series there has been a love story told between a vampire, Edward, and a human, Bella. The previous books have told the complications of being in a relationship with someone who is different than you. This has put Bella, Edward and Edward’s family, who are also vampires, in life threatening events.
In the beginning of this book it is Bella and Edwards are only days away from getting married. Bella has been nervous and has somewhat been resenting it. Once she actually gets the she starts to enjoy it. After the wedding Edward takes Bella to Esme’s Island, an island that Edward’s dad Carlisle bought for Edward’s mom Esme. Bella later becomes pregnant with a half mortal, half vampire child. Once finding this out Edward and Bella rush home. The baby is to powerful for a human to carry but Bella still wants to have it. The decision to keep the baby is cause Bella much pain because the baby I growing at a rapid rate and is crushing and breaking Bella’s ribs. Once things are finally looking better the baby shatters Bella’s spine because it has fully developed in her stomach. Edward had to rip the baby out of Bella’s stomach, Bella would have died but Edward shot Bella with venom in her heart which changed her from a human to a vampire.
When Bella finally woke up after the change everything is different she sees things more clearly and can hear things that are a mile away, the main change was that not only does she still love Edward but she can’t stay away from her daughter Renesmee. After everything that has happened everyone thinks that they are safe but the biggest probable hasn’t even come yet. To find out what happens next read the amazing novel Breaking Dawn.

The Life You Imagine

Over the summer I read a book by Derek Jeter with Jack Curry. The book is called, The Life You Imagined, and it’s about how Derek Jeter got up to the major league level. This book is an autobiography about his life experiences. This book is written as a chapter book. In this book, there are real pictures of Jeter, his parents and special events that he went through. This book also features people talking about his skills of baseball and how good he was at such a young age. He put all of these features into this book to make it easier to understand what he did and how while getting up the major league level.
When you read this book yourself, you will be amazed at how many different events he went through. His parents were making sure that he was safe at all times throughout his life. He worked very hard at and did what had to come first such as school work before going out to play ball. When you read this book you will find out what else Jeter did and went through other than working hard every single day at baseball.During his childhood, he was a good kid. He did nothing bad and always worked hard when it came to school. He kept his grades up near the A range in all classes. Just like Jeter worked hard in school he also worked hard in practice with a good attitude. He always had his mind set to be the best. Jeter stayed in good shape and ate healthy. Derek was as all around player too, because he could run, hit, throw, and field. He was talented when it came to baseball. Jeter tried hard in games too. He would keep on hitting the ball game after game after game. He would make great plays in the field also. Jeter was made to play baseball. This book tells you many of his life experiences and how he tired to help people from staying away from thing you shouldn’t do in life. This book will also tell you his role models along the way. He had more than just one and he followed in there foot steps. Some of his role models played baseball and some didn’t.

Andrew Z. Shift by Jennifer bradbury

An interesting book that I recently got hooked on is Shift. Shift is a mystery written by Jennifer Bradbury. The characters in the book are Win, Chris, their parents and an F.B.I. agent named Mr. Ward. Chris and Win, friends since they were little kids, decide to bike across the country. They began in West Virginia and rode all the way to the west coast of Washington. Chris and Win were conditioned riders, who competed in bi-athalons and other races. On the trip, Win leaves Chris behind when he has a flat tire and disappears. Soon after Chris arrives home on the bus alone, Win’s lies unravel and Chris becomes a prime suspect in Win’s disappearance. Chris is then grilled by the F.B.I. Agent. Will the truth come out?

The writing style of Jennifer Bradbury is very intriguing. The whole story of the bike expedition and the disappearance is told through the questions and investigations of Mr. Ward. Chris seems like a pretty cool character that does well under pressure. Even when Mr. Ward is interrogating him, Chris stays cool and collected. But his mother is the complete opposite. She worries and over reacts to everything. When Chris was leaving for the trip, she was worrying and upset that he was going on the trip. Chris’s father is an understanding person. He was the one who encouraged Chris to go on the trip. The father wanted Chris to complete the trip because of his own person problems in his past. When he was younger, he was going to drive his vintage Mustang across the country, but never actually left, and got swept up in responsibilities. Chris’s father sees himself in his son. He wants Chris to make the journey, to fill a void inside him. I am not sure of the real motive of Chris and Win to ride across the country, but I am sure it will come out later in the book. I can’t wait to continue reading the book and learn the Truth!

Pretty Little Liars

Pretty Little Liars By Sara Shepard

Over the summer I read the realistic fiction book Pretty Little Liars the first book in the Pretty Little Liars series by Sara Shepard. This book is about four girls Aria, Hanna, Spencer, and Emily who all live in Rosewood Pennsylvania. They were also friends with a girl named Alison. Alison was the leader out of all of them, but only Spencer was the one that wasn’t afraid of her. Aria was quiet, Hanna wanted to be like Alison, and Emily was lost in her own problems. All the girls trusted Alison; with all of their secrets.

A main external conflict was that it wasn’t until the day that they found Alison’s body. After three years of being missing, and the girls separating, the four friends went to Alison’s funeral and got a mysterious message from ‘A’. The mysterious ‘A’ was just like Alison; she knew of all their secrets. ‘A’ was following the girls every move, they knew everything. But before Alison disappeared she made bracelets for all the girls so they would all remember that they would keep each others secrets and the biggest secret between their friendships for as long as they lived. And even ‘A’ knew about that. As they were trying to keep there biggest secret by blaming Toby Cavanaugh for the Jenna thing, the secret started to unravel. As they try to hide ‘A’ more and more the more secrets that are being told.

Eventually the girls thought that ‘A’ was Alison’s killer but secrets that ‘A’ knew showed that it wasn’t. “A’ didn’t’ just know the secrets Ali knew but they also knew the secrets that the girls were making at that very moment, they were watching them, they could have been in their school, or maybe even their friends. ‘A’ was right in front of them.

The story goes back and forth between Aria, Hanna, Spencer, and Emily. In the begging of each book and sometimes in the beginning it shows a part of an event when Alison as still alive and as if she still was. I would recommend this book because it is suspenseful, exciting and full of secrets and drama. Anyone that likes secrets and drama should read this series.

"Shooting Star," by Fredrick McKissak Jr. - Evan Shlom - Spoiler Alert

            Probably the best football story I have ever read is Shooting Star, by Fredrick McKissak Jr.  It is a touching story that both reveals what steroids can do to your life, and meanwhile, still manages to include moments of triumphant glory.  The novel begins with Jomo Rodgers, a sophomore strong safety on his football team, failing to win a battle for the championship trophy of the state.  Being a nation-wide famous varsity team, written down in history many times before, the team goes into momentary depression.  That is, until Jomo’s best friend, Jayson, the team’s star running back only in sophomore year, inspires everyone with a minimally-worded speech, followed with a group chant to pump the team back up into a positive state of mind.  Meanwhile, Jomo fails to absorb the joyous emotions that fill the room.  The teams head coach, Coach McPherson takes major note of Jomo’s seemingly effortless care for the team’s potential success, and along with that, his potential success with the team.

Here lies the temporary problem between Jomo and his coach, and even partially within Jomo’s self confidence and mental indifferences that grow between him and his friends and family.  He needs a way to get him to the top.  A path that will lead him to victory, even among his fellow players.  His coach later assigns him a workout program to follow, instructed by a woman name Jeri who knows what she’s talking about, being a former professional biker.  .  After becoming one of the “Top 5 prospects” in the newspaper, along with his best friend Jayson, he realizes his spectacular potential.  Although there was one negative about him that Jomo was hearing constantly: he was too small.  At around five feet seven inches, and one hundred and sixty pounds, Jomo was a very small player, compared to his cohorts.  Jomo knew that he didn’t have time for pointless workouts giving him minimal results.  He needed something that would spark his body and send him rocketing through the competition.  He was a small kid…but that just wouldn’t work for him.

            Out of all his fellow football players, there was one who pretty much the entire team considered a “walking drug store.”  His name being Casey Fitzgerald, everyone called him Fitzie.  Fitzie had “the knowledge of every supplement known to man.”  Because of Fitzie’s heavy involvement in muscle enhancers, Jomo guessed that Fitzie would even have connections to steroid dealers.  He was right.  Fitzie had connected Jomo to a dangerous, lying “skin head.”  This punk’s name was Ganz, a man who could con anyone into becoming his permanent customer.  He had so many tricks up his sleeve, that the only way Jomo was able to escape Ganz’s grasp of scams and traps was by attempted suicide, which obviously revealed his secret to his parents.

            But before this, Jomo experienced the nightmarish life of what it is like to abuse anabolic steroids.  He experienced a couple of the biological side-effects, like acne breakouts and rapid production/growth of sex hormones causing him to lose his beloved girl friend, Miranda.  He also experienced other major impacts on his life from his steroid overuse, like “roid rage,” which ruined many of his relationships with other teenagers and relatives.  His own uncle (who was also his boss) almost fired him from his luxurious job.  He even got in a gigantic brawl with one of his former-buddies, Harper, except Jayson broke it up right before Jomo was literally about to kill him.  So even though Harper was had the role of the “leader” of their former clique, once on steroids, Jomo could’ve easily overpowered him.  As a matter of fact, the second Jayson got complete control of Jomo, Harper immediately dashed around the corner of the hallway, as Jomo fought his way out of Jayson’s tough grasp.  Once free of Jayson, Jomo roared at Jayson, aggressively emitting a colorful vocabulary.  So…all of these awful dilemmas are occurring throughout Jomo’s childhood, and in return for what?  Big muscles?  Because no one in the whole wide world should believe that tradeoff is actually worth it.  Jomo’s family-life and friendships become torn apart as he completely undermines his father’s reputation and confidence.  His beloved girlfriend storms out on him because of the steroids messing with his mind.  And, of course, he clearly breaks the rules of his football league, by taking anabolic steroids.  This book is a compellingly true example of what steroids can do to you, let alone the fact that anabolic steroids can have a numerous amount of other side-effects than the ones included in this breathtaking novel. 

            I really loved this book so much that I can definitely say that, without a doubt, this is by far the best novel I have ever read.  I recommend it to anyone who has any involvement in sports, of course particularly in the famous sport of football.  I give it a solid five-star rating.

Video:

- YouTube Video - Fun, but still informative video which includes Mario and Peach and the downsides of taking anabolic steroids.  This video has been reviewed and used by High School Health classes for finals focused on drug abuse.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qSom8Pfv-9U

Ashley M. Shannon Hale, The princess academy

In the book The Princess Academy by Shannon Hale the main character Miri is a mountain girl who works in the fields to support her family, but little did she know that her village would be chosen for the prince to find his princess. The main challenge is that Miri had to compete against her close/ not so close friends to win the prince’s heart. She must study as hard as she can to make a good impression and meet the standards of a princess. There was only one problem; Miri was in love her best friend Peder from her hometown. In order to find out if Miri wants to try and be the princess or if she wants to be with Peder; Miri has to find out how Peder really feels about her.
Peder has a huge impact on Miri’s life because the decision she makes will change her whole life completely. She ends up going back home to visit everyone and ends up spending a lot of time with him he finally makes his a move and kisses her. I would defiantly recommend this book to any teenager that wants a new book because it’s a very lovely story and has a great ending.

Megan C. Getting Revenge on Luaran Wood.

The realistic fiction book I read over the summer called Getting Revenge on Luaran Wood by Eileen Cook, really held my interest because it is about teenage girls. The situation that takes place in this story is what many girls would be familiar with the drama that goes on and could relate to then feelings of the main character Helen or Claire. I personally could relate to the heart sinking feeling when your BFF or now EX-BFF back stabs you. That is why I highly recommend this to every teenage girl to either help them with their struggles with girls or prevent girls from ruining their relationships.

The main characters in this book are Helen/Claire and Luaran Wood. Theses characters took a great part of this book and had differences which made each there stand out even more. For example, Luaran Wood is considered a mean/popular girl of the high school, and is very narcissistic and most of all… selfish. See Helen was the complete opposite until she let her grudges get the best of her. By Eileen Cook putting Luaran in the book she used foiled characters.
A few of the conflicts both external and internal are that Helen has to keep her cover and not let her secret identity be revealed. Helen’s main internal conflict involves her feelings towards her new friend and Luaran. Her conflict is whether or not she should be in a relationship because she was afraid it would get in the way of her plan to get revenge.
In the book there is a main lesson Cook tries to send out towards the reader by showing that holding grudges, always lead to no good. Cook made the book like a dairy so you could connect to Helen’s feelings. By Cook doing so, it much easier comprehend what is going on inside Helen’s head.

I would tell teenage girl readers to give this book a chance because I truly enjoyed reading this book, enough for me to finish it in two days! Teenage girls should use this book as a guideline of how to not handle drama.

Replay by Sharon Creech

In the beginning of the school year, I read a realistic fiction book called Replay by Sharon Creech. This book is about a boy named Leo, and how no one pays attention to what he says, or does. Leo is a very imaginative person, he day dreams when he think he is the hero of the situation. When in reality he isn’t, he is mostly the cause, of the situation. That why his sibling, family members, and sometimes teachers call him sardine or fog boy, but one day his drama teacher called him the dreamer. Which made Leo very proud of himself because he the only one who doesn’t care what around him

Leo’s main external conflict is that he and his whole family don’t get along together. He always in the middle, of something like when his brother and sister fight, or when his mother or father can’t find something, they accept him to know where it is. When he asks about Rosaria he should know who she is, and what happened to her. The main internal conflict that Leo has is that he feels invisible to the people around him, and he feels his talents are no good to people.

I think the author’s overall message is if you are good at something you should follow your dream, even if you think no one thinks you up for the challenge. The story was mostly about Leo, and the love he has to tap dance and act. This makes the reader think, that Leo was more like his father, when he was a child. But his father hates tap dancing and acting because it reminds him of his childhood. The unique thing about the author’s writing style is when the characters have a long dialogue; the author would make it into a script type of way. When Leo reads his father autobiography he wrote when he was 13 years old, the things that happened to his father would be in italic, so the reader knows who is speaking Leo. The literary devices the author used were mood/tone to describe the daydreams Leo had. Also ambiguity, so the reader wouldn’t know why the family was sad when Leo said the name Rosaria.

My overall opinion, of the book is the meaning ,of the book, which is to never give up on your dreams. It’s good to be very imaginative because you have an open mind of everything you want ,or dream to do. I would recommend it to kids or teenagers, who feel that they aren’t good at anything. When you find something your good at go for it, and don’t let no one stop you from achieving your goal.

Boy by: Roald Dahl

Last Year I read the book Boy by Roald Dahl. This book is an autobiography about Roald’s life. Also because it is and autobiography Roald is the main character. In the book Roald tells us the persuaded, informed and entertained information in the 1900’s. At first he lets us know that at a certain point in his life is that he is sent to boarding school were all the headmasters are evil. The did not treat him right, they hit him every chance they got to. Next he talks about the 1900’s to let us know that things are much different here than they are there. On the first page Roald’s dad fell of the roof and a drunken doctor thought it was a dislocated shoulder but when in fact it was a fractured elbow. The doctor said he had to pull it out and he got men from the street to help pull. His arm came right off his body; this wouldn’t have happened if there were proper doctors in the 1900’s. Finally he through Roald’s life he tells us about his funny pranks he used to pull on people and his sarcasm by entertaining us through the story. There was this time were someone had a conversation with Roald he asked him about his future, “What is your greatest wish in life, little boy? What is your absolute ambition? To be a doctor? A fine musician? A painter? A writer? Or a Lord Chancellor? I would have answered without hesitation that my only ambition, my hope, my longing was to have a bike like that and to go whizzing down the hill with no hands on the handlebars.” (28). I thought that was very hilarious.

I would recommend this book to others. The story Boy has a powerful meaning and a lot to give. Roald is a great character because he has had a book worth of experiences to share to everyone who picks up this wonderful book. In the end Roald Dahl has a great imagination and when he gets a pen he can’t put it down until a masterpiece is finished like in his other books but this is not just a book, not just a story, this is his life.

By: Trey Davis

13 Reasons Why by Jay Asher

This summer I read a book called Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher. This book is about how one girl, named Hannah, took her life, and thought she should share thirteen reasons why she did. So right before Hannah killed herself, she made thirteen cassette tapes. Every tape was meant for a specific person, including the sad, lost Clay Jensen. Clay never really knew Hannah, but there was always something that fascinated him about her. As Clay sets out to find the real reason why, and the real story why Hannah did what she thought she had to, he discovers how he feels about Hannah, something he really never knew before. This is a heartbreaking tale about how high school sometimes may turn out.
Asher uses strong mode and voice throughout this book. Hannah has a strong, empowering voice that is just mesmerizing to hear. This book also sets this deep mode throughout the book. It’s sometimes happy, or funny, but then it may make you want to cry. Asher does a very good job at creating his characters. He is very descriptive about them, so you feel like you know them. Like you can feel what they are going through, or you can hear what they hear. You feel close to them, and then to realize that, in Hannah’s case, they’re gone; never coming back. This book makes you want to jump in and say, “It could have been different if you wanted it to be!”. Asher definitely knows how to move you through the book.
I would definitely recommend this book. It teaches you very valuable lesson, and you never want to but it down. This is a great book, and if you do choose to read it, I hope you end up enjoying it as much as I did. I absolutely feel in love with this book, and all the characters in it.
-By lauren Sanfilippo

Fight Club by Chuck Palahniuk

This summer I read the book Fight Club by Chuck Palahniuk. Oddly enough the book starts off with the main character who goes unnamed throughout the book, and Tyler both standing on the top of the Parker-Morris Building which is on fire with and will imminently explode, and destroy the National Museum. Tyler had a gun in the main character’s mouth, and a police helicopter is over head. The bulk of the book is the journey of the two characters, from strangers, to friends, to roommates, to enemies. In the book, the main character, and Tyler start a fight club. It started in a parking lot, and ended up in a bar’s basement. As I write this I’m breaking both rule #1, and rule #2 of Fight Club, don’t talk about Fight Club, there is a total of ten rules. As the story progresses, more and more fight clubs open; and eventually Tyler and the main character create a Fight Club boot camp, which has every member do one task perfectly, whether it is cooking, cleaning, or yard work. The members are called “space monkeys”, and they do whatever Tyler tells them to, from tending flowers, to blowing up buildings. The main characters make a living by making soap, and selling it to high end stores, they work out of a rundown rental house, which they also call home, and house “space monkeys” in the basement. To feel alive, the main character goes from support meeting to support meeting; he did this before Fight Club was made, and when he had still lived a semi normal life, besides what the main character thinks to be insomnia. I feel the author's message was to doubt reality, the author expressed this in many creative ways. What I found unique in the book were the characters; the characters really make the entire story. A good highlight in the story was the twist in the end, and how the author describes heaven. One literary device used was foreshadowing, in the beginning of the book it really foreshadows the end; the author hints Tyler's secret all through the book. I liked the book, but I would overall not recommend this book to the class, as there is a lot of poor language, and violence scattered throughout the book.

Pandora Gets Heart by: Carolyn Hennesy

Over the summer I read a historical fiction book, Pandora Gets Heart, by Carolyn Hennesy. This is the fourth book in the Pandora series. The story takes place in ancient Greece. It is based on the story about Pandora opening a box unleashing all the evils into the world. Her main conflict is that she must collect the 7 evils she had unleashed. If she fails to do that, then the gods will punish her and her family for eternity. Plus she’ll have to live with the fact that she ruined everyone else’s life as well as her own. Furthermore, she also carries a burden knowing that she set the whole world into a panic. She often stresses and worries about her family’s safety as well as her friends.
The characters in this book play a significant role in the story. Each of them has strength and weaknesses, but most importantly they all support each other! Iole is very smart and she has a lot of knowledge about the gods, it comes in handy in many of the situations they face. But she is very frail and weak. Alcie is very brave, and she’ll do anything to help her friends, but she has a very big mouth, sometimes she blurts out things she doesn’t mean. Homer, one of the people they meet along their journey, is quite the poet. Since he’s strong he’s a big help to Pandora’s quest, but he isn’t the smartest person around. Of course Pandora relies on all her friends as well. She is strong and finds herself growing up and becoming mature and taking on responsibility while on her journey. Everyone helps each other out through their strengths and weaknesses, and that’s what helps them succeed in the book.
In this book, there are also many literary devices used to make the book enjoyable. For instance, this book includes foil characters. Hera (a god,) is one of the main foil characters; she always tries to ruin everything and most of the time she succeeds. Her main goal is to keep Pandora from collecting the evils so she can ruin her life. Conflict is also the main part of the story. Without a problem, this book wouldn’t be fun to read at all! The author does a good job of explaining the conflict of the story. Also the author uses mood/tone. Even though the book is historical fiction and about Greek gods, that doesn’t make the book boring. Carolyn Henessy puts voice into her writing and she makes the story very lively and vivid. She gives all the characters in the book personality; it makes the story seem more realistic when character trait is added in. Plus, the story is told in third-person view so it gives you a chance to understand all of the characters thoughts. Third-person helps when you’re trying to understand each person’s internal conflict.
Carolyn Hennesy has a very unique writing style, the story is about ancient people but it isn’t a boring book about history. The characters talk more like they would in present times, and the author weaves in different facts about the ancient gods in a very fluent way. Carolyn Hennesy makes the story come alive with her word choice and makes it more vivid with her detail. The main highlights of the book are that Pandora must collect the evils she had unleashed into the world in 6 months. That task isn’t very easy to accomplish, she and her friends must overcome many hard obstacles too. Battling monsters, or mythical creatures, and trying to receive help from the gods without getting caught by Zeus. If they don’t succeed to catch the evils then Pandora will have to face consequences, and since she is facing the gods, her punishment will be very agonizing. The author’s message seems to be that, if you truly want to accomplish something, you have to try hard. Plus, nothing will come easy unless you try your hardest. Take Pandora for instance, she has come face to face with a hard and almost impossible task. But she wants to fix her mistake knowing the consequences that will follow. She has accomplished so much because she tries and believes in herself. Her friends are always ther to encourage her.
Overall, this was a really great book. It was a fun read and it was nice reading about the Greek gods and learning about their personalities. It’s a whole new story about the Greek myth, Pandora’s Box.

Perfect by Natasha Friend

What do you think of when you hear the word perfect?...

Over the summer, I read a book called Perfect by Natasha Friend. This realistic fiction novel revolves around a girl named Isabelle Lee. Her father died and she had trouble coping with it, so she started binge eating. One day, her sister April caught her in the act, then tells their mother. Isabelle is forced to go to group therapy about body image. She is surprised to find the most popular girl in school, Ashley Barnum, in group. How could she be in group? She is perfect! Well at least that’s what she thought.. Ashley had bulimia just like Isabelle. Over time, they become friends. Isabelle ditches her two best friends Nola and Georgie, for Ashley and her friends. Nola and Georgie are astonished when they see Isabelle having lunch with the famous Ashley Barnum. Overtime, Isabelle realizes that Ashley doesn't have such a great life like she thought. How could Isabelle do such a thing? Perfect uses a lot of literary devices. Especially foil characters. Ashley and Isabelle are so different, that they contrast. Ashley is pretty, popular and everything a girl wants to be. Isabelle is one of those girls no one knows. Other than the fact that their both bulimic, they have nothing in common. Characterization and conflict are also major literary devices in this book.Natasha Friend really paints a picture in the readers mind about the characters. This is significant because if Ashley and Isabelle were exactly the same. Their friendship wouldnt be surprising or controversial. The conflicts are really obvious in this book, bulimia. I think the fact that the two main characters of the book are going through the same thing is very original. This book taught me a lot about bulimia and anorexia. At the end of the book, the author dedicates a page about these two diseases. I feel that if more people read this book they can realize how serious these two diseases are. My overall opinion of the book is that it was amazing! I thought the author made this book very easy to relate to. Also, this book taught me something I didn't know much about (anorexia and bulimia).

The Mediator Series by Meg Cabot

A wonderful book I read this summer was The Mediator Series:Twilight by Meg Cabot. In this book The main character Suze can see and talk to ghosts,The people who have powers like hers are called mediators. Suze is an aggressive yet helpful young lady. Suze focuases on helping ghosts get to the next life.Her peer Paul Slater is also a mediator.Unlike suze Paul likes to steel from the ghost and mock there problems,he often tells suze that a mediators job is not to help ghosts just to listen and mock.The next character is Jesse De Sliva.Jesse is a ghost who died 150 years ago when he was 20 years old.Jesse is a sensitive and caring young man,with a passion for helping people.
The main conflict of this book is that both Jesse and Paul are in love with Suze.Suze however does not know who to choose.She loves Jesse but he is a ghost and can not give her a decent life.Jesse can never be introduced to suze's parents,he can never get married or have children with her,and he will never grow older than 20,not that it matters because only mediators can see him anyways.Jesse would always be Suze's little secret almost like an imaginary friend.Paul on the other hand is gorgeous ,wealthy,and human.Paul has every thing suze would ever need, there is only one problem he's a huge jerk.The message Meg Cabot is trying to portray is that true love concurs all ,and that if you are mean to people you wont get anywhere in life.
Cabot uses foreshaowding alot in this book.She uses it well and it adds to the unique genre of magical realism.Her foreshawding keeps you on your toes and wanting to turn the page.Cabot uses ambiguity,foil character,and a great setting.For foil characters Pauls jerkyyness makes Jesse better,and for setting the old house Suze lives in was a perfect place for her to meet Jesse.I love this book and i would deffently recomend it to girls my age.

Nightmare by Joan Lowery Nixon

When I read the book Nightmare by Joan Lowery Nixon over the summer, I was immediately hooked and couldn’t put the book down. The mystery novel Nightmare is a suspenseful and unpredictable, story that combines dreams, or nightmares, with reality. There was excitement and suspense from the first page to the last. Emily Wood, the main character, is an under achiever, or at least it seems that way compared to her straight A siblings. As a result, Emily was sent into a summer camp called Camp Excel: a summer camp for under achievers. Ever since Emily Wood, was a little girl she had one disturbing reoccurring nightmare. Every night when she slept, she saw a dead woman in a lake, then a sudden flash of light appears out of nowhere and as she ran away with terror, she heard a voice screaming for her; telling her that he’ll find her one day, but she thought if she never told anyone about it, it would go away, she was wrong. Emily’s roommate, Hayley made her pick rune stones -stones that suppose ably tell your fortune of that day- and after Emily keeps getting the stone that means that means she’s in danger. Emily begins to worry about if she is going to get murdered this summer, and if the nightmare had anything to do with it. Instead of Camp Excel being a struggle to learn, it becomes a struggle to survive. From then on, one of Emily’s friends was always by her side, hoping to scare of whoever is plotting against her.

The author’s writing style very interesting and dramatic. Every other chapter, Nixon changed from the perspective of the protagonist, Emily, to the antagonist. This made the book very suspenseful because the antagonist remained anonymous until the end of the book, and you go to see what the antagonist was planning and thinking while the book went on. The author also used a lot of literary devices, such as foil characters (to make the book more interesting), mood (to set the book in a mysterious tone), point of view (so you can know the characters inside feelings), and, of course conflict to make the book very engaging.

Another quality that makes this book amazing is that it also had a meaningful message, which is if something is bothering you, you shouldn’t leave it bottled up inside, but you should tell someone about it. Emily didn’t tell anyone about her nightmare, and that got her into a lot of trouble and a very dangerous situation. I would defiantly recommend this book to the class because it was one of my favorite books, and if anyone enjoyed it as much as me, than it will be one of theirs also.

Esperanza Rising by Pam Monuz Ryan

Have you ever read a book that you just couldn’t put down? During this summer I read an outstanding novel titled Esperanza Rising. Pam Monuz Ryan created an engaging story that will keep you reading all day. Esperanza Ortega was living a wonderful life in Mexico with her family. The night of her thirteenth birthday, bandits killed her father. After hearing the bad news, Esperanza’s evil uncles sneakily came to their ranch. They strongly told Ramona Ortega (Esperanza’s mom) that if she did not marry Tio Luis (Ramona’s brother in-law) there would be consequences. Because, Tio Luis was the governor of Mexico at the time, he wanted to marry the most known women in Mexico.  When Ramona Ortega declined his offer, the two evil uncles set the Ortega’s ranch on fire. Days later, Ramona Ortega agreed on marrying Tio Luis. Later that night Esperanza and her mom escaped from Mexico and traveled to the United States. Esperanza was then forced to live a different life. She had to go to a camp for Mexican farm workers. She was now considered a poor farmer in California. The ending of the book will make you realize how fortunate you should be for what you have. I wont spoil the ending, so you’ll just have to read it! Esperanza Rising is a little bit of a fairy-tale but also can be a real life situation. Esperanza Rising includes a very important message though. Even if something tragic happens you have to find a way to move on. I think this book’s message, brings out character traits. It shows that Esperanza is a strong determined teenager. Besides theme, there are symbols used in the story. Esperanza learns a zigzag stitch pattern for making a blanket. The zigzags on the blanket are a symbol because it shows the ups and downs in everyone’s lives. There are many other symbols in the book but you just have to read to find them out! Esperanza Rising takes place during the Great Depression. If you didn’t know, families had a lot of financial problems back then. Truthfully, reading this book made me change my way of life. I now always try to think positive like Esperanza did. Overall, Esperanza Rising was one of the best books I read and I definitely recommend it to anyone my age. ­  

Scott Klein Mr. Marcus

English Period 1

While I read many books this summer, my favorite was Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows, by J.K. Rowling. This final installment to the famous series takes Harry and his friends, Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger, on a heart pounding adventure across the wizard world. Voldemort, Harry Potter’s archenemy and leader of the dark wizards, has destroyed Potter’s life. He and his minions have killed not only Harry’s parents but also his godfather and mentor, Dumbledore. Dumbledore has sent Harry and his friends on an impossible mission to destroy Voldemort with only a few tools and a point in the right direction. But, Harry will do the impossible to avenge his parents and finish his mentor’s work.

J.K. Rowling has outdone herself in this seventh and last novel. I recommend it, but only if you wish to stay up until one in the morning, not being able to take your eyes off the page. Although the book does continue the story from the other six novels, the plot of The Deathly Hollows has unexpected elements and makes you question what you thought you knew from the earlier stories. Rowling uses many literary elements to create excitement and tension in this novel. There are many examples of foreshadowing, characterization, and symbolism in the novel. The author keeps the reader on the edge of his or her seat by alluding to things yet to come. Unfortunately, most examples of these foreshadowings would give away essential parts of the story and so I cannot divulge these details. Rowling also uses symbolism effectively. The Petronis Charm takes the form of an animal which represents the character's personality - Harry Potter Petronis becomes a stag representing his bravery and leadership skills. Finally, with Rowling's omnipotent narrating, the reader is able to delve deep into the thoughts and emotions of Harry.

The Deathly Hallows is by far the goriest and depressing book of the series and takes the action up to the next level. As the main characters grow up so does the maturity of the plot. The story develops from a children’s fantasy novel with Harry meeting his dear friends and having petty competitions with the obnoxious Malfoy, to an adult adventure book that includes fighting the un-dead, killing giant snakes (also called basilisks) and having wizard duels to the death. It is as though the readers grow up with the Harry. J.K. Rowling’s foreshadowing, symbolism, characterization and unique story has created a can’t miss series that everyone, young or old, should read.

(The following link is a clip to a preview of the movie version of this novel. Wait a few seconds before clicking twice, or it will restart)

http://www.imdb.com/video/imdb/vi2799962393/

Something like Fate by Susane Colasanti

Have you ever had to make a decision that could possibly ruin your friendship with your best friend? In this book Something like Fate by Susane Colasanti, one of the main characters named Lani is in the exact same situation. Throughout the book, Lani struggles on whether or not to admit that she likes her best friend, Erin's boyfriend, Jason.

Lani and Erin are very close; they share a secret bond which a big part of their friendship is built on. One summer Jason and Lani started to get closer and closer, but Lani felt guilty about it. This would eventually create conflicts; not just conflicts with Erin, but also within herself.

I have many positive things to say about this book, as well as her other 2 books I have read. There isn’t much unique content, but there are a lot of things I like about her writing. One of the things I like is how she uses voice. Even though Susane Colasanti is an adult, in some way she can recollect how teenagers think.

Other than Susane Colasanti’s voice, she includes a lot of other Literary Devices. A couple of them are foreshadowing, ambiguity, foil characters. Foreshadowing is when the author gives subtle hints or clues that show what will happen next. It makes the reader want to keep reading to find out what’s going to happen. Ambiguity is when the author leaves out information. This makes the reader think of possibilities of what might happen. Lastly, are the foil characters, which is when there are two characters that serve as a contrast or challenge to the main character. Notice that all of these literary devices listed lead to the reader wanting to keep reading.

I love all Susane Colasanti’s books; that’s why I would definitely recommend them to all of my friends; as well as all girls my age.