Sylvia and Autumn were in the auditorium with most of the school. Claire was running with her track team; they were excused from the assembly to practice. Tomás and his best friend (other than his twin sister Sylvia) sneaked into the principal’s office to look at a file.
Then someone pulled out a gun.
Although his attack only lasted fifty-four minutes, the boy with the gun would haunt them forever… This is Where It Ends is the terrifying tale of Autumn, Sylvia, Tomás, and Claire’s desperate attempts to survive a former student’s revenge on those who wronged him.
I would highly recommend This Is Where It Ends to anyone who loves suspense or thrillers. It’s told from four points of view, and all four had a reason to be afraid. It had a very satisfying ending, and while it didn’t end with everyone living happily, it was very believable and heartwarming. Marieke Nijkamp did an amazing job describing the relationships between family, friends, and more-than-friends. The fear people felt for their loved ones and the sacrifices they made were fantastic. And when each chapter only covers the span of a few of the fifty-four minutes, it’s incredibly hard to stop reading!
Overall, This Is Where It Ends was a very good book, and I would not hesitate to give it 10 out of 10 stars!
-Caitlyn O.
This Is Where It Ends by Marieke Nijkamp is available for checkout from the Mission Viejo Library. It is also available to download for free from Libby.
This book was the most devastating masterpiece I’ve ever read. The story starts off in the POV of one of the main characters, Rune, as a child. He just moved to Georgia from his home town in Norway because of his father’s job. He met Poppy, his next door neighbor. Rune called her Poppymin which meant “My Poppy.” They instantly became best friends, creating a bond that could never be broken, or so they thought.
*This review contains spoilers.*
The next chapter was in the POV of Poppy as a child where her Grandma she called Mamaw died. Her dying wish was for Poppy to fill up a jar with pieces of paper in the shape of a heart and on each heart she had to explain every one of her boy kisses. Her Mamaw wanted Poppy to fill the jar with a thousand boy kisses because one of her favorite memories were the kisses that her greatest love gave her. She wanted the same for Poppy so gave her this task as her last adventure.
Years later, Poppy and Rune are together fulfilling Poppy’s Mamaw’s last wish. But an unexpected roadblock gets in their way. Rune had to move back to Norway for his father’s job, leaving his greatest love behind. They were of course devastated and a few months later after Rune moved back to Norway, Poppy dropped all communication with him, leaving them broken up for 2 years.
Rune moved back to Georgia 2 years later as a different person. Dark, sad, and alone. Little did he know the real reason why Poppy cut off communication with him was because she was trying to save him from the burden of her terminal cancer.
I was crying throughout every chapter in this book, It completely broke me. Poppy and Rune rekindled their relationship even though Poppy had months to live. They stayed together throughout those last few months of her life trying to make those months happy for Poppy.
Toward the end of Poppy’s journey, she and Rune completed Mamaw’s wish by completing the thousand boy kisses jar. The thousandth kiss was the one Rune gave her as she passed to the other side. Rune filled out the last paper heart for Poppy.
“Kiss 1000. With Poppymin. When she returned home. My heart completely burst.”
This book was the saddest, most devastating thing I’ve ever read in my whole life. Poppy and Rune’s connection was so pure and they deserved the world. I loved this book with everything in me. 5/5 stars. Read if you want to cry but also read if you want to read a masterpiece at the same time.
The War of Kinds had brought destruction upon the human race and prosperity to the Automa. Because of this war, resentment spread across the races, both knowing their loathing for each other but never explicitly stating it to one another. But their beliefs and actions have proved they consider each other enemies.
The Automa sovereign’s daughter, Lady Crier, had no idea of this destruction. And she never really had no clear idea until she met Kinok and Ayla. Kinok is her soon-to-be husband who she is forced to marry for the betterment of her kingdom. Her father felt that the only way to subdue Kinok’s influences was to extinguish the threat of power he felt from recent times. But would this action create a difference?
Ayla is a human servant girl who wishes for nothing more than Crier’s immediate death. She believes wholeheartedly in the saying “An eye for an eye” and after the death of her family order by the sovereign himself, she thought to act upon this ideology. But as the book continues, Ayla begins to realize the true nature of Lady Crier and separate some Automa from others. And Lady Crier also begins to realize the true connection between the Automa and humans and how her father isn’t exactly who she thought he was.
From the way this book was written to the path of the plot, I couldn’t stop thinking about the book even when I wasn’t reading it. So many little things in the plot occur in the story that seem to have no meaning until it creates meaning into the story altogether. When reading, one wouldn’t see major plot twists coming until they approach it and read back on all of the clues Nina Varela left for them in obscured areas. The imagery was beautiful, unfolding the story in my eyes with vivid scenes and intense dialogues. And the symbolism wrapped the entire story together and the fates of the characters in the book. The story is also an enemies-to-lovers book so if you like that, you should definitely check it out!
-Saanvi V.
Crier’s War by Nina Varela is available for checkout from the Mission Viejo Library.
Sophie Hatter is the eldest of three daughters, which is deemed as “most unlucky”. Over the years, she’s accepted that she won’t have a fun, lavish future like her younger sisters, so she becomes content with being holed up in her family’s hat shop, trimming lace and styling bonnets.
However, everything changes when the Witch of the Waste visits the shop and curses her to become an old lady. Desperate for a solution, she hikes her way to the infamous “moving castle”-belonging to no other than the soul-eating wizard Howl. Here, she strikes a deal with Calcifier- an evil fire demon- hoping he can lift her curse.
Along the way, Sophie discovers that the wizard is not all he’s said to be and that maybe there’s more to herself than she thought.
I discovered the book Howl’s Moving Castle shortly after I watched the movie adaptation by Studio Ghibli, and neither disappoint. They both capture the essence of a world that’s both modern and magical in their own ways.
The main difference between the two is that the Studio Ghibli movie follows a slightly different plot, as do most movie adaptations. The concept of Sophie being the eldest-and therefore, prone to failure-is almost completely eradicated, focusing more on how her looks are subpar and modest compared to her sister. Although, this ends up tying in well with the movie’s altered story, as it is a story of self-acceptance, I was sad that this major plot point didn’t get included.
There were also characters that didn’t make it into the movie, such as Sophie’s sister Martha and Howl’s family that resides in the mortal realm. While I was disappointed to find this out, Studio Ghibli makes their adaptation work in it’s own way, using their staple “ghibli-magic” to create a version of the story that’s lovable and great to watch, preferably on a rainy day. And of course, as always, the animation is stunning.
Despite their differences and minor plot changes-and the watering down of Howl’s oddly lovable snootiness- the movie adaptation does an excellent job of capturing the story that Wynne-Jones wrote so magnificently.
-Luxy B
Howl’s Moving Castle by Dianne Wynne Jones is available for checkout from the Mission Viejo Library. It can also be downloaded for free from Overdrive. The Miyazaki animated film can also be checked out from the library.
All Quiet on the Western Front, written by Erich Maria Remarque, is regarded to be the finest war novel ever written.
It starts (and ends) on Germany’s frontlines amid World War I. In this, context and atmosphere are revealed through description (at times quite graphic). However, since the story is told in first person, the most significant soldier is Paul Baumer – a young German who offers his services to his country and the Kaiser. Though most authors choose a main character to narrate their experiences to demonstrate war’s horrors, Remarque does notably well in its execution. This is likely due to the fact that his stories have a touch of personal truth – he was a reluctant participant in both wars, and had to face the cruelties and destruction head on. Thus, the terrors he witnessed (though vile), give new life and unexpected curiosity to his work. To put it simply: to get the full message, every page must be read twice.
Now, to the plot: it’s fairly simple. Paul and his friends have entered a war in which, without regard to survival, they have been physically and mentally scared beyond recovery. In other words, they can no longer return to innocence and the foolish years they spent as children – they’ve grown old faster in a three to four year span than for most. As such, Remarque is able to illustrate and weave themes still relevant to our time. For one, war’s terrible brutalities. As most novels tend to romanticize war and demonstrate honor and adventure, All Quiet does quite the opposite. To explain, the scenes that aren’t dedicated to hunger and filth depict even harsher conditions – corpses, lice infestation, mice, loss, and so on. Therefore, a more realistic ‘picture’ is represented, which clarifies to readers that war is indeed, not a matter to trifle with.
Moreover, the message above ties in with yet another lesson: its effect on soldiers. For instance, Remarque illustrates (I won’t spoil though!) war’s overall impact as “ruinous” and “severe.” In turn, his characters (such as Paul) must face emotion suppression and disconnection from reality in order to last the battles. To be entirely aware, Paul claims, would be impossible – there’d be too much to bear and fight through on a physiologic degree.
In short, All Quiet on the Western Front is, at most, a must read.
-Emilia D.
All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque is available for checkout from the Mission Viejo Library.
Released three years after Tupac’s murder in 1996, The Rose That Grew from Concrete is his writings from the time he was nineteen to just a few months before his passing. The poems are simple and concise, written in rhyme and Tupac’s loving shorthand.
Again, I tend to shy away from celebrity poetry and posthumous collections/albums- both of those labels usually hint at money grabs. However, I decided to make an exception for Tupac- and I’m very glad I did.
Tupac is an almost mythical character in the American psyche. He was a pioneer of hip-hop, of rap, of social justice in a way that is often downplayed. He knew it too- his writings hint that he always knew he was destined for great things. Still, these poems serve to humanize Tupac in a way that has never been presented before. Although the poems are a little clunky at times, they speak of a person– of a human being who fell in love, fell out of it, wanted better for himself, had hopes, had dreams. The poems being presented in his handwriting, as written, only adds to this. They prove that, at the end of the day, Tupac was just as human as the rest of us- just as pained and angry and lovelorn and real as anyone else. And this is the true essence of this book- far beyond the words on the page.
Women Are Some Kind of Magic is a poetry and prose series by Amanda Lovelace, dealing with themes of toxic relationships and self-love. The series consists of the princess saves herself in this one, the witch doesn’t burn in this one, the mermaid’s voice returns in this one, break your glass slippers, and shine your icy crown.
Lovelace writes about common themes in many women’s everyday lives with a tone that mirrors the simple advice of a best friend. Her writing is empowering in a way I haven’t really seen before- the poems are short, and the illustrations are succinct, but the confidence and self-assuredness she possesses really shine through.
I just recently finished the last book in the series. The books don’t have to be read in order- you can read them as stand-alones, but I personally preferred them in series format. These books are simple and easy reads- you can finish one in just about a day. I originally intended to use the books as ‘palate cleansers’ between some heavier reading material, but I was actually pleasantly surprised! It is typical run-of-the-mill, feel-good prose, but Lovelace has a style of writing that makes even simple phrases and writing seem profound. I would definitely recommend this book to any woman feeling down- it really helped me 🙂
The collection of books I have read because I needed to for English has definitely been different in some ways and similar in other ways. They are seen having connections to each other and reflecting upon the same ideology yet are seen to have their own individual themes and connections. First, I will be describing why or why not this book was interesting to me. Then, I will describe the symbolic sentiment behind the book and will elaborate on whether it is useful for me. Then, I will describe whether someone should read the book in total based on these categories and elaborate why I believed reading this book is worth it or a waste of time.
Slouching Towards Bethlehem by Joan Didion: I am going to be starting with this book first because it is the only nonfiction book I was required to read this year. Based on interest level, it was extremely boring in my opinion. The first chapter was very interesting because it spoke about how a wife was on trial for killing her husband and how it was a huge thing in the news but after that chapter, it became very hard to read without the looming threat of sleep within my proximity. However, the content in the book does make up for how boring it was. The book is a series of essays divided into three sections: Life Styles in the Golden Land, Personals, and Seven Places on the Mind. Each of these sections were informative in their own way. The first section described multiple things occurring in California, including events occurring in her own life. The second section talked more about how humans affect others and why we do what we do. The third section talks more about her and other people’s lives and how they struggle. So, as a book required to read for school, I believe that reading it is worth it as it is very enlightening and definitely allows us to reflect on our actions. If you were to read this book for the purpose of entertainment, you should have stopped right after the first chapter and move onto another book.
Slouching Towards Bethlehem by Joan Didion is available for checkout from the Mission Viejo Library.
The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck: My teacher went more in depth in this book when we were discussing it in class, which could be why I have the opinion I do. But altogether, I love this book so much. The beginning was very boring to me but as soon as I reached more the time where the family begins their journey to California, I couldn’t wait to read what would happen next. This book basically describes a family in the era of the Great Depression and the Dust Bowl and how they must venture to California from their dear home in Oklahoma because they cannot make any money where they are. Not only did this book capture my attention but it also opened my eyes to the lives of people who I don’t relate to and who struggle so much to survive in our world. This book describes the greed of those who benefit from the desperation of these struggling families, otherwise known as large corporations. It shows how people could become families with anyone if they help each other through their heartbreaks and painful endeavors. And most importantly, it shows that people together in their anger could make a difference, like bundle of grapes filled with wrath. I would recommend anyone to read this if they can and think this book should be discussed more among people.
The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck is available for checkout from the Mission Viejo Library. It is also available to download for free from Libby.
The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald: This is probably the book that most people know about and have read in high school. I have known about this book since I was 8 but never really knew what it was about until this year. Basically, it is about a man named Gatsby who is neighbors with a guy named Nick Carraway and wants to be loved by Nick’s cousin named Daisy Buchanan (yes, she is married). The plot of this book interested me but the characters ruined it for me. They basically had no personality whatsoever besides being rich and wanting to be loved but finding it in the wrong ways. Tom Buchanan is one of the few characters I believe is unredeemable when it comes to fixing and saying that is definitely extreme but it is true. This book has so many undertones of misogyny from the epigraph of the book: “Then wear the gold hat, if that will move her; If you can bounce high, bounce for her too, Till she cry ‘Lover, gold-hatted, high-bouncing lover, I must have you!'” Of course, we shouldn’t judge a book based on this since it came from another time and era but I believe teachers should definitely and directly tell their students about the more obscured sexism in the book so the students don’t adopt it as a normalcy in our society. There are many symbols and one could definitely make connections on the longing of being better and richer than someone else and competing with time before what you want is gone forever. But personally, I believe that this book doesn’t deserve all of the hype that it gets. It was a waste of time in my opinion and it could be part of the high school curriculum since it does talk a lot about class differences and how the rich use people who are poorer than they are. But I wouldn’t recommend reading until it is required for school.
The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald is available for checkout from the Mission Viejo Library. It is also available to download for free from Libby.
The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne: This book differs from the ones I have talked about before because it is more outdated and more seen as a classic. Despite this, I really liked the book. This book is about a woman named Hester forced to wear an “A” on her chest because she has committed adultery with someone she doesn’t wish to confess and gave birth to a child as a result. It is set in a Puritan town where couples are to stay together until they die and even then, they must remain a widow and not try to be in a romantic relationship with anyone else as that would be a betrayal to their dead, former spouse. The author, Hawthorne, wishes to exploit the wrongdoings in Puritan society at the time and how they are seen as hypocrites, essentially, when it comes to someone who sins. This book definitely has some more older terms of symbolism shown through transcendentalist and romantic ideology but I found the plot of this book very interesting. The sentences don’t match the standard of grammar that we have today and the author does enforce his ideologies on the readers but I still enjoyed this book very much. I would recommend this book to people who like the forbidden love trope and like nature as a main symbol in a book.
The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne is available for checkout from the Mission Viejo Library. It is also available to download for free from Libby.
A Streetcar Named Desire by Tennessee Williams: The people that have already read this book probably think I am going to say negative things about it and I am, definitely about Stanley Kowalski, but I would first like to highlight the entire book. This book is about a woman named Blanche DuBois who is forced to live with her sister, Stella DuBois, and her abusive husband, Stanley Kowalski, after she loses her childhood home, Bella Reive. This book starts off interesting and I liked the plot. I started to hate the characters and their doings but that means the person writing the book (or play, in this case) is so good at writing that they are evoking an emotion out of me. The characters are definitely bad and good in some ways, which I liked because it added complexity to the story and definitely connected symbols together. For example, Blanche DuBois avoids the light which stands for the truth and we all know her as a notorious liar throughout the story so it connects more. I continue and Stanley is a piece of trash and becomes the one of the other people that I find unredeemable and people who if existed in the real world, I would punch in the face. Then, the ending turns out to be very terrible. Again, one must not judge things in the past but still…I did not like the outcome of this book. I believe the ending should have taken another turn but for the book, it seems reasonable why it would be that way and still, I hate that. Despite my sayings of the book being interesting, I still wouldn’t recommend this book to anyone at all and would never read it a second time. I liked some things about it but the bad things about it outweigh the good things so I wish someone only reads this if they are forced to. However, the ending of the movie is way better and that should have been the ending of the play but alas, it wasn’t.
A Streetcar Named Desire by Tennessee Williams is available for checkout from the Mission Viejo Library.
I would like to end this article with how these opinions on these books are just that, opinions. You have every right to disagree with whatever I say, especially when it comes to A Streetcar Named Desire and The Great Gatsby. Let me know what you think about a certain book in the comments! Thanks for reading!
Collecting items is fun, but it can be difficult to come up with an idea of what to collect. Some collections can be expensive, others might be rare, while a few might lack importance to you. I enjoy collecting a variety of different types of objects, and whenever I open one of my collections’ boxes, I’m always very excited to look through my souvenirs. If you are searching for something to collect, look no further than this post as I’ll take you through some of my favorite collections!
Whenever I go to new cities, museums, or historical sites, I always look for one thing in particular: Pressed Pennies! Pressed pennies are great souvenirs to collect because they are inexpensive (They usually cost 51¢ to $1) and supply you with something to remind you of your visit. These small coins have special designs (Small pictures or names) which represent the place you got them from. If you’re looking for a way to collect something to remind you of the places you’ve traveled to, pressed pennies are a great option!
Ripping open packs consisting of the players in your favorite sport can be very exciting! The best part about collecting sports cards is the fact that they are widely available. You don’t need to travel to different locations to collect them, which makes them very convenient for sports lovers! NBA, NFL, NHL, and MLB cards are all available at Target and Amazon. If you are interested in sports, this might be the collection for you!
Key chains are meant to go on keys, but that’s not the only thing they are good for. Even if you don’t want to hang these key rings on your keys, you can still use them for a collection! Similarly to pressed pennies, I also look for key chains whenever I travel. Looking back at these collectibles can be reminders of the places you went and adventures you had in your life! If you enjoy traveling and want souvenirs to represent your visits, key chains would be great for you!
Many of us are fans of actors, sports stars, singers, or other celebrities. Some of us even idolize them and look to model our lives after these people. Bobbleheads, Funko Pops, or figurines might be exciting for you to collect if you look up to celebrities. I, personally, am a huge fan of Stephen Curry, the Golden State Warriors All-Star point guard, and I have a Stephen Curry Funko Pop and bobblehead because I enjoy collecting Stephen Curry objects.
Lastly, if you haven’t been intrigued by any of the earlier collections that I have named, don’t worry, you can still start a collection. To come up with an idea of what to collect, think of your hobbies and what you enjoy doing or watching. If you like to solve the Rubik’s Cube, you might enjoy collecting different types of Rubik’s cubes, such as the Megaminx or Pyramix. If you are interested in Marvel, Star Wars, or the Lord of the Rings, you might find an interest in collecting posters of your favorite movie. If chess is your passion, there are a lot of different chess sets you can collect.
Just remember, collections can be anything and don’t need to seem rare or extra special to be a collection. Even a group of pens, shirts, rocks, or books can be considered a collection, as long as they mean something to you. The best part is: You can always add to and grow these collections, too! Have fun collecting!
Deaf Republic by Ilya Kaminsky is set in a time of political unrest in an occupied country. Sequenced as multiple short poems, the story is told from the perspective of three characters: Alfonso Barabinski, his wife Sonya, and later Momma Galya Armolinskaya.
I really, really enjoyed this book. I don’t want to give away too much of the plot (I was quite surprised it even had one in the first place, considering it’s a book of poems). I really enjoyed Kaminsky’s use of the townspeople’s deafness as a metaphor. However, what I most enjoyed about this book was its relevance to modern times. Kaminsky himself grew up in post-Soviet Ukraine, and while reading the book (even though it was released many years before today’s events in Ukraine), I saw chilling parallels to not only the current wars in the Middle East and Ukraine, but also to the attitudes of many in the United States.
This book is definitely not for the weak of heart; the content is extraordinarily emotional. However, I’d definitely recommend it to anyone looking for a new perspective regarding current and past world events. It’s quite a short read with easily digestible language. There was one particular line that will stick with me forever:
“At the trial of God, we will ask: why did you allow all this? / And the answer will be an echo: why did you allow all this?”
-Vaidehi B.
Deaf Republic by Ilya Kaminsky is available for checkout from the Mission Viejo Library.
Mission Viejo Library Teen Voice 