Yearly Archives: 2022

Stranger Things, Is it Worth the Hype?

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If you have opened any social media platform in the past month, various Stranger Things 4 content has probably crossed your explorer page. First airing in 2016, Stranger Things is a science fiction horror television series. Starring child stars like Millie Bobby Brown and Noah Schnapp, the show revolves around 4 middle school boys who meet a girl who is a government science experiment. One of the boys gets kidnapped by a sub-dimension monster, afterward, all the seasons follow the aftermath of this event.

Stranger Things Season 1 Promo

Without spoiling the actual series, I would recommend this show. But, I would be curious if you get scared easily. For young children, Stranger Things may get too creepy to handle. At first, I found the series slightly scary. But, each season progressively gets darker. The main reasoning for this pattern is so that the show matures alongside the child actors. Even though I found the show slightly disturbing, the plot is so intriguing it almost forces you to continue watching to find out what happens. The kids also bring a level of comedy creating a great atmosphere. Here, the kids are the ones that are always swearing and going against the adults. 

Another cool aspect of this show is that it takes place in the 1980s. The music, clothing, and horror thrill style all emulate the trends of the 80s. So, it makes the show a great piece of media to watch as a family. The parents love all of the 80s references and the children love relating to the children in the show.

On that note, the music soundtrack for Stranger Things is excellent. Many 80s classics have been brought back to the billboards of this show. Songs like “Running up That Hills” and “Should I Stay or Should I go Now” have increased in popularity after their use in the show. I have found the soundtrack makes the show seem less dark and more fun. 

Overall, after watching all of the seasons I would highly recommend this series. There is a nice mix of horror and comedy while also revolving around a very detailed plot.

Movie Review: Minions: The Rise of Gru

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Are you looking for a fun activity to do with friends or family before everyone heads back to school?  If you want a fun, comical and entertaining movie to watch together, look no further than Minions: The Rise of Gru. Released on July 1, 2022 by Illumination and Universal Pictures this animated movie is sure to put a smile on your face. This new prequel sequel to the Despicable Me franchise, “Minions 2” tells the story of Gru growing up in the 1970s. Kevin, Stuart and Bob are all back with their new “boss” eleven year old Gru. Added to the bunch is Otto, a new minion. Having always admired the “Vicious 6” a group of dangerous criminals and the world’s greatest super villains, Gru is excited to get to interview to become one of them and the chaos ensues.

Typical of what you’d expect from a Minion movie, mayhem and destruction, explosions, fights and battles take place during the approximately 90 minute movie. This issue of the franchise was particularly amusing as Gru is kidnapped and taken to San Francisco where a group of minions travel to rescue Gru.  You will see places you may have visited like Chinatown in true to life animation. Without revealing too much of the storyline, you can assume much of the movie revolves around comical criminal activity and hysterical animation including seeing the backside of minions with and without their trunks on. Rated PG for action/violence and rude humor, this is an animated movie that is fairly family friendly if only for a few crude jokes and animated bombings and similar. I’d recommend it to all of my family and friends looking for some lighthearted fun where you can laugh your worries away whether you are 1 or 101.

The Secret Kingdom by Jenny Nimmo

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The Secret Kingdom,by Jenny Nimmo, is the first book in the Chronicles of The Red King trilogy.  The books in this trilogy are prequels to the Children of the Red King series.  The stories take place in a time when the Red King was a young boy named Timoken.  This story revolves around Timoken and his older sister Zobayda, two children who have been orphaned and forced out of their home.

The children embark on a treacherous journey through a vast desert to find a new home.  They are aided by various fantastical creatures, including a flying being called a “forest-jinni,” a trio of magical leopards, and a talking camel named Gabar.  The children are endowed with magical powers.  They rely on these powers to defend themselves against enemies, including evil beings called “viridees.”

There are many likeable characters in this book, so it would be very difficult to pick a favorite.  Timoken, his sister Zobayda, Gabar, and even the viridees are some of my favorites.  The story is filled with action and excitement.  One of my favorite parts of the book is when a flock of terrible birds wreaks havoc in the city of Toledo.  Timoken uses his magical powers to stop them.

I was excited to learn that Jenny Nimmo wrote this new series of books.  After the success of her Children of the Red King series, Jenny Nimmo decided to write more about the history of the mysterious Red King.  This new trilogy is just as enjoyable as the original series.  I would very highly recommend this book, and the rest of the trilogy, to anyone who enjoyed the Children of the Red King saga.

The Secret Kingdom by Jenny Nimmo is available to checkout from the Mission Viejo Library. It is also available to download for free from Libby.

Jane Anonymous: A Novel by Laurie Faria Stolarz

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I have to say after reading this book I felt sad yet relieved. It felt like a weight was lifted off my shoulders. I truly loved every bit of detail and description that was carefully poured into each and every chapter. It felt as if I was a part of the story myself. The feeling of betrayal of being unheard of by many others. Those who you thought you could trust. Imagine you’re being secretly watched for years and had no clue. That whatever evil has been following you creeps up behind you without any realization. Until it’s too late. It has you.

In this book we follow a teenage girl who’s wrapping up high-school with a job at her local jewelry store. She works from early morning to night. The jewelry store she works at is located near a dark forest with the surveillance cameras out of service. One night as Jane is closing the store getting ready to leave a man appears at the door. Begging for a minute. He claimed that all he needed was to buy a ring for his wife’s anniversary. Jane felt bad and unlocked the door. Little did she know this would be her biggest regret.

The man is dressed nicely. Hair styled back. His appearance charming enough to fool those around him. Just as the man chose a ring for his “wife” Jane offers him a small bag to put it in. She turns her back. The man jumps over the counter grabbing and pulling onto Jane. He forces a bag over head and drags her out of the shop effortlessly. He then shoves her into his trunk. Jane is screaming hysterically. No one can hear her. She dropped her phone in the store. The man tied the sack tight enough for her screams to be muffled. The trunk door locks. The engine is engaged. and the car zooms off into the distance. Into a land of insanity.

Jane’s phone is blowing up. Her mother and father are worried. Her best friend is calling her now worried. They were supposed to meet later. Jane never showed up. The shop is empty and everyone knows something is off. With anxiety overflowing the parents they inform the cops. A search is sent out only to find no trace of Jane.

Throughout the 6-7 months with her kidnapper Jane seems to believe she isn’t the first. She thinks she isn’t alone. But even at desperate times your thoughts may trick you. Will Jane make it out alive in one piece? Or does she seem to grow towards her kidnapper? Does she remember who she is after all this time? I have to say the ending will have you rethinking everything. You must be aware after reading you should always check your back. You never know when it’ll be your time.

-Hannah W.

Jane Anonymous by Laurie Faria Stolarz is available to checkout from the Mission Viejo Library. It is also available to download for free from Libby.

The French versus Spanish Debate

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In the majority of schools, there are two languages offered: French and Spanish. In this essay, I will attempt to do an analysis of both languages and finally settle the debate of which language is better, talking about two categories: practicality and culture.

To start, Spanish seems to be the more practical choice in Southern California. However, this essay will not specifically focus on Southern California, and will focus on the United States as a whole. Mathematically speaking, more states border Canada than Mexico. Furthermore, more states border French-speaking Canada than Mexico. This would mean that French is more practical in these states, which there are more of. On top of that, French is more spoken than Spanish in the world, so taking French instead of Spanish would be useful in international working and travel. Because of this, French is more practical than Spanish, although it is debatable.

However, what is not debatable is how much better French culture is than Spanish. Sure, Spanish food is infinitely times better than French food (mmm pizza!), but French culture is more supreme in every other way. The French celebrate many great holidays, such as Poisson d’Avril, which I like because I get to put fish on people’s backs. They also have more interesting architecture and landmarks. Fun fact: Paris is the most visited city in the world, beating any Spanish or Mexican city by a landslide. France also has a very rich history too. France has fought in many wars. Although their win-to-loss ratio….. actually I won’t get into that. But thanks to their wars, they have brought a lot of history! Landmarks such as the Eiffel Tower and the Arc de Triumph have deep stories behind them that are very interesting.

Because of these two reasons, French may be the language to take in high school!!!

Horror Movie Recommendations

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The best holiday of the year is coming up at the moment: Halloween. Apart from getting candy, the thrill this holiday brings, either from getting scared or scaring other people, excites many like me. But nothing gives me more joy than watching scary movies during this time of year and if you are a lover of getting scared, these movies are what I recommend!

Sinister (2012): A man who writers true crime wishes to discern how an entire family was murdered in their house. He moves into that house (you can tell he isn’t very smart) and immediately starts to solve the mystery. However, when it becomes apparent that a monster of some sort lives in the house and starts to target him and his family, he realizes his fatal mistake. I found this movie very engaging when I first watched it and at the times when the paranormal force striked, I felt myself unnerved and looking away at some parts. The plot twist at the end will always amaze me and I now try to decipher clues hinting to that end.

Sinister is available to checkout from the Mission Viejo Library.

Insidious (2010): The house of an ordinary family shows signs of being haunted when the son of the family falls into a coma. They hire a person who tells them that evil spirits from another world is using the son’s unconscious body to venture the living world. This horror movie was less scary than the others I have watched but it still entertained me with its random twists and turns. I have watched all of the movies in these series and love all of the movies, which is rare for me as a tough critic of horror movies.

It (2017): The story starts when the main character’s brother goes missing and is presumably dead. The main character and 6 high schoolers also fall victim to the cause of the missing brother: a clown who lives in a sewer and unleashes evil in the small town of Derry every 27 years. They must work together and learn to defeat their fears to take on the clown who calls himself Pennywise. I only advocate for the first movie of It and not the second one (I DO NOT like the second one at all). The first movie of IT terrified at 13 years old with some of the scenes they displayed and the reality of this movie. There were many times where I got so scared that I screamed because the jumpscares in this movie were amazing. Afterwards, I thought about how funny Pennywise was but during the movie, I was so engrossed that I got scared of looking at him.

IT is available to checkout from the Mission Viejo Library.

Conjuring (2013): When a family moves into this haunted house, they call on the expert opinions of two private investigators: a man who is married to a woman who can detect supernatural activity whenever she is near to it. At first, the parents didn’t see any substance in their daughters’ worries about the house but as soon as some things escalate, they feel the need to call for someone’s help. The random appearances of Annabelle throughout this movie terrified me greatly as I am deathly afraid of her appearance. This was the first movie that I watched where I actually got scared, unlike some of the horror movies on Netflix. And knowing that it is a true story really got into my nerves.

These movies are really popular and most people probably already watched them but I still find them amazing and for those who haven’t watched it, I feel like you should give them a watch!

Friendships in School

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From my personal experiences, friendships often come and go quicker than we realize. Sometimes our friendships end in a bad way, whether it be via arguments or other problems in life. Sometimes friendships end for the better, when two friends admit that the friendship they share is unhealthy and mutually decide to end it, solidifying the respect that they have for each other, and wish each other well. Sometimes it doesn’t end, and lasts forever since the day that both friends meet. Even though it doesn’t always work out, there are always new moments and memories that can be created from the people you meet and talk with everyday.

In my experience, I have had my own fair share of friendships. Like I said before, some have ended in a bad way, some have ended in a good way, and some still last to this day. As I have gotten older, I have learned to appreciate all the friends who are still in my life to this day and move forward from the friends with whom our friendships didn’t work out in the end. Throughout the years, I’ve learned plenty from my experiences with the people around me at school, and had interesting experiences overall.

This past junior year was definitely an interesting year for me overall. Despite some struggles, I ended up meeting new people, whether it was from my sports team or people in my class, and created some great memories and friendships along the way. Every time spent was either catching up on what happened over the weekend, our own sports or school experiences, or interests that any one of us have. Surprisingly, I have actually learned about new songs and developed new interests from some of my friends this year, some of which I was never sure I would ever be interested in.

Even though I have created plenty of memories with many friends over the years, what stood out most to me was one of my friends being there for me during AP Tests/Prom week this past junior year. During that week, I was dealing with numerous amounts of stress and I was in a bad shape mentally, as I dealt with 4 AP Tests – 3 of which were on that week – as well as some personal hardships in my life. All of this nearly made me skip my junior prom, however one of my friends with whom I have gotten close with this year helped me get through the week and convinced me to at least get my ticket and experience it for the first time ever. Even though I was skeptical at first, I decided to get it last minute and the dance turned out to be one of the best nights of my life. Knowing I would have missed out on it if I skipped on prom like I planned, I thanked my friend that night and enjoyed every moment we spent, knowing that he was a really good friend overall.

Even though friendships coming and going is hard at many points in life, I advise everyone to give people they meet an open mind. You never know who you will meet in life, but what truly matters is the type of person you are and the change you could make in someone’s life.

The Warlords of Nin by Stephen R. Lawhead

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The Warlords of Nin is the second book of The Dragon King Trilogy, by Stephen R. Lawhead.  The main character of this series is a young man named Quentin.  Peace has been returned to the kingdom for several years, following Quentin’s perilous adventures in the first book.  However, trouble is lurking from a distant land.  A group of warlords is led by a deified leader known as Nin the Destroyer.  This evil threat is on a rampage of destruction and conquest.  Quentin is once again destined to restore peace to the kingdom.

Most of the characters are interesting, and their personalities are unique.  However, this book does not provide much of a backstory for the antagonists.  The warlords seem to be nothing more than stock characters.  They are supposed to be villains, but their personalities lack depth.  As a result, the conflict in the story seems inadequate.  However, the development of some of the other characters improved as the story progressed.  The story was gripping enough to keep me engaged through the end of the book, even though the warlords themselves were not very interesting.

Overall, I would say that this book is enjoyable.  I do not consider this to be the best fantasy book that I have come across, but I still consider it worthwhile to read.  If nothing else, this provides a good transition to the third and final book in the series.  I would recommend this book, but not as a stand-alone novel.  I would recommend reading this along with the other books in the trilogy.

The Warlords of Nin by Stephen R. Lawhead is available to checkout from the Mission Viejo Library.

Last Chance U: Basketball (Netflix TV Show)

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One thing that most of us have in common is that we absolutely love watching Netflix. Whether it’s the newest sitcom TV Show or that adventure movie that you’ve already watched 5 times but can’t get enough of, Netflix has an almost unlimited array of options. Even though its known for its TV Shows and movies, the popular streaming service does not disappoint when it comes to documentaries and docuseries. 

An interesting docuseries that I recently discovered and quickly finished is Last Chance U: Basketball. While you may have heard about Last Chance U: Football, which has 5 different parts, Last Chance U: Basketball is a new docu-series that came out in 2021. It takes the viewers through the journey of the East LA Junior College basketball team’s path to the playoffs. Winning the championship would do wonders for the players who have gone through so much and ended up here. These players who are worthy of playing Divison 1 Basketball if not for the experiences they have had. These players who have lost so much and are trying to earn it back. 

Firstly, East LA’s basketball coach is a religious man, who wants the best for the players and understands them the best. John Mosley is his name, and he is like a father figure for these kids, who almost have nothing else. The players love him, but are also annoyed by his strategies. However, he always makes them earn it by teaching them about hard work and taking no days off. 

Deshaun Highler, the starting shooting guard of the team, lost his mom to cancer before the documentary. In this docuseries, he talks about how he has tried coping with the pain his mom’s death has brought him. Deshaun experiences ups and downs throughout East LA’s 2019-2020 season, but he and Coach Mosley find ways for him to fight past the struggles. 

Joe Hampton, the reserve center of East LA throughout the 2019-2020 season, could’ve been in a much better place at the time of the docuseries, except for his trouble controlling his feelings, typically of anger. As said by many during this show, Joe is incredibly talented, but his injuries when playing for Penn State, a D1 school, forced him to have to transfer to a junior college. After experiencing such lows in life, he often feels fed up and needs to calm himself down, in his own ways. 

Last Chance U: Basketball is one of my favorite docuseries I have watched on Netflix, and I definitely recommend it to anyone. You don’t need to be obsessed with basketball to enjoy this show because this isn’t only a show about basketball, but also about life.

Onion John by Joseph Krumgold

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Onion John is a Newberry award-winning book by Joseph Krumgold.  The main character of the story is a boy named Andy Rusch, who lives in Serenity, New Jersey.  Andy feels that his father is too controlling of his life.  A strange man named Onion John becomes Andy’s friend.  Onion John is very unusual.  He eats onions as if they were apples, and his language is difficult to understand.  He also has strange beliefs and lives in an old-fashioned hut.  Andy’s father becomes worried about Onion John’s influence on Andy.  Because of these concerns, Andy’s father tries to control Onion John’s life, but things do not go according to plan.

Andy’s father seems extremely sensible and practical.  This might seem like a negative thing at first.  Andy does not always get along with his father, but as the story progresses, Andy begins to understand his father better.  I think Andy’s father might actually be my favorite character in the book.  One of my favorite parts of the book is near the end of the story, when Andy and his father spend time alone together during a fishing trip.  They have time to talk with each other to better understand their different points of view.  I especially liked this part because it teaches valuable lessons about fatherhood.

This is very good book about the challenges of relationships between parents and their children.  I was sometimes confused about Onion John and his strange behavior.  For example, he talks about fumigating the town of Serenity with smoke from an oak tree’s fire that will rid the people of their “evil spirits.”  In a way, Onion John seemed kind of creepy to me.  However, by the end of the story, Onion John indirectly helps Andy and his father to understand each other better.  Even though Onion John is not my favorite character, and this is not my favorite book in the world, I can see why this book won the Newberry Medal.  It teaches some important lessons about parenthood and relationships, in an unusual way.

Onion John by Joseph Krumgold is available to checkout from the Mission Viejo Library.