Author Archives: Sabrina C.

Book Review: Looking for Alaska, by John Green

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“How do we get out of this labyrinth of suffering?”

looking_for_alaskaMiles Halter, “Pudge,” is just another ordinary kid. He doesn’t have a lot of friends, and he doesn’t like is boring life in Florida. He is smart though, smart enough to remember famous people’s last words. He wants to leave everything behind and go to a boarding school called Culver Creek in Alabama. He seeks “The Great Perhaps” to change his life.

Once he arrives, he does change. He has friends, one of them is Alaska Young. She is funny, beautiful, clever, and screwed-up. She changes his life completely. She pulls Miles into her labyrinth, shows him “The Great Perhaps,” and steals his heart. Miles likes his new life and understands that Culver Creek isn’t just a school, but “The Great Perhaps.”

He realizes that this could be his chance to start over with a clean slate. Alaska shows him that there is more to life than he ever imagined. She led him to see the world as a twisted labyrinth.

Looking for Alaska is a great story about romance and teen problems. John Green will leave you as an emotional wreck by the time you are done with this book. Books don’t usually make me cry, but this one came close. Don’t get me wrong, this book isn’t all sad. It’s also a comedy in more ways than one. It’s a quick read, which is good because you can read it all over again, afterwards. It’s a compelling and heart-wrenching story that you wouldn’t want to miss. However, I would strongly recommend this book for teens, 13 and up. After all, it is about teenagers and their life issues and interests. This is the first John Green book I have read, and I will definitely read more.

-Sabrina C., 8th grade

April is National Poetry Month

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national_poetry_monthDo you like poetry? Does it inspire you? Do you like to read it or write it? What kind of poems do you like? If you enjoy drama and suspense, you might like some of William Shakespeare’s poems. If you like horror, then you might want to read some of Edgar Allan Poe poems. If you like more upbeat and cheerful things, Walt Whitman will be a good choice for you. Personally, I like Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Raven.” In my English class, we are in the “Poetry Unit.” I like to read and write poetry. It’s fun to break the poem down and see the true meaning behind the words. My teacher loves to break down poems. She recently assigned us to write an ode poem, which is a poem celebrating a person, place, or thing. We had to write other poems too like concrete poems, which is a poem that makes a shape, and a lyric poem, which is a poem that is musical. For my ode poem, I wrote an “Ode to Music.” I think music is very similar to poetry because they both tell stories and have moods and tones. They can change a person’s emotions and some apply to our own lives. This is my ode poem: Ode to Music Music is a way to escape. A chance to find serenity. A place where you can go away. Music is as calming as a waterfall. It helps us through bad times. It heals us. It tells us stories. Music can help a person relax from a long day of work. It can make us feel happy, sad, or mad. It puts us in a peaceful state of mind. Music is the key to our happiness. Where would we be without it? I hope you liked my poem! I would love to hear your thoughts about my poem and poetry itself in the comments! -Sabrina C., 8th grade

2013: My Top Five Reads

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2013-readsHappy new year! I read some pretty interesting books last year. Some of them were not published in 2013, but I am going to write about them anyway.

These are my top five favorite books of 2013:

1Kami Garcia/Unbreakable. Unbreakable by Kami Garcia
I absolutely loved it because it’s a thriller about the paranormal. I would recommend this book to anyone who is looking for an engaging book and a little scare. It is the first book of the Legion Series.

2. Divergent by Veronica Roth
I love this book because there are so many twists and unexpected scenes in the story. There is something for everyone: romance, action, and danger around every corner. This is the first book in its series, and after reading this one, I couldn’t wait to start the others.

3. The Raft by S.A. Bodeen
When I wrote my full review for this book, I said it is in my top ten favorites and it is. The Raft is a great book for people who love suspense. The book describes so much action and really brings the story to life.

insurgent_cover4. Insurgent by Veronica Roth
It’s the second book of the Divergent series. Roth has a certain ability that makes the reader feel like they are in the story. When I read this book, it felt like I was in the story.

5. Beautiful Chaos by Kami Garcia & Margaret Stohl
This is the third book of the Beautiful Creatures series. The love story still continues between Ethan and Lena, but their relationship is tested. The ending is one that I never saw coming. This book is great for romance and suspense lovers.

-Sabrina C., 8th grade

Book Review: Beautiful Darkness, by Margaret Stohl & Kami Garcia

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beautiful_darkness_coverEthan Wate and Lena Duchannes grew closer and closer in the first book in this series, Beautiful Creatures, when they tried to ward off evil spirits. After the horrifying night of Lena’s Sixteenth Moon, they are not looking forward to another battle. Unfortunately, they soon learn that Lena will have to face another Claiming, when a Caster decides to be Light or Dark.

They start to worry and try to find answers, but the Seventeenth Moon gets nearer and they start to give up. Just when things are bad enough, Lena starts to pull away. Ethan is angry, but more confused, when he sees her with another guy. He and his friends try to find Lena and save her from her depression, when she thinks she is going Dark. He tries to think positive. Maybe this isn’t the end for them, but maybe it is.

This is the second book of the Beautiful Creatures Saga. In this book, they meet some new friends and uncover some dangerous secrets. It was a really entertaining book. I couldn’t put it down. Every chance I got, I would read. The authors leave great cliffhangers at the end of chapters. I was really surprised at some parts. When the story ended, I was sad because it was so good. I’m happy there is another book in the series, though. I hope everyone else loves this book as much as I do.

-Sabrina C., 8th grade

Book vs. Movie: The Host

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host_bookvmovieIf you lost everything, including your family, what would you do? If aliens came down and took over your planet, how would you survive?

Melanie Stryder thought she was alone, but she wasn’t. She had lived with her little brother, Jamie, since the invasion started. Soon after, she found another survivor, Jared Howe. It was hard to provide them with food and water, but she now had help. One night, Melanie went too far to get supplies, and she ended up risking it all. She had to escape the Souls who tried to take her. She decided to jump out a window, but only to be caught, after she landed.

Melanie woke up and found out what happened to her. Someone else was in her mind! Wanderer was the alien soul’s name. Both of them hated each other. When Melanie thought something, Wanda (her new nickname) had to tell the Seeker. Mel didn’t want Wanda to talk about Jamie, so she made Wanda run away. Mel formed a plan to find her family in the desert, but on the way, they ran into trouble. Their car broke down, and they ran out of water. Then, everything went black. They woke up to find someone giving them water. Mel recognized the face at once. It was her uncle! He led them to his cave and revealed a huge number of humans still alive! The only problem was that they didn’t like her because she was a Soul. They thought she was trying to lead the other Souls to them. Will they ever accept her?

I thought the book was better than the movie because the characters weren’t the same. Melanie and Jamie had such a strong relationship in the book, but in the movie, they barely saw each other. Also, when the author described the appearances of some characters, they didn’t look at all the same. Ian and Kyle were supposed to be identical twins, but in the movie, they looked very different. The book definitely got into more detail and really showed the characters’ feelings.

Do you like the movie better or the book better? I’d love to hear what your opinions are in the comments!

-Sabrina C., 8th grade

Book Review: The Raft, by S.A. Bodeen

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raft_coverSixteen-year-old Robie just wants to grow up. When she finds out she could stay with her Aunt Jillian, AJ, for a few weeks, she is so excited. AJ lets Robie do anything, so there areno rules. But when her aunt has to leave in the middle of her stay, Robie is all alone. She thinks she is mature enough and responsible enough to take care of herself. The day after her aunt leaves, Robie starts to question her ability to handle difficult situations when bad things start to happen. She knows she isn’t ready, so she decides to go home the next day.

She boards a cargo plane, with a family-friend as the pilot, Larry. She knows him and trusts him, so even though she is the only passenger, she isn’t worried. There is also a new co-pilot, Max. She thinks this is just another ordinary flight, but it’s not. When they are flying, there is a storm ahead. They try going straight through it, but ­­the engine fails. Next thing they know, they are falling to the sea below.

When Robie comes to, she finds herself in the middle of the ocean, in a raft, with Max. They have no food, no water, and no help. She starts to think about everyone she will never see again – her family, her friends. She knows they are doomed.

Will they make it? There is only one way to find out.

This story is fantastic! I couldn’t put it down. This is a real page-turner. It has so many twists and unexpected events. It’s a thriller, so I would recommend this book for people who love suspense. There are some intense scenes, but not too scary. I think there should be a movie, so people can really see how the action brings the story to life. This book is definitely in my top ten favorites.

-Sabrina C., 8th grade

Book Review: Unbreakable, by Kami Garcia

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Kami Garcia/UnbreakableDo you believe in ghosts? Do they float around your room or take human form? Did you ever think they could hurt you? These are questions Kennedy Waters never thought she would ask herself, but that was before a spirit tried to kill her.

When Kennedy finds her mother dead in their own house, her future reveals itself. When her mother is pronounced dead of a heart attack, she is forced to go to a boarding school. She knows something is wrong. She thinks her mom was murdered, but she can’t prove it. Before she leaves, she wants to stay in her house for one last night. It holds all her memories, precious or not.

She soon finds it was a horrible mistake when identical twins Jared and Lukas Lockhart break into her room to kill an evil spirit sent to kill her. They tell her that her mom was part of an ancient secret society that protects our world from a vengeful demon. They also say the society’s five members were murdered on the same night.

Kennedy has to take her mom’s place in the society and join the Legion, if she wants to uncover the truth and survive. She meets new Legion members, Priest and Alara, on the way. The teens race to find the only weapon that can destroy the demon. With challenges along the way, they can only hope for the best.

Kami Garcia, co-author of the Beautiful Creatures series, has done it again. This book is an amazing thriller! I couldn’t put it down. I truly think it could be the next Hunger Games. It has everything: suspense, romance, and the paranormal! I would definitely want to see the movie. But because of some scary scenes, I would recommend this book for 12 and up. Look for Unbreakable in bookstores everywhere on October 1st.

-Sabrina C., 8th grade

Thank to Little, Brown Books for Young Readers for providing an advance readers’ copy of Unbreakable for review.

Book Review: Beautiful Creatures, by Kami Garcia & Margaret Stohl

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beautiful_creatures_coverSixteen-year-old Ethan Wate is a normal boy living in the same normal town he has lived in his whole life. All he has to worry about is getting to school on time and making sure Amma doesn’t get mad at him for not eating all his food. Recently, his mom died in an accident, and his dad shut himself up in a study, but that was really the only excitement Gatlin got. Well, that was true, until something not normal rolled up in a hearse on a not normal day.

Ethan Wate knows the story behind Macon Ravenwood; the horrible story that haunts people. He never thought that he would one day meet his niece or even the man himself, but he did. With that hearse, came a curse and a girl. Lena Duchannes is an almost sixteen-year-old caster. When she turns sixteen, she will either be Claimed by the Light or the Dark. She doesn’t know what will happen or how it happens, but when she moves to Gatlin, she soon figures it out with a little help from Ethan. Ethan saw her and knew she was the girl of his dreams, literally. He soon found out that when you fall in love with a caster, your world changes too.

Beautiful Creatures is an absolutely amazing book written by two incredible authors, Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl. They told a story of love and betrayal. It has many surprising secrets and a twist ending you will never see coming. I would definitely recommend this book to teens and young adults. I give this book a five-star rating!

-Sabrina C., 8th grade

Book List: My Top 5 Favorites

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Need some ideas for your summer reading? I’ve got some good ones! Here are my top five favorite books, and why I love them.

turnabout_cover

1. Turnabout, by Margaret Peterson Haddix
Haddix has a way of making science interesting. I haven’t read any book like this with the concept of unaging. (See my full review of Turnabout here.)

2. Catching Fire, by Suzanne Collins
Collins makes books with action so interesting you feel like you are in them. When I read this, the second volume in the Hunger Games trilogy, I was always on the edge of my seat.

caught_cover3. Caught, by Margaret Peterson Haddix
This is another book by Haddix that has to do with time travel. The story gets confusing sometimes, but in the end it all makes sense with a surprise ending. Caught is the fifth volume of the Missing series.

4. Scorpia, by Anthony Horowitz
Horowitz packs a lot of action in his series about Alex Rider, a sort of teen James Bond. It’s amazing how everything fits. In this book, the fifth volume in the series, there is lots of danger, and it’s cool how the characters survive.

mockingjay_cover5. Mockingjay, by Suzanne Collins
I loved the finale of the Hunger Games trilogy! Collins is a great writer, and I hope she writes more books like this. I was glued to this book, and absolutely couldn’t put it down.

-Sabrina C. 7th grade

Event Recap: Lauren Oliver Author Visit

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laurenoliver1Back in March, I went to the Lauren Oliver book signing event at the Mission Viejo Library. When she got there, the first thing she did was introduce herself and talk about her life as a writer.

She then explained what inspired her to write. Her
father influenced her a lot. She started writing at the early age of nine. She said she used to write fan fiction, which is a short story about a book you like.

In middle school, she started to write her own stories. In her freshmen year, she attempted to write her first novel. In her senior year of college, she finished her first novel– a different one than she started in high school.

She then earned a Master’s degree in Creative Writing. She also learned to write from working as an editor for Penguin Books. As she edited, she learned to write. After she talked about that, she described her books and read a few pages of her latest novel, Requiem, to us.

laurenoliver2Later, she took questions from the audience. Some of her favorite authors, when she was a kid, were Agatha Christie, Roald Dahl, and
J.K. Rowling.

Someone asked how she comes up with titles and names for characters. She said she keeps a list that appeals to her. She also does not believe in writer’s block. She feels it’s just an excuse not to write. Her
advice to writers is to read a lot and write a lot. Also, to practice all the time and don’t get stressed.

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While I was there everyone in the audience seemed to be very excited. Some people even dressed up as characters in her book. When she signed my book she was asking me questions about reading. Lauren is very nice and funny. I’m so happy I got to meet such an amazing author.

-Sabrina C., 7th grade