Category Archives: Book Reviews

Book Review: Firefight by Brandon Sanderson

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firefightFinally, the wait has drawn to a close. On January 6, Firefight by Brandon Sanderson, arrived in bookstores for its hungry readers. Having read the advanced copy before the official publication date, I can assure you that this thriller lives up to the high expectations set by the first book, Steelheart.

After the Calamity, ordinary people around the world gained a variety of super powers. Almost immediately, society crumbled. The elite class of people called Epics subjugated and ruled over the ordinary people. After David and the insurgents of ordinary people called the Reckoners killed the ruthless High Epic, Steelheart, they showed the world that no Epic was safe.

Enter the sequel. Having met Firefight, an Epic struggling to turn good, David is no longer sure of the Reckoners’ vow to kill Epics. Seeking clarity, David travels to the city Babylon Restored, where Firefight was rumored to be. While the rest of the team is focused on taking down any enemy in their path, David must overcome his ethical problems and decide who the enemy is for himself.

Firefight emphasizes that there are always good people out there, which is more optimistic than Steelheart. The first book had convinced us that power inevitably leads to corruption, but now we’re thinking twice. One of the biggest revelations was the fact that gaining and using powers changes the mind of an Epic, forcing them to become violent and ruthless and filled with rage. If they truly can’t control themselves, then who is at fault? Is killing Epics an act of mercy for a doomed human? Much of the story involves David struggling to find a sense of purpose in the wake of these questions.

From start to finish, this story is really fun to read. Sanderson’s imagination and detail comprehensively describes the shape of society after Calamity. Many cities and ways of life have been altered by the powers of a single Epic. For example, the streets of Manhattan became canals and waterways when the Epic Regalia raised the sea level. The mysterious wielder of plants, Dawnslight, supplies the city with an abundance of food. Our protagonist David’s storytelling is realistic. He voices every thought that flits across his mind, as if we were really there. All in all, Firefight is yet another thought-provoking book that will keep you hooked. Look for it!

-Phillip X., 9th grade

Book Review: The Eye of Minds by James Dashner

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eye_of_mindsThere is reality and there is virtual reality.  In the real world, life is dull and boring for high schooler, Michael.  Virtual reality, however, is the excitement of life times a million, you can do anything…be anything…and the more rules you break, the more fun it is.  The bad part of this virtual world is that a gamer named Kaine has found a way to trap people in the VirtNet and the authorities know that he has to be stopped.  That’s where Michael comes in.  In order to stop Kaine, Michael and his two best friends that he met inside the VirtNet must go on a wild journey through the internet and hope that they will make it home alive.

James Dashner seems to enjoy killing off his characters in gruesome ways.  In the Maze Runner series, people die from a sickness that kills their brain and in this series people’s minds die in the virtual world but not their bodies.  This completely original novel has bizarre, gory and disturbing twists and turns which kept my attention but made me lose my appetite, literally.

I hesitantly recommend this book to teenagers.  You may want to read the Maze Runner series first so that you will be prepared for his brilliant writing style and gore.  If you’ve already read it, then you understand exactly what I’m talking about.

-Evan G., 6th grade

Book Review: The Young Elites by Marie Lu

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young_elitesThis story is The Young Elites, by author Marie Lu. She is one of my favorite authors ever. I loved her Legend series. So when I saw this book at the store I had to read it.

The Young Elites takes place in a different world during a Renaissance-ish time. A plague ran through this world, called blood-fever. Those who survived this fever are a usually marked with a extremely strange feature. Such as, odd hair color, odd marks on their skin, and other weird scars that were left behind by the fever. These people were called malfettos. Some melfettos though were not only left behind with markings but some were also left with powers. Those who were left with powers were called Young Elites.

The story alternates between the narration of three characters: Adelina, Enzo, and Teren. All are malfettos with powers. The three’s lives collide in this story and create quite the adventure. The book was mostly based around the female character, Adelina. During the story I was actually very confused on who was the “good” guy and who was the “bad” guy. Adelina has the power of illusion. She can create images, emotions, sounds, and pains that seem very real, but it is created from the fear and pain of the others around her. She was abused by her father because she was a malfetto. She often has very gruesome thoughts, such as killing another character in a very violent manner.

Teren is also a malfetto that has powers similar to the wolverine. He heals automatically. He is the head of the Inquistion Axis and it is his job to hunt out Young Elites and malfettos and kill them. Teren believes malfettos are the work of the devil and he and the others should not exist. He does it all for the Queen who he is “in love with.” The Queen uses Teren to carry out tasks for her so that she can be the ultimate ruler. Teren is always very scary when he is brought into a scene.

The last narrator is Enzo. Enzo is the malfetto prince. He is the rightful heir to the throne. But was unable to take the throne because of his sister, the Queen, and Teren. Teren and Enzo used to be close friends. Enzo is able to wield fire. Enzo formed the Dagger Society where they gather Elites  with powers and train them to help Enzo take back the throne. But in the story it hints that Enzo seems to be only using these powerful Elites.  They rescue Elites with useful powers but leaves none powerful Elites and malfettos to Teren’s will.

So this novel was really intriguing but I’m still unsure who the “bad” guy is.  There might not be a protagonist and an antagonist. Adelina seems wicked, Teren does evil things, and Enzo seems greedy. You guys should definitely go check this book out especially if you read Marie Lu’s Legend trilogy and figure out for yourself who the protagonist or antagonist is– or if there is a protagonist or antagonist. I heard there is going to be a second book called The Rose Society which is Adelina’s new group. So if you liked this make sure to look out for it!

-Erika T., 8th grade

Book Review: The Hitchhikers’ Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams

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hitchhikers_guideThe Hitchhikers’ Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams is the first, out of five, novels depicting the intergalactic adventure of an Earthling, Arthur Dent, and an extraterrestrial, Ford Perfect (his name on Earth).

In the beginning of the story, Arthur Dent is lying in the mud in front of his house to protect it from the contractors who want to destroy it so a bypass could be built there. A little while later, Ford Perfect comes and convinces Arthur to go to a pub with him. At the pub, Arthur thinks that Ford is crazy because he warns that the Earth is going to be destroyed by the alien race, Vogons. Turning out to be true, they manage to get on the Vogon’s ship.

Aboard the ship, Arthur and Ford are discovered and, as a punishment, are mandated to listen to the Vogon’s poetry, the third worst in the Galaxy. Then they are placed into an airlock where would be released into space. The President of the Galaxy, Zaphod Beeblebrox, who is aboard the ship called Heart of Gold, rescues them. Zaphod is a cousin of Ford; a miserable robot named Marvin and a woman named Trillian also join them. Follow Arthur and Ford through their interplanetary journey by reading The Hitchhikers’ Guide to the Galaxy.

Picking up this book, I wasn’t sure what to expect in the story. But I am glad I choose it. Despite its intimidating size, I read it and I thought that it was an awesome science-fiction story. At certain points in the book, the author goes off describing a new Alien race or new planet, but it eventually connects back to the story. If you enjoy the first novella, then I suggest reading the rest of the novels.

-Anmol K., 8th grade

Book Review: I Remember You by Cathleen Davitt Bell

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i_remember_you“I didn’t know whether to kiss him, smile at him, or ask him if I should call 911.”

It starts in the sort of cliché– eyes meet. Two different people from different worlds. Juliet is debate kid bound for law school. Lucas is a hockey star planning to enlist in the marines. And they fall in love. The only weird thing is Lucas knows things from the future. Not that he can predict what will happen, but he claims to remember it. Juliet initially thinks he’s crazy. With a brain tumor. Although, as time goes on, with more of Lucas’s “memories” come true, Juliet can’t help but believe his crazy theory.

These memories aren’t all fun and games. They come to Lucas as a dream. His dream progresses, and gets worse; both the dream and his mental state. Lucas told her that one day they will break up, so how can they hold on to love that is certain to end?

This is a really cool book. It’s a time-travely romance that takes place in the nineties. Reminds me of Time Between Us by Tamara Ireland Stone in that respect, with the time traveling male love interest. But in this book, Lucas is very confused. He has no clue how he got here, only that he loves Juliet.

I felt Juliet just accepted some of his weirdness too readily, even though she did question some things like how he knew her schedule and locker, she didn’t stop seeing him after she concluded he had a brain tumor for believing in future memories. I suppose it’s about as believable as time travel. Oh, wait…

I really like how the book was written. It’s reflective on the past, giving little comments like I didn’t know then, or I should have done kind of thing. It made it feel more authentic, continuing the overall story arc that makes it all work out to a happy ending. So how does Juliet find happiness? You’ll just have to read to find out.

This review is based on an advance reader copy provided by the publisher. I Remember You hits bookstores everywhere on February 10.

-Nicole G., 11th grade

Book Review: Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad

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heart_darknessWritten as a narrative, Polish author Joseph Conrad writes about a character known as Charles Marlow. Charles Marlow is a ivory transporter who works down Central Africa traveling through the Congo river. From the beginning of the story, Charles Marlow is sort of obsessed with the “yellow” colored river on the map, the Congo River. It is this obsession that leads Marlow to work for a company that transports ivory down in Central Africa. Curious fact is though, that this company has had many steamer captains, the recent one of which died due to savage natives. However, this seems as nothing out of the ordinary since Marlow is set on traveling through the Congo River. Marlow joins the Belgian ivory trade firm and starts up on a journey to Africa.

During his journey through Central Africa, Marlow hears of an important and successful man named Kurtz. From the accountant, Marlow learns that Mr. Kurtz is a respectful man who has gained the most ivory compared to the other posts. Kurtz is sick, however he still has ambitions of becoming a manager within the ivory company. Even though Marlow does not know much of Kurtz, he starts to adore him, and eventually becomes obsessed. Throughout the trip, Marlow goes through many experiences, such as having a dead crew member fall at his feet and bleed to death, and get attacked on the ship by the local natives. In the conclusion of the story, Kurtz eventually dies, and Marlow is left looking into the darkness.

-Nirmeet B., 11th grade

Book Review: Slated by Teri Terry

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slatedIn a future world of England, teenage terrorists get to have a second chance by being

SLATED
where they don’t remember anything of their past life. Their memory is wiped clean, and they get a new name, family, and future.
Kyla is one of those people who got slated. She gets to experience the Levo, which can kill her if she gets too sad or angry, the taunts of terrorists, and the people who do understand her.
Oh, and did we mention that she is not like other slated victims, since she is left handed even though she was listed as right handed, and she has memories of her past life?
PS: the government also seems to be slating non terrorists people against their will.
I found this book to be very interesting. It has some of the old qualities books have, such as evil governments, the main character hardly knowing anything about themselves, and the key feature to not trust anyone. However, it also has some new elements that were a good mix to this book, such as there being a few allies that are from the opposite side and a huge case of identity.
This book also goes into the mind, and the question of if people can really change, even when their whole memory is erased.
I suggest that you try this book out!
-Megan V., 9th grade

Book Review: The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin

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westing_gameI recently read The Westing Game as an assignment for my English class. Even though I read this book for school, I ended up loving it.

The Westing Game is an intriguing mystery written by Ellen Raskin. In this fascinating novel, Samuel Westing of the Westing Paper Products Corporation is found dead, supposedly murdered. His sixteen chosen heirs, including everyone from a doctor to an inventor to a judge, are invited to live at Sunset Towers, located at the edge of Michigan Lake. Westing’s will is read to his heirs, where it is revealed that they are to play the Westing game. They must play in order to name the murderer amongst themselves and inherit Westing’s 200 million dollar estate.

I found this book very interesting and well detailed, but at the same time it didn’t give away all the answers. The Westing Game was hard to put down, and the whole time I was reading it I was on the edge of my seat. The amazing twists and turns made sure that things were not always as they seemed. I was constantly guessing and formulating the solution in my mind, but I did find it challenging to keep track of all the characters. There were about 20 people introduced in the plot, which got a little bit confusing. However, it all became clear towards the end, and all in all, this was an enjoyable mystery with evidence that keeps you guessing until the very last page.

I love the fact that even though The Westing Game is a fictional story, it is believable enough that you could see it actually happening in real life. This book is great for grades 6 and up. Please note that the book has several old-fashioned stereotypes about certain characters and some drinking. Whether you have to read The Westing Game as a school assignment or if you are just looking for an interesting read, I would highly recommend this book to anyone that loves a brain-stimulating mystery.

-Alaina K., 6th grade

Book Review: Spy School by Stuart Gibbs

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spy_schoolThings are not always what they seem.  This certainly describes the “science school” which is actually an undercover CIA training base.  Ben Ripley, a twelve-year old math prodigy, aka “Smokescreen,” gets an invitation to attend the spy school for the second semester of 6th grade as a mysterious spot opens up and because of his amazing math skills and the strange project linked to him known as “Pinwheel.”  He trains to become a CIA agent for one school semester although he may not live that long.  As if spy school wasn’t hard enough, Ben must survive an assassin, find a mysterious mole, and make sure he looks good while doing it.  However, he’s not alone. He finds friends in other students, Erica AKA “Ice Queen,” Murray AKA “Washout,” Zoe, and Warren.

I recommend this book to fans of Alex Rider, Percy Jackson and Artemis Fowl because of the humor and action.  The way the story is written make you second guess everything as it unfolds in this suspenseful mystery novel.  Be warned, this book is not for the easily frightened or timid population as it contains confidential, top secret government secrets. Buy it at your local bookstore or rent it at your nearest library and you won’t be disappointed. Although, don’t expect any James Bond or anything, spying is a dangerous job, and is only accomplished by the best of the best, the cream of the crop, you get the idea. Spy school has all of the same things as normal school: bullies, boring teachers, bad cafeteria food, and occasionally someone tries to kill you.

This message will self destruct in ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two, one…

-Evan G., 6th grade

My Top Pick Going Into The New Year

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Sstaying_strongtaying Strong 365 Days a Year by Demi Lovato has become a part of my daily routine in the last year and I have already restarted in the New Year. For each day of the year is a page with the date that contains; the date, a quote, a positive message that usually ties everything together, and a daily goal. I got this book as a gift while a family member was in the hospital and have read it everyday since.

I usually pick it up in the morning and then put the daily goal in my phone or write it down so I can make sure that I accomplish it. There are times that it will stay in my phone for days, or even weeks before I actually can delete it. But the feeling is indescribable and it is something that I can easily look forward to everyday.
I always recommend it to friends and even family, everyone that has read it has loved it.

If you are looking for a book that is uplifting and can bring some extra positivity into your life, this is definitely the book. I can’t describe how much it has changed my life for the better.

-Shelby B., 10th grade