Book Review: The Young World, by Chris Weitz

Posted on August 8, 2014 by Evan G.

young_world_cover Famous Hollywood screenwriter/director Chris Weitz has written his first novel, The Young World. It is set in a world two years in the future and teens are the only ones alive and they are in control. All of this was started by a sickness that killed everyone not experiencing puberty. This is because of the special fibers created during puberty that keep the sickness at bay. A group of teens living in Washington Square in New York have created a sort of community. However, when the leader Wash dies from “the sickness” after turning 18, his younger brother Jefferson and four other teens, venture out of their community on a journey that may lead them to a cure. This brings them on a wild adventure in which they face murderers, mole people, wild dogs, a bear, and cannibals.

Sci-Fi fans will love this book due to the post apocalyptic setting and show stopping action. The cliffhanger will almost definitely lead to an intriguing sequel.

The book is written in first person but in the form of a movie script, which is no surprise because of the author’s twenty years writing and directing films such as Twilight: New Moon, American Pie, Antz, The Golden Compass, A Better Life, and the upcoming Disney movie, Cinderella. I read my signed copy of this book in one day because I could not put it down. I was lucky to hear him speak about his book last month in Mission Viejo where he told of his life in Hollywood and how this book came to be.

All in all, this is an excellent book and I highly recommend it to people who don’t mind violence, mild romance, and major cussing. I recommend looking beyond the cussing to see the story for how great it is.

-Evan G., 6th grade

Short Story Review: The Offshore Pirate, by F. Scott Fitzgerald

Posted on August 7, 2014 by Amanda D.

After reading both The Great Gatsby and This Side of Paradise, I decided that F. Scott Fitzgerald is one of my favorite authors. While I do find some of the plots of his stories to be a bit slow at times, his writing style more than makes up for lack of action.

After checking out Flappers and Philosophers, a collection of short stories written by Fitzgerald, I flipped to the first story and was immediately hooked. The Offshore Pirate is a story of youth, lust, and adventure. Fitzgerald’s description of tiny islands off the coast of Florida are enchanting and beautiful. If you guys don’t believe me, then take a look at this quote from the book:

“Taking her hand he led her out into a broad stretch of hard sandy soil that the moon flooded with great splendor. They floated out like drifting moths under the rich hazy light, and as the fantastic symphony wept and exulted and wavered and despaired, Ardita’s last sense of reality dropped away, and she abandoned her imagination to the dreamy summer scents of tropical flowers and the infinite starry spaces overhead, feeling that if she opened her eyes it would be to find herself dancing with a ghost in a land created by her own fantasy.”

Is that beautiful or what? It is a short story, so I feel like giving out any of the plot would sort of ruin the adventure that is this book, so please just take my word for it.

If you like writing that will make you feel warm and fuzzy and magical inside, read The Offshore Pirate! It only takes about an hour to read (if you’re a sloth-speed reader like me) and is more than worth the sixty minutes.

-Amanda D., 12th grade

Book Review: The Da Vinci Code, by Dan Brown

Posted on August 6, 2014 by Sophia U.

A book that became highly popular years ago, this is a title that many have heard of, but one that few teens from this generation have actually read.

The overall verdict: this is a book that either you will either fall in love with, or that you will hate. It’s rare to find an opinion in reviews that begs to differ.

In my opinion, it was a fast-paced page turner that kept me engaged and relatively entertained during the span of time that I was reading it, but there were still many holes that left me unsatisfied with the book as a whole with its completion.

The basic plot traces the story, both in a modern fictional account and in a “historical” context, of the search of the true holy grail-not only a treasure of time and religious history, but also one of deeper metaphorical symbolism. To provide a more in depth synopsis: a murder within the Louvre in tangent with clues hidden within the works of the great master Leonardo DaVinci (along with many other renowned thinkers and artists) leads to the discovery of a religious enigma hidden by a secret society for thousands of years, a secret that could cause catastrophic change in the base of worldwide religion.

Sounds a bit overdramatic with a dose of being formulaic, doesn’t it?

Brown weaves a fast-paced and entertaining read that leaves you with cliffhangers at every chapter’s conclusion, leaving you flipping the pages till the end. Read as a shallow summertime read is a good investment, however reading too deeply into the “historical facts” may prove dangerous. Taken as pure fiction many of the “historical facts” serve as fascinating concepts for future introspection on secrets societies, treasure, and religion as a whole-taken as fact; however, many prove to be a stretch. Brown treads a thin line in his historical accuracy, writing a story of fiction, but stating many of the facts as the complete truth when transferred over to our world. The main warning: read with a grain of salt.

The plot also leaves you with too many twists to count- one of the most entertaining aspects for me. One moment an ally seems like a foe, the next it is revealed who in fact the true enemy is, and the moment directly after it turns out that one of the main antagonists was actually good all along! (You get the point.) It serves to be highly entertaining, but by the third plot deception it leaves you wondering how much of a formula Brown had at his disposal, and if he really did intend to be so repetitive.

Another thing that particularly struck me was the fact that many of the plot occurrences seemed just too perfect to conspire in real life. Many aspects of the novel proved to be highly unrealistic, a romance where one would never take place in real life, the fact that one of the main emulated ideas in the story is that of a scared and empowered feminine-yet the main (and only) female protagonist is, although being portrayed as smart and beautiful, is forced to act powerless for large stretched in the plot, and that somehow the protagonists always end up where they were supposed to with the answer they needed in the end.

Overall, the writing isn’t terrible-it is just a story that one must read with the intent of entertainment, not fact.

-Sophia U., 12th grade

Book Review: Stormbreaker, by Anthony Horowitz

Posted on July 30, 2014 by Evan G.

Alex Rider is your typical 14 year old boy. He likes girls, action movies and sports. However, when his Uncle Ian suddenly dies in a car crash, Alex knows the story is a lie. The bullet holes in the windshield are all the evidence he needs. Upon further investigation, he stumbles upon an astounding truth. His uncle was not the humble businessman that he had pretended to be, but a secret agent for the British secret service, MI6.

When Alex is chosen to replace his uncle as a spy, his life goes upside down. He finds himself fighting goons, surviving a jellyfish attack, and stopping a crazy terrorist from destroying England. I don’t want to give anything else away because the book is all about suspense.

This book is riveting! Percy Jackson fans will especially enjoy this story as they are both written with similar first-person irony. I also recommend it to those who are tired of predictable endings. While in most books the good guys win, this guy wins in ways that not even the author could see coming! Both boys and girls will find it is an action-packed, fun to read, page-turner. This is an intense mystery. I read it in two days because I could not put it down!

-Evan G., 6th grade

Introduction to the Maximum Ride series by James Patterson

Posted on July 22, 2014 by Megan V.

Calling all Mutants!

It doesn’t matter whether you have a mother who gave birth to you or were simply born in a test tube– we, a flock of six who have wings, will be recruiting anyone who has a mutation, such as super speed, being a dog who can talk, or have a body part from a different animal.

If you have one of these requirements, join our army that is going to save the world!

And who are we? We’ll, we are six kids who were merged with bird cells, which explains our wings. If you don’t trust us, whether it’s because you don’t believe kids or think that we are part of the government that is trying to get you back, we will give you a description of us:

Max: aka Maximum Ride, is the leader of the six. She is fourteen years old, blond, a bit pretty, and because she is on the run, she doesn’t shower much and tends to smell. (Fang, I’m going to get you for that! -M)

Fang: is also fourteen, and is always there if Max breaks into an emotional struggle. He is also very hot and sexy with his dark looks and wings. (Okay, the first sentence is true. Not too sure about the second. -M) However, his preference in girls seems to be red haired pretty girls, though some say he is in love with Max. (…Angel, please don’t write about what I think. And Fang doesn’t love me -M) (They are both truueee! -A)

Ian: also fourteen. Some scientists tried to make him be able to see in the dark, but it failed and caused total blindness. (Do you think we will scare others with this sentence, Nudge? -I) (Well, we should let them know that we are just like them with being experimented on. -N) (Hah! You said Total, like our dog’s name! -G) He usually wears glasses, and can be found playing practical jokes on the teachers with Gazzy.

Nudge: eleven years old. She has dark skin, and absolutely loves fashion. (And fashion, fashion, AND EVEN MORE FASHION!! -N) (I’m glad that this is a rough draft, because we aren’t putting that in there on the final. -M)

Gazzy: eight years. His name is short for the Gasman, which is because his farts are deadly. His typical practical joke on the teachers is to set off stinkbombs (They ruuuuuleeee! -G)

Angel: six years. She has hit the mutant jackpot, for she can read minds and do other things that are talented. (Aww, you make me blush. -A) She happens to know what is going on, so she’ll know if there is a traitor among us and who likes who in this group. She also seems to get whatever she wants, making her a sweet, yet spoiled brat. (Gaaaaazzzzyyyy! You too, Fang, I heard from you that you gave him that idea! -A)

So there you have it! We have been experimented on, put into dog crates, and tested on. Now, after four years of hiding, our foster dad is gone, Angel goes missing, we have to face our worst fear (school), and we all have the desires of wanting to be normal. Oh, did we also mention that we are being chased by boys who can turn into dogs, including a used to be cute three year old? Now we’re on the run, but if you want to join, contact Fang on his blog and we’ll come get you.

-Megan V., 9th grade

Book Review and Music Pairing: Keeper of the Lost Cities, by Shannon Messenger

Posted on July 15, 2014 by Maya S.

Keeper of the Lost Cities is about a girl named Sophie Foster who learns that she is not human. Shocker! She is a 12-year-old senior in high school and has been admitted to the most prestigious Ivy League schools. It all begins when she is sitting in science class one day, with ear-buds in, listening to music. The teacher asks her a question that she is not expected to know the answer, but her very rare ability, her photographic memory, helps her. Later, on a fieldtrip to a museum, an odd-looking boy tells her the words of her fate, “It’s okay, Sophie. I’m here to help you. We have been looking for you for 12 years.”

She has no choice but to go with him. She learns that his name is Fitz, and she is amazed at the lost world of the elves they have entered. Messenger provides some history and explains that the Ancients, the governing body for the elves, had a fight with the Humans a long time ago. When I read this, I thought of the song “Revolution” by the Beatles. After reading further, I realized not only is this not a revolution, but also it is the start of a broken bond. If the two groups had actually agreed, perhaps the world would be much happier. But, they didn’t. The Ancients wanted peace; however, humans wanted to go to war. So the two were separated, and the elves became forgotten to the humans except for the ones believed to reside in the North Pole. The forgotten elves actually live in areas called the Lost Cities. The human cities are known as Forbidden Cities to the elves, because nobody except for the Ancients and the Council members are allowed to enter them.

Sophie Foster starts school at the most prestigious school for prodigy elves. She learns that she is a Telepath with impenetrable brainpower, an elf who is able to read minds and transmit thoughts without anybody reading hers. She has always been able to read human minds. However, elf minds proved more difficult. And, another thing, it turns out a group of elves are out to get her. If this book was turned into a film, the song “When you wish upon a star” from Walt Disney’s Pinocchio is a symbolic song for the credits. Sophie wished that she could belong and not stand out as the only prodigy. I give this first book in the trilogy 11 stars out of 10! I loved it and the series so much that it is now my second favorite book series next to Harry Potter! Kudos, Shannon Messenger.

-Maya Salem, 6th grade

Book Review: Beowulf

Posted on July 10, 2014 by Satej B.

Grendel, the beast, feared by any and all living creatures, only one challenges to fight him, his name is Beowulf. Beowulf, known for his “strong wrists” and his generosity to others.

In Beowulf_,Grendel is thought to be the cruelest beast of all to everyone. But, as the story proceeds further, they see that his mother is worst. Grendel’s mother is outraged when Beowulf murders Grendel and she decides to make him pay for it. So, Beowulf and Grendel’s mother fight, Beowulf realizes that Grendel’s mother is much more tough then Grendel himself. But, he does prevail and kill her.

Further in the story, Beowulf is much older, but he is called to fight against the Firedrake, the most feared monster of its time. Beowulf, even though he is old, manages to kill Firedrake and save his home land from the danger… but does he live…? Killing the Firedrake wasn’t easy for an old man like him, but even though he did kill him, will he stay alive, after all the energy he put into murdering the Firedrake?

You’ll have to read this story if you want to see if Beowulf lives in the end…

Overall I give this book a 9/10, it kept me captivated the whole time and made me nonstop read it. I definitely recommend this to any age of audience, but preferably 7 and older because of the violence. Generally, it’s a must-read!

-Satej B., 7th grade

Book Review: The Maze Runner, by James Dashner

Posted on July 3, 2014 by Rachel L.

In celebration of the upcoming movie adaption of this exciting novel, I thought I would review the first book in this trilogy.

This dsytopian adventure is full of mystery and suspense, set in a chilling sort of “captivity” where young boys (and boys only) live in the middle of a dangerous maze that no one’s escaped or survived. The protagonist, Thomas arrives one day in “The Box” with no memory of anything and is immediately puzzled and disturbed by this place.

The boys live a puzzling life of trying to survive and attempting to make it out of the maze, with no idea of anything at all or who they are. The maze, which several of the boys try to brave but never make it out alive, holds terrifying creatures called Grievers.

One day, the disturbing cycle of everyday life is interrupted by the shocking arrival of- a girl. She brings a strange cryptic message before passing out. With her arrival, everything is shaken up. What happens then… you’ll have to read the book to find out.

This novel, although a bit slow at times, was a generally thrilling book that will keep you on the edge of your seat with a thousand questions running through your mind. Unfortunately, these questions are barely or not even answered in the first book, but the second and third ones do address them, and let me tell you – they will shock and excite and are not to be missed.

If you are a fan of dystopian stories like The Hunger Games or Divergent, I highly recommend this book (as well as the rest of the trilogy) for an entertaining suspense-filled read. Plus, you’ll be prepared for the upcoming movie, in theaters everywhere this September!

-Rachel L.,10th grade

Book Review: The Darkest Minds, by Alexandra Bracken

Posted on June 11, 2014 by Danielle T.

‘ It feels like we should do something,’ he said. ‘Like, send her off on a barge out to sea and set her on fire. Let her go out in a blaze of glory.’ Chubs raised an eyebrow. ‘It’s a minivan, not a Viking.’
― Alexandra Bracken, The Darkest Minds

I just recently put down the book that has been taking up most of my life lately. Captivating. Funny. There are twists and turns up and down the storyline. The Darkest Minds, in my eyes, has the complete checklist for being the next The Hunger Games or Divergent.

According to the author, Alexandra Bracken, “This series has so much more to offer. It really is a near-future thriller with romance, sic-fi, and dystopian elements thrown in, and it’s meant to feel as though something like this could happen tomorrow.” All around the country, people are picking up this book and reading it, becoming a hostage to brilliance of the writer. This book is amazing and I, without a trace of doubt in my mind, give it five out of five stars. Trust me, this is a book that you do NOT want to miss out on.

Anyway, picture this; the US has fallen victim to a disease that only affects ten to seventeen year olds and has already taken 98% of the youth population (I.A.A.N.). You are a part of the remaining 2%. A scared and paranoid government (“They were never scared of the kids who might die or the empty spaces they would leave behind. They were afraid of us- the ones who lived.”) create camps strung across the nation for the remaining kids- you get taken there and you are left. It was the day of her tenth birthday when Ruby was forgotten. Her parents locked her in her garage and called the police. Something was terribly wrong. She might have survived I.A.A.N. but life didn’t go on normally. She came out of it with uncontrollable abilities. Ruby was taken to a camp for six years where they were sorted, red-the highly dangerous ones, orange- the dangerous ones, yellow, green and blue. Working hard and being beaten, she discovers now, at the age of sixteen, she’s a dangerous one. Once the truth is out, she has to trust a total stranger to get her out. And soon.

Now on the run, Ruby joins a small group of runaways just like her, desperately searching for a safe haven- East River. Liam, the leader, falls hard for Ruby and although she wants to give in, she knows that she can’t get near him. Not since what happened to her parents. Once they reach East River, nothing is as it seems, especially its mysterious leader. In the background though, there are forces at work. Groups of people who will do anything to get Ruby in their team to rebel against the government. Ruby will be faced with the fates of everyone she loves in her hands, a decision that can mean giving up her only chance at a life worth living. This book is so amazing and definitely my favorite. Its a must-read. A masterpiece this great has to be given a try. Its only the best choice.

“The Darkest Minds hide behind the most unlikely faces.” You will not regret the choice.

-Danielle T., 7th grade

Book Review: Midnight for Charlie Bone, by Jenny Nimmo

Posted on May 28, 2014 by rwong2002

Imagine having a unique talent which nobody else has, and you have the choice of using it to save the world! Written by Jenny Nimmo, this novel, Midnight for Charlie Bone, tells a story about a young boy who thinks he is a normal person with a normal life who has a normal friend. However, when Charlie starts to hear voices from the people in various photos and pictures, his life suddenly changes and becomes very complicated.

Charlie Bone is then forced by his wicked aunts to attend Bloor’s Academy for talented students in the areas of music, art, or drama. He is like some other children at this school who have an endowment of magic, and he is descended from the Red King, a ruler from the past with unimaginable powers. Myths say that these descendants would each possess one of those magical endowments, and that is why Charlie is able to hear people in non-motion images. One day while visiting a book store, he stumbled upon a mysterious, metal case containing something that might save the bookseller’s daughter and family. In order to do this though, he needs to find the courage to stand up to the Bloor family, whose evilness is lurking behind the doors of their academy.

Jenny Nimmo is an extraordinary author who writes several fantasy books for children and young adults. This series, Charlie Bone and the Red King, has a total of eight amazing novels, and I am currently reading the third book, Charlie Bone and the Invisible Boy.

I think Charlie is the perfect character, since he has the right personality and characteristics for this series. What makes him so special in the book is that he has a knack for getting in trouble, but he can somehow always get away with it, whether it is having friends help or by using his brain to get out of tough situations.

My recommendation for this book would be to anyone between the ages of ten to sixteen who like to read about fantasies and mysteries. I would rate this novel a nine and a half out of ten, because it drew me into the story, as if I was part of the setting. This would be a good book for you Harry Potter fans out there, for this series depicts a war of good versus evil.

-Riley W., 6th grade

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