Book Review: Revived, by Cat Patrick

Posted on October 29, 2014 by Kaylie W.

Imagine knowing that you would be able to die over and over, and still be brought back to life within minutes. What kind of risks would you take if you were able to achieve the impossible and cheat death?

Cat Patrick’s sci-fi novel Revived describes the life of Daisy Appleby, a fifteen-year-old who is part of a top-secret government experiment. As a child, she died in an unfortunate bus accident. But thanks to a newly developed drug name Revived, Daisy was able to be brought back to life. Since the first accident, Daisy has died a total of five times. As a result, Daisy lives a very careless life, as she knows that she will always be able to beat death. However, something changes when she befriends the optimistic, charismatic, Audrey, and her caring brother, Matt. Daisy starts to question her morals and slightly skewed approach to life. Is it truly right to take life for granted, while others only have one chance to make the best of it?

I must admit that the characters were very relatable, especially Daisy, because she struggles with the same everyday life dilemmas we have today. After each death, Daisy is forced to move to a different state and take on a new identity, in order to avoid suspicion. She struggles to fit in and find her place in the world, which is pretty difficult if she is constantly transferring schools. Nevertheless, I felt that Daisy was selfish and immature at times when complaining about how she can’t have a “normal life,” even though she is able to die more than once. I believe that she wouldn’t have to face this problem if she was simply more careful and aware of her surroundings.

While I did think Revived was predictable at times and left too much information unexplained and vague, I did enjoy it because it was different than most young adult books today. The setting wasn’t a dystopian, future society, and the romance wasn’t overdone, so it didn’t take over and ruin the main plot line. I would rate this book a 7 out of 10 and recommend it to those who like reading simple, science fiction novels. In my opinion, Revived was a good book, but not good enough to rate it as one of those “must read” novels. Most importantly, though, it conveys the message that we should make the most of and always appreciate the gift of life.

-Kaylie W., 10th grade

Book vs. Movie: The Maze Runner

Posted on October 9, 2014 by Nicole G.

From the very beginning, I could tell the movie was changing things.

The Box where Thomas arrives has a random caged animal never explained in the movie with Thomas. Then Thomas runs off for no apparent reason, and tries to escape the very first night.

Chuck has a smaller role, I felt. His storyline is still there, but Alby decided to give Thomas the tour in the movie version. Chuck basically solved the end puzzle in the book, although to his credit, Chuck in the movie saved the device thing from falling. Minho is also introduced early on as a key character. Gally is still a jerk to Thomas, but it feels more forced without the background of the griever sting memories. Which brings me to my next point.

The background of the glade was also a bit off from the book. Gladers had fewer deliveries, less knowledge of grievers (no one alive to tell the tale), and no cliff for the griever hole. The book basically left Gladers with puzzles that required the final push with Thomas and Teresa to put the pieces together. The movie, however, decided to flesh out the puzzles (maze spelling words and special place the grievers go) to encompass more action scenes with the maze.

One of the most action packed scenes in the book, besides the ending, was when Thomas spent the night in the maze. There was still a chase sequence in the movie, but cleverly tricking the grievers off a cliff with the combined teamwork of Minho was replaced with crushing with a wall (there are a lot of close wall squeezes in the movie). It started with this whole griever tracking device to a long hallway that screams the perfect place for an attack.

The part that always stuck with me from the book was Teresa’s ability to communicate telepathically in her coma and give Thomas some info. The movie introduced her later in the plot and took out the telepathy, coma, and info. She’s still a pretty tough girl. A really great scene was when she was on the top of a tree-house building throwing things at the Gladers. Chuck said something along the lines of “Girls are awesome.”

The movie focused mainly on the maze. Griever attacks were more intense, without taking everyone down one by one idea from the book. I guess WCKD didn’t care about their variables anymore. Best part of the movie was definitely the maze scenes, although my favorite moment was when they found this green exit sign above a door. It was just perfect comedic timing.

The action scenes were intense and fast paced. It felt more dramatic than the book, but it worked. Despite all this– not a bad adaptation, and can easily lead to the sequels. Wish there was more Glader slang than colloquial, though. So if you want more action, check out the movie. If you want to understand what’s going on with this strange world, I suggest reading the book first.

-Nicole G., 11th grade

Book Review: Echoes of Us, by Kat Zhang

Posted on September 30, 2014 by Nicole G.

Note: This is the last book in the Hybrid Chronicles, and may contain minor spoilers from the previous books What’s Left of Me and Once We Were.

Eva and Addie are twin souls in the same body. Eva was supposed to fade away when they were five, but she didn’t. Until recently, Eva hasn’t been able to move, talking only to Addie. But with a little help from some new hybrid friends, Eva was able to take control of the body she shared with Addie. Only to be captured, escape, join an underground resistance, and become even further fugitives in the eyes of the law, that doesn’t trust hybrids in the slightest.

On the other hand, Eva can sometimes be too trusting. When offered a job to go undercover in a hybrid institution by a reporter, Eva jumps at the opportunity in order save the boy Addie loves, even if it means leaving the boy Eva herself loves. Yeah, just because they share the same heart, doesn’t mean they share the same feelings, especially when it comes to love.

Only problems arise when Eva and Addie make their decision. Promises aren’t always kept, people can’t always be trusted, and situations aren’t always what they appear. This is the chance of a lifetime to make some real changes for the hybrid community, but if they aren’t careful, Eva and Addie could be destroyed permanently.

I really liked this series. It’s hard to wrap your mind around the two souls/one body thing at first, but I think that’s kind of the point. It is dystopian-esque more within people than in society, that tries to change people who won’t be “normal.”

I kind of wish Addie narrated part of the trilogy, but it was more of Eva’s story. As most endings, there are some losses in order to obtain a gain for the greater good. The ending was pretty perfect to me. If you enjoyed the first two books, definitely find out how it ends. If you haven’t started this series, I would recommend it to science fiction fans who also enjoy save the world themes with a splash of romance.

-Nicole G., 11th grade

Book Review: The Giver, by Lois Lowry

Posted on August 19, 2014 by Anmol K.

Author Lois Lowry does an amazing job in the unique, science-fiction novel The Giver. The highly-anticipated movie adaptation just released on August 15. Have you seen it?

In the novel, we are introduced to a boy named Jonas, who lives in a utopian society that has eradicated conflict, poverty, unemployment, divorce, injustice, and inequality. In the annual Ceremony, where every twelve-year-old gets a life assignment prearranged by the Elders, Jonas is selected to inherit the position of “Receiver of Memory.”

When Jonas spends more & more time with the Giver, he learns the power of wisdom. Even though the people in his community have been shielded from life’s many problems, Jonas realizes that they do not know about the things that give life meaning such as sunshine, color, music, and love.

Becoming wiser everyday, Jonas doesn’t want to bear all the memories, both joyful and painful, by himself. He wants to share the many freedoms with his community, even if it means disrupting the safe, current life of innocence and order. Together the Giver and Jonas formulate a plan that will have instant, severe outcome on the entire community, especially on Jonas himself.

Jonas, portrayed by Brenton Thwaites in the movie, is naïve in the story and I like how he matures during the course of the story. One main reason I liked this book is that it is unlike other dystopian novels I have read. The Giver is one of the books that I have read over and over again because it is so well written. This is truly Lois Lowry’s masterpiece and in my opinion she totally deserves the John Newbery Award for it. The ending of The Giver was not the best, but I have not read all the books in the Giver Quartet. It might make more sense in the latter books. I am especially excited to see the movie because I loved the book. It’s been hard waiting for the movie to be released, but I am going to see it for sure.

-Anmol K., 7th grade

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

Book Review: From Lightning to the Light, by Dennis Koranek

Posted on July 31, 2014 by Danielle L.

From Lightning to the Light by Dennis Koranek is a very different type of book. I have never read anything like it before. Whether it’s a good different or bad different I have yet to decide. This is probably why it took me an unusually long time to read. But persevere I did, and I’m glad because the book is unique.

This book starts out with a professor getting hit by lightning, suffering temporary amnesia and ending up with a lightning-fast brain (get it?). Physically, his body no longer requires sleep, but otherwise, he is normal. He now spends his days and nights inventing interactive machines that help humanity. The chapters fly by as the words are written as if you’re in his fast-paced mind.

The story evolves quickly and soon introduces his “superhero” daughter, with each following chapter involving a new mission for her to complete.

Being a Spider-Man fan, I appreciate the superhero aspect of this novel. However, I think it would have been more engaging if it was slowed down a bit and involved more human details. I would have enjoyed getting personally closer to the characters. I did appreciate the unusualness of this novel in that all “gifts” were consistently credited to God, not man. There was no ego involved, and these “super humans” were God’s instruments. The novel ends with time travel, tying the previous chapters together but leaving a lot of room for character development in future books or even a TV series.

This book will satisfy all of us sci-fi fans out there while still keeping a focus on God, not man, as the ultimate Creator.

I would like to point out that this book is a work of fiction. It is very extraordinary and unique in the sense that this combines the Bible (non-fiction) and fiction together. However, for me personally, this makes me uncomfortable as I don’t know if this “merging” trivializes the Bible. But please, as this is my own personal opinion, give this book a go if it interests you! There aren’t too many like this one out there!

-Danielle L., 6th grade

Book Review: SYLO, by D.J. MacHale

Posted on July 24, 2014 by Kyle H.

SYLO is a story about an island off the east coast of the United States of America where there is supposedly a virus that leaked out.

A group of kids on the island tried to figure out what the virus is and why SYLO came. The longer SYLO stays on the island, the more suspicious the inhabitants get. Now, these kids will try to find out everything. All information will be theirs about SYLO, the mysterious Ruby, the victims of the virus, and who else is involved. As they learn more, they discover the SYLO officers contacting their parents. Once this is discovered, the kids get even more suspicious. Their limits are tested as these kids will be chased, questioned, in danger, and scared. But in the midst of all things seeming lost, there is always friendship and determination to get them through whatever task might come before them.

However, there might be obstacles that even these determined kids cannot surpass. Such as alien weaponry, and government associations that out-man, outgun, and might outwit these kids on their journey to find the truth and the lies. What is the virus? Who is SYLO? Why are their parents involved? How did the Ruby get onto their island? What are the kids going to do about everything?

All of these questions will be solved when you read SYLO.

-Kyle H., 7th grade

Book Review: Cinder, by Marissa Meyer

Posted on July 21, 2014 by Erika T.

Cinder by Marissa Meyer is a great summer read! With a fusion of the classic fairy tale, Cinderella, and the futuristic story of Star Wars, Cinder had me on the edge of my seat the entire time!

This sci-fi story takes place in the far future. In the future Earth has been through two more World Wars, been unified as a peaceful place, and is neighbors to the powerful alien race, Lunars, who live on the moon. Earth leaders have been trying to negotiate a peace treaty with Lunars.

The protagonist of the story is, Cinder, a teenage cyborg girl who is looked down upon by society and by her stepmother. When Cinder meets the charming Prince Kai, she finds her world slowly turning upside down. At the same time, her family is being attacked by the incurable plague. Devastated from the aftermath of the plague, Cinder’s stepmother volunteers Cinder to the cyborg draft. The cyborg draft has cyborgs test cures for the plague and no cyborg has come out alive. At the medical facilities, Cinder unravels the hidden truths about her life. These truths put herself, Prince Kai, and the entire Earth in danger. Cinder is soon intertwined with the outcome of every being on Earth and Luna! Check out this book this summer to live through the adventure of Cinder!

I would recommend this book to every teen! Cinder is an amazing new twist to the fairy tale we all know and love. There is action, romance, and suspense! It is filled with so many new surprises! There is that one big question that haunted me and I didn’t know the answer until the very end of the book. I couldn’t help but constantly wonder what was going to happen next! Because of that I couldn’t stop reading it!

If you liked Divergent or The Hunger Games I recommend this book for you!

-Erika T., 8th grader

Book Review: Under the Never Sky, by Veronica Rossi

Posted on July 16, 2014 by Becka O.

I don’t know if you have heard of this book. It’s become bigger recently but it isn’t the most popular title in my library. However, it is an interesting read and a very unique take on dystopian lit.

This isn’t the ordinary, “girl lives in society – society is corrupt – girl rebels and becomes an outcast. – falls in love with a rebel boy – take down corrupt society or government together – the end.” There are definitely those elements in this book, but there’s also cool new technology and a fresh new writing style. It does share elements with Divergent,
The Hunger Games, The Selection, Uglies, etc. However, I thought it was more than the generic dystopian book that has seemed to take Barnes and Noble by storm.

This book takes place in a world where civilized people live in pods and for them to go outside would mean certain death. Aether, the energy that fills the sky, has been zapping the ground for 6 generations. First it started fires and then it started plagues. There are tribes that live in the wild, savages, but for the average citizen, outside the pods is called the death shop. Even to breathe the air is certain death. So when Aria gets dropped off in the middle of the desert after an attempt to find her mom that kills three of her peers she is certain she will die and never see her mother again. But with the help from a Savage named Perry, she learns to survive and fight. But she continues to hunt for her mother.

This book was not extremely well written but the world Veronica Rossi creates is a fascinating concept that has not really been touched by a lot of dystopian authors. I thought that the storyline was good and the plot twists came out of nowhere. I would recommend it to anyone who likes dystopian or wants to try something new.

-Becka O., 8th 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

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