Wonder- Eve

   Wonder is about a boy named August who was born with a facial deformity that has kept him from going to school-until now. August is going into the fifth grade at Beecher Prep, but theres one problem; other people don't see August for what he is on the inside. Inside Augusts just an ordinary kid, and a great friend. Will others come to knowAugust for who he really is? Throughout this book August faces many challenges and learns to accept himself just the way he is.

What I liked: 

I liked that the story was told from multiple points of view.  

What I would change:

I found that most of the the characters in this book where kind of dull, so I would make them have more of a personality.

There and Back Again....

The Hobbit – By J.R.R. Tolkien                                                                    Matthew Poole

The Hobbit is the story of Bilbo Baggins, a happy unadventurous hobbit who lives a quiet, comfortable life until a visit from an old family friend, Gandalf the wizard sends him on the adventure of a lifetime!  Bilbo and 13 dwarves set off to reclaim the dwarfs’ fortune from the evil dragon, Smaug, and Bilbo is chosen to be the burglar to help them on their quest.

After escaping from three hungry trolls with Gandalf’s help, the group finds some very special swords made by elves that will come in handy when they are captured by goblins and held deep underground.  The dwarves fight their way out but poor Bilbo is knocked out and when he comes to, he finds a magical ring that turns the wearer invisible.  He has to trick Gollum, a hissing, whiny underground creature who wants to eat Bilbo, into showing him the way out of the goblin’s underground tunnels by winning a riddle game.

He catches up with the dwarves and Gandalf, only to be trapped up trees by evil wolves known as Wargs, but the group is rescued by a flock of great eagles, led by the Eagle King. 

The adventure continues through the dark forest of Mirkwood, where Gandalf disappears, and giant spiders attack but Bilbo saves the day with his sword and the magic ring.  Shortly after escaping, they are again captured by a bunch of wood elves, and again the magic ring allows them to escape. 

They finally arrive at Lonely Mountain, where the sly dragon sleeps on the treasure, but the clever Bilbo finds out the dragon’s weak spot, his scales leave an opening near his heart!  An archer shoots an arrow into the dragon’s heart and kills him but the leader of the dwarfs refuses to share the treasure with the humans and elves who helped them.

Bilbo attempts to bring peace before an army of goblins and Wargs trys to kill them all and by fighting together, the good armies win the battle.

Bilbo returns home, a changed and very adventurous hobbit with a new appreciation of life!

The Hobbit was a great fictional story that I really enjoyed.   The author wrote the book for his children and he sure knew how to tell a tale!  Some of the language was hard to understand but all in all, I would recommend this book. 

Grieving Over Maze Runner

The great Maze Runner by James Dashner.

This book starts with a sixteen year old boy named Thomas, who is in an elevator called the "lift" which feels like a never ending ride. When he reaches the top and the gate opens he is surrouned by fifty or sixty boys (all of different age) staring at him. These boys provied him with food, shelter protection and many other living essentails. But with these things comes rules which Thomas breaks repetadly, making him hard to deal with. Then the day after Thomas's arrival the first girl comes up named Teresa. This causes things to change in there everyday living, forcing them to find a way out. But Thomas knows better, so can they solve the maze or die trying?

If I could change one thing about this book, I would make the language more clear. They say words like "Shank, Shuck and Klunk" which at sometimes can be difficult to understand. Another thing I would change is to make a slower progression to the ending. It seemed a little to fast, but you could still tell what was going on.

This book is by far the BEST book i have ever read in my entire life! I bet a lot of people say that to make their book sound better, but I'm serious this book is AWESOME!!! I beg for people to read it. (no joke I will actually get on my knees). James Dashner's has an amazing mind for coming up with this book, the attention to detail was unreal. You can really get that mental image in your head, about what the book is like.                 
                                                                                                                    


                                                                                               -Tora H

The Unlikely Hero of 13B is about a 15 year old boy with OCD named batman (aka) Adam.  Adams parents are divorce and his mom is a hoarder with letters from a devastating writer. Adam meets a girl Robyn in his OCD support group which he really likes, now Robyn is a 16 year old teenage girl who’s any teen boy Juliet and she has a mess up secret of her own, now will Batman and Robyn get to getter who knows  you will have to read it to find out.  

My favorite part is when Adam goes to his dad’s house and sweetie is so ecstatic to see Adam the reason this is my favorite part because sweetie reminds me of my nephew.

The part I would change is the letter that Adams mom was getting she would find out who it is and the person that was sending them was her I would do this because it would really mess with people minds

My favorite charter is Sweetie he’s my  favorite charter because  he reminds me of my nephew.my nephew  is always so delighted to see me when I come and visit    

The amazing book airborn by Kenneth Oppel

Airborn

Plot summary

15 year old Matt Cruse loved his home away from home aboard the mightiest zeppelin ever to set sail, the Aurora. With it's massive (lighter than air) size, it was prepared for anything, except for when Matt gets a visit from a peculiar girl named Kate de Vries. She tells him of a mysterious island unknown to humanity. Later, the ship gets taken over by a man named Vikram Szprirglas (the stories main villain)and the Aurora ends up crash landing on the island. Now, it's up to Matt Cruse and his love interest Kate to escape the island as well as battle Vikram and his nasty band of pirates. Will they escape or will Vikram send Matt to walk the plank?

Something I liked about the book

One thing that I liked about this book was how it was so interesting and had a ton of detail, especially for such a short book. It also made me, as a reader, feel multiple emotions. I'd laugh when there was a funny part in the book, and I'd cry when it got sad (well not really cry). All of the characters were beautifully illustrated to make it seem as though they were right in front of you, and the author did a great job of keeping you intrigued throughout the book. Though off to a slow start, it quickly caught my attention. This book is something I'd definetly recommend to everyone.

Something I disliked about the book

One thing I disliked about the book was the begining. This is because the author made what could have been a great and action-packed begining into that of what even a kindergartener would have hated. Now that's not to say I don't like the book, I'm just stating that the beginning could have been done way better.

The Hobbit...Maya

     The Hobbit is a fictional novel about a Hobbit's adventure to take back their own gold from the Great and Powerful Smaug. Bilbo Baggins is a short Hobbit who has live in his Hobbit hole for most of his life, until one lucky day he is asked by 13 dwarves and a wizard to win back their gold. Bilbo goes through many obstacles in his way. Bilbo also fights off elves and spiders to save his friends. He starts out being a shy hobbit, to becoming a heroic life saver. He creates opportunities to develop character and take on challenges of a life time.

     I didn't like the God of the seagulls part when they were stuck in the trees and the ending was not exactly what I was expecting and not interesting in my eyes.

     This book was awesome. J.R.R. Tolkien included exquisite detail and made me keep interest in the book! The plot line was great along with good figures of speech. Its amazing how much information I have gotten out of this book. The characters were developed perfectly and and the adventure they had took was excitingly written.I really liked the scene with the Elven King. This book has definitely impacted my life and inspired me to not hold back and just carry on with life.
 ~Maya

I'm dying for And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie -Graham

   And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie is about 8 people how are strangers to each other, are invited to an island for reasons that are different for all of them. When they arrive they are greeted by Mr. and Mrs. Rogers, the butler and housekeeper. They tell the guests that their host, U.N Owen, will not arrive until the next day. Later that night the guests are surprised to hear a voice that accuses them all of murder.

   After the commotion settles, one of the guests chokes to death after finishing the last half of his/her drink. Scared out of their minds, the guests race to bed. Soon after, one by one the guests start dying, and after another person dye's, another china figure goes missing. All of the guests have a nursery rhyme in their bedroom that all of the deaths follow:

“Ten little soldier boys went out to dine; One choked his little self and then there were nine.
Nine little soldier boys sat up very late; One overslept himself and then there were eight.
Eight little soldier boys traveling in Devon; One said he'd stay there and then there were seven.
Seven little soldier boys chopping up sticks; One chopped himself in halves and then there were six.
Six little soldier boys playing with a hive; A bumblebee stung one and then there were five.
Five little soldier boys going in for law; One got in Chancery and then there were four.
Four little soldier boys going out to sea; A red herring swallowed one and then there were three.
Three little soldier boys walking in the Zoo; A big bear hugged one and then there were two.
Two little soldier boys sitting in the sun; One got frizzled up and then there was one.
One little soldier boy left all alone; He went and hanged himself and then there were none.” 

   I really liked this book for many reasons, it was suspenseful, intense, very detailed and made me want to keep reading more than any other book I have ever read. Mrs. Dingle once said if a book creeps you out, it's a good thing, and this book  definitely did. It had a cliff hanger at the end of every chapter, end of every page and at the end of every paragraph. And Then Their Were None is incredible to say the least.

   If I were to change something about the book, it would have to be the revolver. I was always confused about the wear a boutse of the gun. 

And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie -Graham

mirG dna kraD elaT A-Liam

         In this different and original book, Hansel and Gretel leave their story and enter eight grim fairy tales. After there parents cut of the children's heads to save the man that helped them fall in love. The kids want to run away to find "better" parents. "In an epic quest for love and not sacrifice."  Hide the kids because this is a gruesome and scary tale of dragons, cannibal old women, out for the taste of plump, juicy children, a tree that talks, and transforms people into beats, and the devil himself. Will they find the love and affection of new parents, probably not. Or will they die trying?

This book is disgusting, in older times, fairy tales were meant as a disciplinary tools for parents to scare there kids into submission. This book is worse, this is two kids life. All the gruesome characters in this story makes me sick, its a simple read, but its more for adults then anything else. The one thing that I like/didn't like was how it took me forever to get how this author was writing. At the start I couldn't stand how he kept putting in his thoughts in and it just wreaked the flow of the book. But, I read some more, and got it. This book was fun to read.

I am Number Four, A Fantastic Book

I Am Number Four- By Alexander Napier

I am Number Four is a fantastic story that has a slow beginning, but trust me, it gets really good in the middle of the story, but enough of how it is slow, let me get on to the blog.

Plot: The main plot of I am Number Four is that John, {the main character of the story} is one of the numbers, and he is four. Throughout the story he gains certain powers, which Henry {John’s guardian} teaches him how to use. After a while, John learns that the powers that he had learned are to be used for the war against the Mogadorians {The main enemy’s in the story, an evil alien race with razor sharp teeth and have learned to blend in with the humans around them}.

Characters: John- The main character, he is a kind and thoughtful person, although, I did feel his character was too, generic, but that is just my opinion.

Sarah- A girl who loves photography, formerly a cheerleader, and now has a massive crush on John, she was a good character for keeping the story on a romantic side.

Henri- Henri was one of my favorite characters, there was just something about him that stood out, it may have been the father like love for John, or the fact that he had a rich back story, either way; he is a very good character.

Sam- Sam is John’s friend, he is a good person for keeping John on track, he is a character that plays a major part in the story, and I feel he could have had much more potential in the story, but he was still good.

BK- BK is the dog that John meets in his story. He is a homeless dog, but has a special ability which you will see.

Rating:

Likes:

·       Some things in I am Number Four that I liked is the rich character development, and the fact that each character had a different feeling that went with them.

·       Something in the story that I did not like is the fact that to me, it felt similar in many places throughout the story, which is not awful, but could have been better

Overall though, I am Number Four is an exceptional book that everyone from the ages of 10-20 should read, it is all-around amazing, now if you don’t mind, I am going to read some more, bye!

HA! I Can Barely Count By 1's- Counting By 7's by Holly Goldberg Sloan

The Summary:
Willow Chance is a twelve-year-old genius, obsessed with nature and diagnosing medical conditions, who finds it comforting to count by 7s. It has never been easy for her to connect with anyone other than her adoptive parents, but that hasn’t kept her from leading a quietly happy life . . . until now. Suddenly Willow’s world is tragically changed when her parents both die in a car crash, leaving her alone in a baffling world. The triumph of this book is that it is not a tragedy. This extraordinarily odd, but extraordinarily endearing, girl manages to push through her grief. Her journey to find a fascinatingly diverse and fully believable surrogate family is a joy and a revelation to read. Join Willow as she tries to put back her life piece by piece.


What I Liked:
This book was very emotional and a non-fiction kinda book. I loved how this book relates to real-life problems. This book was a great read and very comforting you will enjoy this sad but true book.


What I Didn't Like:
I didn't like all the jumping around in this book. It would do one characters perspective and then anothers and so on and so forth. I also didn't like that it made me feel like I wasn't getting my moneys worth out of the book. It wasn't giving me the full information, I felt like I wanted more. ( I'm really into descriptive books). Overall I really liked this book and it would be a great read for emotional and inspirational audiences.

You guys will really like this book, SO READ IT AND VOTE FOR IT PLEASE!!!!!!!
By: Tally 

  

Blood is Flying and Peple are Dying- A Tale Dark and Grimm by Adam Gidwitz

The Summary:
Join twins, Hansel and Gretel as they decide to run away from their awful parents. Hansel and Gretel take matters into their own hands as they escape to find new "better" parents. Follow them through their gruesome and horrifying adventures as they walk out of their own story and into eight more tales. Encountering creatures such as witches, dragons, young murders, helpful folk, and the devil himself. You better prepare to lose your appetite, as this book is packed with gruesome details. Will Hansel and Gretel find themselves new parents, or will they be stuck going through these scary adventures. Join them to find out, but don't say I didn't warn you!!!

What I Liked:
First of all, I LOVED the detail of this book. It describes the gruesome events without hesitation. I also loved the murder. Don't get me wrong I don't seem like that but I am. This book is very interesting, but it doesn't seem to be a children's book at all. This book has all the suspense it needs to be considered a great book. It was a very fun book and I would recommend anybody with a strong stomach to read it. Enjoy! 

What I Didn't Like:
Overall this book was really great to read, but I couldn't stand the narration throughout it. The narration just through me off, it was also very annoying. It would like have one word at the top or bottom of a page, like HELLO are you trying to waste trees???? (Apparently). The narration, (I know I'm going on and on but whatever) made me mad especially when it repeated itself!!!!!! Like GEEEEZZZZZ!


This book was really good, SO EVERYBODY READ IT AND VOTE FOR IT!!!!!!!
By: Tally <3 <3 

Wonder by R.J Palacio

August (Auggie) Pullman is about to start 5th grade at Beecher Prep. Now, for some kids this is an exciting event, but for Auggie its a whole different story. August was born with a very unusual facial deformation, not just a simple feature in an awkward position, but his whole face. He is used to all the strange looks, insults and continuous whispers, but he has never had experience with other students his age. His mother had home schooled him since he could remember. Will Auggie be able to fit in with the kids at Beecher Prep or forever be an outcast?

What I liked about this book:
It was a pretty interesting book, it really touched on how hard it is to fit in with society. At times it was easy to relate to, and it made me want to read more.

What I didn't like about this book:
I felt like it was a very easy read, maybe if the author added in more complex words and events it would have been more interesting. If they author added in more excitement and big events it would have been more interesting.

-Ashlynne McKay

The Hobbit-Bruce

       The Hobbit begins in Mr. Bagins comfy little hobbit hole. Bilbo Baggins, the main character, does not get out on adventures too often, until one exciting morning. As the adventure begins Bilbo takes off with twelve dwarves and a powerful wizard, trying to reclaim their gold from the great and powerful Smaug. With a new opstacle at every turn Bilbo will face new challenges, earning respect from the dwarves. With chubby goblins, tall trolls and swift elves it will be a tough journey. Can Bilbo make it to the end? Or will he regret leaving his hole that he calls home? Find out as you read The Hobbit which will leave you on the edge of your seat.

      Something I liked about the book was that I could never fall asleep while reading the book. I would always say to myself  '' okay after this chapter I'll go to bed''. That wasn't the case... After each chapter a new problem would pop up and I'd have to read on.

     Something I didn't like about the book was the slow start. It wasn't as bad as i thought but there wasn't too many things i disliked in the book.

A Tale Dark and Grimm summary/reveiw By: Noah Brisebois

         A Tale dark and Grimm is about two kids named Hansel and Gretel. The book starts when their father is first crowned king and the servant Faithful Johaness has been told by the dead king to never let this boy to see the picture of the cursed but beautiful queen. Sure enough he does and he falls madly in love, he goes on a search for her and brings her back to his kingdom. they agree to get married, but faithful Johaness gets a message from future telling crows that when they arrive at the kingdom the horse waiting for them will carry them and throw them off his back so they will die. If they manage to survive that their will be a golden wedding dress waiting for them and she will want to try it on, if she tries it on she will fall in to a burning pit of fire. So he kills the horse and burns the dress and as soon as he tells people what happened he turns to stone. life goes on and the new queen gives birth to Hansel and Gretel. One day in the castle the stone man of Johaness whispered to the sad king that if he cut off their kids head he would come back to life.  Knowing the king owed his life he agreed and did just that, as he came to life the servant healed the kids. As you can imagine they were not happy and ran away to find better parents. this is where the story really begins, they will fight a crazy cannibal who want to eat them, a man who turned his seven sons to stone just for a daughter, Gretel will  cut of her finger, Hansel will met the devil and turn to a wolf like beast boy, the story of their adventures are exciting  and at some points quite gruesome.

     I really like this book and would give it five stars it was engaging and fun to read. The only thing I may have changed is a little more description in some parts.                                      

wonder by R. J. Palacio (BY; Jared Holliday)

This book is about a young boy named, August Pullman, who also goes by the name Auggie. August was born with a previously unknown type of mandibulofacial dysostosis caused by an autosomal recessive mutation in the TCOF1 gene. i think this was a really easy read i think they could have used a higher vocabulary when they wrote this book. he is in his first year of school at beecherman prep school his mom at the start said he should go then she said he should not go and that was the same as his dad but opposite to his mom. i think this book would be good for 9 -10 year old. In the book he has to push through his life always being jugged on something that is a very rare thing. also he is in grade (5). It is hard for him to make friends but on the first day his teacher put what will be his best friend beside him in all of his classes and at lunch he sites by him self and summer sites beside him and they make the summer named table. over all I enjoyed the book it was very nice to see all of the different views of all the different people.     

"You're the shuckiest shuck-faced shuck in the world!" THE MAZE RUNNER

Having your memory wiped is dreadful, especially for Thomas who's mind many lives depend on.

Those endangered lives would be the Gladers, a crew of cagey boys trapped in a vast place called the Glade. The Glade is an expanse of forest and field surrounded by vine draped walls. An intricate maze lay on the other side. Just like Thomas, the Gladers don't know why or how they got to the Glade. All they know is that every morning the stone doors to the maze that surrounds them have opened and every night they've closed tight, separating the nasty creatures lurking in the maze in the darkness from the vulnerable boys. Every thirty days a new boy has been delivered. Thomas was expected but the next day,  a girl is sent to the Glade - the first girl ever to arrive. More surprising yet, is the message she delivers...At every turn of the pages, can the maze be solved and the Gladers escape, or is the maze really unsolvable? 

Honestly this book did not inspire me. I have read similar themed books that have really captured and grabbed my imagination and The Maze Runner was not one of them. The only thing that I enjoyed was the fast pace of this novel. What didn't quite work for me in this book was the flow. I found it was disjointed.

If I could change one aspect of this book, I would choose to change the flow of one event moving into the next because the author did not do a very good job at spacing the exciting parts. I fell asleep a few times while reading this book...

       

          By: Kiah Vail  7H2

A Tale Dark and Grimm ~Aaliyah Jomha

 A Tale Dark and Grimm written by Adam Gidwitz, was quite an interesting book. This story is about two young twins Hansel, and Gretel, who go through gruesome and tragic events leading them to make decisions no child, let alone human, should ever have to make. They set off on an adventure starting by leaving their parents. It quickly escalates and leads into a story of their own. Cannibals, murderers, devils, and as soon as you think its over, there’s more. I've never read a book quite like this. You always have to saver those happy moments for the two young twins, because in the back of your head you pity for what is about to occur next. "Are there any good homes out there?” "They must be cursed." Are some of the many thoughts you’ll be thinking throughout this whole book. A Tale Dark and Grimm, doesn’t just keep you at the edge of your seat, but in fact it’ll make your skin crawl, and you may as well start to prepare to lose your appetite. 

 I liked how this book was very entertaining and it had the perfect amount of rising and falling action. I really enjoyed how there was one main problem but that main problem was made from many other conflicts created throughout the book. It was very different from what I usually read, and it was very surprising and that made me enjoy reading it a lot more. 

 Personally I didn’t like the format it was written in, and how it kept say the end, the end, the end, after almost every two pages near the beginning. Also many events or choices they made were very unrealistic and not very smart. If they made it a bit more realistic I think I would’ve enjoyed it more. The ending is also pretty predictable, yet strange at the same time. I also wish that one specific character didn’t die (can’t spoil). 

Overall I really liked this book and I hope that it moves on in the smack down. 

~Aaliyah Jomha