"Enthusiasm" by Polly Schulman

Enthusiasm is the perfect book for Pride and Prejudice fans! The book is about a girl, named Ashleigh, who is an enthusiast (person who changes interests faster then the weather). Her best friend introduces her to the world of Elizabeth Bennett and Ashleigh gets hooked. When Ashleigh decides to find their soul mates, will it go wrong or will Ashleigh and her friend find their “Prince Charming”. This book is filled with romance, friendship friction, and unwanted beaus as well as a mystery.

I really enjoyed this book and I think that any girl who reads it can’t help but identify with one of the main characters. This book would attract girl readers and any fans of romance or romantic mysteries. Pride and Prejudice fans will love this modern spin-off of the classic.

The author was very creative with her characters and also with just making this book into a modern fairytale, which ties in with Pride and Prejudice. There are many twists in the plot that keep you interested and there’s also a nice ending.

"Freak the Mighty" by Rodman Philbrick

The main characters are Maxwell Kane, a huge but learning- disabled kid and his friend Kevin, nicknamed "Freak", who is physically crippled but very intelligent. They meet each other when they are still kids in a day care center, and after a long time they met each other again when freak moves in behind and becomes his neighbor.

This book has easy vocabulary, and the content is awesome. I think an adventure over will like to read this book because it is an adventure kind of fiction. The author clearly describes Max’s mind about things he sees, and his emotional side.

Chiui

"Fire Star" by Chris D’Lacey

In the third book of The Fire Within series, David rain travels to the arctic reaches for a field trip, only to find that an old enemy is back and has kidnapped Lucy, his land owner’s daughter. As soon as he returns, his girlfriend who stayed in the arctic mysteriously disappears. A young being of the multi-dimensional race of the Fain, enters the world through one of David’s dragons, G’reth, which subsequently causes an older, and much more malicious Fain to follow, wrecking havoc through the world. All of this ends up back where it all started, but not without some paying the ultimate price.

An exciting saga, surrounded by mystery and loss, hope and grief. Filling you with wonder of what will happen next, till the very end. However, it has a sad ending, and leaves too much in shadow, and is not for the weak hearted. One who wishes for more would enjoy this story, surrounded with the lights of the north to the gloomy weather of a rainy island. This story makes you wish to never put it down, and you can’t wait for the next book in the series. It can be improved if it tells more at the end. I highly recommend you to go to the website, www.icefire.co.uk.

"Anne Of Green Gables" by L.M Montgomery

This story is about Anne Shirley, an amusingly imaginative and bright little girl who is an orphan, who is adopted by a stubborn woman named Marilla Cuthbert. Eventually Anne comes to live at a place where everyone dislikes her because of her wild imagination--a rare feature for a woman.
I believe that this book is really good but as they say, nothing can be perfect, “Anne of Green gables” did have some weaknesses. One of the main weaknesses in this book was the two pages long chattering of a little girl called Anne Shirley. It does get boring when the dialogue gets long so I would recommend the author to change her ‘superbly long’ passages to something short and interesting. I am very sure that this book has wild imagination in it and it grasps the reader’s attention despite the long paragraphs of details. Personally, I love reading this book as many times as I want. This book symbolizes me with wild imagination and endless talking. Readers who love to go into detail about how a place looked or how something felt to someone would love to read such books.

Shushmita

"The Secret Scroll" by Lynne Ewing

Four seemingly ordinary girls are born as the goddesses of the moon to protect the goodness of the world from the enemy, the Atrox. Catty has a special power; she can go back to the past. One day, she gets a secret scroll from a man she doesn’t know. She realizes that it will help them destroy the Atrox. Of course, people on the Atrox side wanted it too. She keeps it very safe. She gets a new boyfriend. He is very kind to her, and they like each other so much. On another day, when she was walking down the street, same man talked to her, but said ‘don’t look at me’. Though she held up her mirror to see who he was, and found out that it was her boyfriend. After the notice, they corporate to fight against the Atrox. Unfortunately, Atrox noticed that Catty has the secret scroll. So the strongest Follower, who is in the inner circle of the Atrox, calls her to the park at the night with no moon. But before that, she wrote the fake scroll; because she knew it she would have to destroy it. As she thought, Follower said to destroy it. And he hunts down her to the death. For he can read the mind, he realizes that it was the fake one. Of course he let Catty get the genuine one. While getting it, she remembered the spell that will weaken the Atrox. She uses it with other goddesses, and won the ‘game’. But suddenly, she was caught up in the other world with a flash…

I think the strength of this book is that at the end of the book, it is usually the good ending, like goddesses beat up the Atrox. But in this one, one goddess disappeared and ended. It was really unexpected one. Weakness is it is always same that main character’s boyfriend is related to the Atrox, or the goddess, so it was very obvious that her boyfriend was the man. Still I liked this ending the best. It didn’t tell us about what was the flash, and where she was. So it inspired me to read the next one. And teenagers will enjoy this book.

Maria

"Dragon's Blood" by Jane Yolen

Jakkin is a bond servant working in the dragon barns of Master Sarkkhan. Dragons are raised to fight in the pits, and bond servants must tend to them. Jakkin loves dragons and dreams of freedom. The only way to freedom is to steal a baby dragon, raise it to be a fighter, and win battles to get enough gold to pay his way out of bondage, so he attempts it.

This story has a great plot. Although the story is great, I think the author doesn't develop much of a setting. I definitely know it's in the desert, but sometimes it talks of starships and other planets. Even with the bad setting, I would still recommend this book to people who like fantasy because it is a really fun story.

Mil

"The Pact" by Jodi Picoult

The main characters of this book are Christ Harte and Emily Gold. Their parents are friends, so they grow up together and become lovers when they get older. The story begins when the police find Chris and Emily together, but Emily is dead. When Christ is taken to the hospital, he tells the police that it was going to be a double suicide, but the police had come before he could shoot himself. Emily’s family sues Chris, who has to endure the pain of being accused of murdering his own girlfriend. Throughout this story, secrets are revealed about Chris and Emily’s relationship and the true reason behind Emily’s death.

I think that this is a great book that is very deep and meaningful. Chris and Emily really love each other a lot, and it is so sad that it even made me cry. The book really makes you want to know what really happens because there are so many times in the book when you think you know what happened or why something happen and be proven wrong in the next chapter. I think that people who like a lot of action in books will not enjoy this book because there isn’t much action. Anyone who enjoys romance and mystery will enjoy it though.

"Warriors" – Forest of Secrets" by Erin Hunter

Fireheart’s best friend Graystripe falls in love with a Riverclan she-cat, Silverstream. After one full-moon, Silverstream is about to give birth to her and Graystripe’s kittens. After she gave birth, she was exhausted and passed away. In sorrow, Graystripe took his kittens to his clan, Thunderclan. Everybody was shocked to know that the kittens had both Thunderclan and Riverclan blood. Later, Graystripe decides to become a Riverclan cat, so he can nurse his kittens. While Fireheart and Graystripe are in conflict over Graystripe’s kittens, the Thunderclan deputy, Tigerclaw attacks Thunderclan’s leader, Bluestar with the rogue cats. What will happen to Bluestar and Graystripe and his kittens? The setting is in a forest near a small village. Four clans of cats live among the forest; Thunderclan, Riverclan, Shadowclan, and Windclan. These four clans all respect their ancestor warrior’s clans, Starclan. The main characters, Fireheart, Graystripe, are the best friends.

The weakest part of this author’s story is that if you do not read the series of his books from the beginning, they wouldn’t be much fun and exciting. The strengths are that he writes as if he was a cat, and he knows and describes the cats excellently. This story, which of course is a fantasy book, would be enjoyable to any person who likes to read fantasy books.

Geun Ho

"Shoeless Joe & Me" by Dan Gutman

In this story the main character, Joe Stoshack, has a special power to go back into time using baseball cards. In This Adventure, he goes back into time to meet Shoeless Joe. All this takes place in the city of Boston in the 1940’s. The Genre of this book is a Sport adventure Genre. It is mainly about baseball, and he’s always on a great adventure. If you want to know what happens in this story, you should really read his book.

There were a couple of strengths and weaknesses in this story. Some Strengths were that it was always exciting and often thrilling. It also gives you some fun information about what truly happened to the character (Shoeless Joe). It also gives you some cool tips on how to play baseball. The Weaknesses were that sometimes it is hard to understand what happens and how it happened.

I think that if you are an athletic person and a person you seeks action books this is the right book for you. I think that this is one of the best books I’ve read so far.

Mike

"Stormbreaker" by Anthony Horowitz

Stormbreaker is an action packed novel about a teenage spy set on a deadly mission to save his country. It is set in present day England. Alex Rider is nothing but a normal school-boy that lost his parents when he was a child and so now lives with his uncle. Alex’s life suddenly turns upside down when his uncle is found dead in a car-crash. After his uncle's death, he is forcefully recruited to M16 and learns that his whole life his uncle has not been a businessman but a spy, and he has been training Alex for the day that he also becomes a spy. Alex’s life goes from normal to extraordinary as he is pulled out of school and dragged into a mission that can save thousands. What will this 14 year-old boy do when the fate of his country is placed into his hands?

Stormbreaker is an incredible book for any reader that enjoys action and adventure. I would also recommend this book to teenagers since they can easily relate to how much pressure and fright Alex Rider must be have felt when he was asked to go on a deadly mission to save his country. I would give this book a 9/10 because it is so suspenseful and action-packed. I liked how I could relate to the main character in the story since he was my age, and how in each chapter something thrilling occurred. The only part of this book I would have changed was the ending since it wasn’t as exciting as it could’ve been. I really think that this novel is incredible and worth reading, so even if you’re not into adventure or action you should give this book a try.

Brennan

"The Five Ancestors: book 4: Crane" by Jeff stone

This book is the fourth book in the five ancestor’s series, following the Tiger, Monkey, and Snake. In this book, the main focus is Hook the crane, who reveals a lot about her past and hidden secrets. This series is about 5 young kungfu monks, each with different animal attributes, which create their personalities and identities. After a tragedy near Kaifeng, China, Hok has to survive alone, with one handicapped “Snake”, and two stolen brothers. On her trip to an underground battle city, where winning or losing means life or death, she hears news about the “golden dragon." Could the “Golden Dragon” help her find her long lost brother “Dragon”, master of the dragon style kungfu? She’s Chinese, she knows that, like her brothers at Cangzhen Temple. At least her mom’s Chinese, but because of her brown hair and brown eyes, many people don’t welcome her. And why does the word “Dutch” sound so familiar? Could it help Hok answer where her father is, and why she is different from other Chinese people?

This is a very fast paced book with very interesting character identities and very descriptive actions. The author really paints a movie in your mind, which you can see like a kungfu movie coming out of the paper pages! Though the language is not too advanced, it is really fun to read. Sometimes I cannot stop flipping the pages! I also learned how to say the names of some animals in Cantonese because the names of characters in the book are named after animals. I think many readers would enjoy this book because it is action packed, interesting, and keeps the reader wanting to know more of the secrets and mysteries in the book.

Jetro

"The Recruit" by Robert Muchamore

James is a boy that has trouble staying out of trouble. He lives with his half sister and mother, who make a living from shoplifting. When his mother dies he goes away to a boarding school and is asked by Cherub, a secret organization of agents who are kids, to join their organization. He agrees to join them and has to undergo intense training and face one of his greatest fears in order to become a ‘Cherub’. Lauren, his sister, also comes to live at Cherub because she wants to live with James. James goes on a mission where he has to live with a bunch of people he doesn’t know, pretend he is someone else, and try to figure out what a terrorist group called Help Earth is planning to do.

I think that this was a fun book to read. It doesn’t have much meaning in it but it makes you want to keep on reading because it is so suspenseful. Anyone who likes action books will definitely enjoy reading this book. It also has a lot of twists and turns in it that makes it even more fun to read. I enjoyed reading this book but got annoyed at James because he makes a lot of stupid decisions.

"Inkheart " by Cornelia Funke

Meggie naturally loves books, just like her father Mortimer (Mo), who is a bookbinder. One rainy day, a stranger named Dustfinger suddenly comes and tells Mo that he wants to be read back into a book. Meggie then realizes why Mo never read aloud for her. When he reads, he can bring a story to life, but the cost that has to be paid is astonishing…

“Inkheart” was fascinating to read because of its originality and blend of fiction and non-fiction. Mo’s ability to read things out of books was interesting because it led me to imagine what it would be like to meet a character in a book.

A strength of “Inkheart” is that the character in the book is normal yet abnormal. For example, Mo is a normal person who binds books for a living, but he has a unique ability of being able to read things out of books.

One weakness is that it sometimes can be too descriptive, so some parts of it are boring.

I would recommend this book strongly, because it has more strengths than weaknesses. “Inkheart” is coming out as a movie in 2008, and I’m really excited to see the movie.

T.K.

"The Dark Portal" by Robin Jarvis

The book, “The Dark Portal,” by Robin Jarvis is a book about a struggle between two species--the rat and the mouse. The rats are a violent and disgusting breed of creatures preying on mice and peeling their skins off as trophies. The mice are peaceful nature loving creatures. One day, a mouse called Albert falls into the sewers and into the land of the rats. There he meets a mouse called Piccadily, and they suddenly end up in the altar of Jupiter, the god of the rats who is brewing up a big plan to destroy mankind and rule the Earth. Meanwhile, after Albert’s mysterious disappearance, Albert’s daughter Audrey ventures into the sewers to look for her father and lands between Jupiter and his goal of world domination…

The book was very entertaining and interesting to read. It was a bundle of non-stop action! There were mice flying everywhere and rats flying everywhere to get the mice. I could not read a single page without being scared or excited. Also, the author succeeds in giving the animal characters human like characteristics that each of the characters had their own special personality. The only thing that I didn’t really like about the story was that the ending felt a bit rushed because the climax wasn’t long enough but other than that it was a very nice book and I would like to recommend it to people who like suspense.

"Warriors, The New Prophecy - Dawn" by Erin Hunter

Few selected cats from each clan return from their journey to meet the midnight. When they come back, they realize that a lot of cats were captured by the Two-legs. They soon realize that the Two-legs are destroying their habitat. When all four clans agree to move to a new forest, Firestar’s clan, Thunderclan’s deputy, Graystripe is captured by the Two-legs. Will the clans make it to their new home? What will happen to Graystripe?

The strengths of this story are that Erin Hunter describes the cats as if he was one of them. And his descriptions of cats fearing the humans are unspeakably good. Any fantasy maniacs would be really into this book.

"Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows " by J.K Rowling

In this last adventure of the infamous Harry Potter and his two best friends Ronald Weasley and Hermione Granger, Harry is on a mission to hunt down and destroy all remaining horcruxes. The only way the dark lord Voldemort can be destroyed is if all the horcruxes are destroyed. Meanwhile, Voldemort and the Death Eaters have completely taken over the ministry, and are hunting down all “mud bloods” to be sent to Azkaban, to the dementors. To make matters worse, Harry Potter is listed as Undesirable Number One and there is a big galleon reward to whoever finds him and turns him in. Harry, Ron and Hermione encounter numerous obstacles, and the uncertainty of Dumbledore’s true intentions.

Although my summary wasn’t very long, the book certainly is. The reason it isn’t very long is that there are so many adventures trying to get that big goal that I couldn’t possibly go into detail to describe all of them. This book is for people like fantasy, mystery, adventure, suspense, and humor (courtesy of Ron). There is also a tad bit of romance in this book. The strengths that I found in this book are that the main points from previous Harry Potter books are mentioned in this book. A lot of things are also brought into light again. I like the way that J.K Rowling ties everything together at the end and makes it all work out. I also really enjoyed reading the epilogue. I think one of her strong points is that she tied everything up, and left no stone unturned. I really enjoyed this book and thought it was the best way for an author to end a series that has been highly successful. I thoroughly enjoyed the whole series, but I think this last book was the best out of all of them.

Anna Meh

"The Giver" by Lois Lowry

People in the Jonas community are completely ruled by the government. Children in community conduct the Ceremony of Twelve when they become twelve. They are also assigned a career. Jonas is satisfied his life in the community until…. he becomes twelve. He is assigned the job of Receiver of Memory, simply called The Giver. He becomes the only one who can break the rule and feel pleasure and PAIN.

I think the author set up the chapter well because it hooked me to read more at the end of every chapter. Also it was interesting that author used the word ‘release’ instead of ‘killed’ in the story.

"Twilight" by Stephenie Meyer

This book is about a girl who falls in love with a vampire. She meets him in a class. She sits next to him, but he always seems to try and avoid her. Bella eventually finds out the truth about Edward, the vampire. As it turns out, he avoids her because her blood smells good, and he can't really control himself. He just wants to protect her from him accidentally killing her. Bella faces many deadly situations throughout the story.

I think the strengths of this book were that it wasn’t predictable and it kept you reading. The weakness I would say was that it kind of took a little while to get started because even though it was obvious that Edward was avoiding Bella, it took a while to tell why he was avoiding her.

I think the type of reader that would enjoy this book are people who like romance and fantasy because this book is about a girl who falls in love with a vampire

I think the book was really good. It definitely kept me reading. I think the book was good because it wasn’t really predictable because when Edward was avoiding Bella who knew the reason was because he was a vampire and didn’t want to kill her. I didn’t expect that.

Halle

"Summer of Fear" by Lois Duncan

Rachael, orRae, is an ordinary teenager with an ordinary life. She’s going steady with a smart, nice, boy who happens to be her neighbor, and she has an awesome best friend. Things are going pretty good for Rae until her mother receives awful news from the police office saying that her only sister and her sister’s husband died in a dreadful car accident, leaving her sister’s daughter, Julia, homeless. v Her mother decides that Julia is coming to stay with Rae’s family for a while. From her mother and her aunt’s written description of her daughter, she was a positive angel. She was smart and sang beautifully, and she made her parent’s house come to life.
Soon after Julia arrives, however, Rae’s life became a total disaster. Her cousin decides to take over her home. She steals Rae’s boyfriend, best friend, and bedroom. Was this the “angel” her aunt described in her past letters? Rae was about to lose hope when she finds figures of wax dolls, matches, and elements of witchcraft in Julia's bureau. No one will believe her when she explains and they all accuse her for being jealous of her beautiful cousin. Only her dog understands her because the minute Trickle met Julia he dashed in and started barking and bit her ankle, and Trickle with his good- nature never did that to anyone or anything before. Later on, Trickle dies in a strange and disturbing way

that leads Rae to find a way to reveal the truth about her cousin.

I loved this book, along with all the other books by Lois Duncan. This suspense novel really set me thinking. I had no idea that the book would end the way it ended. For those readers who love suspense or thrillers, I highly recommend you to go grab one of the Lois Duncan books and find out for yourself what I’m trying to tell you.

Nancy

"On Writing" by Stephen King

The book On Writing by Stephen King is a realistic fiction book. It gives advice and hints on the best way to write stories, and tells about Stephen King's life. The book is part autobiography and part manual. It is divided into many parts. The first part is filled with stories about him when he was young and inexperienced. Some of the stories are hilarious, some are painfully honest, and others are just painful. It helps tell the readers how he became what he was and experiences that helped shape his writing. The second part is filled with advice about how to write well., and what key things to focus on and practice. The last part tells us a story about how Stephan King almost died.

In my opinion, On Writing was not as good a book to read as other books Stephan King has written. If you decide to read it, you have to have a lot of patience and really want to learn about writing or about Stephan King. I would advise mainly adults to read this book because most teenagers do not like reading autobiographies. If you do, you're welcome to read On Writing. On the other hand this is a hard subject to write about and Stephan King did a good job teaching us the main key points to writing.

"The Wind Singer" by William Nicholson

This fantasy is set in a city called Aramanth. The main characters are the twins Kestrel and Bowman, and Mumpo, a boy who doesn’t have any parents, and doesn’t have any friends either.
Aramanth has a system of rating all the families in it by the scores they get on their yearly exams. Every citizen has to take part on the exams. One day, Kestrel becomes fed up with it all and starts shouting rude things about the emperor. She escapes punishment and along with Bowman and Mumpo begins a journey to get the wind singer, a magical object that will make the people of Aramanth happy again from the Morah.

What’s good about this story is that it moves along quickly and has some amusing parts. It’s interesting from the start because the reader immediately sympathizes with Bowman, Kestrel and their family. The story is full of surprises and sudden twists in the plot, so the reader doesn’t get bored.

I would have hoped that there would be more sides to some of the characters, or to some of the different tribes such as the Chakas and the Barakas. They seemed ridiculous in the story because they were shown only from the perspectives of Bowman and Kestrel. I think that a reader who likes fantasy would enjoy this story most. A reader that doesn’t like to read long books wouldn’t enjoy reading the book that much because it is quite long. The book moves from event to event quickly though, so you won’t get bored.

Maria

"Locked in Time" by Lois Duncan

The main character goes to meet her step-mother during her summer holidays. Her step-mother lives in old gigantic house in Baton Rouge. When she arrives, she finds something odd about the place. Time seems to be trapped there, and her step-mother looks so still everyday. she gets into more and more danger every day. Will she be able to save herself?

This is a book you won't be able to put down once you pick it up. There are mysteries behind mysteries that makes you hold your breath. This book draws on your imagination. It tells you about something you have never imagined before or thought possible. The author describes it so vividly that it seems real. AFter reading this book, you get this feeling that maybe this can be possible.

"The Lightning Thief" by Rick Riordan

Percy Jackson is your every-day kid with no dad, and a working mom. Goes to school, has minimal friends (except his Grover), and stays invisible. Until summer vacation rolls around…then it happens. Percy gains special abilities that he never had before and it all had to do with his MIA father. But when his mother is mysteriously “killed” by an angry ogre, Percy, along with his friend Grover, must go to the only place his mother fond safe for him. Camp Half-Blood. Have no idea what that is? Read the book.
The War between Titans is drawing closer, and to top it off, Zeus’s Master Bolt has been stolen. For a reason, everyone blames Percy. But with his pal Grover and his new friend Annabeth, they must venture out to find the real culprit before the war breaks out, or Zeus strikes all of them down.
This is a thrilling fantasy story that throughout the series will keep you hooked. With gods, and demons, centaurs, and Demigods, it’s hard not to have some part you’re not interested in. Percy Jackson and the Olympians is a truly Fascinating book for boys and girls of all ages.

Whenever a critic is called upon, they have to say something ghastly. But when I have to find pin points in a story, it’s usually pretty easy. But not this story. It may have a few side-stories that have little to do with the main adventure, yet, the whole story is fascinating. I find that nothing at all is disappointing about this story, for it’s truly an amazing adventure, full of surprises and mysteries. The major strengths were the general layout, like how the characters dealt with situations, the characters themselves, and the whole adventure. You would never guess who the villain was.
If I were to recommend this book to different people, I would have to say both genders, from ages 9- 16. Since the main characters are kids, you can only relate to them when you’re around that age group. Personally, I like reading books about young adults and teens, so this fits the description. I recommend it to everybody if they want to read it. But anyone who has the sort of imagination that they enjoy a lot of fantasy thrown at them into real life should love this series.

Sarah

"Cryptid Hunters" by Roland Smith

Marty and Grace are twins, but more like the yin and the yang. They have two different personalities. Grace is more on the studious, smart, straight A’s, nerdy side, while Marty is more on the athletic, creative, artistic, and fun side. Their parents are missing, suspected dead from an airplane accident, so the twins were sent to live with their uncle who is a cryptozoologist! They are on a trip to Congo when the twins literally fall off the plane. How can they survive? Through the adventure, there are even more stories inside this story to keep you interested, especially when it results in their discovery of hidden identities and secrets about their parents and themselves.

This story is really well written, especially for those who like sci-fi and mystery. Eventhough it’s over 300 pages, you’ll zip through it because of the intensity. I really enjoyed it. It was full of suspense, intensity, and mystery that would thrill you and throw you off your chair, or sofa! There are a lot of little details that will make you technology gadgeteers want to be in the book. Some of you might sympathize with Marty, while some might be on Grace’s side. This book’s Awesome!

Jetro

"Princess Academy" by Shannon Hale

Miri, a fourteen- year- old mountain girl lived with her father, sister, and the other villagers on Mount Eskel which was an isolated territory in the Danland Kingdom. The villagers made a living on the stone they quarry themselves from the mountains and trading them with the traders from the lowlands who then sold it down in the city. The work was difficult and their living modest, but Miri had always wanted to work in the quarry. However her Pa refused to let his younger daughter work in the quarry, which Miri who was named after a small blue mountain flower, thinks it’s because she’s smaller than most girls her age.
One day, the traders arrived with royal news from the prince, whom is searching for a bride in Mount Eskel. In the mean time, all the adequate girls must attend an academy to learn the skills needed to be a princess. The academy was run by a demanding tutor named Olana, who set a strict schedule for the girls. After a while Miri realizes that she is an outcast and with her wits and guts she is considered to be strong competition for some of the older girls. She was about to give up but the only thing that keeps Miri going is the desire to learn the mysterious language of quarry- speech which she experienced in the academy and eager to be the Academy Princess. Just when things are turning good for Miri, the prince makes a startling decision and the academy girls are put in an extremely dangerous situation.

When I read this book, I felt fresh and happy because of the way the author explained about Miri’s innocent, kind, and funny nature. I felt that I was one of the village girls watching Miri as she slowly built up her courage to express her true self with her family, friends, and the prince. I like how when the author wrote the book it was as if she was one of the villagers too, not just any old author describing her imagination. I particularly like the part when Peder was flirting with Miri in their cute, innocent village- country people way. Although the main character is a girl and is mostly about girls and their feelings, I still think that this book is suitable for girls and boys all ages, it is a well- written story of one girl’s determination to prove that even a small mountain flower can be as courageous and as strong as a lowlander..

Nancy

"Archangel" by Anthony Horowitz

This is the story of Alex and the mysterious adventure that begins when he sees two criminals shoot a man in the hospital.

The strengths of this book are the author describes the setting and the movements of the important parts very well--like when Alex has to save the world, or when he is in trouble. Every book by Antony Horowitz makes the readers feel the suspense of what will happen next to Alex or to the world. This book also has many difficult words that I had to look up. This book is my second favorite book It is very exciting for me. I want to read the next book about Alex Rider because it might tell me who shot Alex.

Siriben

"The 13th Warning" by R.L. Stine

Joe has got luck in his game. Lots and lots of luck. Hence the reason for his nickname “Lucky”. Lucky’s lucky number is 13, and he usually wins all lotteries and other games of chance. Lindy is Lucky’s elder sister. She agrees with whatever he says, and they are very close as brother and sister. This story is set somewhere in the USA. The whole story takes place on Lucky’s birthday, and all the events that occurred during this time.

The strengths of the story are that it has a very good hook. It will drag you in and will not let you stop turning the pages until the last word is read. The story is also very fast-paced and exciting. The weakness of the story is that the vocabulary is rather basic, and it may become boring after reading the same basic words over and over again. The extraordinary thing about this book which makes it special is that at the very end of the book (and almost every chapter), there is a twist, or a cliff-hanger. It just leaves you hanging wondering what is going to happen next. The kind of reader that would enjoy this story would be a reader who loves sneaky twists, creepy tales and wild adventures. The reader who would enjoy this story would have to like the horror genre. It is a very exciting story.

Anish

"Pardon my French" by Cathy Hapka

The main character, Nicole, goes to Paris for a semester because her parents want her to become more cultured before she goes to college. When Nicole first gets to Paris, she starts off on the wrong foot. As soon as she gets out of the cab from the airport, she throws up. Luckily though makes new friends on her first day at school. During her stay, Nicole misses her boyfriend. He decides to visit her in Paris during his holiday, but, in the meantime, a boy in Paris named Luc catchesNicole's eye. Will she stay with her American boyfriend or dump him for Luc?

I thought this was a really good book. The author wrote very descriptively. Some things happen that catch you off guard. I could really relate to the main character, Nicole, because when I first moved to Thailand, I didn’t really like it. Now I’m enjoying it more.

Carrie

"The Wish List" by Eoin Colfer

Meg's life has been bad ever since her mother was killed when hit by a car. One day, after owing a troublemaker, Belch, a favor, her life gets turned upside down, almost literally. Meg and Belch end up as arch enemies.

I think the author hooked the reader, like me, into the book quite well by starting with an exciting event. Also, the author creates an interesting image of heaven and hell in the story which intrigues the reader. The only weakness may have been that at the end, the story ended quite abruptly. I would recommend this story to anyone who likes stories with a twist in the plot.

Malik

"Cirque du Freak" by Darren Shan

It's a story about a boy who loves spiders and gets a chance to go a freak show. He sees many unique performers such as the violent wolf man. The boy becomes fascinated by a great spider named Madam Octa in the show, and he decides to steal her from Mr. Crepsley, her owner. He plays with her everyday until one day when she bites his friend. To save his friend, he must make a bargain with the great spider that changes his life forever.

This book never made me feel bored eventhough I don't like to read and don't usually like horror stories. It was not too hard to read, and it was full of excitement. Some parts were a little grotesque, but it didn’t make me feel bad. I read this book because Darren Shan's books are very famous in Japan and have received many prizes. I would recommend this book.

Mina

"Dealing with Dragons" by Patricia C. Wrede

This is the first book of The Enchanted Forest Chronicles. The main character is a princess who finds being a princess very boring. She is the seventh daughter in a very proper royal family. Her name is Princess Cimorene. Princess Cimorene decides to run away and meets a dragon called Kazul. She has never met anyone (or anything) like Kazul, who is very strong. When she runs away she also meets a witch, a jinni, a death-dealing talking bird and a stone prince. Princess Cimorene runs away from boredom to find some excitement. She finds plenty.



I thought that the story Dealing With Dragons was a superb story. At the beginning, it seems like any other fantasy story, but in the end I realized that the plot was wonderfully woven. I would advise any reader who likes childrens' stories to read Dealing With Dragons. Its language is very simple and straightforward. It doesn’t get boring, even if you read it a third or fourth time. Thestory, however, is very fast paced, sometimes too fast paced.

Ina