All of the Places to Love
Animal Doctors
The Bad Beginning
A Bad Case of Stripes
Brave Irene
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
Charlotte’s Web
Earthquakes
Eragon
The Giving Tree
The Great Kapok Tree
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
Holes
June 29, 1999
Kira-Kira
NBA’s Best Allstars
The Old Woman Who Named Things
The One in the Middle is the Green Kangaroo
The Polar Express
The Reptile Room
Shortcut
Storms
Sweet, Sweet Memory
Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Turtle Rescue
That’s the Way the Cookie Crumbles
All of the Places to Love
Written by: Patricia MacLachan
Reviewed by: Stephanie Allison and Gabrielle Cortes
Grades: 2-4
One the day Eli was born, his grandmother showed him all the places to love, like the river, the valey and the hilltop where the blueberries grew. "All the Places to Love" shows how Eli's family show their love and affection to Eli and his newly born sister, Sylvie. Grandfather carves all of the family's names on the rafter in the barn. Mama carries Eli on her shoulders to the hilltop and Eli will soon do the same with Sylvie.
MacLachan's long, detailed sentences compliment her soft-toned story, but may not catch every reader's attention. Her word choice may bore younger readers. She starts her introductions with very smooth interesting words. In this book, the whole story is told from Eli's point-of-view and there is very little dialogue.
Her other book, "Painting the Wind," is very very similar to "All the Place to Love" because of the quiet tone. Other books, like "Bittle" and "Once I Ate a Pie," are completely different and have very fun, silly tones. MacLachan gets her ideas for characters and has imaginary conversations with them. These conversations help the story to take shape in her mind.
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Animal Doctors
Written by: Carla Greene
Reviewed by: Emily Crutchfield
Ages: 4-9
Frisky, a dog, doesn’t want to eat his food so Johnny, his owner, and Johnny’s mom take him to the veterinarian, Dr. Smith. It turns out that Frisky needs an operation. This begins a very informative book about all different kinds of animal doctors and the animals they help. For kids who love animal, this book will help you learn all about what vets do.
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The Bad Beginning
Written by: Lemony Snicket
Reviewed by: Anoop Reddi
Ages: 8 and up
The Bad Beginning by Lemony Snicket is about three orphans, Violet, Klaus, and Sunny Baudelaire, who shockingly discover that their wealthy parents have died. They are sent to live with a far out relative, Count Olaf, an evil man, who wants the three orphan’s fortune. Count Olaf has many evil schemes up his sleeve. Will he succeed or fail? Will the Baudelair’s fortune be safe? Find out in the next 12 Series of Unfortunate Events books. Young readers might want to be aware of violent parts, like when the three Baudelair children almost get killed by a train. This thrilling, suspenseful story will have readers on the edge of their seats.
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A Bad Case of Stripes
Written By: David Shannon
Reviewed by: Shannon Mahoney
Ages: 8-10
Camilla Cream loves lima beans! She hasn’t eaten them in a while because she is afraid if she eats lima beans nobody in the school will like her. She thinks they will all make fun of her! After a few days, Camilla notices that she has grown stripes! Where did they come from? Will Camilla ever get rid of those stripes? Illustrations in this book are beautifully detailed and colorful. The humor will make readers literally fall out of their seats laughing, like when Camilla turns into the pill she had to take for her stripes. Events in this story go by very fast, so read carefully and don’t miss anything. Join Camilla Cream in her adventures with stripes and all different patterns. Younger readers will also love Shannon’s easier books like “No David”. Shannon really knows how to make his readers smile.
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Brave Irene
Written By: William Steig
Reviewed by: Peyton Lepere and Kyle Kolek
Grades: 2-4
"Brave Irene" demonstrates that William Steig writes in two very opposite ways: one is magical and totally unrealistic, where the main characters are creatures and animals, like in "Shrek" and "Solomon and the Rusty Nail" and the other is realistic and ordinary like the everyday, mundane tasks of normal humans. In this adventurous story, Irene, a young girl, brings a dress to the Dutchess. On the way, the wind tells her to go home, but she doesn't listen. The Dutchess needs the dress by that night and Irene barely makes it in time. The next morning, the dutchess and her servants are able to take Irene home where she and the doctors can take care of Irene's sick mother. While the illustrations show what Irene does scene by scene, the story and pictures are very repetitive. Steig brings out this story with a weak story line. Some parts may be humorous, but the fun is quickly brought to an end with something serious.
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Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
Written by: Roald Dahl
Reviewed by: Ryleigh Kutcher
Ages: 8-10
Charlie Bucket loves chocolate, but his family is so poor he can’t afford to buy any. Around the corner from Charlie’s house, there is a chocolate factory run by Mr. Willy Wonka. Mr. Wonka has sent out 5 golden tickets under the wrapper of some of his candy. Charlie gets really lucky and finds a ticket! As his reward, he and his grandfather go on a great adventure into the factory. (But everyone should beware…don’t read this book if you are hungry it will just make you hungrier.) The story has many exciting events such as when Charlie finds last golden ticket. The illustrations were disappointing as they lacked detail. Other great books by Roald Dahl are The Great Glass Elevator and The Twits.
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Charlotte’s Web
Written by: E.B. White
Reviewed by: Bianca Morris
Ages: 7 and up
Eight-year-old Fern is shocked to see her father trying to kill a little, runty, baby pig. She immediately stops him and promises she will take care of the pig. She will wash him and feed him, and calls him Wilbur. Pretty soon, Wilbur grows and Fern had to give him away to her Uncle Homer’s farm. Fern visits Wilbur all day, every day so he never feels alone. Wilbur makes lots of new animal friends on the farm, but there was is one special friend in particular that Wilbur becomes very attached to. Her name was Charlotte. Through the story Wilbur experiences many highs and lows and learns how to love and deal with loss. This moving, emotional tale will also have children feeling the highs and lows and they cheer for Wilbur, then cry for Charlotte. This is truly a classic that all children must read!
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Earthquakes
Written by: Seymour Simon
Reviewed by: Matthew Marsilii and Joseph Churchill
Ages: Grades: 4-6
Good Friday brings destruction along the coastline of Alaska. Hear the full story in Seymour Simon's book "Earthquakes." Simon's nonfiction books do not have very exciting writing. When you read it, you will probably need a dictionary because it doesn't have a glossary. The pictures are an important part of the book because they show what the words are trying to explain. They are real photographs. There is a small introduction and the rest of the text includes facts about earthquakes. He includes information on how earthquakes are formed. Did you know that soil and water mix together during an earthquake and make bubbles that erupt? There is also history of famous earthquakes, like the one on Good Friday that hit Alaska. All of Simon's books are high-level non-fiction. He writes books like this because he loves the environment.
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Eragon
Written by: Christopher Paolini
Reviewed by :Moushmi Patil
Ages: 10 and up
Eragon, a regular 15-year-old boy, is shocked when he finds a dragon egg. He is even more surprised when the dragon inside the egg chooses him to be a dragon rider. Eragon takes care of the scaly, blue dragon and finally names her Saphira. When strangers come in search of the egg and harm Eragon’s beloved Uncle Garrow, Eragon goes out to seek his revenge. So begins the story of love, passion, adventure, fear, friendship and sorrow. Even though this book is a bit stretched, readers will quickly forgive the wordiness because the other parts of the story are so good. Christopher Paolini has written an amazing tale that weaves emotion with adventure and will keep readers on the edge of their seats. Younger readers might want to beware when reading this book because it is a bit scary. If readers enjoy this high flying book then read the sequel, Eldest.
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The Giving Tree
Written by: Shel Silverstein
Reviewed by: Victoria Te
Ages: 4 and up
This amazing book is a wonderful read aloud for young children. A small boy always comes to a certain tree to play. The tree is so happy because he has a friend. As they boy grows older, he takes pieces from the tree which makes the tree sad. In this story of friendship and selflessness, Shel Silverstein has succeeded in turning a tree into a real character for whom readers will feel much compassion.
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The Great Kapok Tree
Written by: Lynne Cherry
Reviewed by: Moushmi Patil
Grades: 3-5
Two men walk into the Amazon rainforest. What are they doing there? They bigger man spies a tree, points to it and walks out of the rainforest. The younger man starts to cut down the great tree. Soon, he falls asleep from exertion. Animals, such as a boa constrictor, parrot, and tree frogs, crowd around him and sleep to his sleeping body. They give good reasons not to cut down the tree. For example, a monkey says, "We have seen the ways of man. You chop down one tree and then come back for another. The roots of the these great trees will wither and die, and there will be nothing to hold the earth in place. When the heavy rain comes, the soil will be washed away and the forest will become desert." Finally, the young man wakes up and picks up his axe again; he hesitates, dropes his axe and walks out of the rainforest.
Lynne Cherry really goes above and beyond in this tale of keeping the environment safe. As usual, she uses her love of the natural world as inspiration for this breathtaking book. Also, she uses an empowering ending that cherry thinks all books should have. Readers will like the talking animals. "The Great Kapok Tree" may be confusing to kids under eight because there are foreign languages used. For older readers, they will be interested in the story, but may get bored because of the too many ideas of what would happen if the tree was to be cut down. In the back of the book, Lynne Cherry writes a letter to all readers asking them to save the rainforest and protect "mother earth." This is usual for Lynne Cherry. She attends a lot of wildlife and nature fundraisers to help our world. It seems as though she puts her life and sould into this book because of the detailed, realistic, colorful illustrations and the descriptive word choice she uses. Though the book lacks the excitement of some of her other books, like "The Unicorn and the Dragon," the readers won't notice because they will be so absorbed in looking at the beautiful illustrations she has created. If readers enjoy nature loving books, they will also love "Flute's Journey" also by Lynne Cherry.
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Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
Written by: J.K. Rowling
Reviewed by: Kyle Kolek
Ages: 8 and up
As Harry Potter begins his third year at Hogwarts School, strange things begin to happen. Strange as they are, something even more unusual happens when Harry uses magic out of school and he doesn’t get expelled! An escaped criminal, Sirius Black, is on the lose and after Harry Potter. Black is a dangerous murderer and will stop at nothing to get to Harry. As their paths cross, a dark secret is revealed that will change Harry’s life forever! With rich details and solid descriptions, some creatures, such as the Dementors from the Azkaban prison, may be scary. Be sure to read the entire Harry Potter series.
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Holes
Written by: Louis Sachar
Reviewed by: Christine Kenney
Ages: 7 and up
Holes is an amazing adventure about a boy named Stanley Yelnats who has to go to a boy’s detention center and dig holes all day because it “builds character.” The holes have to be five feet deep and five feet across. But why are the boys in the “camp” really digging? If you like mysteries, this book is for you! The boys in Stanley’s tent are great characters, each with a unique nickname. Zero, a boy who everyone says has “nothing upstairs,” strikes a deal with Stanley and the two become quick friends. The book can be violent for small children, like when the warden puts rattle snake venom on her fingernails and scratches Mr. Sir, one of the guards, on the face! If you love Holes and want more, another book to look for is Small Steps.
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June 29, 1999
Written by: David Weisner
Reviewed by: Sandor Tapolyai and Cameron Jones
For her science project, Holly Evans has a very creative idead in mind...she launches vegetable seedlings into the sky! Basically, Holly intends to see how long her vegetables seedlings will stay there. On June 29, 1999, everything goes wrong and giant vegetables fall to Earth and roam the cities of Kalamazoo, Levittown, Anchorage, Providence and even Holly's own backyard! What is next for Holly Evans?
Caldecott winner, David Weisner, defies physics once again with this exceptional book. This book has the illustrations of a true professional artist. With it's spellbinding sketches and wonderful theme, June 29, 1999, will entertain readers, just like "Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs" by Judi Barnett. Some young readers may find the book confusing because of the mystery plot.
David Weisner certainly has a lot of fans in the world of literature. He had a very creative childhood which he uses as inspirations for his books. As a child, even his wallpaper was crazy with rockets, books, glasses and even elephants! He also uses his dreams and a lot of imagination when writing. He likes to bend reality and defy physics. For example, in "Tuesday" he used flying frogs as characters. In June 29, 1999, he adds aliens to the real world and huge vegetables to his story. If you like science, weather, COLLASAL vegetables, and even giant, slimy aliens, then read June 29, 1999.
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Kira-Kira
Written by: Cynthia Kadohata
Reviewed by: Hannah Cho
Ages: 10 and up
Kira-Kira is a sad, Japanese tale about a young girl, Katie, who faces the hardship of losing her older sister and gaining new responsibilities as a result. When Katie finds her sister is sick, she starts to believe that it’s time for her to move forward on her own. Many readers will connect to this book because of its clear details. Kadohata could have provided a little more background on the Japanese culture for people who have never read Japanese stories. Don’t miss Weedflower, another Japanese tale by the same author. Kira-Kira is a wonderful story full of sorrow, anger, love, and happiness.
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NBA’s Best Allstars
Written by: Alan Paul
Reviewed by: Tre Collins
Ages: 8 and up
From East to West, Allen Iverson to Charles Barkley, these players are the NBA’s best! This awesome book of biographies includes many interesting facts about your favorite players. Not just basketball statistics, but also information about their everyday life. For example, did you know that Kobe Bryant scored an impressive 1080on his SAT’s? The author could have used better word choice to make some of the information more gripping for the reader. Basketball fans will not be disappointed by this collection of biographies. This book is a real slam dunk!
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The Old Woman Who Named Things
Written by: Cynthia Rylant
Reviewed by: Julianna Ewald
Grades: 3-5
The Old Woman Who Named Things is for people who like books that are calm and quiet. It is about a little old woman who has no friends until a shy, brown puppy comes by. She feeds him and tells him to go home. Everyday the shy, brown puppy comes and goes, but one day he doesn't come back. The Old Woman feels so sad for naming everything else, but the dog. Later on, she goes to the dog catcher and find the shy, brown puppy. She brings him home an finally names him "Lucky." So, now she has a real friend and not just a chair named "Fred" or a bed named "Roxanne." Cynthia Rylant gets her ideas from her own childhood. She was inspired by her dogs and animals, which she loves and puts into mmost of her books.
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The One in the Middle is the Green Kangaroo
Written by: Judy Blume
Reviewed by: Darby Deutsch
Ages 6-8
This book is awesome! Did you know that you don’t have to be a certain age to be in a play? You can be 4-years-old to be in a play. Be as old as 28 even! Action! The One in the Middle is the Green Kangaroo is about a little boy who wants to be in play and one day his wish comes true. This book is so great! It teaches you about wishes- some come true and some don’t! WARNING! Please do not read this book if you fight there is a lot of fighting.
The illustrations are wonderfully detailed. Don’t miss other great Judy Blume books, like Freckle Juice.
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The Polar Express
Written by: Chris Van Allsburg
Reviewed by: Leo Ventresca
Ages: 8 and up
If you really like winter or Christmas, this is the book for you! It is a story of a young boy who is trying to figure out if Santa is real. As he tries to stay awake all Christmas Eve, he hears a train to pull up in front of his house! He gets on board and takes off. When the boy asks the conductor where they are going, the conductor replies, in a loud voice, “To the north pole!” If you want to find out what happens when they get there, you have to read the story! Every one will love this fantasy story. The illustrations really help the magic of the story. One of the best moments is when all the kids get onto the Polar Express. The word choice is terrific, “Hot cocoa as thick and rich as melted chocolate bars.” I can almost taste it! All the illustrations are colorful and detailed. Don’t miss this Christmas classic. Be prepared to really use your imagination!
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The Reptile Room
Written by: Lemony Snicket
Reviewed by: Madeline Tallman
Ages: 9-12
If you are hoping to find a “happily ever after”, this would probably not be a good book for you. There are not many good things that happen in this unfortunate tale.
The Baudelaires are three orphans named Violet, Klaus, and Sunny who have horrible episodes trying to avoid Count Olaf. Count Olaf is always trying to get his hands on the Baudelaire fortune and he will stop at nothing … even murder. Count Olaf murdered their uncle to try to get his hands on the Baudelaire fortune. Violet, Klaus, and Sunny must use their unique talents to try and stop him.
Children will love the mystery mixed with adventure, but beware, there is always something surprising around the corner. This is the second out of a 13 book series. Don’t miss the rest of these unfortunate tales!
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Shortcut
Written by: David Macaulay
Reviewed by: Kristen Boc and Erica Robinson
Grades: 2-4
Beep! Beep! Make sure you take the shortcut or you'll be late! Albert and June take their ripest melons into town. They don't take the long, long way- they take the shortcut. Sybil wants to buy some melons, so she goes though town out to the country. She reaches the sign where it shows the shortcut and the long, long way. What way will she decide to go? There is a small problem with the sign and Sybil ends up taking the long, long way without even knowing it. There is also a story line of Patty trying to find Pearl, the pig. And, Professor Tweet is stuck up in a hot air balloon. In the very end, all these odd stories end up mashing together! All of the illustrations are very colorful which makes this story fun to read. Macaulay likes to make strong, energized picture. Kids will surely like the illustrations, but the story is a bit difficult to understand. It jumps around like crazy. For example, one page we are reading about Patty trying to find Pearl, the it went right to Bob's boat. So, the reader may get slightly confused. This book seems to be a younger version of Macaulay's "Black and White" (a Caldecott winner) in that both have four totally different stories that tie together. Macaulay is very similar to Chris Van Allsburg because his endings also leave the reader hanging.
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Storms
Written by: Seymour Simon
Reviewed by: Megan Bianchetta
Ages: 8 and up
This great book is all about storms and what happens in storms! It teaches readers all about weather. If you love weather, this is the book for you! Or, if you need to learn about weather for a school project this is a perfect resource. There is tons of information on everything from thunderstorms to tornadoes! The photos are amazing and so is the word choice. If you are a reader who loves nonfiction, then Seymour Simon is the author for you! Pick up any of his other books, like Horses or Animals Nobody Loves, to learn great facts and see unbelievable photographs.
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Sweet, Sweet Memory
Written by: Jacqueline Woodson
Reviewed by: Nick Middleton and Nathan Stevens
Ages: 6-10
Sarah, a little girl who lives in the West, is sad because her grandpa is gone. At grandpa's funeral, the family discusses the memories and stories grandpa had passed on to them. Sarah, however, is afraid to tell her story because she misses grandpa so much. Then, she realizes that grandpa has told the same stories to everybody. She feels united with her family as they remember grandpa. This heart-warming story by Jacqueline Woodson fills the air with sadness, happiness and love all at the same time. "Sweet, Sweet Memory" has a lot more sadness than other books by Woodson, like "Visitin Day" and "Show Way." It expresses more feelings including loneliness.
Woodson is an author who uses southern dialect and short sentences in her writing. Her biggest inspiration is the many writers who have come before her. She has won many awards for her books. "Sweet, Sweet Memory" is a really good book with a lot of details and emotion.
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Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing
Written by: Judy Blume
Reviewed by: Mary Qin Hassig
Ages: 9 and up
Do you like fudge? Chocolate? Vanilla? How about an annoying little boy who loves trouble? This type of Fudge is not so sweet at all. At least, Pete, his older brother, thinks so. This tiny terror is a real pain. Unfortunately for Peter, their parents think Fudge is so sweet. What kind of trouble does the mini-monster have brewing? Blume’s writing is a little repetitious. She uses the same words, like “said,” over and over. Readers will find Fudge a very funny character even if Peter doesn’t. If you like this book, don’t miss the others in the Fudge in the series, Fudge-a-Mania, Superfudge and Double Fudge.
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Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Turtle Rescue
Written by: Jesus Redondo
Reviewed by: Krishna Suresh
Ages: 4-6
April O’ Neal thought she was having a weird dream about turtles saving her, but it was actually true. Master Splinter, a giant rat, tells the story of how four ordinary turtles become the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Using weapons and karate skills, the four turtles must battle Dr. Stockman an evil man who is trying to kidnap April O’ Neal. There are really two stories in the book: one about the turtles and one about April O’ Neal. The book is illustrated with colored pictures and do show some violence. What will happen next? Find out by reading Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Turtle Rescue.
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That’s the Way the Cookie Crumbles
Written by: Anne Mazer
Reviewed by: Faith Bamisaiye
Ages: 7 and up
A 12-year-old girl named Abby Hayes loves to write in her journal. In school, she has a creative writing class and her teacher, Ms. Bean, announces that during the summer a journal school would be open. Abby really wants to attend, but her parents say “no” because it is too much money. So, they decide to give Abby half the money and she must find a way to earn the rest. Will she succeed and fulfill her dream? Don’t miss the many other books in the Abby Hayes series. Young girls will have no problem connecting to Abby Hayes and the everyday problems she encounters.
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