Leviathan

Review by Edan
Title: Leviathan (Leviathan Trilogy Book #1)
Author: Scott Westerfeld
Published: 2009
Publisher: Simon Pulse

Quick Summary:
During a fabricated WWI, two very different people started their adventures....

Prince Aleksander parents were murdered and this would-be ruler of Austrian-Hungary is forced to flee from his country with a walking war machine and a small band of men. Meanwhile, Deryn Sharp changes her name to Dylan Sharp to become a boy in the British Air Force. This is what she has always wanted, but is always scared of her secret being discovered.

Aleksander is a Clanker, and Deryn is a Darwinist, the two sides of WWI. Clankers use their machines, while the Darwinists use their fabricated animals. These two war torn teenagers each have their own secrets and struggle to become friends under these circumstances. These two opposites are thrown together on a perilous journey aboard a fabricated whale air balloon called the Leviathan....

Review:
The Leviathan is a amazing book that let me understand the places of everyone in the real WWI, but also enjoy this new version of it. The ideas were fantastic and the characters each have a strong, understandable personality. By the end, I didn't only know the two main characters personalities, but also their friends and parts of each of their crew. It is a little confusing at parts figuring out who is allies with who and who is enemies, but the author gives it to the reader as easily as he can. I think it would be interesting to read this series then compare them to the real events, people, and machines from history. The author describes all of the creatures and animals as best he can, but the black and white illustrations help understand what everything looks like. Without them, I'm not sure I would of known how to think of the animals and machines. It feels like a Sci-Fi book about a past event, if that makes any sense. This is an amazing, adventurous, imaginative and informative book.

Rating:*****

The Green Glass Sea

Review by Mo
Title: The Green Glass Sea
Author: Ellen Klages
Publisher: Puffin Books
Published: 2006

Quick Summary:
While WWII rages through Europe, Americans at home are working tirelessly to end the war. The brightest scientists are gathered together in the middle of New Mexico in a town that officially doesn't exist. The kids go to school in the town and while they know their parents are working on something for the war, they don't know what. As unusual as their lives are, Suze and Dewey go through the usual childhood problems. They form a friendship and Suze's family takes Dewey in when her dad is killed. One night, the whole town gathers to see it go off: the atomic bomb.

Review:
I really liked this book. I was astonished that no one knew the effects of the bomb, but after reading this book I understand that the people were under extreme duress and didn't have time to fully test the bomb's lasting effects. I couldn't stop dwelling on this book after I finished it. I kept going back to it, wanting to find someone to blame for the disaster the world faced after the bomb dropped, but it was more complicated than that. I still can't decide how much the people who ordered the bomb to be dropped knew. I was a little anxious before starting the book because I wasn't sure how much I wanted to know about the atomic bomb, but know I'm glad I read it. Besides the bomb, the book was also about fitting in. Both girls were outsiders but while one of them just accepted that and did her own thing, the other one tried desperately to fit in, even if her trying was turning her into a person she didn't want to be. I liked both parts of the story. All the characters were complicated and real. There was a lot of character development throughout the story, as well. It was an interesting way to learn about history. The book was really well researched, so without having to study, I now know much more about WWII. This book was also unique, because even though this people were far, far away from the battle, they impacted the war more than anyone else did. The story left me thinking.
Rating:*****

Hush: An Irish Princess Tale

Review by Mo
Title: Hush: An Irish Princess Tale
Author: Donna Jo Napoli
Published: 2007
Publisher: Atheneum Books for Young Readers

Quick Summary:
Melkorka is an Irish princess. For her birthday, she begs her parents to take her to visit Dublin. Then finally consent, but, while there, Melkorka's brother's hand is cut of. The family rushes him back to their home, where he is treated. When a viking kind asks to marry Melkorka, she is firmly set against it. However, her father has a plan. She and her sister, Brigid, flee their home and hide. Then, a passing slave ship sees the two girls and captures them. Melkorka refuses to speak to anyone. This confuses her captors and gives her power. Far from home and everything she knows, her silence becomes more and more important.

Review:
I thought this book had a good story. I really felt for Melkorka when she was captured. I thought she was really brave when she stood up for other slaves who were being abused, but she also frustrated me when she acted like she was better than peasants. I really liked her sister, Brigid, because she was kind and brave. I think I actually liked Brigid better than Melkorka. At some points, I felt like the story was moving a little too slowly, but I think it's kinda supposed to be that way, because Melkorka is supposed to feel trapped and frustrated that she can't escape. There were also some kind of weird(inappropriate) parts in the book. If it were a movie, it would be PG-13. I hated the ending thought. It didn't feel resolved to me, and I kept thinking about it a lot after I finished. I was expecting a different ending. Overall, I recommend this book as long as you don't care about the romance and stuff. It was interesting and I'm glad I read it.
Rating: ****

The Outsiders

Review by Edan
Title: The Outsiders
Author: S. E. Hinton
Published: 1997
Publisher: Speak

Quick Summary:
Ponyboy has always lived with his brother's and friends. They are all greasers and are in a gang. They don't pick fights, as Ponyboy says, unlike the socs who are just wealthy kids looking for some greasers to jump. Ponyboy has always been proud to be a greaser, but one night some drunk socs jumped Ponyboy and his friend. Either they would take his life or they would have to take theirs. These two friends are thrown into a turmoil as they try to hide from the murder, from themselves and the police. They finally come out and Ponyboy is wound into a confusion that he doesn't understand. Is all there is to life greasers, socs, and gangs?

Review:
I found The Outsiders to be captivating and thought worthy. I got a very strong connection with the characters and understood their hardships. Even though there were many characters to keep tract of, Hinton makes sure you know who is who. The story remind me of two other books, See You at Harry's and Out of My Mind. In See You at Harry's the main character has to learn to cope with a death, blame and loneliness. She is confused about if she can be happy and live on, or if she should stay secluded and depressed. In Out of My Mind the main character, Melody, is different than everyone else around her, like Ponyboy who doesn't see a reason to fighting which everyone else does. Melody and Ponyboy have unique opinions that they can't seem find a way to tell to the world. The ending of the two books are very similar too, they both end by writing something to tell their stories for school, and they begin to write the beginning of the books. The Outsiders makes you think and ponder about Ponyboy and his life. It is a book that you don't want to finish, but has a complete ending. It is a book that makes you cry when someone dies. It is a book full of characters, thoughts, ideas and questions.

Rating:****

The Blue Shoe

Review By Mo
Title: The Blue Shoe
Author: Robert Townley
Publisher: Yearling
Published: 2009

Quick Summary:
A boy named Hap Barlo is the apprentice to a kindly cobbler. In the window of their shop, known as "The Blue Shoe", sits an amazing blue shoe, covered in blue stones. It captivates everyone who sees it and beckons people from far and wide to marvel at it. The cobbler was visited by a mysterious stranger and told to make the shoe, but the stranger has yet to return. So, when a beggar is about to be sent away to prison, Hap takes a stone from the shoe to pay her bail. However, as soon as the stone is removed from the shoe, the shoe turns to a lifeless, dull gray. Hap is sent to the mountain prison, where he searches for his father, but before the two are reunited, they are tangled up in a mystery that lies within the heart of the mountain.

Review:
This was an easy book to read and didn't take me very long, but it was pretty good. I liked Hap, and thought he was a kind person. He was good but had flaws, which made him more realistic. The book also had some messages about the world hidden in fantasy. For example, inn the book, the Aukis were enslaved by the humans, even though it was their mountain, as many different groups of people have been over the course of history. One Auki married a human and was afterwards disowned by them, like many people have been after they married someone their family or community deemed unacceptable. I liked the rebellion and how many people you wouldn't have expected to be part of it were. I'd recommend the book to anyone who just wants something pretty to read, but still interesting.
Rating: ***

Lionboy

Review by Edan
Title: Lionboy
Author: Zizou Corder
Published: 2003
Publisher: Puffin Books

Quick Summary:
10 year old Charlie lives in the near-future London with his parents, who are two scientists. One day he returns home to find them missing, kidnapped because of the cure for asthma that they discovered. Charlie begins his mission of finding them, finding out all of the information that he needs to know from the local cats (by his talent of speaking Cat). He finds himself on a floating circus headed to Paris where he plans an escape with the lions onboard. Can he track his parents down without getting caught in the first book of this exciting trilogy?

Review:
I liked it. It wasn't the best book, but the idea was very interesting. It was slow going and to keep on being interested, the reader would had to know more about why his parents were captured than Charlie. Charlie's character isn't very personal or easy to connect with. He has flaws, but it is hard to feel emotions the he goes through.  His character took his time and made me want to yell at him sometimes. Other than that, the book has a very interesting idea (especially for me, because I love cats) and leaves off at a cliff hanger. At the end of the book, you may decide to continue on with the series or not, it just depends on your opinion.

Rating:***

Out of My Mind

Review by Edan
Title: Out of My Mind
Author: Sharon M. Draper
Publisher: Atheneum Books for Young Readers
Published: 2010

Quicke Summary:
Melody is 11 and has never walked, talked, written or ran. She has cerebral palsy and is stuck in a wheelchair, unable to talk. Even though she is stuck in a room with other disabled kids learning the A-B-C's everyday, she is one of the smartest kids in her school, but no one know's it. She observes the world and takes in everything, and even has music connected to colors and smells. Finally she is able to  break free of her trap and can finally "talk" and learn in a real classroom, but will she be able to go on without letting herself, family and friends down?

Review:
I really enjoyed this book. It was constructed with vivid words and phrases and gave me a personal connection with the characters. It gave me another view on the physically disabled and made me appreciate the fact that I can move, talk and communicate. Whenever I see or meet someone physically disabled, understand them more and what challenges they have. Even though I normally don't like slow moving books like this, I became so connected with Melody that I couldn't stop reading. I needed to know if everything ended up okay, or if something happened to her. I could pick up this book over and over and never get tired of it. This book will change your view on the disabled forever.

Rating: *****

William S. and the Great Escape

Review by Mo
Title: William S. and the Great Escape
Author: Zilpha Keatley Snyder
Published: 2009
Publisher: Atheneum Books for Young Readers

Quick Summary:
William S. and the Great Escape is a story about four siblings. They live in a horrible family and desperate to escape, William and his sister hatch a plan to escape. They decide to take their two younger siblings and live with their kind aunt. The stay for a few days with a rich, lonely girl. The travel all the way to their aunt's house, only to find they still aren't safe. Can they escape their family?

Review:
I liked this book because it really made you appreciate how brave some kids are. They're family abused them, yet they still dared to escape, even knowing the terrible consequences. This story was pretty good, but the characters weren't very complicated. They were realistic, but not very complex or flawed, so it wasn't as interesting as stories with better characters. The story was a pretty easy book to read, but it was still pretty good.
Rating: ***

Divergent

Review by Edan
Title: Divergent
Author: Veronica Roth
Published: 2011
Publisher: Katherine Tegen books

Summary:
Beatrice Price was born an Abnegation. This is one of 5 factions, Abnegation (the selfless), Candor (the honest), Erudite (the learners), Dauntless (the daredevils) and Amity (the peaceful). She is 16 and it is time for her to choose her new faction. The test results are inconclusive, and she learns a terrifying fact. She is Divergent, she could go into any faction. Finally Beatrice decides Dauntless over Abnegation. Beatrice fights to be brave and face her fears. She struggles as the Erudite leader criticizes Abnegation and havoc breaks out. Beatrice seems to be surrounded by lies, and Erudite seems to have caused all of the trouble, but have they? and why?

Review:
I really liked this book. It has a complex start and it takes a while to understand the world Beatrice lives in. After that, the story just flows. Being her head, you see the situation as she does and sometimes I found it hard prying myself away from her and looking at it in another way. I felt the way Beatrice did and had a strong connection with all the characters. In a way, this story had the same exciting feeling as The Hunger Games and Matched, even though the stories are completely different. If you liked either of those books, you would like this one. The story is full of excitement and I could never put down my book. This is a thrilling page turner that is inspiring and wonderful.

Rating:*****