When It Happened Book Review by Bree

The novel that I read was “When It Happens” written by Susane Colasanti. Overall, the book was great; it kept you interested and it was difficult to put the book down.

“When It Happens” was a teenage love story about Sara, a high school senior who was academically driven and had dreams of attending New York University the following year for college. At the beginning of her senior year she thought she had found Mr. Perfect, Dave was the cute popular guy in school that everyone wanted to be friends with. When Sara started dating Dave, people started to notice her and the popular kids wanted to hang out with her, Sara gained the popularity but lost her true friends. While Sarah was dating Dave she lost herself and found that in their relationship, it wasn't the relationship she wanted it to be anymore; Dave pressured her into sex and only cared about what his friends thought, she wasn't happy anymore and Sara was already interested in another guy, Tobey. Tobey was the complete opposite of Dave, he was kind and intelligent and Sara was falling for him. Sara was confused with what she should do so she decided to end things with Dave because when she was with Tobey, she felt sparks fly and she wanted something happen between them.

The novel was a good book, you really felt the emotion of Sara and how she felt throughout each situation. The only thing that I did not like about the book was how it ended. At the end of the book they graduate high school and describe how great college is going to be and how much fun it will be. I wish the author would've written on about how the summer went.

“When It Happens” was a good book and Colasanti.  is such a good author. The book was exciting and it was about a high school relationship that I hoped would turn out good for Sara. After reading this novel, I want to read many more by Colasanti.

Someone Else Life Book Review by Yessica

“Someone Else’s Life” is a great book written by Katie Dale.  I believe none of us would really know how quite we would react if we found out our whole life is basically a lie.  This book does that for us, it puts us in the shoes of almost every character especially the main character named Rosie.   We are able to see how tragic her life and the people that surround her turn out when the truth is revealed.

Rosie is a young girl who is done with high school and like many of us can’t decide what to do with her life.  Yet, there are things that differentiate her dad died when she was young and her mom dies from a rare disease known as Huntington’s.  For the past years she had watched her mom slowly die and feared that she would too have this disease since it’s hereditary.   She had a 50% chance of having this disease until one day a family friend reveals the truth and turns that 50% to 0% by revealing the truth.  That the mom she saw die wasn't her real mom therefor; there was no way she was going to get it.  With her boyfriend this girl Rosie goes out to find her real mother, only to find out her mom wants nothing to do with her.  She finds more than her real mom, she also find her non biological moms real daughter.  At this point she has to decide to either go back home and just live with her life or to reveal the truth.  To reveal a truth about a deadly disease that this young girl might have and destroy not only her, but her family too.

Personally I really enjoyed this book and I’m very picky when it comes to liking book.  It had a lot of suspense which I think is a must because it makes you want to keep reading.  It was also very informative about this disease I didn't even know existed, so I learned a lot.  I also loved that it has a lot of twists and it narrated from two different characters.  It kept me guessing to what the outcome would be, but I got surprised every time.  As I had said before the author does a great job great a scenario, it makes us feel like we as a reader are part of the story?  The only thing I would have like better would be a more detailed ending.

I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who likes reading especially books that have conflict and lots of emotion.  I’m sure a lot of people would be able to connect to it, for example I had a connection because I love traveling and so did the characters and I have a mom with cancer so I know what it’s like to have someone you love ill.  I would give this book a big five ***** because I highly enjoyed and really recommend it.

Ender's Game Book Review by Andrew

Ender’s game, by Orson Scott Card, is the futuristic tale of a young boy who is conscribed into Battle School, a space age military school for boys. The story chronicles the protagonist, Andrew, ‘Ender’ Wiggins’ with many conflicts, both internal and external, as he progresses through trials of his destiny to save Earth.

Andrew Wiggins was born a Third, which is prohibited by Earth’s new two-child policy. In a deal to keep their son Ender’s parents agreed that he would be monitored by the Government in a program that searches for potential brilliant military officers for the war against an alien race known as the Formics. Eventually Ender is taken to command school, a military institution for young boys that orbits the Earth. Ender gradually works his way up the rungs of the power ladder when he shows his strategic prowess over his peers in battle simulations, but it is only after numerous grueling tribulations instigated by Commander Graff, who constantly monitors Ender and manipulates situations surrounding Ender to mold him into a strategic genius. When Ender is through with command school he is sent into exile on asteroid 433 Eros to be trained by Mazer Rackham, the man who will teach him everything he needs to know to save Earth from defeat in the war against the Formics. What happens after the war is over is the true surprise.

I think that Orson Scott Card wrote a very interesting and powerful book. I would go so far as to say that this book is a science fiction masterpiece. Card places you in the mind of the protagonist like only a masterful writer could, and the character development is very deep; as Ender goes through changes you can tell, they changes don’t smack you over the head, but they are obvious highlights of the book. Card constructed a story that is difficult to put down, a great plot filled with poignant physical and moral conflict. While the entire book is very compelling, it is in the ending of the book where Card demonstrates his writing prowess. The book resolves itself in a way that is unique and unexpected and it does so with the lilting cadence of a poem. The book’s resolution is Card’s stroke of creative genius. This book is rated a five out of five.

Living Dead Girl Book Review by Tricia S

I read the Living Dead Girl by Elizabeth Scott. I really liked the book it was intense and a page turner.

At ten years old, Alice, was kidnapped by a man named Ray. Throughout the 5 years, she has been sexually abused and tortured. Now, Ray wants a new girl to “play” with and wants Alice to find her for him. Alice will do anything to be free from him, even put a little girl in her shoes. The end is bittersweet, and Alice finally gets the freedom she’s been wanting all along.

The book was great and right away gets your attention. The first sentence, “Once upon a time, I was a little girl who disappeared.” Instantly makes you want to find out what happened to this little girl. I like the way Alice told her story and it really surprised me throughout the whole book on how she wouldn't just leave and tell the cops what was happening. Alice knew where Ray was and she could have led the cops to him and they could have put him away without the harm of her family. When I read books like this I love the feeling and thought of what would I do in this situation? Feeling helpless and alone made me connect with other situations I have been through in my life and my friends and her story really touched me. 

I would recommend this book to anyone. The Living Dead Girl really pulls you in with every word and Alice’s story is very interesting and I love the suspense of the story. I rate this book a 5 out of 5.

Fullmetal Alchemist Manga Review By Sterling C

                Fullmetal Alchemist, as another manga series I decided to start reading, it’s probably one of the best right behind Death Note. Written by, Hiromu Arakawa, Fullmetal Alchemist is a story about two young boys whose goal is to bring their dead mother back from the dead. The only problem with that is that it’s never been done before.         

                In the failed attempt to do so, the two brothers lose a piece of them, the oldest, his arm and leg, the youngest everything but his soul. After years that have passed the eldest brother Ed went into the military as a state Alchemist. With the two brothers working for the government they try harder and harder to get to answer of their question, how to successfully bring someone back from the dead. They go to many different places and try to figure out how they will find there answer.  

                With the boys searching they get close, but yet have the hardest time trying to find the actually answer itself. Going from the library which had burned down, to the “secret place” which they got caught and almost died at, and then going back to their teacher whom won’t teach them anything else and is too weak to do much. After all the traveling the two boys have found many clues as to what may help them in there soon to become long journey to find the secret ingredient, the philosophers stone.

                As a very good book and a very good series, Fullmetal Alchemist is a book for people who like books that keep you interested and like action. This book/ series is probably one of my favorite books so far, I rate this book series a four and half out of five. Now my question to you is, will you find out whether they find the stone or not and retrieve there long lost mother?

I Heart You, You Haunt Me Book Review by Megan E

                The book I read was “I heart you, you haunt me” by Lisa Schroeder.  This book is quick, sad and heart-warming all at the same time.  I wasn't crazy about the verse set up, but the story itself was really good, and it really connected you to the characters.

                A teenage girl, Ava, just lost “the love of her life”, in a tragic accident.  Now, her dead ex-lover, Jackson is literally haunting her, reminding her constantly of their love together.  Her parents start to become worried about her because she never leaves the house.  Then one day at the beach, she meets a boy named Lyric, and once he asks for her number, she quickly withdrawals, thinking of Jackson, and went home.  Then one night, her friends want her to go to a party with them and her parents insist that she goes.  She tags a long and it ends up being at the place where Jackson died.  One of her friends wants to introduce her to a boy they like, and it ended up being Lyric.  After a while of being at the party, Ava starts losing it and Lyric ended up driving her home.  Towards the end, Ava begins to discover that even though she will always have a place in her heart for Jackson, she can’t separate her life from actual living people and makes a decision that will change her life for the better.

                The only thing I did not like about the book was how it was written in verse.  Otherwise, I thought it was phenomenal.  The author cut right to the chase, and did not make it unclear that someone had died.  It lets me as a reader feel more emotionally connected to the character and story.  “ I've never been to a funeral until today” is the opening sentence, even though it’s really short, it holds so much meaning and sets the tone.   This book showed the stages of grief when you lose someone, and that is something that almost everyone can relate to.

                This book hold a lot of purpose, it showed someone struggling to let go of her best friend, her other half and they had to learn how to cope and live life without them.  They started finding themselves and moving on, but never forgetting.  I loved this book; I would recommend it to anyone.  I give it four out of five stars.

Alice in Zombieland Book Review by Ray

Alice in Zombieland by Gena Showalter is about a girl named Alice and how her whole world changed after the accident. At first I thought this book was boring so I didn’t really want to read it or get into it but soon after the first chapter I started to get interested. The more I read this book the more I got into it and the more I enjoyed it.

In the book Alice and her family gets into an accident and all but Alice died. Alice life starts to change from where she lives, goes to school, and the people she hangs out with. She goes from this shy fragile girl to a courageous strong girl. She makes many enemies as long as many friends in the end. In the beginning Alice would have never guessed her life would end this way and now she won’t give up what her life has become.

Over all, this book was great; I love the secrets that go on between Alice and Cole. It keeps me on my toes and wanting me to keep reading to know what is going to happen. I didn’t like the very beginning it just really bored me when it was just Emma and Alice talking in the yard. This book doesn’t have too many hard words to read. I also like how the author put the italic words showing that Alice was talking to herself in her head, this made me feel like I knew what she was thinking all the time and that I knew everything about her.

          Alice in Zombieland overall was a great book about Alice and how her whole life gets turned around after the accident. I encourage everyone to read this book if you enjoy zombies and mysteries. This book just keeps you on your toes and gets you hooked the more you read it. I would have to give this book 5 stars.