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In this issue:
Book Reviews, Music and Poetry
Feature Article
Battle of the Books
“Battle of the books has begun and has been on for awhile now. So get reading and have a lot of fun.
You know that there will be an actual battle to get to be eligible to go to the big one, where you can dress up in costumes that go with your team name. It should be bundles of fun. So if you want to get to the big one you are going to have to read, read, READ, and know what the book is about.
- by Maire
You can’t bring people back from the dead, right? Try telling that to Aaron Allston, co-author of the popular X-Wing series. In his latest book The Star Fighter of Aduman he cast Wes Janson as a main character. That wouldn’t be a problem if Wes Janson hadn’t been blown to bits in the previous book!
There is absolutely no doubt that Janson died. One passage from Isard’s Revenge reads Corran found hard to believe Janson was dead. But a concussion missile had blown off the back of his fighter and his body had drifted out. Such inaccuracy of information should NOT be tolerated.
I believe this is a full display of immaturity and inaccuracy, Mr. Allston should co-operate with the other co-author to prevent grievous mistakes like this.
-by Jaclyn
Book Reviews
“Battle of the Books” Books
The Broken
Blade
By William Durbin
This book starts off, when Pierre’s La Pages father was slicing wood, when all of the sudden Pierre’s father accidentally cut his thumb off!
Pierre is worried that his father won’t be able to paddle the canoe to earn money for his family.
So Pierre decides that he is going to quit school behind his parents back and join the brigade. You had to be at least 14 to join the brigade, but Pierre was only 13. So he lied so that he could be a new member in the brigade to earn money for his family. When he gets home he tells his Parents about it.
Little did Pierre know that his family would be proud of him.
So until you read this book you won’t find out what happens to Pierre, his fellow brigade members, where they paddle, and what happens to Pierre’s fathers thumb. So basically you won’t know anything about this book until you read it.
Reviewed by Maire
Habibi
By Naomi Shihab Nye
My personal opinion? I didn’t like it so much. It just wasn’t my style, but you like it, so I will give you the basic plot. Liyana is a 14-15 year old girl. Soon after something special happens in her life she finds out she is moving to the Middle East to see her Poppy’s side of the family and hometown. Soon after she moves she starts making friends and liking it there. After a couple of days she meets her grandmother Sitti and the rest of her family. With her father having to translate everything the family says will she be able to hand it? Will she ever learn to really enjoy where she lives now? Read this book and find out.
Reviewed by Katie
When Kenny Huldorf moves into a new house, he finds a big stain on the floor in his closet. That night, he hears a noise in the closet. When he goes to see what it is, he sees something coming through the floor. It is the ghost of a boy named Caleb. Caleb had been a slave in the same house 200 years earlier. The stain on the floor is blood. Caleb had been murdered. When Kenny walks out of his closet, he finds himself in the past; in Caleb’s time. Now Caleb wants Kenny’s help, to go back before his murder, find the killer, and stop it from happening. Kenny finds his murderer. But he has to make a Choice; kill Caleb himself or be stuck in the past forever. What will Kenny do? I couldn’t wait to see how this book ended because it got really exciting. Read it and see.
Something Upstairs
By Avi
Kenny Huldorf’s family is moving to Rhode Island. Bummer! Kenny hates it. He doesn’t want to move. But he has no choice. Their new house is ancient. It has rooms that were made to hold slaves. As a surprise, Kenny’s parents let him have the attic for his room. In one part of the attic, a dark stain covers the floor. The first night, Kenny awakens to the sound of scraping. He sees two hands reaching out of the stain. A body soon follows. He gets up to meet the boy, but scares him off. Over the next few nights, the ghost-boy and Kenny become friends. Kenny helps Caleb get out of the little room and gets zapped back to Caleb’s time, to help free Caleb. But another figure clouds both boys’ futures. Can they survive?
Reviewed by Emily
Long Way from Chicago
By Richard Peck
Every summer, Joey and Mary Alice go to visit their grandma Dowel; and boy, do they have some weird adventures! From trespassing on people’s property to baking pies for the fair, you never know what will happen next. Every chapter is a different summer with different adventures. This was a really funny book and I really enjoyed it. I think you will to.
Reviewed by Kathry
Frindle is one of the best books I’ve read in along time. Frindle is about a boy named Nick who creates a new word, to the consternation of Mrs. Granger, his 5th grade language arts teacher. Nick never expects to really make a new word; however, he succeeds beyond his wildest dreams. I have recommended the book to my mother, my husband, my sister, and Samantha on the library’s YAAB.
Reviewed by Stacy Charlesbois
The Library Card
By Jerry Spinelli
This book started off to be a really slow book but by the end I couldn’t spend a spare moment not reading it! I found it amazing that the “Library Card” in this book could change peoples lives.
In the book 4 kids ranging from the pre-teen – early teen years are all caught up in something: TV, too poor, in a “Reading’s not cool” gang, etc. Each kid in his or her own time found a blank blue library card. Again each kid in his or her own time went to the library and found out some amazing facts! I really enjoyed this book and I hope you will too.
Reviewed by Samantha
Holes is one of the best books I’ve ever read. It’s about a poor, scruffy, overweight kid named Stanley Yelnats. He was accused of stealing Clyde Livingston’s shoes. Clyde is a famous baseball player, and Stanley’s hero. Clyde also had donated these shoes to charity. Then one day while Stanley was walking home from school, the shoes dropped out of the sky into his backpack! Stanley was sent to court and convicted GUILTY. He had the choice of going to jail or Camp Green Lake. Stanley had never been to camp before and thought it sounded like fun. So he chose camp. Camp was not at all like Camp Fun and Games he made up for his stuffed animals. Everyday the boys there had to go out into the baking hot sun and dig holes five feet wide, across, and deep. Then one day something exciting happened. It was about to change the history of Camp Green Lake. Read the book to find out what.
Reviewed by Samantha
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