Outcast

Outcast, by Michelle Paver, is the fourth book in the Chronicles of Ancient Darkness series. I just got the book today and am overjoyed! I am lucky because I even remember where the last book ended. And around two months after it ended, the next book began.  And even though I am only 16 pages in, I already feel myself being sucked in to the book, waiting for a time I could read more, and waiting for the time where I get to turn the next corner, the next page. 

But the first thing I did when I got the book was look at the cover. Automatically I saw the same old blob with the title and the name of the author in it. But right after that, I saw the beautiful background picture but, the only thing was, I didn't recognize the characters! All of the Wolf Brother books hav a silute of Torak and/or Wolf. Or, they had a full picture of Torak but you really couldn't see faces. On this cover, I could see their faces clearly, and Torak wasn't even in them, I don't think, because I don't even know what he looks like to the illustrator! I thought that they were Indian clans, but it seems like a lot of people in this book are caucasian. My mom says that clans can be anywhere, but it still seems like its Indian. Oh, well.  I just guess I have to just read and picture what I want to picture.

Diary Of A Wimpy Kid Part Two: Rodrick Rules

I'm not quite finished with this book yet but I'm pretty tight with what it's about. It's just like the first Diary Of A Wimpy Kid that I read (and did a post on some time in March). Except this time, it's all about Rodrick and how he bugs his younger brother, Greg, the main guy in the book.  I'm sort of getting to like this book a little better than the first one because it explains more about the topic. Heres an example:

Book 1: Bob likes to eat.
Book 2: Bob and his friend like to eat artichokes.

You sort of get the idea. The book is mainly about Greg having a hard time in school and having to try to "get along" with Rodrick and deal with all his crazy gags, and parties, and thoughts right out of the blue.

I would rate this book a 9.

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

This book was interestion because a lot of bad things are happening and Harry is just ignoring them! I think that Harry is making bad decisions and he sould think more carfully. Things are going on in my head like, "Why did you read that book?"or "Why did you fly that car?" I thought that it was interesting how Harry  figured out things that he did not know about himself. I think that this book is very dramatic, but nothing compared to The Deathly Hollows.  In both there are legends and mysteries.  I think Harry Potter is a really good series and I would give it a 10 for it's action.

The Lightning Thief

I'm not really far in this book, but what I can say about it is that the first thing it says is "I didn't want to be a half-blood." First, I'm thinking to myself, "What in the heck is a half-blood?" Is a half-blood like half human and half another creature? The book is a really good book, but when they start talking about mythology it's a little confusing. When I read this book I'm always wondering things. For example, "what does this word mean? Or, "How do I pronounce these unusual names?" I would rate this book an 8 because I'm not far in the book, so I don't know much about it yet.

The Day My Butt Went Psycho

This book is one of the funniest books I have ever read. When I was reading it I would think of the humor, and I would say in my head, "Ha, ha, ha!" or "LOL." The book is actually literally about his butt going psycho. It literally jumped off his body. It has great humor that a 5th grader would love, because of the topic...you know what I mean.

Diary of a Wimpy Kid Rodrick Rules

This book is the second book in the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series. Now, when I opened this book, I thought it would be the same as the first one. I thought it would be Greg, Greg, and more Greg. But boy, was I wrong.  This book is mainly about Greg's brother, Rodrick. In this book he is the big chesee and the one trying to stay out of trouble. For example, when their parents go out for the night, he throws a huge party. He does a pretty good job cleaning up his tracks, but sometime later he gets caught. Now it makes me think, is the next book going to be about their other brother, Manny?

The Lightning Thief

I just felt that I absolutely had to post on this book. For starters, I had a lot of bad feelings for it when I opened up the cover. Even though everyone gave it such great reviews, I still had this little and quite annoying voice in my head that was saying, "This book is going to be really cheesy, you're going to hate it, this is a very bad idea." I'm not sure exactly what caused this, I just had that feeling. I started off on the very first couple of pages thinking it was mediocre. There was a hint of plot, a dash of characters, and a pinch of vocabulary. But as I continued it was like the book reached out it's arms and pulled me into it's story. When it would say something about a Greek god that I didn't understand, I would let myself puzzle over it for a little while, but then the book would answer my questions. Who is Athena? Why was she important? What the heck does she have to do with this at all? Why am I asking so many questions? I still have not finished this book, I still have high expectations.

No Talking

No Talking is a book by Andrew Clements.  I know that this book was already posted, but it was a long time ago. I really like the book because it has the quote "there's a way to prove that girls talk way more than boys." I think that can be true, but not always true, because girls are a lot more shy. I recomend this book to people who like the books that Andwrew Clements writes. I also recomend it to people that like having sides because the girls and boys are and opposite teams and are against each other.  I would rate this book a 10 because it has a good plot.

The Alchemyst: the Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel

First of all, Nicholas is pronounced NICK-oh-la not the other way, like Nicholas in kindergarten. The Alchemyst is about two people, Sophie and Josh. They accidentally stumble upon two ancient magicians battling over an ancient book. 

I can really relate to this book because it takes place in San Francisco and Mill Valley. (Woo-hoo!) This made me think about a lot of stuff. For example, Nicholas Flamel was so old that he knew William Shakespeare. In fact, he used the antagonist's characteristics for Prospero in the Tempest! 

 

The Time Travelers

The Time Travelers is about a boy and a girl who were just messing around and, suddenly, they both get sucked into the year 1763. This is a very fast-paced, exciting, funny story. I liked this book because you really feel as if you are there, right with the characters. I also liked this story because it has a good plot, really good detail, and humor. While reading this book, I found myself laughing out loud as the characters got themselves into yet another mess. Sometimes, the characters would say or do something that would cause someone to feel offended or hurt. If I were them I would watch what I say! I really recommend this book! Try reading it!

Marlfox

Yet another book of the Redwall series. This one seems a bit strange just because the Marlfoxes carry axes around with them and to slay enemies they behead them. This one is interesting because the people who go on the mission seem like really young children. 

This was a book that my thoughts really got into. One of the warrior's father was really aggresive and had a bad temper. Once, he started to scream at his son because he was nearly killed by "pathetic" rats. At that point, I was at the boiling point toward him. In my mind I was screaming, "How could you say that to your own son, you beast! He's the only one you've got! You don't deserve any forgiveness at all!" Of all the great things in this series, there is one thing that really annoys me. It's when they are having a feast and they start describing the food. There is a boring page-and-a-half list with at least two redundancies in each description of food.

The Tale of Despereaux

This book is by Kate DiCamillo. It won a Newbery medal. It's about a small mouse, a rat, a royal family, and a girl. In this book there are four short books that are all connected.  There is a book on every characters besides, the royal family.  I'm pretty sure, but I haven't read the last book yet.

I like how Kate DiCamillo had a narrator and how she made all the books connected. When I was reading I was thinking to myself, "That's so mean. How can they do that to them?"  I also wonder if I will  read about them again.

The Boy Who Ate Stars

I think that that book is about a lot of things other than a girl encountering an autistic boy. I think this because it talks about friendships and life from another point of view. When I was reading it, the voice in my head was saying,  "Oh, wow!  This is a lot like A Corner of the Universe, except the autistic person in The Boy Who Ate Stars is younger and it is not quite as sad."  I think that this book is very well written.   I would give this book a 9. 

The Bronze Pen

Let me start by telling you my hook, the author. I just love this author! How many of you think Lemony Snicket is a good author? Well, you will love anything by Zilpha Keatley Snyder. The all the books I have ever read by her have the following quote on the back:
"Zilpha Keatly Snyder is
the sort of writer
who makes you peek in
the closet, check under
the bed, and spend all
night under the covers,
reading with a flashlight
to find out what
happens next."
-Lemony Snicket
"P.S. I LOATHE these books"

Well, I don't know about him, but I love these books. That hook is on every single one of her books and isn't it marvelous!? Whenever I read this hook, my little voice just takes off and starts screaming, "Don't you dare put that book down, you will regret it!  Trust me!  I'm right, you know!" 

What I love about her books is that they get to the point. They don't talk for long periods of time about what might happen or what's not happening, but it hits the action, the bam, the pazaz! It is a lot like the Percy Jackson series, in a way. It is, in my opinion, a scary book. They freak me out and, you guessed it, my little voice,too. You will certainly like these books no matter who you are. Try them.

On the Run Chasing the Falconers

When I read this book, I'm thinking like in those old fashoned scary movies, "Don't go in there!"  I thought that when they where running in a big corn field and they ran into a little watch tower. While they weren't trying to be seen, a dog was going ballistic, making it all dramatic. When I read this book, I immedietly get sucked in. I almost have butterflies when I read this! This is a great book if you love drama.

Deep Down Popular

This book is amazing! I can't stop reading it! In fact, I am reading it right now. I have so much to say about this book. This book is about a "loser" (that's what they call her) girl, and a popular boy.  Or, at least he used to be popular.  So, the boy and the girl become friends, all because of a leg brace.

I think that just because Conrad got a leg brace, and he can't play soccer anymore, that his "friends" should still like him. I mean, so what if he doesn't run as fast, or he can't kick a ball. That shows me that they only liked Conrad for what he was good at, not as a person.

This book has a great lesson, and I strongly reccomend it.

Peter and the Shadow Thieves

Ahh! Don't Die Peter! Don't Die! Whew! He made it! This is what I encountered a lot in this book.

Peter and the Shadow Thieves is the second book in the Peter and the Starcatcher's series. I call this series the "before" Peter Pan series because the books are about how Peter Pan became Peter Pan. I think that Peter and the Shadow Thieves is scarier than the first book. In the first book, you are just meeting the characters, so you don't really care what happens to them -- well, maybe you do care a little.

Now, in the second book, you care a lot more about what happens to them. I think that this is the better book out of the two of them. The first book was good, but it didn't have much mystery and scariness in it. In this book, sometimes I was afraid to turn the page. I would think "Please don't let him die!"

In a series, you usually don't have to worry too much that the character will die because you know that the characters have to live to be in the next book. For example, if I hadn't known that Harry Potter was a series, I would have been so freaked out the whole time I read the book because I wouldn't know if he would still be alive by the end of the chapter. In this book, even though I know that they will live because there is another book, I was freaked out when they came to a near death experience.

I would rate this book a 10 for mystery, scariness, and entertainment -- the last page was hysterical, but don't read the last page first!

Jeremy Fink and The Meaning Of Life

Whenever I read this book, I always think of me going to a hardware shop and asking if they had special keys for some odd reason.  Well, maybe because it is about a kid named Jeremy Fink that is trying to find 4 different keys to open his 13th birthday present. Anyways, I feel like I am his friend named Lizzy because  her personality is like me, but that is my opinion, and other people might have different thinking than that.

I would rate this book a 10 because it is really good and it is a really well written book and I would definitely recommend this book to most of the people in our class because I think that they would like it.

I think that it is kind of slow and cheesy, but that is a good thing about this book, too.

p.s. We have it in our class library just to tell you that.

The Big Field

The Big Field is a great book by Mike Lupica. I think Mike Lupica is a very good writter when it comes to basketball and baseball. I can make a lot of connections in this story because I play baseball. I realized that in Mike Lupica's books there's always some great, funny, goofy side character that is the main character's best friend, and there is always a mean character. I like to see how the main character handles the mean character. I enjoy reading these parts of the book. This book really had me thinking to myself, "Oh no! The ball went through his legs!" And, "Yes! They won that one by a hair!" I actually said these things aloud sometimes because I know how it feels like.

The Battle for Skandia

The Battle for Skandia is the fourth book in the Rangers Apprentice series. I thought it was immensely heart warming to see two characters reunite. Also, this is the book series I said was like half Saturday Night Live and half The Lord of the Rings -- you can see what it must have been like!

The evil Temujai warriors had breached Skandia's border's, they were considered to be the Worlds finest archers. The had conquered every country they dared invade. And now they were invading Skandia, with Araluen in their sights! It was up to Will, Halt, Oberjarl Ragnak, Jarl Erik, and a few thousand Skandians. The ending was sweet but a terrible close to the series. I hope the author writes another.