This blog has been created as a tool to encourage students to engage in recreational reading. Through social discussion, students gain better insight and comprehension.

2.26.2009

Unwind - Shusterman

Connor is a troublemaker. We all know kids like him who have a hard time holding it together. Connor has just learned that his parents have made a decision about him that will impact the rest of his life. What is he going to do about it?

Lev is a great kid yet his parents have made a similar decision, but for a totally different reason. Lev was ready to accept his fate. He was actually looking forward to it until he had a chance encounter with Connor.

Risa doesn’t even have parents. She has grown up at the Ohio State Home but now her destiny has also been decided. It doesn’t look good for this talented musician.

UnWind by Neal Shusterman is a book that will stay with me for a long time. It is a great follow- up to The Giver by Lois Lowry because the themes are very controversial and really lend themselves to great discussion, especially with young adults. The characters are powerful and rebellious which allows them to impact in their society.

2.24.2009

39 Clues: Maze of Bones- Riordan

39 Clues: Maze of Bones- Riordan
Interesting concept of plotting greedy family members against one another in a scavenger hunt for the ultimate inheritance pay-off after a loved(?) one's death. Amy and Dan were especially close to their grandmother and therefore are considered favorites in the race. They are confronted by back-stabbing relatives, a mystery man, and an arsonist in the first book alone. The 39 Clues series is slated for 10 books. It will be one to read!

Life As We Knew It-Pfeffer

Life As We Knew It-Pfeffer
Through journal entries sixteen-year-old Miranda describes her family's struggle to survive after a meteor hits the moon, causing worldwide tsunamis, earthquakes, and volcanic eruptions. It is a great "What If..." premise and the author does a great job of covering the possibilities from all angles.

2.19.2009

The Sea of Monsters- Riordan

The Sea of Monsters is the second book in the Percy Jackson & The Olympians series by Rick Riordan. It's the last day of school and Percy has almost completed a successful school year (finally)! Oops, I said almost. The last day ends with a bang that sends Percy on his next big adventure. This time he is on a quest to save Grover. Written with the same interesting mix of contemporary characters and mythological characters, Mr Riordan does a wonderful job of weaving together an adventure full of suspense and humor. This series has been flying off the shelves!

Lightning Thief- Riordan

Lightning Thief-Riordan
Mr. Riordan is a middle school teacher and it shows. He really knows how to write for his audience. Lightning Thief has just enough twists and turns in the story plot that you don't mind getting a class in Mythology along the way. Gods and Goddesses with super powers and jealous streaks can cause a lot of havoc in a young man's life. Just ask Percy Jackson!

Cross My Heart and Hope to Spy- Carter

Cross My Heart and Hope to Spy
Cross My Heart and Hope to Spy by Ally Carter. Cammie Morgan attends school at the Gallagher Academy for Exceptional Young Women which sounds like a boarding school for privileged girls, but really the girls are in training to become spies. Things change at the school when a class of boys from a boy's spy school are invited to take classes with the girls. The story is fast paced and Cammie is very interesting as a main character, even if she gets a little confused in the romance area.

Remembering Raquel- VandeVelde

Remembering Raquel
Remembering Raquel by Vivan VandeVelde is a story of a young girl's death and how she is remembered by those who loved her, and even some who didn't. Raquel's death was accidental, or was it? We are left wondering about that. We also meet classmates who never took the time to acknowledge Raquel in life who are all the sudden her best friends. The story is authentic, people do react to death differently. The ending feels incomplete, random, like the author didn't know where to go with the story after a certain point.

First Light- Stead

First Light
First Light by Rebecca Stead is an intersting story that reminds me a little of the City of Ember. We have two societies that co-exists, one underground the other above ground. Peter's parents are both scientist and his father's job takes him on some interesting adventures. This summer Peter's father is going to Greenland and Peter and his mother are going along. Peter makes an unusual discovery in the ice that turns his world upside down.

All of the Above-Pearsall

All of the Above
Mr. Collin's has a tough teaching assignment. He teaches math in a school where students really don't have much drive/motivation to learn. What can he do to get them fired up? How about a contest? How about a chance to get your name in a book of world records? Will the students go for that?

Black Duck-Lisle

Black Duck
Black Duck by Janet Lisle is a fast paced adventure book that has you guessing until the end. The story is told by Rueben Hart as he reminisces about a very exciting time in his childhood. Rum-runners, prohibition, and lawlessness rule the day.

Beast of Noor-Carey

Beast of Noor
Beast of Noor by Janet Carey is an exciting story that has the reader jumping between two magical worlds. Fifteen-year-old Miles Ferrell uses the rare and special gift he is given to break the curse of the Shriker, a murderous creature reportedly brought to Shalem Wood by his family's clan centuries before.