The Picture of Dorian Gray

Oscar Wilde

Review By: Shelby

WOAH! I finally read this book (for brit lit)

By le famousse Oscar Wilde, the most famous gay dude in literature, comes The Picture of Dorian Gray. And I must say I think there is a lot of homosexual (misogynistic) tendencies in this book.

I tried to read it before and thought it was so boring I couldn't get to the 3rd page. This is really a good book though. Good story, good emotions, really good characters. The writing style just got on my NERVES though. Ok. for now: Dorian Gray is a young man who is obsessed with being youthful and beautiful. One day his friend paints his portrait, and Dorian wishes he could stay as beautiful as his portrait is, and his wish comes true. Dorian grows old and does bad things and hurts others's lives, but the effects of his age and of his sin only appear in the portrait. His portrait reflects his soul.

Anyway the book is basically good, but about his writing style! The charaters are great that they have their own histories and personalities and whatever. but ok. get over it. We know Lord Henry and anyone he chooses to converse with must be exhaustingly quick and clever but come ON do we have to hear their little wit fights/banter? It's really annoying. And also. there's this part that is basically a filler while Dorian is passing his years and not getting older. It goes into all this crap detail about his hobbies. Listing all these mythological, historical, literature-...al names... BORING BORING BORING and not to mention pointless. Then there's this part describing a book and how it was written and I swear that Wilde was writing about himself. Gosh. That is cocky and annoying.

But anyway, it got on my nerves but others may like it... it's a really good book anyway. :D do read.

Gifted Hands

Dr. Ben Carson

Review By: Shelby

Gifted Hands is like the biography of a v. well-known and well-respected neurosurgeon, Ben Carson. We read this in MD Camp. Anyway it's basically about his life and is a pretty good book. It also has some surgeries that he did that were really important. At the end of the book he has a conclusion that is like his outlook, or philosophy on life, which is THINK BIG. I think i can remember what they all stand for
T: Talent, Time-management
H: Hope
I: Insight
N: Nice
K: Knowledge

B: Books
I: In-depth learning
G: God

So that's a nice thingy. This book is really inspiring. The only thing I thought that was wrong with it was that you could TOTALLY tell it wasn't written by a writer (even though i think he did get help writing it). There are grammar mistakes... and the writing style and structure are really weird. Also he uses the word niggle way too much. That is a weird word.

Boy proof

Cecil Castellucci

Review By: Sasha

This is about a girl who lives in hollywood and is "boyproof". She stays awayf from people and boys dont like her in a dating sense. Her mom's an actress and her dad does like...gore make up and monster masks and such. Then, a boy comes in town! (el gaspo). And he's smart like she is. And then she starts doing bad in her classes. Yes, because of the boy.

Anyway, the book is pretty cliche ish. It's very pbvious. it would be more interesting if it had eneded differently. I would give it a 3 out of 5 stars just because the boy girl relationship is in every other book...

though i must say, some bits of this book remind me of me. Mostly because it is in the same format that i write books. :)

Frankenstein

Or the Modern Prometheus

Mary Shelley

Review By: Shelby

OMG THIS IS A GREAT BOOK AND YOU HAVE TO READ IT RIGHT NOW. I mean it. go to your library. RIGHT NOW. Well. After you finish reading this >:3

This is about Victor Frankenstein, who is so interested in science etc, that he creates a monster. and once he creates this monster, it ruins his life. The hideous being of his creation kills people, who don't accept him, and threatens Victor, leading him and following him everywhere.

That's basically all this story is about. It's great tho yeah? it's suspenseful and v. deep: like the monster striving for acceptance and humanity and... like he's intelligent and he feels things but in the end he is still a horrible, ugly monster, inside and out. And Victor is battling within himself to: protect his family by being a coward and catering to the monster? or be brave and kill him, to protect everyone... it's... JUST READ IT. GO NOW.

also there's lots of nice vocab words.

next review will be Gifted Hands by Dr. Ben Carson (my frickin' idol, and I didn't even know he had books this is how much of a fule and a loser i am. that's right. fule.).