The Red Queen

The Red Queen

By Margaret Drabble

Review by Shelby

AHHA. okay I read a grown-up book everyone. The Red Queen is about two ladies whose lives are paralleled. Their lives are pretty much the same. The first one is Lady Hong, of 1800s Korea. She is married when she's ten years old to Prince Sado, who's crazy. Also, her first child dies in infancy. Well, we don't know he's crazy until he grows up but ANYWAY. Prince Sado's father, King Yongjon (or something, i forget their names) is really mean to him all the time, and doesn't really want him to become king. Anyway, she outlives basically everyone and tells her story in the first part, as a ghost. In the second part is Dr. Barbara Haliwell, an English woman. Her husband, Peter, is crazy too. And his dad thinks he's better than everyone, AND she had a kid that died too (she named him Benedict, so it serves her right). She is going to Korea for some scholar's convention. On the flight she reads Lady Hong's memoirs, and Lady Hong haunts her as a ghost (although she doesn't know it) and wants Babs to spread her story around. Anyway, in Korea, Babs makes friends with this Korean Dr, Doctor Oo, and makes better friends with a Dr. Jan van Jost. Anyway. They have an affair and... well I suppose I SHOULDN'T give away everything.

Anyway, this was a really good book. I learned lots of new words. And I promptly forgot them. :D

Lirael

Lirael

By Garth Nix

Review by Sasha

This is the rivitting sequal to Sabriel. I wonder what the exact definition for riviting is and if i spelled it right. Anyway, its about this old kingdom with magic and the people who bring the dead back to life, or but the dead back into death. This book is about Sameth, sabriel's son, and about Lirael, the Daughter of the Clayr. Thsi book is the second book of the abhorsen trilogy. Read it read it read it. I give it 5 stars and as many thumbs up as i have (thats 2). I garantee that if you are into fantasy then you will find to trilogy better than this.

Sabriel

Sabriel

by garth nix

review by sasha

This is an awsome fantasy book about a girl who must tavel to the old kingdom to save her father.
Read this book. It is a great book. I will soom post my equally short reviews about the sequals to Sabriel

Chobits

Chobits

by clamp

review by Sasha

wow it looks like i spelled chobits wrong...*fixes* Well, this is a review for the rest of the series. It is a very good series that unlocks the mysteries surrounding chi. with a mimi series inside of it. Because there is this book that chi reads. good good series. read it

Under the wolf, under the dog

Under the wolf, under the dog

Adam Rapp

by Sasha

This is a really good book. It is about a boy who is at some sort of bad kids camp or something of that sort. His mom is dead and his brother killed himslef and all these people pee everywhere. But its a good book. The life of a kid with one parent, a dead brother and people who do drugs. They also mention the origional sims game, which makes it an even better book. I liked it and i hope you will too.

Chobits

Chobits

By Clamp

Review by Sasha

This is volume 2 of 8 in the series of chobbits (volume 1 reviewed below). In this volume, we find out a little about Chi's mysterious past. This volume makes you HAVE to know all the details of her past. The first volume was in introduction and this volume is like...all the questuons that you'll want answered by volume 8.

Stuck in neutral

Stuck in neutral

By Terry Trueman

Review by Sasha

This is a beautifully written book about a "retared" boy. Either I'm a really fast reader or it's just that good of a book that i read it in less than two hours! (it's actually a short book...but that's not the point) This is a very rare book. It leaves you guessing at the end but you still feel that it is completed. I'm always a fan of sequels but if this book never had a sequal, I'll be okay with that. But..there will be no sequel...because since the book ended I know that...well...IT happened and ...lets just say...It is a very very very sad ending. I love this book so much everyone should read it.

Curse of the Blue tattoo: Being an account of the Misadventures of Jacky Faber, Midshipman and Fine Lady

Curse of the Blue tattoo: Being an account of the Misadventures of Jacky Faber, Midshipman and Fine Lady

by L.A. Meyer

review by Sasha

This is the sequel to Bloody Jack (see below review...Quite a few below...) This tells the tale of Mary when she is sent to a boarding school, where she is to be taught how to be a fine lady. She does everything wrong and even gets landed in jail!
Can Jacky get back ownership of her money being a woman and underage? Anyway, It's a great book. As I neared the end, I KNEW it wouldn't end the way I wanted it to. Still waiting for L.A Meyer to write another one. I don't think he will though.

Doll

DOLL

By Mitsukazu Mihara

review by Shelby

I think that's the author's name. Anyway. This is kinda a science fiction manga. It's about a time (i don't know if it's in the future, or present-day Japan... you know whenever it is) when people have "dolls," that is, robots who look like humans. People use dolls as servants, companions, assasin tools, lovers, whatever. Each manga has several little stories about people and their dolls. Before each chapter there is an illustration of a broken or otherwise... weird doll. Some of the stories are connected.

One of my favorite stories is about this lady, who has a girl doll. They move somewhere and everyone gossips about them. When they're shopping, a guy at the market begins to like the doll... and everone's like "what the heck's wrong with you? it's a doll" but it turns out that it WASN'T a doll. The lady had gotten pregnant out of wedlock and kept her child (even though her family would've wanted her to get an abortion). She was ashamed of her girl and raised her, all the time telling her she was a doll, and abused her. The girl finally realised she was a girl when she A: kinda liked that boy too, and B: got her period. Ahh that story was sooooo cool i'm sorry for spoiling it.

Suki

okay since she did a manga I'll do some then too.

Suki

By CLAMP

(Volumes one and two)

by Shelby

Suki means like or something in Japanese. Suki is about this girl called Hinata Asahi or something. For some reason (it's not really clear why yet... something about being kidnapped all the freakin time) Hinata has decided to live alone. She's booksmart, but really naive and has these teddy bears and reads books about them. So weird. Anyway, one day she gets a new neighbor Shiro Asou (or something) and he turns out to be her substitute chemistry (or something) teacher. (He's not really her teacher, someone designated to watch her... or something *ominosity*). Anyway, Hina-chan finds that she has feelings for Asou-sensei. She cooks food for him and he eats at her house, and he's really nice sometimes. First he was all serious and kinda scary, but sometimes he has his moments where he's bewildered at everything going around him.

It's a cute story. I think that very soon it won't be cute anymore...

Chobits

Chobits

By clamp

I read volume 1 of 8 and it's really funny. Is about this guy who found a computer in the trash so he took it. But its in a world where computers look like alive things. His looks like a prittuy girl and so far it seems to be stupid. It's really really good. read it.

Terry and the Pirates

Terry and the Pirates

by Julian F. Thompson (I think that's his name)

Guest review by Shelby

This book is about Theresa Talley (Terry or Tee to her friends) whose parents want her to go to boarding school? So, she decides to take matters into her own hands. She goes on a trip of "self discovery" (i.e. she runs away). Terry stows away on local millionaire Maitland Crane's boat. But someone else had the same plan. She wakes up to a naked boy with split personalities (don't worry they're both really nice): the millionaire's son.
Then there's like a hurricaine or something, and Terry is suddenly alone on the Cormorant(the boat). But lucky her, Short Bill Gold and his wee mates Cherry and Buddy are there to rescue her. Yeah okay, rescue her.
I thought this was a good book (although I found a couple grammatical mistakes in it). Terry is a cool girl, neither teenagery nor self-conscious (definitelynot self conscious). In the end she has grown up, but I thought she was quite mature anyway. The pirates were funny, but lousy pirates. Anyway I reccomend reading this book. It's quick and humorous... very fun. yay.

Bloody Jack: Being an Account of the Curious adventures of Mary "Jacky" Faber, Ship's Boy

Bloody Jack: Being an Account of the Curious adventures of Mary "Jacky" Faber, Ship's Boy

By L.A. Meyer

This is a very good book. It is about a Girl who, as a child, had both of her parents and her baby sister die. She grew up on the street with a gang of kids but after an accident, she left and went to the sea. On the ship, she pretends so be a boy. As she gets older, this pooves to be more and more difficult.

This is a very good book. It's very easy go get into the character and want to know what going to happen next. This is the first in the series. The end is very open but that is because it will pick up in the next book. I garentee that you will love it.

The Mist Readers: The Book Of Atrus

The Mist Readers: The Book Of Atrus

I honestly doubt that that is the title but the book is called the Mist Readers and this treview is one the first book. (the book I have consistes of three books, I will get the proper title later)

I really Loved this book. The books are based on the very populat computer game Mist. Need I say more? Yes? Darn. Well, this first book is about Artrus. This boy is extremly smart. His mother died giving birth and his father left him to his grandmother. As he grows up he soon finds out about those stories he heard as as child and goes on a great adventure.

I love this book. At times it is very descriptive and sometime the descriptions are long and boring but i just kind of skipped those. The book is awsome. It took a while to read but that only because I had little time. It takes a while to really get into the plot and it takes a while for the book to really get moving but just read it to the end. It's awsome.

3 NB's Of Julian Drew

The 3 NB's Of Julian Drew

I dont have the authors name right now and I hope that I spelled the title correctly.

This is a very awsome book about a boy who is being abused by his parents. The only way for him to express Himself is throught writing in his notebooks.

I very much likes this book but I didnt really like the ending whic desnt say much because i never like endings.

Sweet Blood

Sweet Blood

By Pete Hautman

After much trouble with the library paperbacks and the pages being messed up, I finally got a hardback and was able to complete this book. Its about a girl who is diabetic and she called herself a vampire because she believe that the vampire sotry could have originated from diabetics in a time when people new little about the condition. Its a very good book. I am hardly satisfied with books these days because of the eneding. This is one on those books. I wish they would have added a bit to the ending. Like...what happened next? But it really is a good book and i recommend it. The ending isnt that bad. Its good enough that if you need more, you can make it up as in, they DO get together at the end. duh.

The Da Vinci Code

The Da Vinci Code

Reviewed by Shelby

The Da Vinci Code is a great mystery novel about Professor Robert
Langdon, (of Religious Symbology). He is giving a speech (or whatever)
and after
that in his hotel room he is awakened with news of the murder of
Jacques
Sauniere, curator of the Louvre.
In the rest of the book he is paired with Sophie Neveu, Sauneire's
granddaughter. They are running from the cops, learning a lot about
the Catholic Church
and its secrets, and searching for *dun dun dun* the Holy Grail.
The Da Vinci Code is a great book. One of those books you can't put
down. I
had this whole thing planned out... seeing if i read 36 pages a day
(sad i
know, but i have short attention span these days) i could finish it in
two
weeks. Instead i finished it in 5 days. see... read it... and then
you'll see.

Armageddon Summer

Armageddon Summer

By Jane Yolen and Bruce coville

This book is about a girl Marina and a boy Jed(gee I wonder if they get together). They both have broken families and their parents take up on a very religious...Religion. The Reverend tells them that the earth will end on July 27 (Mairna's birthday) and that 144 Believers must join him on the mountain and be saved.

I really enjoyed reading this book. The characters are believable and this is a very well written novel. 4 1/2 stars.

Morality Play

Morality Play

by Barry Unsworth
(guest review by Shelby)

This book tells the story of Nicholas Barber, a young runaway priest, who joins a players' troupe. His world is turned around with one murder, then turned around again.
Nicholas joins the troupe when a previous member dies. The other players reluctantly accept him as the other player's replacement. He learns to become a player despite of his shame because being a player was considered blasphemous in those days (medieval-or-so England).
When someone else dies, a boy called Thomas Wells, the players have a plan to get more money by playing the death of him. The plan works, but then the players slowly learn the truth of the murder through their acting.
This book was pretty good, I read it for summer reading. It's a shorter book, 206 pages was my edition, but it took forever for me to read. The book explored the concepts of justice, like, God's justice and the Kings justice... and several people thinking they were... *ahem*above justice. With the murder, first you think something is fishy, then you think you've totally solved it, then YOU ARE BLINDSIDED. yes you are. But the ending is good, which is always important. I reccomend this book.

Flight Of The Raven

Flight Of The Raven

by Stephanie S. Tolan

This is a sequal to "Welcome to the ark." It follows the path of Elijah, one of the kids from the ark. I liked the book, It was as great as the first one. And also like the first one, i wish it was longer. At the end, i was upset that it didnt do what it did at the end of the first book and talk about elijah when he grows up. *crosses fingers for another sequal*

Welcome To The Ark

Welcome To The Ark

by Stephanie S. Tolan

This is an awsome book. Its about these kids who are really smart but in a mental institution. They then get put in a program for being so smart and such and such and then they all find out that they have shared powers and stuff. Any, i wish the book were longer. The ending was left open. (see sequal, Flight Of The Raven)

I Am Not Esther

I Am Not Esther

by Fleur Beale

This book is about a girl who's mother leaves her with her wierd religious family. They are very strict is clothing and speech and they live by the bible. I liked this book, even the end was pretty good. :) I would recommend it. Its easy to read, not too long and not too short.

Sunlight and Shadow

Sunlight and Shadow

By Cameron Dokey

This is a story about the day and night (who are married) and their daughter Mina. It's told by many different people. It's a story about finding you're true love, with the help of instruments given by the powers that watched over the universe and another instrument made by some prince. Anyway, it a good book. Hight point, i guess the 2 tests are a bit quick and the ending could be better. But it's a good book. I was able to read it very quickly.

Thirsty

Thirsty

By M.T Anderson

This was a great book about a boy who is turning into a vampire. He doesn't know what to do and he helps this mysterious celestial being. It is a great book but the ending is left WIDE OPEN. I AM SO MAD. I want them to make a sequel.

A Great And Terrible Beauty

A Great And Terrible Beauty

By Libba Bray

This was a good book. Has fantacy and it's a cant put down book. The only bad thing I have to say is that then ending sucked.

The book is about a girl whose mother dies. She then goes to a private boarding school and meets mean and nice people. She learns about the oracle and how's she's part of it. Its awsome. But I dont like the ending. i didnt really READ the ending becasue i knew they're werent enough pages to end how i wanted. But i also DID read the ending. I kinda skimmed it.

The Staircase

The Staircase

by Ann Rinaldi

Once again, I have good things to say. This book DID start out kinda slow for me but once the main character got to the catholic school, The book was great. This book is about the staircase that was built by the mysterious carpenter. It's a great book. It's hard to pick up but once you're into it, you'll keep reading.

Keys To The Kingdom: Grim Tuesday

Keys To The Kingdom: Grim Tuesday

By Garth Nix

This is the second book to the keys of the kingdom series. For those who have read the firt book, Mister Monday, this is a great addition. Garth does a fanyastic job of not repeating what happened in the first book. The will gets unlocked a different way and Arthur gets to the House a different way. I and other Garth readers are and should be happy that this sequal is not a complete repeate of the first but an original addition. I just cant wait to see how the other sequals turn out. They are sure to be as great as the first two.

Update

I have added comment onto this blog. Please leave comemnts as to weather or not the book seems interesting or if you read it wheather you liked it or not. Or even if you think i did a particularily good job on the review. or if i need to correct to spelling mistakes. If you cant figure out how to work the comments, there are directions on the featured article page. (It will say Update in big letters)

The Keys to the Kingdom: Mister Monday

The Keys to the Kingdom: Mister Monday

~Garth Nix

This is a series (probably of seven books). The main character, Arthur Penhaligon, is destined to die. He is given a key from Mister Monday, and when Arthur doesn't die, he is followed around my Monday's goons. Monday's goons leave a horrible plague and now Arthur has to go into the mysterious house to find a cure for the plague and so save everyone, and also, to fulfill the Will.

This is an awsome book. It's very interesting and cool how the book transfers from the first book to the next in the series. The second book whick i have just started reading is Grim Tuesday, and the third is Drowned Wednesday. I dont know what the others are called but i'm guessing there will be seven.

Tithe A Modern Faerie Tale

Tithe A Modern Faerie Tale

~Holly Black

(This is a book review i wrote for english class)

The novel, Tithe: A Modern Faerie Tale, is a wonderfully written book by Holly Black. I found myself reluctant to put it down before i was finished. The way the story unfolds makes so much sense and you'll be happy for the main character when she figures stuff out. The book is so well written,I could visualize the scenes as if i were watching a movie. I did'nt feel like i was reading a book and there wasnt too much description. If you are interested in fantacy, you will love this book.

(I wrote more but that's all i feel like typing)

Beauty Sleep

Beauty Sleep

Author- Cameron Dokey

This is another story about sleeping beauty. It is told by Aurora herself. This story is different. Auora doesnt grow up with faeries. She grows up in the palace with her parents. I highly recommend this book for people who like faerie tales. This book is full of sirpises. especially Aurora's descision at the end. I didn't see that one commin'....

This is where I will write reviews of books that I have read.