Annoying by Joe Palca and Flora Litchman

This story is a non fiction information book, so if those kind of book do not interest you, you may not like this book. The title says it all, this book is about things in life that are annoying and why the come across as annoying. They go in and touch on each specific thing in the brain and body that signals why a certain things are  annoying and how it remembered they are. One example of something that is annoying are certain sounds. The first thing that probably pops into your head when I say annoying sounds are fingernails on a chalk board, and that happens to be one of the things they talk about. They say that one reason it comes across as annoying is because of its "reputation". All around the world as soon as someone mentions fingernails and a chalkboard, you cringe or cover your ears even if u have never even heard this noise before. This is because everyone says its such a bad noise so you just assume/follow the majority's thoughts. But then they also go into the real reason why it's such a bad noise and how our body recognizes and reacts to it. Some other horrible noises apt hat are right up there with it are rubbing two pieces of styrofoam together, shaking metal parts, dragging a stool across the floor and opening/closing a squeaky door or drawer over and over again. They also went into great detail with the body's reactions.
As I said before this is a non fiction information book put in the form of a novel, so, there is no actual ending so I can't really give it away.  But a couple more things they talk about are false alarms, a case of mistaken identity, and breaking the rules.
I enjoyed this book for the most part but after a while the book itself got kind of annoying, it seemed like they kept repeating the same thing over and over again, but this may interest people who are specific in wanting to learn this tuff or people who are just interested int he human body. But for myself I wouldn't only recommend this book to adults seeing as they normally have a longer attention span and would be able to handle this book better. To find out more about these annoying things and to see how the body reacts read this book. 

Gone by Michael Grant

Gone by Michael Grant

       The book I read this month is called Gone by Michael Grant. I personally enjoyed the book because it always kept me hooked.

       Gone is about a town called "Perdido Beach". In a blink of an eye, everyone in Perdido Beach that was over the age of 14 dissapears! During the same moment, there was no connection to any sort of service. No phones, internet, or t.v. However, the power was still working. Throughout the book, some teenagers named Sam, Astrid and Quinn start investigating their new surroundings. They discovered that animals are starting to mutate and some children have dangerous powers; one of those children is called Sam. Oddly enough Sam was acting quite relaxed about the whole scenario. Later on, multiple kids from a place called Coates Academy showed up in the town. These kids somehow knew about the disappearance but the question I still have is how did they get there? The Coates Academy students had created a system where everyone would have a job. Unfortunately, the bullies were in-charge.

     One question that I have about this book is why are all of the kids that are noticed to have these "powers" all dying? Everyone, besides Sam. I strongly believe that Sam is going to be the one to save the day. Earlier in the book, Sam was known as the "superhero" because he saved a full bus of unattended children! If not Sam, then I believe that Sam's best friend Quinn will be the one to figure things out. Secretly, Quinn has always been jealous of Sam and has always wanted his time to shine Perhaps that was foreshadowing,  The plot of this book really had me by surprise because it was so unpredictable and something excited always happened. I was hooked. I would definitely recommend this book! The plot, the characters, the setting; everything was just so addicting.

Dead girl don't write letters is about, Sunny Reynold's sister, Jazz, died in the fire. And then one day a letter arrived, from Jazz. Sunny saw the letter and think this can't be, Jazz died a few days ago in a fire. And then a few days later again Sunny go check the mail box and she saw a mail from Jazz, she open the letter and it said: 'I will be home soon." And then Sunny decided to tell her parents but she was too afraid to tell her parents. Because her parents doesn't love her as much as they love Jazz, and her parents won't listen to her. But Sunny thinks that she have to tell her parents no matter what. And then on the evening she told her parents and show her parents the letter. And then her mom clean the house and cook for Jazz favorite food. And when Jazz come back, she took the taxi, and when she step out of the taxi Sunny look at her and she thinks that can't be Jazz, Jazz is a bit shorter and have a longer hair. And then her mom went up to not-jazz and hug her and give her a kiss. After all I think that this was a fine book but there was nothing too special about it. I would recommend it but I would not rave about it just because I was not so interested that I could not put it down.

Beach Blondes by Katherine Applegate

Beach Blondes by Katherine Applegate

The book I read this month is called Beach Blondes. It is about a girl that goes to Crab Claw Key for the summer and stays with her aunt and cousin but she is originally from Minnesota. On her plane ride there, she meets a lady who tells her she will meet three guys and has to decipher who is the right guy, who is the dangerous one, and who is the mystery. When she is there she meets these three guys and makes lots of friends but the story becomes much more complex than finding a summer fling.The story continues until she realizes that everything will be alright, which is also the theme of the story.
My reaction to one aspect of the novel is a couple of the characters (Dianna and Diver) were much more complex than I had originally thought. In the beginning they appeared to be just side characters but they were developed much like the main character.
I felt like the author went too far with developing the other characters, as it made it more hard to follow than if the book were centered around the main character. Also, with all the other story lines for the other characters, it was weird that some conflicts were solved completely in the middle of the book. It made the middle-end section drag on a bit.
In my opinion, this book was a good easy read that would make sense to read in the summer time. Although it dragged on in a part it was well written and I would recommend it! This book would mostly appeal to girls from 13-17 because it is very easy to relate to and something you would wish for to go to a nice, warm place for their summer vacation! I hope you enjoyed reading about the book I've read and might give it a try some day.

Harry Potter and the philosopher's stone by j.k. Rowling

this is the story of 11 year old boy Harry Potter. Harry's parents died when he was only 1 and is taken in by his aunt and uncle who aren't too thrilled to have him. Harry spends 10 years living with his aunt and uncle when letters start to come for harry. The letters come every day until Harry and his aunt and uncle flee to a small cabin on  an abandon island. not even one night based before Hagred from hogwarts school of which craft and wizardry comes to give harry his acceptance letter to the school. Harry soon learns that he is a wizard and that his parents were murdered by voldemort. Harry is rushed off to hogwarts to begin his wizard training. After months at the school harry and his two friends Ron and Harmoine realize that a powerful item is going to be stolen by one of the staff members.Harry and his friends must stop the teacher from getting it.



I thought that this book was very entertaining. It was fun to read though this book as Harry and friends learn more and more about magic and the philosopher's. I would recommend this book for any one that loves magic, mischief, mystery, and more

The Fault in Our Stars By John Green

The Fault in Our Stars is a tragic but twisted love story based in a support group for people struggling with health issues. Augustus Waters is a now cancer free patient, helping his best friend Isaac get through his recent diagnosis of eye cancer when he meets Hazel Grace. Now Hazel Grace isnt your most typical teenager, as she has been struggling with a lung disease most of her life an must carry around an oxygen tank to help her breathe. When the two meet, Augustus is instantly attracted to Hazel.

Throughout this book, you watch their strange and twisted love blossom and crash as they become the best of friends. This book is filled with humour and clever metaphors that will get your brain stirring. Both Augustus Waters' and Hazel Grace's flawed perfection makes these two inseparable when hard news comes crashing into their little world, when Augustus and her make a trip to see their favourite author in Norway, Hazel Grace can't even look Augustus in the eye without knowing what will happen next.

What I enjoyed about this book was how amazing and beautiful it could be although it was so simple. I loved all of the twists and metaphors while reading The Fault in Our Stars. I also liked how it was completely unpredictable and it was not your ordinary sappy love story. I think the story was absolutely perfect and nothing should have changed. If I had to, I would have put a little more detail into the scenes near the end to make the ending more dramatic.

I would suggest this book to everyone I know, even guys because even though it is a love story there is so many twists and turns and things that everyone would enjoy and that is my opinion of The Fault in Our Stars. Below I have posted a link to a trailer I found on this book which includes a couple metaphors and quotes for the book. Enjoy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wYVpNSwksss

Will Grayson, Will Grayson By: John Green & David Levithan

   Will Grayson and Will Grayson, two boys with the same name and last name have never met each other. W.G 1(Will Grayson) lives with his mom, dad and has only 2 friends, Tiny and Jane. Tiny isn't so tiny, in fact he's a huge rich and gay guy and dates almost every gay guy in his school at one point, where Jane is a nice and kind girl who has a little crush on W.G 1 and  helps Tiny run the GSA (Gay-Straight Alliance) W.G 1, Jane and Tiny both love the band Neutral Milk Hotel (NMH) and they like to sneak into the concert with fake IDs. The W.G 2 lives with his mom and has only 3 friends, Simon, Derek and Maura. Simon and Derek are both nerds in general and Maura is some goth girl that is dating W.G 2. He is mostly depressed all day and is only happy when he talks to Issac who is his best friend online that he never meet before in person. The two W.G meets each others one night that will change both the life of W.G 1 and W.G 2 with Tiny's new musical "Tiny Dancer". 

   The aspect of one of the characters I had the biggest reactions to was W.G 2 because, throughout the story, he faced allot of difficulties in his life and also allot of changes. Like for example, in the middle of the story he turned gay which shocked me because he already has a girlfriend and also when he found out the truth about Issac really shocked me.

   I think that there wasn't allot of action in this book even though this book is basically a drama book but overall this book is awesome and, I wonder if John Green is going to make more great books like this one. 

   I think that people should read this book because this book is funny, rude and original and I couldn't stop reading this book. Younger ages shouldn't read this book because it has allot of  inappropriate language and contents but is still a great book to read.

   

   

   

Nevermore: A Maximum Ride Novel

By: James Patterson

 

 

 

Nevermore is the last book in James Patterson's hit seraies.

 

Maximum(Max) Ride is a normal teen who does normal teen stuff with a few exceptions.

1. She lives with her "flock" without parents.
2. Her flock including Angel, the Gasman(Gazzy), Nudge, Iggy and Fang, Max, Dylan and Total(their dog)(yes these are their real names) were captured when they was young and experimented on.
3. She and the flock all have wings.

 They are on run trying not to get captured again by insane erasers(half human have wolf hybrids).

In this book Max and the flock starts off in privet school. Max's caution is extreme trying to lay low so that her step brother Ari(the leader of the erasers) and his crew don't find them. Also fang has run off and has found a new "flock" of other types of mutants including Max's clone. The story jumps from Max's life to fang's life then to Angel's who is supposedly dead. Max is having a hard enough time with finding out that Angel is dead and having Dylan love her when Fang reunites with the original flock. Dylan is extremely jealous when Max starts to fall for Fang again. The flock has been found do they have to go into hiding where other mutants are waiting for their arival. In there beautiful hide away terrible things are happening and their lives are in danger.

 

This book is Amazing but the ending seamed a bit rushed and the epiloge leaves it wide open(which I didnt enjoy). I strongly recomend this searies to anyone 11- 45. Also i ws wondering if anyone has read any other searies by James Patterson and if so did you enjoyed it? 

City of Bones by Cassandra Clare

City of Bones by Cassandra Clare

October 30 2012

During a trip to the nightclub Clarissa Fray happens to be a witness to a murder, but the only problem is  the victim isn't human. Clary soon finds her mother missing and a monster unlike anything she has ever seen in her apartment. As Clary recalls the fairy tails she read as a young child she realizes that they are becoming dangerously close to reality. 

After Clary almost loses her life she realizes how dangerous the world she has slipped into really is. 

Clary if forced to take refuge with a group of shadowhunters she has only known for days, the situation suddenly becomes more complicated as tragic secrets and devastating truths are revealed. After an exciting turn of events Clary and her new companions set out to find Clary's mom and end the war between shadowhunters and demons. 

While reading this book I really enjoyed how there were subtle hints as to what was going to happen next in the story, the way the foreshadowing flowed together so well in the end was very clever. I thought it was great that all the characters had extremely different personalities. One thing I thought Cassandra Clare did not do a very good job of was making the main characters likeable, I found the decisions the main character made were not what I would have done and it was frustrating at times. Perhaps if the characters would have been developed more they I would have been able to see why they made some of the choices they made. 

I would suggest that others read this book because there is not a dull moment, the beginning pulls you in and the twisting plot and keeps you guessing. I would suggest this book to people who enjoy realistic fiction and crazy surprises! 

The Hunger Games

                                                                      

     This book takes place in the United States in the future, there are 13 districts, each district has a specific job to do like District 1 is Luxury, District 2 is Masonry, District 4 is Fishing, and District 12 is Mining. These districts all rebeled against the capital but the capital won. The Capital blew up district 13 because they started the rebellion and wanted to show the other Districts who is incharge. Also every year one boy and one girl are picked from the ages 12-18 to enter an arena and kill one another until there is only one left, which is called the Hunger Games. 

     This book is about a 16 year old girl named Katniss Everdeen who the books perspective is from. She lives in the seam of District 12, along with her mother and sister Primrose(Prim) her father pasted away in a mining insident when she was 11. District 12 is a very poor district, so everyday Katniss and her best friend Gale go past the fences of District 12 to hunt animal with their snares and bow and arrows to feed their familys. The day of the reaping where everyone gathers together in the city circle. Prim was reaped but Katniss volenteered to take her place as the District 12 female tribute. 16 year old Peeta Mellark was reaped for the male of District 12. They then set off to the capital for training to learn how to fight, hunt, gather. Once they have finished their training they are set off to the games….

      The Hunger Games is an amazing book I have read it many times. Every time I read The Hunger Games it never gets any worse only better. It is an amazing book. I sugest that any one over the age of 10 should read it. The Hunger Games is an adventure, action, romance, and sometimes government book, so this is a book for everyone. I feel that Suzanne Collins way of writing this book and the rest of the series was very strong it was never dule I was always intreaged I never wanted to put the book down it always gets you thinking and realizing things you may have never noticed before.

The Scorch Trails - James Dashner

      The Scotch trails is the second book of three series. Thomas and the Gladers believed that their adventure in solving the maze was the end no more running, no more fear.. But was it really? The Scorch Trails was only the second part of their adventure. Thomas and the rest of the gladers soon face another deadly mission. But to this new mission came benifits, life or death? Theresa was stollen in the middle of the night by Wicked. Thomas has persuade himself into thinking he can save her. Thomas and the gladers are faced with many different obstacles, will they be able to susceed before time runs out?


The Scortch Trails wasn't as good as the first book .(The Maze Runner) The first book had a lot more suspence which i like. I never saw it coming when Theresa teamed up with Wicked and betrayed Thomas.


The one thing that I believed that was missing is more back ground on WICKED. Why were they testing on inoccent children? What was their purpose? How were they controlling what was happening? 


I would recomend this book to others who enjoy reading books that inclued suspence. It definantly makes you want to keep reading.

Goosebumbs # 43

 The book is about a family that goes out on a camping trip that turns into a game of survival when the older sister and identical twins (Nat & Pat) get lost in a forest. Then the siblings run into theses blue bears and end up playing there game. If they win they live but if they don't they die.  

I thought that the plot was fairly good and definitely got the blood pumping but this plot was far fetch.

I wondered how the sister and twins got brought to the blue bears world.

You should read the book if you like thrillers. Not to mention the creativity that was put into the book was definitely took time to organise and plan.      

The Cardturner By: Louis Sachar

The Cardturner mixes the game of bridge in with a boy's life, Alton Richards. He has a old, rich, and blind Uncle Lester Trapp who is a mastermind at bridge. Alton becomes his uncle's cardturner (A person who helps blind people play cards by reading their cards to them.), since he is blind, hoping that he and his family, who aren't very wealthy, will get put in Trapp's will. Once when he was bringing Trapp to the bridge studio he saw Toni Castaneda, Trapp's former cardturner. Alton's mother has always told him the Castaneda family were crazy and that they hear voices. She is an amazing bridge player, but it was because she hears Annabel's voice, her grandmother's, which was Trapp's perfect bridge partner, in her head. Alton and Toni start to become friends and play bridge together, but when a family member dies, they decide that Lester Trapp and Annabel Finnick deserve to win the National Bridge Tournament, no matter what.

I thought Lester Trapp was rude at first because he acted like Alton was stupid and didn't understand anything but then as the story moved on he began to be nicer to Alton and didn't make fun of him.

I felt that details and background information were missing at the start of the book. I wondered if Louis Sachar wrote all of her books like this or if they are more suspenseful or exciting.
 
I would recommend this book to people because it is very interesting. It might not be action packed, but     all ages would enjoy this book. I enjoyed it very much and couldn't put it down. Some people might not like it because it can be slow at times but overall I would say this is a very good book.

The Hunger Games - Suzanne Collins

The Hunger Games is the first book in the Hunger Games series. There are 12 districts, and each year two children a boy and a girl ages 12-18, are entered in a draw to compete in the hunger games. They are chosen during something called a reaping, everyone has to dress nice and gather around the stage in their district. Then everyone waits and hopes their name will not get drawn. This book is told from the point of view of the protagonist  Katniss Everdeen. She is a sixteen year old girl who lives with her sister named Primrose Everdeen (Prim for short) and her mom, her father passed away in a mining accident. Prim is 12 and it is her first reaping ever, her name was only put into the draw once. Yet she was chosen to compete in the Hunger Games, but Katniss wouldn't let that happen. So she volunteered as tribute, Prim was safe but didn't want her sister to compete in the Hunger Games.

A reaction I had towards the novel when during the reaping Katniss takes her sisters place in the Hunger Games. Katniss is risking her life and is very brave. In the Hunger Games to win you must kill all of your opponents until you are the last one standing.

This book was very interesting and entertaining and I really enjoyed it. A question I am wondering about is: Are the other books in this series as interesting and enjoyable as this book?

I would suggest reading this book. There is a movie about this book, but the movie is not as good as the book. The book goes into way more detail and is very thorough. people should read this book because, its suspenseful and interesting. It's also very adventurous.     

The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas

        The Count of Monte Cristo is a very deep and interesting book that focuses on a sailor from the town of Marseilles by the name of Edmond Dante's, this happens in a short time after the defeat of Napoleon when France is engulfed in distrust over who is loyal to the king and who is loyal to Napoleon. Edmond has just returned from a trade voyage where his captain died, this makes him next in line to be captain, at this same time he is to marry the girl of his dreams. When all of a sudden Edmond is arrested on suspicion of supporting Napoleon and all of his happiness is stolen away as he is put in jail for life. While in jail he uncovers the plot that sent him to jail and later escapes vowing to get revenge on those who betrayed him.

      This book is great for those who like a book with allot of tension and planning. Throughout the book you are always wondering when and how the protagonist will get his revenge on the people who wronged him. I think the writer should have sped up the beginning as the start of the book drags on for quite a while with nothing happening. The way the book is written sometimes makes it confusing when it comes to all the characters and all the old fashioned terms. However this book is incredibly smart in how it delivers its hints, and its middle and end is incredibly suspenseful.

     This is the only book by Alexandre Dumas that I have read and its the only book I have seen with him as the author. One question I have is if all of his books are as suspenseful and interesting as this book.

    This book in my opinion is very good and I would recommend it to other people. However my complaints about the book are that the beginning is very boring, and that brings down the books. Also that there are a very large amount of characters which makes some parts very confusing. So in conclusion I would recommend this book too people who like long suspenseful books, but not too people who don't have the patience to get through the beginning.

The Scorch Trails - James Dashner

     The Scorch Trials is the sequel to The Maze Runner. A group of children are abandoned to face the deadly missions awaiting them. Theresa is stolen in the night by WICKED and Thomas is determined to do whatever it takes to find her. The Gladers have to travel the dry empty dessert in order to save the lives of many people. Is he able to accomplish this life threatening mission?

This book was different from the books I normally read. It`s more of a adventure book rather than fantasy.I was surprised when Theresa betrayed Thomas , it lead me to believe they would fall in love in the end. Until a crank named, Brenda came and was flirting was Thomas.

One thing i felt missing from the book was the history about Theresa. She came in as a beautiful girl and can do all the secrets Thomas can do but it doesnt explain how, or why shes involved with WICKED.

I would recommend this book to others because , its really suspenseful and tense because you dont know what will happen next. People who like realistic and adventurious this book is a great example for that. 

Harry Potter and The Order of the Phoenix by J.K Rowling

         Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix is the fifth book of the Harry Potter series. Harry Potter, age 15  is not an ordinary boy, he is a wizard. Harry travels every year to a magical school called Hogwarts. He met his two best friends Hermione and Ron, in his first year at Hogwarts. This is now his fifth year and every year his story gets more and more twisted. Harry has an interesting bond with the evil wizard, Voldemort. Voldemort killed Harry's parents when he was very little. Voldemort tried to kill Harry, but a weird thing happened. When the dark wizard conjured the "killing curse", the curse backfired and sent Voldemort into hiding. In the Order of the Phoenix, Harry has to study to pass his OWL exams, take care of a giant, put up with the Ministry of Magic controlling his life and keep what family he has left alive.

        The Order of The Phoenix is a very gripping book that keeps the reader want to keep reading. The characters are so believable even though this is a fiction book. The narrator tells the story so well by telling the emotions and thoughts of each character. J.K Rowling really develops your knowledge of the main characters as well as some supporting characters such as Ginny, Fred and George, Ron's siblings, Neville Longbottom a friend of the three and part of the Gryffindor house and Luna Lovegood another friend of the three. Knowing how the characters feel really helps understand what hardships are going on in their world.

         One thing that I felt was missing from this book was a history of Lord Voldemort. He was shrouded in mystery throughout the book so you didn't really know what he is fighting for. It is told in the story that he had plenty of followers, so I don't know if he is just rebelling to rebel or if he really has a history with Dumbledore and the Ministry of Magic. I really hope that his history is explained in the future books.

        I think that everyone should read this book if you already haven't because it is a very gripping book and it keeps the reader interested throughout. Although, I would suggest starting with the first book so that when you start reading this one it will make a lot more sense.

City of Glass

By Cassandra Clare
October 30th,2012

In the third book of the series, the Lightwoods, along with many other shadowhunters from around the world travel to the beautiful city of Idris- the original home of the shadowhunters, to seek  protection and to disscuss the problem of Valentine and his posession of two of the three mortal instruments. Clary (no exception to the others of her kind) must travel to Idris to find a warlock named Ragnor Fell in order to save her mothers life. In the meantime Valentine has sent a spy into the Lightwoods temporary home to spy on the family and to hopefully uncover any secrets that may be helpful to him and his mission of summoning the Angel Raziel. Valentine hopes to destroy the shadowhunter race (him and his followers being the only exception) in order to rid the clave of corruption. As the shadowhunters prepare for a war against thousands of demons they must choose to either fight alone or fight along side their enemies- the downworlders.

I think this book was really well written and I loved the fact that all the charecters were faced with such hard decisions, and that so much pressure and responsibility was put upon them. Clary was forced to go against the beliefs of hundreds of shadowhunters and convince them to believe her and trust her when it came to teaming up with the downworlders. Jace believed that it was his duty to kill Valentine and risked his life by making the decision to go after him and his son. One question I had was: Why did the author not elaborate more on Sebastians character and help us develop a stronger connection to him? I felt that if Sebastians character would of been further developed and spent more time with then the reader would of felt a stronger sense of betrayal and anger towards him when he turned against Clary and the others.

I highly recommend this series, Its a great read and it has a combination or everything from romance to action to fantasy to satisfy a variety of readers. Another interesting and appealing part of the book is the fact that througout the series everything connects and what starts out as a bunch of puzzle pieces comes together to form a puzzle. Almost any questions you have are answered and the plot line is so satisfying. The book is also full of lots of descriptions and different writing aspects that make a piece more intersting, Cassandra Clare does an amazing job of painting a clear picture of the charecters and the various scenes.

The One Left Behind By Willo Davis Roberts

 

 

 

The One Left Behind

    The book is about a twelve year old girl named Mandy who lives in a small town. Her twin sister died from eating a hamburger with E Coli a year earlier.  She thinks she will never be happy and will never be able to get through life without her twin sister. Her parents go on vacation for their honeymoon and one of their brothers goes to a friend's while the other goes camping. They each think Mandy is with the other. The girl is left in the house with just her dog for the weekend. She wakes up one day and finds some food from the kitchen missing. And a car that has gone off the road and crashed. When she is looking in the car she finds a boy not much older then herself hiding in the back seat with a small boy about two years old. The boy says that his parents went on a business trip.  He added that the baby sitter and her brothers were trying to kidnap them. The boy took his brother and ran away but crashed the car. The girl tries to help them but instead gets kidnapped herself. You will have to read the book to find out the end.

 

   This was a very different book from what I normally read because it was suspenseful and was not a romance or comedy. The ending did not impress me all that much. It was an easy read. There were some parts that were very interesting and some that I just found boring.

  Overall I think that this was a fine book but there was nothing too special about it. I would recommend it but I would not rave about it just because I was not so interested that I could not put it down. I would give it about a 2.5 out of 10.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Hunger Games Trilogy: Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins

The Mocking Jay is a book about the protagonist, Katniss Everdeen who has now been in an event known as the Hunger Games twice in previous books, where two children from each of the twelve districts are taken as tributes to the capitol for a fight to the death.  However, after Katniss and her partner, Peeta Mellark, rebel against the capitol by not killing each other in the Hunger Games, the Capitol destroys their district.  In the third book Katniss is given the role of the Mocking Jay; a genetic mutation accidentally created by the Capitol, to rise up against the capitol and abolish the Hunger Games forever.  She lives in district thirteen in this particular book, which, in previous books, readers were told had been destroyed at the end of the last rebellion against the Capitol.

This book is set in the future which makes it interesting to know where the author thinks our world is going.  She implies that it is going back into a world of small civilizations run by a hierarchy.  I disagree with this.  I think our world will continue to thrive the way it has been.  I believe we will end wars and transform third world countries into first world countries.  I believe eventually, by the time this book is set in, we will have achieved world peace.I was wondering a lot about the Capitol at the end of the book.  For example, "Did the citizens of Panem fix the Capitol?" or "Did the Capitol end up getting used for anything?"  I also wonder who came into power at the end because Katniss kills all the people who are first to come into power after President Snow


I believe others should read this book. I don't believe it has a small target audience. Almost anyone from ten years old to fifty will enjoy this book. It captivates almost any reader to the point where they can't put the book down.

City of Lost Souls By: Cassandra Clare

 In City of Lost Souls, the fifth installment of the Mortal Instruments series, Clary’s boyfriend, Jace, is bound to the villain Sebastian: Kill one, and the other dies too. 

 

The demon Lilith has been destroyed and Jace has been freed from her captivity. But when the Shadowhunters arrive to rescue him, they find only blood and broken glass. Not only is the boy Clary loves missing–but so is the boy she hates, Sebastian, the son of her father Valentine: a son determined to succeed where their father failed, and bring the Shadowhunters to their knees.

One of the aspects of City of Lost Souls that really stood out for me was the character growth in both Clary and Simon.  Of course, going through what they have gone through since this story began, would change anyone... but they matured by huge amounts. I personally would not have thought that Simon and Clary could change to fast but now that i know they can i can't wait for the next book.

 Can Clary even trust Jace after everything that has happened between them?

Why does Sebastian want Clary and Jace so badly?

You should read this series because it is amazing but a small notice once you start this series you will get hooked and you will want to read the whole thing. 

The Book of Blood and Shadow - Robin Wasserman

   















     This book is about a girl named Nora . She works at her school, translating old texts of an ancient girl who died long ago searching for a secret book of magic called the "Lu mine Di", which had the power to fix, or destroy, the human race. When Nora's best friend is brutally murdered, Nora's boyfriend, Max, is the top suspect. In a desperate attempt to clear his name, Nora finds herself directly in the middle of a historic feud, and she is the murderer's next target.
     This novel really impressed me! The characters were well-rounded and unique, with a lot of unusual and interesting character traits. Nora, the main character, expressed a lot of emotions but without becoming excessive and seeming weak. She was a strong feminine character, and was very determined throughout the course of the novel. Also, the plot was highly intriguing, and was part horror, romance, and murder mystery, combined into an overall riveting book.
     The one part of the book I didn't like so much was the ending. It was a well thought-out ending, and it was executed effectively, but I feel like the end result was a bit disappointing for the audience. I think, in a way, that the author took the easy way out regarding how to end the novel, which I find quite frustrating and annoying. In my opinion, she could have put more effort into how to conclude the novel, which, of course, is almost the most important part of a book. People look forward to the ending of a book and I think the readers were let down in this case.
     I have been told that there will be a second book in this series, but I fail to understand what further plot could occur since the ending didn't appear to leave any opening for a second book. If anyone has read this book, or knows if a second book will be published, please let me know since I'm quite curious!
     Regardless of the ending, I would highly recommend this book to anyone who would enjoy a fast -paced murder mystery. The author uses very poetic writing, and it is told from two different points of views, which keeps things interesting. When one viewpoint begins to seemingly calm down, the other has an unexpected twist that keeps you absorbed until the end. The Book of Blood and Shadow was a fantastic novel, and if you choose to read it, hopefully you will enjoy it just as much as I did.

By Daisy Hilchey

Looking for Alaska by:John Green

Looking for Alaska begins with Miles Halter's goodbye party (the protagonist). Only two people attend, his parents are disappointed by this but he has learned to not expect much out of his pears, he is not popular at his school. Miles has accepted this. Miles is about to attend Culver creek preparatory school in Alabama for his junior year. At Culver creek miles meets a few new friends. These friends are The Colonel (his roommate), Takumi, Lara and Alaska. The group quickly gives him the nickname Pudge. Pudge quickly developed a crush on Alaska, but Alaska is dating a college boy and is emotionally unstable. She is quite the mystery.  In Pudge’s first week he is covered in duct tape and thrown into the lake by the "cool kids" at his school as a prank. Alaska and The Colonel are furious, due to the fact that this prank could be lethal. The year turns into an all-out prank war. Like most friends do, the group becomes close and much tighter nit. They drink, smoke and just enjoy the simple fact that they have fun together. Late in the year, a horrific event occurs and nothing is ever the same... 

The aspect of the book that I had the biggest reaction to is the voice of the author (John Green). The way he explained everything from your first love to the first time you break the rules was just so raw and real. The way he wrote (as Pudge) was just so authentically teenage and really got across that our lives are not the Disney version of a teenager. That teenage life can be hard, crazy and joyous all at once. On the other hand, the way he stated the great themes represented in this book can be depressing at times. His writing really makes you question what the meaning of existence is truthfully. 

Personally, I have read a few of Green's novels and have noticed a recurring theme of a depressing sense of writing with a good message. My question for you is have you noticed this theme? And if so specify the books of his that you have noticed this theme occurring in. 

I would absolutely recommend this book to my pears! I loved this book; it was a wonderful representation of a coming of age novel. Looking for Alaska really works through some tough themes, for example the great task of looking for yourself and your purpose. These lessons or themes everyone has to go through at one time or another. This book made me laugh, cry and think. I would recommend this book if you’re up for a roller coaster ride of emotions, if not take a pass on it. 

Insurgent-By Veronica Roth

Divergent was the first book of this series, a friend begged me to read this book and instantly I was hooked! it is a fasted paced, adventorous series of wars,betrayls and a romantic relationships.The whole concept is where at a age teens get tested and decided in which faction they can stay in for the rest of their lives.They are born into a faction with there parents and then get to decide if they could leave or stay,they have to make the best decision on which faction to pick based on their test results.This book demonstrates what life could be if we didn't have people leading us,their are five factions and all demonstrate differences in what people are like whether they are daring, or happy all the time or even if they are brain smart more than street smart.I love this book because i feel like its a great demonstration of how people see how are personalities are or how people see each other.I would really recomend reading this book if you are into si-fi ,or adventure books and if you havent read the first book u should start with the first one to make sense of the this one.

Sample Post - Beauty Queens by Libba Bray

         Beauty Queens begins with an airplane full of teenage beauty pageant contestants crash landing on a seemingly deserted island. After they assess their losses, they must find a way to survive until they are rescued. Taylor, the lead beauty queen, is more concerned about keeping up their pageant skills than finding food and shelter. The book profiles several of the contestants and focuses on each one periodically as we learn more about who each girl is, which ones have secrets, and why they entered the pageant in the first place. By the time the cast of a popular reality show featuring good-looking pirates arrives on the island, so many crazy things are going on that it is hard to keep up. Will they make it off the island alive? And will their manicures stay intact? Find out and read Beauty Queens.
          Beauty Queens is hilarious in some parts, as it makes fun of pop culture and society's obsession with beauty and consumerism.  Through each of the girls' stories, Bray attempts to make some sort of comment on what is wrong with society today. The book is smart at times and makes several points worth thinking about, but focuses a lot on stereotypes and parts of the plot feel like she is really beating us over the head with her opinions about young girls and appearance. In my opinion, it might have been better to focus on fewer characters and develop them further, rather than trying to create a separate story line for each one that the reader must try to keep track of and follow.
          This is the first book by Libba Bray that I have read, although I am aware of other titles she has written that are popular with teen readers. One question I might have is: Is it typical of her writing to criticize something in society using humor, or was this just unique to Beauty Queens? Comment on my blog and let me know if you've read any of her other books!
          This book made me laugh in several places, but other parts I found drawn out too long and that the story could've been much shorter and less complicated with so many different characters as the focus. If you like Bray as an author, then I would recommend this title to you for comparative purposes. Or, if you appreciate sometimes ridiculous humor then you might also like this book. Otherwise, you might want to give this overly-long novel a pass.

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The Lit Cafe is a place where you will come and blog about great books you have read with your peers. You will discuss your latest book choice, share recommendations, and comment on what others have to say. Happy reading!