Hatchet

Author: Gary Paulson
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Copyright: 1987
Pages: 195
Genre: Realistic Fiction
Rating: 5/10
Blogger: Cookie Monster

Brian is 13 years old and he flies from the Hamptons in New York to somewhere in Canada to visit his father. While he is in the plane the captain has a heart attack. The plane crashes into a lake in Canada and Brian forces his way out. He is hurt, but nothing is broken. While he is trying to recover he falls asleep and has flashbacks of his mother and the secret of his parent’s divorce.

Brian has many adventures on his L shaped island. He stayed there for 54 days. During this time, he taught himself how to make a fire, how to catch fish, how to kill birds, how to protect himself, and how to cook on a fire. He does everything with his hatchet, which was a present from his motherTowards the end of his stay on the island, there is a tornado. Everything was destroyed, but the plane in the lake becomes visible. He spends days getting into the plane and getting to a survival bag. He again uses his hatchet. He pulls out the survival bag and finds dried food, soap, a rifle, and an emergency transmitter. He turns it on and off and then leaves it on and walks away.

Even though I didn't really like this book, I kept on reading just to find out what would happen next. The ending was weird and disappointing. The whole book was a bit disappointing. This is a good book for readers who like a living adventure.

The Higher Power of Lucky

Author: Susan Patron
Copyright: 2006
Genre: Realistic Fiction
Age Range: 9 to 11
Reviewer: Az Scorpio

Lucky, a 10 year old girl, can't wait another day. The meanness gland in her heart and the crevices full of questions in her brain make running away from Hard Pan, California (population 43), the rock-bottom only choice she has. It's all Brigitte's fault -- for wanting to go back to France. Guardians are supposed to stay put and look after girls in their care! However Lucky is sure that she'll be cast away to some orphanage in Los Angeles where her beloved dog, HMS Beagle, won't be allowed. Then she'll have to lose her friends Miles, a boy, who lives on cookies, and Lincoln, her classmate, future U.S. president (maybe) and member of the International Guild of Knot Tyers.

This story shows the growth of a young girl. Throughout the book Lucky tries to find herself by finding her “higher power”. At the end she does, by becoming more mature. I can see why this book has won a Newberry Award. Lucky is a character that anyone can relate to. She has just begun to understand the world around her, and has started her journey into teenager-hood by struggling and fighting with her low self-esteem.

Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of Nimh

Author: Robert C. O'Brien
copyright: 1971
Rating: 4/5
Genre: Fantasy
Number of pages: 268
Reviewed by: Missy

In Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of Nimh, we follow a widowed mouse named Mrs. Frisby and her attemps to move her home and family safely to a new summer home. What makes moving her family important is that the farmer is getting ready to do spring plowing and this will destroy her home and her family if not moved in time. Mrs. Frisby has four children and the youngest ones name is Timothy. Timothy was bitten by a spider when he was very young. Ever since that time he would catch any illness going around. Two weeks before they are to move Timothy comes down with pneumonia and cannot be moved.

In the story, Mrs. Frisby meets many new friends and some enemies. She is helped by the Rats of Nimh. These rats are part of a secret group of rats that escaped a place called Nimh. Nimh was where humans would do experiments on animals. These rats are incredibly intelligent and capable of many things.

A Wrinkle In Time

Author: Madeleine L'Engle
Copyright: 1962
Genre: Fantasy
Rating: 7/10
# Pages: 211
Reviewer: Blogging Buddha

A Wrinkle in Time is the story of Meg Murry, a high-school-aged girl who is transported on an adventure through time and space with her younger brother Charles Wallace and her best friend Calvin O'Keefe to rescue her father, a scientist, from the evil forces that have captured him on another planet. At the beginning of the book, Meg is an insecure girl and her concern for her father, who has been missing for over a year, did not make Meg’s adolescent life any better. The real story begins with the arrival of Mrs. Whatsit at the Murry house on a dark and stormy evening. Mrs. Whatsit is actually a celestial creature with the ability to read Meg's thoughts, though she looks like an average human being. She startles Meg's mother by reassuring her of the existence of a tesseract, a sort of "wrinkle" in space and time. Through this wrinkle Meg and her companions set off to find her father. After encountering multiple odd creatures and puzzles, Meg is reunited with her father.

I really enjoyed this classic book! At first, the storyline was a little too scattered and random for me but I kept reading further and further and realized that that style of writing coordinated with the way the protagonist felt throughout the story. Overall, A Wrinkle in Time was highly entertaining and a creative story

A Wrinkle In Time

Author: Madeline L'Engle
Copyright: 1962
Genre: fantasy
Rating: 6/10
Pages: 198
Reviewed by: Elmo

In A Wrinkle In Time by Madeline L’Engle, Meg Murry, a confused high school girl, gets involved in a journey through space to help find her missing dad. Her journey began when she was introduced to her strange new neighbors Mrs.Whatsit, Mrs.Which, and Mrs.Who by her little brother Charles Wallace. On the way back home from meeting them, Charles Wallace and Meg ran into a boy named Calvin who became fast friends with them. After they finished dinner Meg and he went outside. The next thing they knew they were in a totally different place and Charles Wallace and Meg’s new neighbors were there too. The Mrs.W’s explained to them that they were magical witches and they were there to help save their missing dad. This was officially when their journey began. Throughout the book Meg, Calvin, and Charles Wallace go through space by themselves searching for and trying to help their missing dad. They end up at a place called Camazotz where everything is controlled by IT. On this planet they find their dad. They go through many obstacles and problems, but finally end up safe at their house again, this time with their dad. All together, A Wrinkle In Time is a book about a tremendous journey that you will never forget.

In my opinion, A Wrinkle in Time was an interesting book that will continue to be a tremendous classic and read by ongoing children. At times the book was a bit confusing because there was a lot of detail, but at the end everything comes into place. I wouldn’t necessarily read it again right now, but maybe when I get older. It really wasn’t the most enjoyable book I've read, but still it was worth reading.

The Giver

Author: Lois Lowry
Copyright: 1993
Rating: Incredible
Pages: 180
Reviewed by: Twinkie

What if everything was the same, day after day? No colors or variety, the same. The Giver, written by Lois Laury, copyright 1995, describes the struggles of a sane person living in an insane world. Jonas is a young twelve year old boy who is the protagonist in the story. In his society emotions are frowned upon and people loose the ability to be unique. At the ceremony of the twelves Jonas is assigned a job unlike any other and from that day on his life will never be the same.

Before I read The Giver I never really thought about a society of sameness . I would think of the differences and the problems that they cause, but I now know that without variation we loose our ability to be people. This is a short book that becomes glued to your hands! It was impossible to stop reading. This is unlike any other book ever written and I highly recommend it.

The Giver

Author: Lois Lowry
Copyright: 1993
Rating: Amazing
Number of Pages: 180
Reviewer: The Chosen One

The Giver, written by Lois Lowry, is a story about a young boy named Jonas who lives in a community where everything is in order The children are classified by their age, and when they reach the age of 12, a special ceremony is performed and they receive a job that they will do for the rest of their lives - until they are too old and put into the house of the Old. Jonas, who will be a 12 in December, is anxiously waiting to see what's waiting for him in the future. December arrives and he is ready to receive he special career. When the community director presents all the twelves with their jobs they go by who was born first. Jonas was born 19th. In his group there are twenty kids who will become twelves. Once the Director reaches his number, she skips him and goes on to the last person. Everyone in the crowd is shocked. After the director finishes , she the audience that Jonas has received a special job that no one has received in about sixteen years. The job is…

The Giver is an amazing story, once you get into the good parts you can’t put it down until you finish it. If you enjoy this book there are two other books that continue the story. The first is Gathering Blue and the second is The Messenger.

Call It Courage

By Armstrong Sperry
Copyright: 1940
Pages: 92
Rating: 3/5
Genre: Realistic Fiction
Reviewer: Lyra

I chose this book because it looked exciting and full of adventure. Also, the description on the back defiinitely made me want to read it. Short but descriptive, this book can quench a readers thirst for a great tale of excitement.

Call It Courage by Armstrong Sperry is about an adolescent boy named Mafatu who is trying to prove his courage to his tribe. Mafatu lives on the Island of Hikueru with his pet dog and bird. When he was a toddler he was in a tragic accident and from then on was afraid of the sea. However, all the other folk on Hikueru depend on the sea for food and worship it. Since Mafatu is terrified of the water he is an outcast and called a coward. Mafatu decides to take on his fears and prove everyone wrong. Can he truly forget his melancholic past and become the hero he wishes he could be?

Julie of the Wolves

Author: Jean Craighead George
Copyright: 1972
Genre: Historical Fiction
Rating: Very Good 8/10
# of Pages: 176
Review By: Waimea

In Julie of the Wolves by Jean Craighead George, written in 1972, Julie, an Eskimo teenager, decides to leave her family to visit her pen pal in San Francisco - a long way away. Julie escapes her marriage to go visit Amy, her pen pal, and on the way there she lives with a pack of wolves that she calls family. Using her natural Eskimo instincts, taught to her by her father, she struggles to survive in the arctic of Alaska. This riveting story explores the life of Julie and her transformation to a different life.

Overall I think Julie of the Wolves was a great story for kids and teenagers alike. It explores how Julie changes her family life, as well as keeping some of her Eskimo traditions. I highly recommend this book to anyone that enjoys a good journey of trying to find one's self. Julie transforms herself, but she might not have changed as much as she thought.