The Maze Runner

Title:  The Maze Runner

Author:  James Dashner

Genre:  Fiction/Science Fiction

Summary:  One day, a 16 year-old boy named Thomas wakes up in a lift with no memory but his own name; he has no clue how he got there, who his parents are, or why he is there.  Thomas soon finds that he is not alone.  When the top of the lift opens, Thomas is surrounded by about sixty boys ranging in age from about mid-teen to young adult.  None of the boys know how they got there, either.  The boys live in a place called “The Glade,” a large expanse surrounded by stone walls.  Outside the stone walls is a life-size maze that the boys are convinced could show the way home, if only they could solve it.  All that the boys know is that every morning the doors to the maze open, every night the doors to the maze close, and every thirty days, a new boy shows up in the Glade.  Most of all, they know they never want to be caught in the maze after the doors close.  But, the day after Thomas's arrival, a girl shows up in the maze-the first girl ever.  All the boy are very disturbed about the message the girl brings, and the girl makes Thomas start to think that he might know some answers to the maze, if only he could unlock the secrets in his own mind.     

Rating:  5 out of 5 stars

This is a very good book!  I liked this book a lot because there was a lot of action and suspense, so it was a very exciting read.  Also, in the book, there were many unanswered questions and mysteries of why things were happening that made me want to keep reading to find out the answers.  This book takes an unrealistic and futuristic idea and makes it seem very possible and applicable to my generation.  This book keeps you turning the pages right to the end.

Audience:  I would recommend this book to teenagers who like mysteries, action, and suspense, and to teenagers who aren’t afraid of the dark.

Favorite Part:  My favorite part from this book was when Thomas got shut in the maze and had to spend the night there.  This was my favorite part because it is where some of the mysteries get answered and also where a lot of the action and suspense of the book occurs.

Series:  This is the first book of three (so far) in an unnamed series.

James Dashner's Blog

-Pseudonymous Sllim

Rumble Fish

Title: Rumble Fish

Author: S.E. Hinton

Genre: Fiction

Summary: Rumble Fish is about a teenager named Rusty-James, a tough kid who idolizes his older brother, the Motorcycle Boy.  Rusty-James really likes to fight and wishes everyone would follow the rules in a fight. Rusty fears being left alone and becomes attached to people, like Steve, his best friend, and Patty, his girlfriend. Rumble Fish takes a look at life in a gang, drug use, hero worship, and alienation.  Rusty-James is opposed to drug use, but drinks frequently.Rusty misses a lot of school, so he isn't really book smart, instead he uses his fists, not his brains.

Rating: I give Rumble Fish 4 stars because it's a very good book, but it's kind of old, so it's harder to relate to some of the characters and understand what they are facing.

Audience: I would recommend this book to teenage boys. It's exciting and a great read! It's also a fast read, very short.

Author Website: http://www.sehinton.com/

 

Max Powers

Josh Hamilton: Beyond Belief

Title: Josh Hamilton: Beyond Belief

Authors: Tim Keown and Josh Hamilton

Genre: Nonfiction

Summary:  Josh Hamilton: Beyond Belief is a book about a major league baseball player and his struggles throughout his career. The book tells about his childhood and how it revolved around baseball. It follows his playing from little league all the way to the major leagues. It is about how he fought his drug addiction. It gives the reader an inside look on what it’s like to be a drug addict.

Rating: I would give this book 5 out of 5 stars. The reason I rated this book so highly is because it taught me about perseverance and will power. It keeps you turning the pages, and it is interesting from cover to cover.

Audience Recommendation: I would recommend this book to people who like baseball, because that is what the entire book is based on.

-Douglas

The Guardian

The Guardian

By Nicholas Sparks

Genre: fiction, thriller, Romance

Summary: Julie looks like her life is perfect; newly married, great husband, comfy house, and all the love she needs, but that all changes when her husband Jim dies from cancer. He leaves her shortly before Christmas, and she spends the holidays alone thinking of him. On Christmas Eve, there was a knock at the door; she opens it to find a box with a letter from Jim and a little Great Dane puppy looking up at her…her Guardian. Fast forward five years, Singer, the Great Dane, isn’t a puppy anymore and he is Julie’s other half. Julie has decided to start to open up and go out into the dating world. She has feelings for two men, Mike, Jim’s best friend or Richard, a handsome construction manager who has all the right motives, or so she thinks. Mike and Julie have deep feelings for each other; they just ignore them because they feel it is going against Jim to be together. Julie falls head over heels for Richard, but after a few months dating she senses something shady about him, and so does Singer. Richard is so controlling of Julie, and he keeps accidentally calling her Jessica. He says he has been married before, but his ex-wife left him. Julie doesn’t think that his story makes sense, and decides to end the relationship. Richard is very unhappy; he ends up asking Angela, one of the women that Julie works with to a date. She agrees, but the day after the date, she is found brutally beaten in a ditch outside of town. Julie keeps getting the feeling someone has been watching her while she is at home; whether it be when she is sleeping, eating, or just reading. Mike tells her he will live with her to protect her, but Mike ends up getting beaten almost to death; is Julie next? Is Richard behind the beatings?

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

This book was one of the best books that I have ever read. It was suspenseful, but also it was a romantic story between two people who are made to be together. Nicholas Sparks knows how to make you think “Wow, what will happen next?” I absolutely loved this book, I could not put it down! I would recommend this book to girls. It’s not that it’s a sappy romance novel, but it’s just more of a book girls would like. I also would like to add that it would be a good idea to be over the age of 12 to read this book because of some of the content is gruesome and inappropriate for young people.

Favorite Part: My favorite part was the ending. I can’t tell you exactly what happens because I don’t want to give it away. I will say, it doesn’t end how you think it will.

http://www.nicholassparks.com/

-Sidney Dorr Gallagher

My Side of the Mountain

Title:  My Side of the Mountain

Author: Jean Craighead George

Genre: Fiction

Summary: This is a story about a boy named Sam Gribley that ran away from home. He ran away to the old Gribley Farm in the Catskill Mountains. He ran away because he didn’t like living in their cramped New York City apartment. This mountain range is near the town of Delhi. In the beginning of this book Sam sets out to find shelter, and he builds a home in a hemlock tree. Sam makes several friends that stumble upon him while they are hiking. Sam trains a falcon to harvest food for him. He lives off of the land. He only takes what he needs from the wilderness. Finally at the end of the book somebody important in his life comes to visit.

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

This book deserves 5 stars because I can really relate to this story, so I couldn’t stop reading it. This is one of my favorite books, if not the best.

Series: This series contains three books: My Side of the Mountain, On the Far Side of the Mountain, and Frightful’s Mountain.

http://www.jeancraigheadgeorge.com/

-Elyk Renim

Palace of Mirrors

Title: Palace of Mirrors

Author: Margaret Peterson Haddix

Genre: Fiction

Summary: Is Cecilia a peasant or a princess? Cecilia has been told all her life that the queen and king were murdered, and that she is the true princess in hiding. Desmia is currently on the throne as a decoy to protect Cecilia. Cecilia is tired of being in hiding, so she decides to go to the palace and take over the throne, which she believes is rightfully hers. Little did she know that the people at the palace believed a totally different story about what happened to the queen and king and who the real princess is. Has what Cecilia been told all her life just a lie or is she really the princess?

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

I gave this book five stars because I absolutely loved this book. I am not a very avid reader, but I couldn’t put this book down. It is full of action and suspense, and you really feel like you are in the story. I would recommend this book to readers who like a lot of mystery and suspense.

Author’s Link:

http://haddixbooks.com/home.html

-Peace Pennsylvania

Mister Monday

Title: Mister Monday

Author: Garth Nix

Genre: Fiction

Summary: Arthur Penhaligon is the new kid in town. On his first day of school he has an asthma attack. While help arrives, Mister Monday comes and gives him half of the first Key. The Keys are seven magical items that belonged to the Architect, a powerful being who made the Universe, and she later left a magical will before disappearing. Mister Monday chose Arthur as the heir to the Architect. Now Arthur is flung into a battle against Mister Monday for control of the other half of the first Key and control over the Lower House, the bottom part of the Architect’s house. With the help of the first part of the Architect’s Will and someone he meets along the way, Arthur must make his way into the House and claim the other half of the first Key and the Lower House. Arthur can only claim the Keys and parts of the house if he has that piece of the will, which are all hidden because shortly after the Architect disappeared, the Trustees tore the will into seven pieces. Each Trustee got their own part so they could hide it. Arthur is now in a race against time, as Mister Monday will do anything to stop Arthur from claiming the rest of the Key and domain of the Lower House, he’ll even release a terrible disease on Arthur’s town.

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

I think that this book deserves 5 stars because it was so unusual. It made me think that you never know what’s going to happen today. It could be something horribly bad or something wonderfully great. The uniqueness of the book combined with its vivid description lets you really see the story.

Favorite Part: My favorite part is when Arthur battled Mister Monday for control of the first key. Arthur has to use all his strength to be able to defeat Mister Monday. If Arthur fails, then nothing can stop the treacherous Trustees from destroying the Universe. I loved this part because of all the action and suspense. It really is the climax of the book.

Series: The Keys to the Kingdom

Website: http://www.garthnix.com/

Andy Daft