Review: Who Dares? by Krista Blakeney Bell

Who Dares? by Krista Blakeney Bell.

Kane Miller
Publication Date: September 2011
List Price: $4.99
ISBN-13: 9781610670470

Review: Who Dares is a realistic fiction book, by Krista Blakeney Bell. The main characters are Toby and Rhys who are in middle school. Who Dares is a good book that teaches you valuable lessons.

Toby and Rhys are off on an adventure, because of a dare. Rhys dares Toby to enter the Junior Surfing Competition, but he is better at tap dancing. In the end Toby ends up accepting the dare, but making a deal with Rhys for his benefits. Toby learns how to surf and Rhys learns not to keep his suspicions held within. They both experience true friendship not just with each other, but with an unexpected person, who they thought wasn't cool at first.

Krista Blakeney Bell's book, Who Dares , is great for teaching teenagers about speaking up and not hiding any crimes or suspicions of crimes. Like Toby and Rhys thought at first that Brandon was a trouble maker and in fact he was hiding something. For example, this book taught me that if I think someone committed a crime or will I should tell an adult or the authorities. I encourage preteens or teens to learn these lessons and read Who Dares . The book tells you that people can overcome their differences and become friends and no longer enemies.

Review written by Caitlin (7th grade student).

We would like to thank Kane Miller for providing a copy of Who Dares? for this review.

Have you read Who Dares?? How would you rate it?

Review: Shadow Magic by Kitty Wells

Shadow Magic by Kitty Wells. A Pocket Cats Book.

David Fickling Books
Publication Date: July 2011
List Price: $13.99
ISBN-13: 9780385752008

Review: Ever thought of running off and dropping out of school? Ever imagined not having any friends to help you with homework? What about your cousin planning on dropping out of school because she and her parents move around the country so much, making it almost impossible for her to make friends? Maddy has small ceramic cats, and one big secret. Her ceramic cats can come to life as long there's a troublesome problem needs solving, and in Shadow Magic, by Kitty Wells, there is definitely a magical mess that Maddy and Nibs have to solve, in the second book in the Pocket Cats series.

In an earlier book in this series, Greykins, a nice, wise kitty who is about one inch tall, came to life. This time, it's Nibs's turn, and she hasn't been acting so friendly towards Maddy, if friendly at all. Maddy soon discovers that her cousin is planning on dropping out of school and running away. However, Maddy has no idea why. Is it because of something Maddy did or said? Has she offended her? There is only one way to find out, and that is... to spy! But will Maddy and Nibs be able to unite? Will they be too late to help Maddy's cousin? Will Maddy never see her cousin again? What would you do? Read Shadow Magic to ride the roller coaster of emotions, just the way I did as I read Shadow Magic.

Shadow Magic- what an intriguing title. I find it intriguing just because the word "shadow" sounds really cool. Plus, cats are such wonderful creatures, so I decided to give this book a try. To my great delight, it's an awesome book. It's very easy to understand, and you could easily understand the plot, even if you're starting with the second or third book in the series, Pocket Cats. Yes, this is the second book. I rate this book 5 stars because it helps kids to understand the values of friendship, as well as how necessary it is. Overall, this is a great book and should be recommended for kids ages 8-10 and up, for it's a very easy read and would increase their reading skills as they enjoy the thrills that Shadow Magic presents for all ages.

Review written by Tam (6th grade student).

We would like to thank Random House for providing a copy of Shadow Magic for this review.

Have you read Shadow Magic? How would you rate it?

Review: Rumors From the Boys' Room by Rose Cooper

Rumors From the Boys' Room by Rose Cooper. A Blogtastic! Novel.

Delacorte Press Books for Young Readers
Publication Date: October 2011
List Price: $12.99
ISBN-13: 9780385740845

Review: Hilarious, witty, and creative all describe the book Rumors from the Boys' Room. Rose Cooper does a great job portraying the strong emotions that the characters have for each other. The main character, Sofia, is a nosy seventh grade girl with a blog that she finds to be oh so popular but it is really is not as popular as she thinks. This is an anonymous blog, so no one in the school knows she is writing it! This fictional novel captures your mind while you read it. This is the second book in Blogtastic! The first book is called Gossip from the Girls' Room. What a great story from a great author.

Our story starts with our main character Sofia rethinking her ideas about blogging. She decides to only use rumors that she hears herself and publish them on her blog. Sofia's best friend Nona has this developing crush on the knew foreign exchange student named Lukas from Germany. Sofia, on the other hand, has a crush on a boy named Andrew. Although he has a crush on her arch nemesis, Mia St. Claire. Although this makes Sofia infuriated she has a school project that takes up much of her time. She blogs all about the gossip around school not always having the best sources or the most reliable information. In her mind, she thinks this will make her popular when she reveals her identity as the Blogtastic Blogger. This is a great way of showing exactly how rumors are spread though blogs and the internet.

I found Rumors from the Boys' Room to be a great way of showing how rumors can be spread way out of proportion. Things that are not true are often posted on blogs and sent in texts and after that, the whole world can read about them. Rose Cooper did a good job giving the characters real life emotions and really showing that through how they act and what they say. You can feel Sofia's hate for Mia by how she refers to her and how she talks about her. You can also tell how much she loves being Nona's friend by what she says about her in her journal. She also shows how characters grow and develop in their middle school years. Cooper displays how people change, as they grow older and what happens to many kids in middle school. There are some extremely funny jokes and great dialogue. Rose Cooper puts together an all-together great book that can be very real and and little bit of not real. It all comes together to make a truly spectacular book.

Review written by Kathryn (7th grade student).

We would like to thank Random House for providing a copy of Rumors From the Boys' Room for this review.

Have you read Rumors From the Boys' Room? How would you rate it?

Review: User Unfriendly by Vivian Vande Velde

User Unfriendly by Vivian Vande Velde.

Magic Carpet Books
Publication Date: July 2012
List Price: $6.95
ISBN-13: 9780152163532

Review: Once again, we discover ourselves to be in the sanctuary of yet another Rassuman Gaming Center. And once again, we play a dangerous game, in medieval times. User Unfriendly, is written beautifully by Vivian Vande Velde. It is a dangerous story in which Arvin, Gianinne, Dominic, Shelton, Cleveland, Noah, Dawn Marie,and Arvin's mom play this dangerous medieval game, one they cannot leave unless they win. Everything goes perfectly fine at first, but that's just the beginning. It isn't long before everything goes horribly wrong...

...when Arvin's mother gets a terrible headache that cannot be relieved by magic. When the game characters start looping, saying things over and over again. When the group of warriors, thieves, and magic users discover they cannot leave this game unless they play it successfully. Unfortunately, that means they have to rescue Princess Dorinda from who-knows-what in who-knows-where. That is, if they were meant to save her after all. They might be led to another path, which they eventually have to take. Who knows? Meanwhile, Arvin's mother is slowly fading away, and might eventually disappear. Along their path, the group encounters a werwolf, goblins, orcs, sand hands, a stone troll, and a shape shifter. How will they solve this problem, and how did it come to be a problem in the first place? Really want to know? Read User Unfriendly yourself to find out.

I think this is a great book, with an incredible and slightly complicated plot. This is such an intriguing problem that needs to be solved, and the technology that painted the setting is just spectacular. The setting is more than a reader can ask for. It's this amazing countryside that gets you on the edge like, is that it? But then your blown away, because it's not just the countryside, it's the town in which if you leave, you cannot get back! I rate User Unfriendly 4.99 stars out of five stars. Not only is this book completely mind blowing, but Velde used such great terms to describe the settings! However, I feel that she didn't describe the characters enough. That is, because I had a difficult time visualizing the characters as I read. Did Arvin's character have a beard? Did Princess Dorinda have a lean body? Was Arvin's mother plump? Perhaps Shelton's a stubby little character. Or maybe his character always wears a bathrobe. I don't know, and I'd like to find out. It would be more reassuring for me to know what the characters looked like. However, all in all, this not only one of my new favorites, it's also a great book to read, and I advise you to read it, especially if you enjoy adventurous fun books.

Review written by Tam (6th grade student).

We would like to thank Houghton Mifflin Harcourt for providing a copy of User Unfriendly for this review.

Have you read User Unfriendly? How would you rate it?

Review: Charles Dickens and the Street Children of London by Andrea Warren

Charles Dickens and the Street Children of London by Andrea Warren.

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Publication Date: November 2011
List Price: $18.99
ISBN-13: 9780547395746

Review: A Christmas Carol, Oliver Twist, A Tale of Two Cities, are all familiar to people around the world All of those books were written by Charles Dickens. If you want to know more about Charles Dickens' life, look no further. Charles Dickens and the Street Children of London by Andrea Warren is a great book. It explains the source of all his book ideas.

1812, Portsmouth, England is where Charles John Huffman Dickens was born. Charles Dickens always wanted to go to school, but his father did not spend money wisely, and a result, he couldn't pay his debt and went to debtor's prison. Dickens sadly couldn't go to school because he was required to work at a factory to help his family pay off their debt. A few years later, Charles Dickens left the factory and went to school. However, he had to quit because his father went back to debtor's prison. As an adult, Dickens got a job as a critic reviewing plays. It was at this time when Dickens' friend told him there was a contest to write a book and the winning book would get published. Dickens decided to write a book, but because he was afraid the public would not like his book so he authored it as Boz. Little did Dickens know he would win the contest and become famous for The Pickwick Papers. Charles Dickens and the Street Children of London chronicles the life of Charles Dickens through his difficult youth and shows how The Pickwick Papers changed his life.

I give this book 4.3 star out of 5. Right when I read the first page, I was hooked instantly. This book informs readers about all of Dickens' life. Charles Dickens and the Street Children of London also the condition of poor people in London. In the back of the book, it lists all of Charles Dickens major works. The book also lets you know about Queen Victoria at the time while she ruled. It also lets you know about the legacy of the workhouse and child labor around the world today and how it affects children around the world. In the far back of the book you can see websites and other books on Charles Dickens. However you may not like how the book sometimes goes off topic to other people who helped London's poorest children. Nevertheless, you will want this book. If you have to do a project on a famous person, look no further and read this book on Charles Dickens. You want Charles Dickens and the Street Children of London, buy it NOW!

Review written by Max (6th grade student).

We would like to thank Houghton Mifflin Harcourt for providing a copy of Charles Dickens and the Street Children of London for this review.

Have you read Charles Dickens and the Street Children of London? How would you rate it?

Review: The Frog Scientist by Pamela S. Turner

The Frog Scientist by Pamela S. Turner. A Scientists in the Field Book.

Sandpiper
Publication Date: September 2011
List Price: $7.99
ISBN-13: 9780547576985

Review: Saving the environment is a serious thing. These scientists try to save the environment to the maximum. The title of this book is The Frog Scientist. The main character is Tyrone Hayes, an environmental scientist who is studying effects of pesticides on amphibians. The author of this book is Pamela S. Turner, and the photographs are done by Andy Comins. This book is in a series called Scientists in the Field. There are more books just like this, such as The Snake Scientist.

This story is a unique tale following the work of Tyrone Hayes, who studies frogs to prove that pesticides are too dangerous to be used in nature. It starts out with a brief summary of his life up to his job, why he wants to work like this and how he did in college. Then it gets into his work. It tells in very good detail how the experiment works and how he performs it. He examines frog tissue from pesticide infected water and not pesticide infected water. Tyrone and his students collect their results, and then do their experiment over to make sure. The story is interesting and actually pretty exciting. The results are shocking, but you have to read the book to find out.

The Frog Scientist was a good book, and some of the things that I like the best about it are, the discoveries and great experiment descriptions. I liked the story of Tyrone and his road to success. What I didn't like is the grossness of a few images and descriptions. I think that some things are really gross and disturbing. Some people will not mind these pictures, but it is something to know about. Despite all of these small problems, I would recommend this book to anyone who wants to protect nature. This book will appeal to these people a lot. Overall, I would rate this book an eight out of ten, because the disturbing facts and pictures brought it down a little. Read this book. It is a great story and I know that you will just love it.

Review written by Sean (7th grade student).

We would like to thank Houghton Mifflin Harcourt for providing a copy of The Frog Scientist for this review.

Have you read The Frog Scientist? How would you rate it?

Review: The Polar Bear Scientists by Peter Lourie

The Polar Bear Scientists by Peter Lourie. A Scientists in the Field Book.

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Publication Date: January 2012
List Price: $18.99
ISBN-13: 9780547283050

Review: The sub-zero temperatures, high winds and the ice stretching out for miles in all directions may seem like a horrendous job for some people, but not the polar bear scientists. These people work in a barren landscape of snow and ice to protect and conserve the polar bears. In The Polar Bear Scientists, by Peter Lourie, you are brought into the world of the polar bear scientists in Barrow, Alaska. This non-fiction book leads you along three journeys of the polar bear scientists and has a lot of background information on the polar bears. It also includes many pictures to show you the brilliant landscape of ice and the magnificent polar bears.

The USGS (United States Geological Survey) has stationed a research base in Alaska, NARL (Naval Arctic Research Lab), to study the polar bears. The United States has been interested in polar bears since the 1960s when the species was threatened by hunting. Now, polar bears are being threatened by global warming, which is thought to be the cause of melting pack ice in the Arctic. Polar bears depend on the pack ice for hunting and without it, the population may decline. The scientists at Barrow are working hard to gather information that will teach us about the polar bear's health, how they react to climate change and how their environment impacts them. In The Polar Bear Scientists, you learn of two missions where this data is collected and analyzed. It is still unknown however, how much polar bears will be affected if the ice along the continental shelf melts.

One of my favorite things about this book is the descriptions of the Arctic and the polar bears. It helps you learn about the bears and helps you feel like you are on the Arctic pack ice with the scientists. On the other hand, what I dislike is that there is little excitement so the book goes at a medium pace. The beginning is slightly interesting; however, you do not get hooked until the middle where the author describes the polar bear captures. The beginning included the background on the polar bears and the polar bear scientists, which is important, but is not as intriguing as actually interacting with the polar bears. Another thing the author describes well is the polar bear scientists. The scientists who are described come from all different parts of the polar bear research project, so you get different points of views from each part of the project. The author also includes a glossary and a Polar Bear Field Guide so that you get a better understanding of the bears and their habitat. This is a fantastic section of the book for readers who do not have an expansive knowledge on polar bears or the Arctic. I rate this book an 8/10 because it is interesting, but did not go at a fast pace. To conclude, The Polar Bear Scientists by Peter Lourie is an amazing book about the adventurous lives of polar bear scientists.

Review written by Shannon (7th grade student).

We would like to thank Houghton Mifflin Harcourt for providing a copy of The Polar Bear Scientists for this review.

Have you read The Polar Bear Scientists? How would you rate it?