Fahrenheit 451

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Guy Montag is a fireman. Yet he’s not the kind of fireman that you typically think of. No, Montag  burns houses and he  has never ever rescued anyone from a burning.  He absolutely loves his job. To Montag, the fire was beautiful and captivating  as it destroyed the homes and buildings. He whistles after he finishes his job. He’d been a fireman for 10 years, and never questioned anything about his job, his life or his world. He had found pleasure in burning books, as well as other things that were banned in his society. He continued on life quite unaware of anything really, until a 17 year-old girl, in all of her whimsy,  starts to change him.

Montag begins to question his life, because all the pieces don’t fit. He is a married man, and has been married for a long time, but he doesn’t know anything about his wife’s background, how they met, where they got married, or literally anything. Soon he begins to find other sorts of discrepancies in his life. They have no contact with any outside world, and for example, events such as bombs that fly over them everyday, but no one seems to care. Young children die and not a single person mourns them. It all begins to add up, and suddenly he becomes curious.

You know the saying, curiosity kills the cat.  Montag begins to explore why books are considered bad and why they must be burned. With the help of a retired literary professor, he gets his hands on his first book. It is the Bible. The book touches something deep within Montag, and soon the need to find more books is almost overwhelming. Unfortunately, there are many people including Montag’s own coworkers who disapprove of his actions and force him to give up books or he dies.  Montag cannot give up his books and he will keep them no matter the cost.

Review

I would gives this book a 6.5. It was very well written and had a lot of good life lessons. It had a number of literary devices, used in expert ways. It kept you wondering what would happen next. At the same time, the book’s plot seemed almost choppy, it was probably the author’s choice to make it that way, considering the nature of the book; but I feel that the author lost me instead of going for that mysterious curiosity effect. Overall, I enjoyed the book and wouldn’t mind reading it again in the future. I would recommend that those who haven’t read the book, take the time to not only read it, but also understand the core message. I think you all will enjoy it.

Numbers

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Summary- Certain parts of this numbersbook are inappropriate and is not for younger audiences.

Jemma Marsh, a.k.a. Jem, is fifteen years old and living with a foster mom, Karen, when she meets a young black boy named Terry, who is called Spider by his friends. Jem initially tries to stay away from Spider because she sees numbers associated with the death date of every person she makes eye contact with.  Jem already knows that Spider is going to die in just a few months. However, Spider intrigues Jem, and he is like no one she’s ever met before. Soon, she finds herself accepting an invitation to his house. There she meets his grandmother, the only family Spider has, who sees auras and recognizes Jem as a kindred spirit, but she doesn’t initially realize the depth of Jem’s gift or exactly what it does.

Jem and Spider begin spending a great deal of time together and Jem finds herself liking him more and more. One day, she and Spider spend the day in town, at an amusement park with a huge Ferris wheel- the London Eye. While waiting in line, Jem  begins to realize that every single person has the same number. It leads her to believe that something at the park will be the cause of their death. She urges Spider to run away, and they are nearby when a bomb explodes, killing several people.  Some people remember Jem and Spider running away before the explosion, and it makes them first on the suspect list.

Spider and Jem begin to go on the run of their lives away from the police, and away from dangerous gangs. Can they survive their ordeal or will tragedy befall them?

Review

I really enjoyed this book a lot. It was a very different perspective on the world. It showed that sometimes people are stuck with their lot in life, and that life is not always butterflies and happiness, it can be dark and painful. This book is the first in a trilogy. I really only like this one, the others seemed unnecessary. I would give it a 8.5 out of 10 in total. You should really take the opportunity to read this book.

The House on Mango Street

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house on mango streetSummary-  Certain parts of this book are not for younger audiences. You must be in at least in high-school before reading it.

Esperanza is a little girl who moves with her family of six to a house on Mango Street. It’s  not the beautiful house her parents promised. It is nothing but a small, crumbling red house in a poor urban neighborhood especially meant for those like her. Esperanza, who’s often followed by her younger sister Nenny, meets the other residents of Mango Street. These include Most of the neighborhood’s residents are Hispanic, including Esperanza, whose father is a Mexican immigrant and whose mother is Latina.
Esperanza is ashamed of her family’s social status. In many instances she lies or ties to hide signs of her family’s poverty.  Esperanza’s adolescent years are even worse than her younger years.  Esperanza faces sexual aggression in two instances one in which an old man at work forces her to kiss him, and another in which some boys at a carnival rape her. Esperanza’s friends also suffer hardships: Alicia, whose mother is dead, is forced by her father to rise early every morning to make tortillas for her family; Sally, a beautiful girl at school, endures abuse from her father; Minerva, a teenage mother of two children, is constantly being  either abandoned or beaten by her husband.
Esperanza’s mother, a key figure in her life encourages her not to let men hold her back, and to not sit and wait for life start. If she wants wants she can do it on her own, she needs no man. Witnessing the fate of countless female schoolmates who marry young to escape the abuse of their fathers, only to suffer abuse at the hands of their new husbands, Esperanza resolves to leave Mango Street with her books and her papers. She dreams of having a beautiful house all her own, where she can write, and be free. Can Esperanza accomplish her dreams or will she be forever fated to stay in Mango Street?

Review

You cannot confidently say you have read heartbreaking and moving books until you have read this one.  The author has written the book as a series of vignettes of short stories. These stories while only a couple pages each have such beautifully descriptive language, and words that invoke the humanity in the world, and in our beings, that is so rare to find today.  This book is a 100 out of 10.  Even though there is only  110 pages in the book is has a powerful meanings and themes behind. It is one of a kind.

Farworld: Water Keep

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Even though, thirteen- year-old Marcus Kanenas is restrained to a wheelchair, he sees himself as a survivor and a dreamer. In fact, his favorite dream is of a world far  far away, a world where magic is as common as breathing, where animals tell horrible, corny jokes, and where trees beg people to pick their  delicious fruit. He even has a name for this place- Farworld. When Marcus magically travels to Farworld, he meets Kyja, a girl without magic in a world where spells, charms, and potions are everywhere, and Master Therapass, a master wizard who has kept a secret hidden for thirteen years, a secret that could change the fate of two worlds.

But the Dark Circle- a group seeking to control Farworld- has learned of Master Therapass’s secret and their influence and power are growing. Farworld’s only hope is for Marcus and Kyja to find the mythical Elementals: water, land, air, and fire , and convince them to open a drift between the Farworld and Earth. As Kyja and Marcus travel to Water Keep, they must face the worst the evil Dark Circle can throw at them; Summoners, who can command the living and the dead; Unmakers, invisible creatures that can destroy both body and soul by sucking out your magic and your life ; and dark mages known as Thrathkin S Bae. Along the way, Marcus and Kyja will discover the truth about their own heritage, the strength of their friendship, and the depths of their unique powers.

Review

This book is a thrilling novel that has you gripping the edge of your seat at every turn. It is an extremely well-written book, that is easy to connect and has a sort of reality to it even though it set in a magical world. This book is the first of four, and I can confidently say that all of the books are amazing. I would give this book a 9.5 out of 10, because sometimes, I was extremely confused on what was even going on. All in all, this book is a must-read, and I hope you give it a chance

15 Days Without a Head

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without a headSynopsis

15-year-old Laurence Roach wants nothing more in life than normality. Unfortunately, having a normal life is hard when you have a little brother who acts like the dog from Scooby- Doo (literally), and  your mother is a depressed alcoholic after your father died in a car crash. Laurence thinks that if he wins the luxury vacation offered by a local radio show, he can finally make his mother happy and pull from her depression. It all begins to fall apart when his mother doesn’t come home from work one day, and Laurence finds all of his mother’s’ belongings gone. He must now face the facts: his mother might not ever come home.

Laurence quickly realizes that if people realize that his mother is gone child services will come for him and his brother. Therein lies Laurence’s biggest fear. That when and if child services come to take him and his brother they will end up getting separated. To prevent this Laurence spins a web of complicated lies to cover his mother’s disappearance, while singlehandedly handling and taking care of brother who wants to know where his mother his. This is a story of family, forgiveness, friendship, and love, that teaches kids to never give up even it seems impossible.

Review

This book is an 10 out of 10. One of my favorite things about this book is the moral lessons that it can teach, and how it shows that life is not all cupcakes and unicorns. This book is both extremely heartbreaking and heartwarming, with just the right amount of light-hearted humor. The author did an amazing job of pouring emotions into the book, that it begins to feel like you are the actual characters of the book as story goes on. This book is definitely not one to pass up on any circumstance. It is truly a magnificent book.

Learning to Swear in America

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swaeringSynopsis

Yuri Strelnikov, a 17-year-old Russian physics prodigy, finds himself whisked to the United States to find a way to prevent an asteroid from hitting the Earth. If Yuri fails, the western half of the United States will be obliterated. To Yuri, this could be his one big chance to win the Nobel Peace Prize. Something he’s wanted for his whole life.

The second he arrives at NASA, Yuri is faced with a multitude of problems. The first being the fact that no one in NASA trusts him or wants to listen to some upstart 17-year-old. Consequentially, Yuri cannot get some of the information he needs to calculate the functions. At this point Yuri really needs to swear, but he doesn’t know how to, so he placates himself by thinking venomous thoughts about the other physicists.

Then, Yuri meets a normal teenage girl by the name of Dovie, who lives a normal life, and goes to a normal school. Dovie is absolutely oblivious to the impending doom she faces at the hands of an asteroid; if NASA doesn’t destroy it. Hanging out with Dovie, and joining her on the adventures she plans when Yuri is free of obligations to NASA, Yuri understands what it means to save the world and save a life worth living.

Review

This book is an 9 out of 10. It extremely funny in every way while still pulling at your heartstrings. I think the one thing I really enjoyed about this book is that it is very easy to connect to no matter who you are or where you come from. The author has put a lot of work into the characters and their personality, that even the smallest quirks have certain complexity behind them, that is hard to put into words. All in all, this book is amazing, and I would highly recommend giving it a chance.

The Great Library: Ink and Bone

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Summary

Powerful, cunning, and ruthless the Great Library of Alexandria is a presence in every singlethe great library major city, governing the flow of knowledge to the masses. The library can create new books, possess them, and even copy them through alchemy, but for anyone who does not work in the Great Library books are expressly forbidden.

Jess Brightwell is a boy who’s gains his knowledge by reading illegal books that his family owns or has obtained, from the black market. Jess also believes that the Library is extremely valuable, because books are in his bones and in his blood. He lives for books and loves them. Jess is sent out by his

father, as a spy, to try to get a place in the Library staff and smuggle out books. Unfortunately, as the training goes on, Jess starts to see the Library in a whole new light and his loyalties are tested.

When one of Jess’s new friends accidentally commits heresy, by inventing a device that could change the world and the power the Library holds over people, Jess finally realizes the true corruption of the library. Jess begins to understand that the Great Library values books over human life. Soon both books and people will burn.

Review

This book is probably an 8.6 out of 10. It is a hair-raising, breathtaking, and exciting book. In my opinion, the author did an amazing  job of  showing how all the characters developed from the start to the end. I also loved how, even if something important was revealed there was always a new question that needed to be answered. It added a cliffhanger to almost every chapter. The one thing that I probably didn’t like about the book was the fact that some times it was a little repetitive. Nevertheless, it was still an awesome book. This book is the first in a trilogy. While I have not yet read the third book, I can confidently say that the second is just as amazing and even more gripping than the first. I hope you decide to read this absolutely magnificent book.

 

Heartless

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heartless Synopsis

Long ago in Wonderland- before she became the infamous and feared Queen of Hearts- She was Catherine. A young girl who had dreams of falling in love and opening a bakery that sold the most delicious pastries in all of Wonderland. Unfortunately, there are certain obstacles that prevent her from accomplishing her dreams.

The first challenge is the King of Hearts who is in love with Catherine and wants her as his queen. Catherine does not like the King of Hearts at all, and she would hate to be stuck in such a loveless marriage with a giggly buffoon. This can directly correlate with her second problem, her family. Catherine is a high class citizen and her parents think it would be absolutely amazing if she became Queen. She could never become a baker. To do so, her family name would be disgraced.

The third problem is the Jabberwock a creature that is terrorizing Hearts and putting Catherine and her friends in danger. The last thing isn’t really a problem, but it could become one. Catherine is quickly falling in love the new Court Joker, Jest. Follow Catherine in her tale of becoming the Heartless, Queen of Hearts.

Review

This book is a 9.6 out of 10. This book attention- grabbing, thrilling, and full of emotional rollercoasters. Marissa Meyer had made the character so easy to relate to, and it gives the book a realistic feel as well. Anyone who reads this book is guaranteed to enjoy it. I hope you give this amazing book a try.

Adventurers Wanted: Slathbog’s Gold

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wantedSynopsis

   Alexander Taylor is an orphan who lives with his uncle’s family and has a fairly normal life. One day after work Alexander finds a sign on a bookshop that reads: “Adventurers Wanted. Apply Within.” Alex finds the sign extremely peculiar, and goes inside the shop to investigate.

   After going to the shop Alex is quickly roped into going on an adventure by Mr.Clutter, the man who owns the shop. After meeting up with an elf named Arconn, and a dwarf named Thrang, Alex is readily accepted into the adventure as the eighth and final man. While Alex does not know anything about this new world, he can’t help but feel like it is home.

Alex meets up with other members of his group and finally gets to hear what the goal of this adventure his. His group’s quest is to kill the infamous dragon, Slathbog the Red, and take his gold. To Alex, killing a dragon seems nearly impossible with only 8 people, but this whole thing is technically impossible, so who is he to judge. Along the way Alex faces wraiths, and trolls, and many other magical creatures. Can Alex make it out this alive?

Review

I would give this book and 8.5 out of 10. It is a thrilling and captivating book that manages  to take you from the real word and transport you to a land of magic and adventure. This book is the first in a series of five. The fifth book has not been released yet, but it should be published soon. I hope you give this book a chance, because it really is a whole nother world.

 

Milkweed

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milkweed

Synopsis

He’s been called a Jew, a Gypsy, Stoptheif, a filthy son of Abraham, Misha. He lives on the streets of Warsaw. He steals food from the ladies in extravagant fur coats, that carry bread in their hands. He is an orphan boy who believes in bread, and mothers, and angels. He is quick and lucky, but quite stupid and naive. Now, he’s been adopted by a group of Jews, hiding from the Nazis and their oppressive system, but he doesn’t understand anything. He is a boy who wants to be a Nazi. To him there would be no better thing in world than to have the tall, glorious shiny boots, and strut around as if he owned the world. Well, chocolates with a buttercream filling and a hazelnut heart are better.

The Jews are being marched to the ghetto, and he is going to follow. He has no desire to be a Nazi anymore. He is now a Jew, a filthy son of Abraham, less than dirt, and worth nothing to the rest of Warsaw. He is proud to be a Jew.  Everyday, He sees the dead bodies covered by newspapers that litter the streets of the ghetto, when it seems that they are invisible to everyone else. He will not give up on life, mainly because he hasn’t yet grasped the importance and horror of the situation he is currently in. He sneaks out of the ghetto every night, but doesn’t run.  After all, he has a family to come back to.

The trains are here and he instinctively knows something is not right. Why move when they’ve already been moved?  His instinct is very accurate.  The trains are a one way path to torture and death. He has to escape, and to do that he has to become a nobody all over again. He has one last chance to escape. It is now every man for himself. Can he make it?

Review

I absolutely adore this book. It is charming, funny, while managing to capture the seriousness of the harm that World War 2 and the Holocaust caused to countless innocent people. I give the book and overall rating of 10.5 out of 10.  Jerry Spinelli did an amazing job a grasping all points of view of the people involved in the Holocaust whether that be victims or the Nazi. The book itself is an emotional roller coaster. There parts where you can’t decide between crying and laughing. It is an extremely good, and I would recommend taking a look at it to see what the Holocaust was really like. Even if the book is a fictional tale, it still has true facts about the workings of Holocaust, and the mark it left behind on those involved in it. I love this book, and if you read it I think that you will too.