Divergent by Veronica Roth is one of the best books I've read this year. It is action-packed and entertaining throughout the whole book.
Split into 5 different factions, or branches, based on your personality and character traits, Beatrice (Tris) Prior is a danger to all of society. She is what's known as Divergent, someone who doesn't fit into one of the preset sections in the civilization. Forced to hide it or face certain death, Tris decides to become a Dauntless, the faction favoring the brave. She faces a dangerous initiation there, in which she must face her fears and become a true Dauntless or live factionless forever. Soon the world becomes more dangerous for the Divergent and she must do everything possible to survive.
I liked this book because it's very attention-grabbing, it was a book I could escape into. It had very cool fighting and training scenes and was so detailed and relatable that I knew how Tris felt half of the time. The book had me hooked and up all night reading it. I think the author did an excellent job with all of the characters and plots that went into the book. I picked this book because I wanted a good dystopian book and I was not disappointed! Divergent is extremely well written, suspenseful, and quick... You will never want to put it down. This book comes with a great storyline and just the right amount of romance to add to the overall brilliance of it all. By the end, you will adore all the characters and it will leave you longing for more. (It's a 4-book series with 3 movies :) If you love a good young adult, dystopian, romance this book is for you!
Reviewer Grade: 8th
I liked this book a ton! This book is an easy read considering it’s a graphic novel. The story in this book is very inspiring for “shooting for the stars” or doing what you love. In other words, commitment. I can relate with the main character, Astrid, by getting through something tough with something you love. For Astrid, the love is all about roller derby.
I picked this book because I love graphic novels. The storyline to this book was extremely interesting, I could barely put the book down! I was honestly surprised by how good the book was. This book is by far my favorite graphic novel. I have read this book many times since my first.
Astrid was a teenager in junior high. The only thing getting her through the rough days of school was roller derby. Astrid loved roller derby and was committed to putting in her best work. Astrid’s character develops over time in the novel, and it’s interesting to read about her change.
Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer is a nonfiction story about a young man named Cris McCandless. After graduating college in 1991, McCandless left without a trace hitchhiking around the United States. During his travels, McCandless goes by the name Alex Supertramp wanting to reinvent his life. He meets and changes countless people's lives. McCandless had his sights set religiously on Alaska, thinking it his last grand odyssey. McCandless wanted to fend for himself in the Alaskan wilderness, which inevitably proved fatal. This beautifully written book is full of adventure and life lessons. Overall, I would rate this book four out of five stars.
This book is very heavy and grim, but Hanya Yanagihara gives a detailed insight into living with disabilities, mental illness, and addiction. I became attached to the characters from the start. Four young men- Jude, Willem, JB, and Malcom, have been best friends since being college roommates in New York, but their individual lives and struggles make it complicated to work through their mid-life crises. Despite the grief and somber moments in A Little Life, I appreciated the resilient mentors that the four, especially Jude, had. It had a loving message of always having a support system somewhere even if it doesn't feel like it, and that your past doesn't define you- your present choices do. However, the ending was open ended and left a lot for me to ponder over later. I'd recommend this if you like more somber, down to earth books (and if you're a fast reader, because this book took forever to read!)
Grade 12
Normal People by Sally Rooney beautifully follows Marianne and Connell’s on again off again relationship. I really loved this book and I felt as if I was there growing with the characters. This story does not follow much of a plot, it is more about watching Marianne and Connell grow and develop as people. Rooney addresses mental health and abuse and the way Marianne and Connell were always there for each other literally makes me scream. The story begins when they are in high school with Connell being a well liked soccer player and Marianne being pretty much the opposite. It follows them through college and all their ups, downs, mistakes, and triumphs. This is a fairly easy read and I was able to finish it in no time at all.
They Both Die at the End is a perfect book for both tweens and teens! Set in a futuristic time where the "Death-Cast" can predict your death, two teenage boys, Mateo and Rufus, meet through an app that leads you to your last friend. Both of them are on their death day, wanting to live memories they never got to and they learn how much of a gift it is to find love, even in your last hours. Though Mateo and Rufus are total strangers, they connect in a way they never could with anyone else and live the short life they wanted together.
I loved this book because it was deep and meaningful. It gave thought to so many things and made a day last an eternity. I stayed up all night reading this book because I just couldn't put it down, it was entrapping how the author put down their last moments together as a story with so many lessons to learn from. I picked this book because it was different than what I normally read and because I wondered how the author would put it together, knowing that the title gave it all away. I was not disappointed at all! If anything, I was only sad and disappointed about how it ended, otherwise, the book was fantastic. Even though the title of the book is a complete spoiler, by the end you never see it coming and it is so sad when you realize the book is over. The ending was very predictable but it will surprise you even though you know it will happen. It was an amazing book about their story of gay love and I ended up crying at the end because it was so beautiful. The author made the boys very relatable and emotional in a way that truly hooked you into the book. This is one of the best books I've read this year and I would certainly recommend that you read it too!
I read this book because my mom wouldn't stop talking about how she LOVED this book when she grew up. It was pretty funny. It is a book about.a kid in the fourth grade that has a little brother. And the little brother was just SO cute that everyone, not just his parents gave all of the attention to the brother. That part I can kinda understand. I have a little sister and for real babies usually get all of everyone's attention. It made him feel like a nothing. I liked the book because I could definitely relate to it, and it was pretty easy to read. I think it would probably be better for like middle school kids or younger to read. But it was good.
On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous is a fictional autobiography written by Vietnamese-American poet Ocean Vuong. It is written in the form of a letter from a Vietnamese-American son to his illiterate mother.
To me, it was a surprise to hear that this novel was a work of fiction. The scenes constructed were so raw and real and written with so much emotion, that I automatically figured that this was a memoir. However, I later discovered that this book was fiction, with a couple of truths sprinkled in. I really loved the format that Vuong decided to use in this book because the letter format felt very lyrical and poetic at times. The book was refreshing and easy to follow, as opposed to the topics discussed in the book. As an Asian-American myself, there were many topics addressed in the novel that I could really sympathize and relate with, and while the subjects addressed could get pretty heavy and difficult to read through at times, I was grateful that Vuong took it upon himself to shed some light to many real issues and experiences. While I personally enjoyed the lyrical writing and could sympathize with the difficult subjects, I wouldn't recommend this book to everyone. There are many scenes in the novel that could be triggering and too much to handle, and even I felt like I had to put down the book a few times to get a break. I would recommend that before anyone decides to read this book, they should look up the content and trigger warnings. However, those that do decide to start this novel will definitely not be disappointed.
The Love Hypothesis is a cute romance novel that takes place in an academic setting. Olive, our protagonist, is a PhD STEM student attending Stanford, and Adam, her love interest is a professor at the college. I was initially a little hesitant about this book because while the age gap between Olive and Adam isn't concerning, their power dynamic is. Conveniently, however, it is revealed that Adam is not one of Olive's professors and manages another section of students. Even though Adam and Olive were never really "teacher-student," it still made me a little uneasy, especially since the two attend the same college. The novel basically establishes its plot through Olive and Adam having a fake relationship together. Adam needs this fake relationship to convince his higher-ups that he's not leaving Stanford and has put down roots, in order to unfreeze funds needed for his research projects. Olive, on the other hand, needs a fake relationship to convince her best friend Ahn, that she has no feelings for a boy she had gone out on a couple of dates with, after realizing Ahn is interested in the same boy herself. In order to persuade Ahn to pursue her feelings, Olive strikes up this fake-dating deal with Professor Adam Carlsen, thus leading the two of them into a real future together.
The Love Hypothesis, in my opinion, has everything critical for a good, cheesy, romance. The fake-dating trope, many sweet situations, and a love interest who seems cold and cruel on the outside, but turns out to be a softie just for Olive. While the novel may have the right ingredients for a swoon-worthy romance, however, there was something missing. Olive as a protagonist was a very 2d character and was someone I could not find myself relating to or even being interested in. While it was refreshing to see a female woman lead pursuing a career in STEM, there was nothing else all that interesting about Olive. I also didn't like the author's choice of using the topic of sexual assault only as a plot device, in order to bring the story forward and the characters closer.
On the other hand, Adam was a classically written love interest. Strong on the outside, and soft on the inside, he had all the criteria needed for a typical male lead in a romance novel, and while it may seem overdone to some, I think Adam was a great portrayal of such traits.
Overall, The Love Hypothesis was an interesting romance novel, and I enjoyed its academic setting and some of the scenes involved. However, there were a couple of aspects of the story that could have been tweaked to make the story more enjoyable. In my opinion, many romance-lovers would probably enjoy this novel, but I found myself wanting more.
My mom told me about this book because she said me and my friends reminded her of this book. I really liked this book because of how close they all were. And because of all of the adventures they all take but they are still best friends. I thought the idea of this book was epic because even though they were not the same size, they pants somehow looked perfect on all of them. And they used the pants to stay close. And tell each other about their adventures. It was very easy to read and imagine like I was right there with them.
The Handmaid's Tale, written by Margaret Atwood, is a fictional account of Offred, who is a handmaid that lives in a dystopian society. A handmaid is a woman whose purpose is to have a child. Offred is conflicted with her job; she is separated from her lover, Luke and her child, thinking that they are dead but hoping they are alive. The new government slowly took away power from females until the females are essentially powerless. I chose the book because my Aunt recommended it to me. One thing I liked about the book was that the ending was essentially left to the reader's judgment. As a male, it gave me helpful insights to events that are happening right now that I never would have thought about.
“The Lost Hero” is the first book in the “Heroes of Olympus” series, which takes place after the “Percy Jackson and the Oympians” series so it is recommended that the Percy Jackson series is read before reading this book. The book is about three demi-gods, Leo, Jason, and Piper that find their way to Camp Half-Blood. The three half-bloods end up going on a quest together. Leo Valdez during this book learns new and weird things about his past, he also loves machines and flirting. In my opinion he was the most relatable character in this book of the three main characters and was very lovable. Jason wakes up on a bus and has no idea who he is but all he knows is that something is not right. In this book Jason is not very relatable because of his absence of memory, so we don’t learn many not quest related things about him but he was still an enjoyable character. Piper has secrets and her life is turned upside down during this book. She is relatable at times but Leo is still by far the most relatable character in this book. So the three demi-gods go on a quest together to stop the start of the end of the world and learn a lot of things along the way.
“The Lost Hero” was a good book. While reading I did have to look at my political map of the U.S.A. to make sure I understood where they were going. The plot and quest were overall pretty easy to follow but the book feels a little slow at times. The mythology was very well integrated into the story. The writing style was descriptive and I enjoyed the book being in third person rather than first person, like in Percy Jackson and the Olypians. The book felt really well thought out and it fits really well with the rest of the books in its world. The book had fun small plot twists that I didn’t see coming. You will get attached to the main characters, especially Leo Valdez. I liked how it ended, it wrapped up the story with more to come nicely. The small bit of French in it was easy to understand even if you don’t speak french. Overall, it was a good book and a good start to a series and a wonderful addition to the Percy Jackson world.
I picked The Giver by Lois Lowry because it is on the Skyview Middle School Battle of the Books list. All books from this list have been amazing, and this particular one has a main character with the same name as my brother: Jonas. I enjoyed hearing about their way of life, the simplicity yet complexity of it. I also liked how everyone knew when to apologize, and everything about their life and job. Each job in the Community is given to a person who seems they would enjoy it. However, as the book goes on, you see the compassion of the community, or lack thereof. This book was very surprising to me at first. But it was easy to guess what was going to happen in Chapter 20 after the events of Chapter 19. I do find it a not very relatable book, but it does remind me of history. Seemingly perfect, wealthy, kind countries with dark, gaping holes underneath the pretty exterior. The ending of this book, I feel, is incomplete. Overall, I really enjoyed this book.
(Grade: 7)
Wings focuses on a teenage girl, Laurel, who starts to experience strange magic-like events all during the first few months of her moving and going to a public school. When I saw the book, the hints of magic, romance, and the beautiful cover accompanied by the imagery in the synopsis really caught my attention. I did enjoy the romance aspects of the novel as it showed a wholesomeness of teenage couples and the friendship that led to it. Additionally, I enjoyed seeing Laurel grow more into the role of a strong protagonist by taking risks and learning to love, both herself and others. When reading Wings I found parts of the story to be interesting and adventurous, but kept to the trope of magic faeries and many main plot points were fairly predictable. Even though parts of the book seem to be predictable, I would still recommend it, as it is an interesting take on magic in our world with Laurel developing more as a protagonist throughout.
The final book of The Magicians trilogy follows Quentin back on Earth ready to take on a mission to steal a mysterious suit case along side other magically adept individuals, one being Plum, someone whom he knows from initial months after his expulsion from Fillory. Meanwhile, Eliot and Janet, along with new Fillorian royalty Josh and Poppy, work to save their world from destruction.
I really enjoyed this conclusion to this trilogy. The characters are given more depth (Janet makes her reappearance as an important character), storylines/loose ends from the previous books are solved or explained, and there are more perspectives rather than just Quentin. Seeing the story play out on both Earth and Fillory as they slowly come together near the end was a fun experience that wasn't shown in the other books due to their limited perspective.
The plot following Quentin and Plum was definitely a journey! Seeing the initial set up of the mission, the planning, and the execution and follow-up was deeply engaging. Not only were new things introduced, but it did a great job of creating its own story while connecting to previous storylines and the current plot with Fillory.
The events in Fillory were also fun, though they weren't as much of the story as Earth and didn't involve as much Josh and Poppy as I personally would have wanted. Regardless, this side of the story was also fun.
There were a few surprises that came up that were unexpected, but I'll leave them to you to see if you liked them or not.
Reader's Grade: 11
The average reviews for this book are lower than usual, but it really surprised me. The story felt like a true story and dystopian and fiction all at once, not to mention the plot twist. The setting of an isolated vacation island set the background for a unique storyline between a few families with dark secrets. I enjoyed the main characters' personalities too, though there were some comments they made about homophobia and racism that were kind of weird and sounded like the author didn't do much research about the LGBTQ+ and POC communities. It was very entertaining still, and I would recommend it if you need a suspenseful story to read quickly.
Grade 11
This book had me completely hooked! It almost follows the plot of Beauty and the Beast but in its own world with its own complex characters. Feyre's determination and strength was incredible to see in a female character. Not only is she the main character and heroin but she carries real and deep emotions. In addition to this, I love Tamlin and his court. Sarah J Mass's descriptions are in depth and I felt like I was really in the room experiencing everything as it happened. The end had my head spinning and I could not wait for the next book.
Shadow and Bone contains many complex themes. It held my attention; I couldnt put it down. I fell in love with the characters. They are all complex and maintain that complexity throughout the story. Until the end that is. I was unimpressed with the ending. It felt like Alina went against her own moral code to "win" that final fight. It felt forced and quite frankly, anticlimactic. It just didn't fit.
The second book of The Magicians trilogy continues with Quentin, Julia, Eliot, and Janet as kings and queens of Fillory before a quest throws Quentin and Julia back to Earth, and that quest being a snippet of a bigger problem for all magicians.
I enjoyed this book better than the first one. The world is more fleshed out, the plot is more interesting, and characters are more fleshed out (Quentin remains more or less the same to me, though). The biggest aspect of the book to me is Julia. In the first book, she is rarely shown and when she is, there is zero context on what was going on with her. In this installment, we get to see her backstory and her current character as the book oscillates between the current conflict and Julia's story during the events of The Magicians. Seeing her change and how it affects her (especially at the end of the book) is such a pivotal point of her dynamic with Quentin, as well as a driving force for the plot and world building (remember hedge witches?).
Other characters from the first book make their reappearance, along with some new ones, which bring some new life into the story . However, one character is largely excluded: Janet. While she appears in the beginning, she is left off the majority of the story. While the story doesn't necessarily need her, being a key character in the first book and a queen of the setting of the story, it would have been nice to see her more within the pages.
This a definitely a good edition to the series, and with the ending and some loose ends, I wonder how the final book will tie everything together.
Reader's Grade: 11
This is a book that can be enjoyed by kids and adults alike. I've read it every year since I was in elementary school, and it's a great story about kids standing up to nonsensical adults in a humorous yet adventurous way. Wahoo is an observant, level-headed character who contrasts with his father's personality well. I also love the girl Tuna because she is brave for everyone except herself, which is such an interesting character trope to follow. There's a great message of the negative impacts of media, such as reality television, and finding beauty in unconventional things. It is a quick read that will stick with you for a long time.