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Flipped, by Wendelin Van Draanen

Flipped is about two kids who deal with each other as they’re growing up. Even though they don’t really like each other much when they first meet as little kids, as they get older they start to like each other more and see each other more in school. I drew a line down the middle of the paper and separated it in two because there are two main characters in the book. That’s why there are the names Bryce and Julianna on the two sides. On the Bryce side there is the U-haul van because Bryce’s family moves in to the town in the beginning of the book. There is a tree to represent the tree that Bryce built for Julianna. The school bus is there because Bryce rides it to school every day. The picture of him looking out the window at Julianna planting plants is there because he does it many times in the book and is very important to him. I drew the heart to represent how he eventually likes Julianna. I drew the house to represent the house that Bryce lives in because it is one of the most important elements in the book. The basket is there because Bryce becomes a basket boy and gets to have lunch with the two most popular girls in his grade. On the Julianna side I drew that h-a-t to represent how she spells words for Bryce in school.  I drew the sniff sniff to represent how Julianna sniffs Bryce in class.  I drew the upside down chick to represent how Bryce would always throw away the eggs that she gave him that is also why the eggs are there. I drew the plant to represent her yard and the chicken coop to state where she keeps her chickens. I drew her crying to represent when she gets sad and the tree with her in it to represent how the tree was close to her. I drew the man in the corner to represent her retarded uncle. In the middle I drew the friendship and tolerance to represent the main themes in the book. I drew the quote because it was the most important quote. I thought this book was a good book for anyone who likes realistic fiction. There was some conflict to pull me through, especially with cliffhangers at the end of the chapters to make you want to read the next chapter.

2010 06 01 PatrickD 7th
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Double Helix, by Nancy Werlin

For the outside reading project, I read a book called Double Helix by Nancy Werlin. In the poster that I created, I included two themes that are mystery and confusion. I chose to show mystery because throughout the book, the main character, Eli Samuels endures very secretive moments. He can tell that his father was keeping a lot of information from him but he could not seem to figure out why. Eli had accepted the job at a genetics lab but his father is reluctant to congratulate his son. Whenever Eli tried to ask his father why he should reject the job, he does not answer. For the second theme on my poster I chose confusion because there were many points in the book where Eli was confused about the truth. When his father finally tells him about why the job at the genetics lab is a bad choice, Eli responded with confusion. He was so shocked about the truth that he was instantly confused and perplexed. This confusion continued to occur as the truth unfolded. At the bottom of my poster, I included a quote. “Later that morning, my father drove me to work. He’d asked me if I wanted to take another day off and spend it with him, talking, but I said no. I think we were both a little relieved. It wasn’t that there was no more to say between us. It was that there was almost too much.” (Werlin 206) I chose this quote because it showed the suspense and secrecy that was in the book as each page turned. It shows the friction and tension between Eli and his father. I also added components of a cell, small organisms and double helixes in the background to show that the whole book takes place in a genetics lab.



2010 06 01 Georgia K. 7th
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The Name of This Book is Secret, by Pseudonymous Bosch


I chose to read the book “The Name of This Book is Secret” by Pseudonymous Bosch. The main characters are Cass and Max-Ernest. They are the two kids that start the book and take an adventure throughout the book through places like school, magicians house, and other peoples’ houses. I took a picture of what looks like an old, empty room. It shows a boy in it. I think that represents Max-Ernest looking for the notebook and other interesting, old stuff from the magician’s house. I chose to show a picture of what looks like a plan notebook. This represents the magician’s notebook that Max-Ernest found in the house. I decided to put the quote in the book, because it is what they found in the when they opened the book. That was the code to fine out how to see what was really in the book. Adventurous and bravery are my two themes. I chose adventurous because Cass and Max-Ernest were both very into adventure, and they went through adventure throughout the whole book, like  reading codes nd finding scary people. I chose bravery because both Cass and Max-Ernest were both brave for talking to each other and meeting each other, and were brave enough to stand up to Ms. Mauvais and Dr. L and reading Peitro (the retired magician)’s notebook. I chose to write the two phrases ‘the symphony of smells’ and ‘the secret door’ because they are both major parts of the book. I chose the symphony of smells because it is what starts of Cass and Max-Ernest’s adventure, and i chose the secret door because that is what Max-Ernest found by flushing the toilet in the magician’s house and that is what helps him find the notebook and they were brave enough to stand up to Ms

2010 06 01 Jamaica 7th
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Go Ask Alice, by Anonymous

For my outside reading project, I chose the book Go Ask Alice, and it’s by an anonymous 15 year-old girl. This book is about a girl who went to a party, and her drink was laced with LSD. Months followed and she became addicted, and her life was full of sadness. She ran away, longed for her family, and life-changing problems followed. My quote, “I’ve been on them since July 10, and when I’ve been scared to death to even think of anything that even looks or seems like dope. All the time pretending to myself that I could take or leave it” (Anonymous 96). I chose this quote because it explains when she started drugs and how her life just gets worse, and she must choose to take or them or not. The themes on my poster are drugs, sadness, running away, and life-changes. I chose “drugs” because throughout the book she does drugs, and she becomes addicted to them. I chose “sadness” because while she’s doing drugs, she’s sad and longs for her loving family. I chose “running away” because she runs away about two times, to smoke more drugs and to get away from the happiness of everyone. I chose life-changes because she has to choose between taking drugs and being with family. The setting of this book is not mentioned much, but we do know where she lives is six hours away from San Francisco. The drugs are clearly show, the pack and the cigarette. The teardrop is because she cried a lot through the process. And the stick figure is of her “running” and the lines show she’s running fast.

2010 06 01 BriahnB 7th
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The Sledding Hill, by Chris Crutcher

For my outside reading project I read the book The Sledding Hill, by Chris Crutcher. This book is about a kid named Eddie. Eddie is a kid who’s mind drifts everywhere. If he takes a test, he would forget about the test and start making patterns with the dots he is filling in. Eddie had a tough summer when he walked into two of his loved ones dying. First he found his dad dead from a tire blowing up and then he finds his best friend Billy dead, because Billy accidentally pushed a bunch of sheetrock on himself. So, because of this, Eddie went mute. Eddie loved and hated being mute. He loved not having to explain himself but he hated not being able to explain himself. So Billy, (also the narrator of the book) started to haunt Eddie to get him to talk to someone. At the same time, Eddies mom is starting to get very religious and starts going to church regularly. She starts talking a lot with a man named Reverend Tarter. Reverend Tarter worked at the church and was the English teacher at Eddies school and was very strict. Billy and Eddie were planning to take him down somehow but they never got the chance. So one day Eddie enrolls in a book club. The book that they are is called Warren Peace, by Chris Crutcher (not a real book). When Eddie read the book, he really connected with the people in it, and did not want to give it up when Reverend Tarter tried to ban it from the school. This book took place in Rhode Island and two of the characters that stood out to me were Billy because he showed that he cared about a lot about Eddie, and he was also the narrator of the book. Also Eddie because he was basically the main character and it showed how he grew from being so filled with grief that he could not even get out of bed, to fighting for his rights and standing up for himself. One theme I got from the book was grief because there was a lot of sadness in this book. Another one was connection because Eddie really connected with the book, and he fought for it to be kept at the school as hard as he could. A quote I thought really explained not only the book but life in general was, “It’s human nature to think if you weren’t the person to think of something, it must be dumb.” (Crutcher 41) This was said after Eddie took the test and scored a 30%. Billy’s dad knew something was wrong, so he made Eddie take the test over and this time to try. He score a 95% but the principal did not let them put that score in his grade because she thought he cheated or someone else took it. That is when Billy’s dad said the quote. People that might like this book are people that like grief, overcoming obstacles and a little bit of mystery because of Billy haunting Eddie. Overall I liked the book and thought it was very interesting.

2010 05 30 Matthew F 7th
mystery
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Marcelo in the Real World, by Francisco Stork

For my book, called Marcelo in the Real World by Francisco Stork, I decided to make a poster about the main things that happen throughout the book. My book is about an autistic boy named Marcelo, who attends a school for special children called Paterson. Marcelo can hear noises in his head called an IM, unfortunately Marcelo’s father does not believe this and thinks of it as nonsense. His father will not let himself think of his child as autistic so he tells Marcelo he will not be attending Paterson any longer and forces Marcelo to work at his law firm for the summer to get him prepared for his new high school. Marcelo learns a lot about life at the law firm, he meets a girl he starts to care about, a competitor that shows his real colors, and about some stuff his dad has done that is surprising.

The reason I choose to draw a picture of a city and suburb area that are combined is because in the book Marcelo has to come out of his comfort of the suburb, and go to the real world. Which is the city where Marcelo’s dad works. This is a big change for him but he tries to make the best of it.

The themes I decided to pick are truth and loyalty because while Marcelo is working for his father. He finds out that his dad is working on a big case with a major customer for the firm. His dad turns out to be on the wrong side that Marcelo does not agree with, and his dad has never told him. Marcelo finally has to choose whether to do what’s right and tell the truth or follow his dad’s orders and go to Paterson like he wanted.

The reason I chose my quote was because it shows how scary being in the real world is. Marcelo had to learn that the hard way and made the very best he could do. He tried to follow his heart and in the end made it through.

2010 05 30 Sarah P 7th
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Peak, by Roland Smith

Peak by Roland Smith is a book supported by the themes of perseverance and courage. The story centers around a boy born into the world of climbing named Peak Marcello. The son of an entrepreneur of a company responsible escorting climbers to the tops of mountains globally, Peak took a sudden interest in his parents’ hobby. Eager to climb, but stuck in New York City, he tries scaling a skyscraper, but near the top a helicopter catches him. Under trespassing charges, he is sentenced to serve time as a juvenile delinquent. Luckily, under these circumstances he is eligible to accompany a guardian (his dad) to Nepal and then to Tibet. Without any warning he is informed that his father’s company will take him to the top of Everest to be the youngest person to ever set foot above 29,000 feet. A reporter named Holly will document his journey and hopefully bring attention to the company. Climbing with a boy his age named Sun-jo, the team discovers Sun-jo is a week younger than Peak. Conflicts and tensions arise on the North Face of the tallest mountain of the world. The weather is brutal with raging winds and the blistering cold temperatures of -30 degrees Fahrenheit. A few German climbers die of a lack of oxygen, or HAPE, and rumors spread that the peak is unreachable. With everyone else angered at Peak and his father Josh, a quickly spreading virus, and possible death, success seems impossible. Hundreds of dead bodies lay high up in the death zone, and to prevent that from happening to many of the lives at stake the entire team of about twenty people may be sent back to Base Camp, Peak included. Sun-jo and his grandfather Zopa become extremely ill and death is almost certain. Will Peak climb to the summit? Will Sun-jo and Zopa recover? Will Chinese soldiers catch the illegal Nepalese climbers? These are all questions answered in Roland Smith’s novel Peak.

One quote in Peak that said a lot about the book was Peak and his Josh’s conversation on his flight. After mentioning that they’re on a flight to Kathmandu instead of the expected Thailand, Josh tells him that they’ll be making a couple stops. Peak asks: “What’s the second stop?” His father replies: “Everest.” (Smith 131).

Peak by Roland Smith would be most appealing to mainly boys the ages of 10-15. The action and gripping storyline makes this book hard to put down for any reader, and the low complexity keeps it simple and easy to understand.

2010 05 30 Connor B 7th
adventure
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Saving Zoë, by Alyson Noël

Saving Zoë is a novel written by Alyson Noël. In this book, there is romance, friendship, and mystery, all combined into one compelling publication. Saving Zoë is about a high school girl following in her older sister’s footsteps, when one day her sister is killed unexpectedly. This book takes place in a small, drab town, which is filled with unusual incidents for a modest city. The main character, Echo, is the younger sister of Zoë. Zoë is probably the nicest and most outgoing person Echo has ever met, and she has always wanted to be like her. After Zoë’s boyfriend gives Echo a journal Zoë had kept all her life, Echo discovers much more about her sister’s life. Early on in the book, Echo says, “I actually saw more of her after her disappearance than I did when she lived down the hall.” (Noël 4.) After living with her all her life, Echo finds that the journal is the only way of keeping Zoë alive, and begins to act like her. But just like many other morals of stories, Echo discovers that the best she can do is to be herself, and does this in a complicated, sequence of events.

In this book, one character that really stood out to me was Marc, Zoë’s boyfriend. Though he made some mistakes, from having to see an anger management counselor to see to his problems, to getting mixed up with Echo, he eventually saw his wrongs. After he realized this, he tried to make amends with the people he had hurt, and tried to protect Echo and her friends from harmful people. For example, Jason was a creep who videotaped people with him after getting them drunk. He warned Echo about him, and he pleaded to her not to ever hang out with him. Echo then told this knowledge to Teresa. Teresa ignored this information, and went over to Jason’s house, only to find videos lined up in his room with girls’ names on it, and cameras surrounding the bed. Echo had been planning to go with Teresa, but because of Marc’s watchful eyes, stayed out of harm’s way. Another character who stood out to me was Echo’s friend, Abby. Abby was one of Echo’s best friends, and always helped her no matter what. As the book progressed, Echo was having a harder and harder time dealing with life, but Abby assisted her through it all, and gave her advice about everything, from behavior around people, to boys. Echo always called Abby up for help, and Abby always picked up the phone to help. I would strongly recommend this book to readers who are willing to stay up late into the night, trying to find out what happens next. It is a wonderful read, and people looking for a book that will keep them on the edge of their seats the entire time must read Saving Zoë.

2010 05 30 alyssa B 7th
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Just Like That, by Marsha Qualey

It is hard keeping secrets. In Just Like That, by Marsha Qualey, the main character, Hanna, goes to a lake at night. It  is really cold in Minnesota. At the lake she sees two people, about her age, on a snow mobile and they are really loud,happy, and crazy. The lake is frozen but the ice is thin. The next day Hanna hears on the news that the two people she saw at the lake drowned and froze in the lake. Hanna was the last person that talked to them so she blames herself for their death. She thinks she could have warned them. She does not want to tell anyone that she was the last person to talk to them because she feels that she was selfish. She feels that because her boyfriend and her broke up and she thinks she did not warn them because she was jealous. Hanna goes to the memorial spot and she sees a person in a yellow hat there. She draws many pictures of him and posts them on the internet. The boy in the yellow hat’s mom finds the pictures and Will (the boy in the yellow hat) l goes to find Hanna. They end up really liking each other but then Hanna figures out Will is hiding some secrets of his own. One of Will’s secrets is connected to her secret.

A theme in the book is trust. Hanna has to trust Will and many other people with her secret. Will has to trust her with his secret to. Another theme in the book is friendship. In the book Hanna and Will become really great friends. Hanna shows that you need friends so you have someone to talk to when you are stressed out about things. The book also shows that you need friends to help keep you from doing stupid things like going out on the lake when the ice is thin.

A character that stood out to me was Will. He stood out to me because one of his secrets was pretty big and it could effect his friend Hanna. I was surprised that he still kept his secret and I thought it was kind of selfish. Although he should some selfish traits he also showed that he could really care about people. He stood up for Hanna and shared one of his secrets to a person so that Hanna would not have to share her secret. He barely knew her when he did it. I thought it was really kind to do it in general but especially  for someone who was basically a stranger. Another character that stood out to me was Aerin (Will’s sister). She became really close friends with Hanna also. She really cared about her brother. She was in a band but then all of her friends in the band with her died in a car crash. She was the only one to survive. I think that she is determine to do things right when she does them. She worked really hard to be happy again after the accident where all of her friends died. She cares about people she is close to now because she knows what it feels like to lose a lot of the people she cared about.

A quote that represents the book well is “life is short, death is forever” (Qualey) and “I like that feeling that anything,anything could happen” (Qualey). These quotes represent the book to me because a lot of people died or die in it. Hanna only knew the two teenagers for a couple minutes but she felt like she knew them forever. Aerin wished it was the opposite so she could be with her friends forever. The second quote describes the book because in the book Aerin and Hanna both wished that their friends had not died and they wished that they could just come back to life. I would not recommend this book to people that like action, funny, or scary books.

2010 05 30 Camip 7th
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The Book Thief, by Markus Zusak

This book gives readers a detailed perspective of what it is like to be in Germany during World War II. Readers who like books with suspense and historical fiction will like this book and will be glued page by page. The Book Thief is about a girl named Liesel Meminger. At an early age Liesel during World War II loses her brother. During his funeral her life is changed when she picks up a book in the snow called The Grave Digger’s Handbook. After her brother’s death Liesel can no longer be taken care of by her mother so she is given away. She then moves in with her foster parents on Himmel Street in Munich Germany.  During her life on Himmel Street she makes an inseparable friendship with a boy. She learns to enjoy the simple things like street soccer. But most importantly she is taught to read by her foster father and soon falls in love with books and understands the power of words.

Soon she is stealing books from the mayor’s wife’s library, Nazi book-burnings, and other places where she finds books. But there is still one crucial fact: she is living during hard times. Especially when her foster family hides a Jew in their basement. If they get caught hiding a Jew they could all die or get taken away to a camp. This is a life changing experience for Liesel as she is constantly scared when Nazi’s search houses, during air raids, and people the thought that people could find out about the Jew hidden in her house. Through out her experiences she is given the nickname “book thief.” Her friend Rudy gives this nickname to her. Liesel and Rudy both rely on each other through thick and thin. Through the narrating of death it is a happy and tragic story. This was an intense book.

2010 05 30 Austin T. 7th
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