notes from an Accidental Band Geek by Erin Dionne

Try our slideshow creator at Animoto.

The Seer of Shadows by Avi

Though Horace works for a swindling photographer, he sees something in the photographs that is more than the fake ghosts his employer adds to the images. He sees real ghosts in the photographs, and one in particular is becoming more real, every time the take another photograph. Her name is Eleanora and she is the abused and mistreated child of a well to do family. Along with the help of their servant girl Peg, Horace tries to unravel the reasons why Eleanora wants to come back to the world of the living. But they will also find what she is capable of doing once she gets there.

This is a well written ghost story for all ages. It takes place in 1872 New York City and you can feel the time period as you go through the pages. Interesting detail is paid to the early process of photography and development of the images. This allows the reader to become one with the story and you literally feel as though you are a part of the action; urging Horace on to find the answers he needs.

- Mrs. Daugherty

The Power of Six by Pittacus Lore

So I have to admit, that ever since I read I Am Number Four, I have been dying to find out more about the other Lorien Nine. This book did not let me down. It catches up with John, Sam, and Six after they left Paradise and are out on the run. Obviously there is some kind of government cover up to explain why the authorities are looking for them so they are labeled as 'terrorists'. I know; a great big thank you for saving the world but hey... that's how it goes right?

The book also brings in a new character Marina who is located in a convent in Spain. She has lacked the training that Six and John got growing up but she is aware that she is finally getting her legacies. Her problem is her cepian, Adelina, would rather ignore her duties to Marina and instead live the docile life of a nun. But Marina cannot go unnoticed forever, and eventually they are going to have to work together if they are going to survive.

This book had more of a split personality going back and forth between John and Marina but the flow worked for the book. The author found just the right times to shift to the other character in order to keep the tension high through out the book. It was a great read and I can't wait for the rest to come.

 - Mrs. Daugherty

2012 Caudill Nominee - Every Soul A Star (Student Review)

EVERY SOUL A STAR

BY Wendy Mass

Characters

 Ally: a girl who loves the nature and the simple things in life; she loves the stars and being in the middle of nowhere.

Bree: loves shopping texting and drama, this popular girl loves the city and cant dream of what being in the middle of nowhere is like, and doesn’t want to know.

Jack: used to being left alone in his own little world , loves to “fly” and is a little overweight and awkward, Jack ends up finding himself in situations he would never have fathom Bree has plans to become a model, and Ally wants to discover a comet. 

These girls love their opposite lives and didn’t know any other way of life or even each other, but they will soon.

As both their parents decide its time for a change they are so busy getting ready they delay telling the kids. Bree’s parents set her down too days before the move to give her the news and as expected she flipped and was rebellious. She tried to get her mom to let her live with her best friend Claire, and her mother disagreed.

One night Jack was up in his tree house and his mother called his name, he thought he was in trouble so he jumped off the tree house and ran inside. As he walked through the door his mom handed him the phone. In the next thirty minutes he and his mom were packing his clothes and necessity’s for a two week trip with his science teacher to a solar eclipse campground. If he did this he would not have to go to summer school.

As Bree and her family arrive at the campground Ally is in for a shock. Ally’s parents had been too busy preparing the campgrounds to tell ally and her brother about the move. So when Bree’s family shows up and ask where they shut locate all the boxes they could bring along. Once the news is out both girls decide one thing: this isn’t happening! So now they have a plan to keep their lives from dramatically changing. Will their plan work? Will Jack learn to actually like the campground? You’ll have to read to find out! I like this book because its from three different point of views and ins not for just boys or girls, its for both! I hope you read and enjoy it!

 

- Hannah (8th Grade)

2012 Caudill Nominee - The Girl Who Threw Butterflies (Student Review)

The Girl Who Threw Butterflies

Molly Williams is your average 8^th grade girl, but she’s so confused! Her father, whom she’s very close with, just died in a mysterious, one car-car crash and nobody’s sure how. For some unknown reason, Molly joins the baseball team, the boy’s baseball team. She hopes to make it with a complicated and rare pitch that her father taught her when she was little. It has many different names, the butterfly, the knuckler, but the most common name for it is: the knuckleball. Now Molly has to figure things out in just one season! How will the boys take her? How can she coax her mother out of this sad shell she’s hiding in? How will Molly stay sane?

            I would rate this book 4 out of 5 because the characters are real and believable and you really love them, but the pace was just a little slow for my liking. Other tan that kids will absolutely love this novel, the story line is interesting and it’s a story for both boys and girls. I would recommend this for grades 6 and up, there’s no cussing or violence. It’s really a family friendly story! Enjoy! 

Kenzie (8th Grade)

2012 Caudill Nominee - All the Broken Pieces by Ann E. Burg (Student Review)

ALL THE BROKEN PIECES

A NOVEL IN VERSE BY:

Ann E. Burg

This story is about a boy named Matt Pin that has been air lifted out of Vietnam.  He is now haunted by bombs, by the family, and the terrible secret he left behind. Matt’s dad loves baseball and Matt has a wicked arm and tries out for the baseball team and becomes the pitcher. Matt eventually goes and meets veteran soldiers and one of them even becomes his baseball coach.

Overall the book was good. I thought she added a nice ending and it was my favorite part of the book. I would recommend this book to anyone that likes books in verse and even if you haven’t read one before.  I would recommend trying it out.

- Chelsey (8th Grade)

2012 Caudill Award Nominee - Peak by Roland Smith (Student Review)

Main characters:

          Peak- a 15 year-old boy who gets in trouble and is made to move to Thailand with his absent father.

          Joshua Wood- Peaks famous father who is a very selfish person.

          Peak’s Mom- Also a mountain climber until she had Peak, and fell off of a wall and broke her hip.

          Peak’s twin sisters- they share an important part as much as Peak and also send him letter while he is at camp.

          Thaddeus- Josh’s business partner/lawyer

          Holly- A New York reporter who films Peak and interviews him while on the mountain.

          Zopa- A Nepalenese monk that Josh owes a favor to.         

          Sanjo- Zopa’s grand son who comes along for the journey.

          Peak is an action/adventure/drama story. It is about a boy named Peak, who gets in trouble in his hometown of New York for tagging skyscrapers. When he goes to court, he is made to go live with his dad, who happens to be a famous mountain climber. He sees his son for the first time in 13 years when he comes to live with him. They have to live together in Chang Mai in northern Thailand. Peak later discovers that Josh’s (his father) real plan was not to spend time together but, to get Peak to the top of Mount Everest before his sixteenth birthday. If he makes it, Peak will then be the youngest person in the world to climb Mount Everest.

          All of the characters were credible and you believed you were there, with them.  You can actually feel like your on the mountain with Peak and his Father.

- Alexis (8th Grade)