BUGS

there is a ANT in my ear

"Monster" by Walter Dean Myers(Manny Lorenzo)

In the novel Monster, Walter Dean Myers creates an intense story of a 16 year old male named Steve Harmon on trial for murder. Throughout the realistic fiction, Steve Harmon writes in a journal of his experience as a prisoner. This is his movie that he has created of what he has seen, heard, and felt emotionally in prison. In the journal he talks about how jail was something that he wanted to escape but knew if he was found guilty everything would change. As you go deeper and deeper into the book, you discover what happened in the drugstore the day Mr. Nesbitt was killed. Steve knows he had nothing to do with the murder but the prosecution will do everything in their power to make Steve look like a MONSTER! In the book you'll find a few other characters also accused of being involved in the murder of Mr. Nesbitt. These characters are also worried for their verdicts but never as worried as Steve. This is because Steve knows that he will lose what he has left of his childhood and will potentially never get out. Steve is scared and his family is scared too. During the time of the case there are multiple situations in which Steve cries and no one is really completely there for him. You can imagine what this must've been like for a teen going through something of this magnitude. On top of that there are many times during the case where Steve has felt that the case was heading in the wrong direction for him. Toward the end of the book you begin to realize that the case can go in any direction and not the way Steve wants things to turn out. More and more things will be discovered and the only thing Steve can do is sit  and hope for the best. Steve's life is on the line. Will the defense's reason to protect Steve be strong enough or will the prosecution throw away the rest of his life and lock him up?

I rate this book 4.5/5.

The Pact by Drs. Sampson Davis, Rameck Hunt, and George Jenkins JC 7/25/11 Power –Literacy Design a questionnaire.

JC DID THIS

"Ender's Game" By: Orson Scott Card (Alex Perez)

The book Ender's Game is a science fictional book about a seven year old boy named Ender Wiggin, who lives on earth, (doesn't say exactly where though), and he lives with his mom, dad, a sister named Valentine, and an evil brother named Peter. Ender is the youngest of the three siblings. Ender while growing up had a monitor on his neck that protected him whenever he was in danger or about to get hurt from someone. Until one day, he has it removed, so he's on his own. He gets bullied and picked on at school, and he decides to fight back on each person who picks on him, but he unintentionally harms them severely. One day a man in a suit named Graff goes to Ender's house to tell him that he has to go to Space Battle School, until he is sixteen, no vacations, and no visitors. Ender has too since he's a "third" which is the third child of the family, meaning he is qualified to go. Ender decides he wants to go, he says his goodbyes and leaves without packing anything. Ender goes on a zero gravity ship ride to space, and while on the ride he injures yet another kid. Once he's in space camp he is assigned to a cabin with other kids. There he makes new friends, new enemies, and learns more about being a Space Soldier. I would recommend this book to anyone who likes cool science fiction stories.


I Give This Book 4 out of 5 Stars

In Side Delta Force by Eric L. Haney

The book Inside Delta Force is about the United States counter terrorist unit. The book is told from a first person omniscient point of view through the eyes of the main character Eric Haney, one of the founding members of Delta force. The book begins in the selection course where the best of the best of every branch of service comes to eventually be whittled down from 161 to 18 people. I would recommend this book to every one and any one  who loves a good read with great description. I would rate this book a 5/5 because it has enough detail that you can envision what the selection course feels like and what the environment looks like. The reader can also experience how Eric feels while he goes through the course.

Date completed 22nd of July
Number of pages 400
Rating 5/5
Posted by Andres M. Crespo

The Battle of Jericho

Review of The Battle of Jericho, 337 pages, by Sharon M. Draper
By: Portia M. Brummitt

The young adult novel The Battle Of Jericho was a great book! I personally don't enjoy reading books on my free time, but this book was interesting, engaging, and easy to relate to. I highly recommend this book to all young adults of any background who understand how it feels to want to be accepted. This book is about an overweight boy named Jericho who also is an extraordinary trumpet player. He is in his sophomore year in high school and he has met the girl of his dreams, Arielle. He has a cousin named Josh and a close friend name Kofi that are always at his side. They look up to this group of guys called The Worriors of Distinction which is a Brotherhood at his school who are seen as Heroes. When Jericho, Josh, and Kofi are asked to participate in a toy drive for the neighborhood by them, Jericho feels things are starting to get better for him.  Any person asked to pledge to become a Warrior of Distinction is very fortunate. Jericho, his friend, and cousin were the fortunate ones to be asked to pledge. In order to become a warrior, they must compete in extreme pledge activities for the entire last week of January. Jericho believes becoming a warrior, will make him a better person in his mind. But his heart is for trumpet playing and he wants to compete in the citywide instrumental competition which is also on the  Thursday of the last week of Januay.  He would get a scholarship to Juliard if he competes. At the same time, he can not miss one activity day of pledging or he will automatically lose his opportunities of becoming a Warrior of Distinction. So Jericho must make a decision whether he wants to go to college, or become a Warrior of Distinction. Which would you chose?

I would rate this book a 4 out of 5 stars.

The Hunger Games. Suzanne Collins.

The Hunger Games takes place in the not too distant future when North America is divided into 12 districts. The children between twelve and eighteen, one boy and one girl from ever district were sent called to Panem, the capital at the time, so that they could have a fight to the death for the entertainment of the groher. In the book the author writes by giving suspense and also making you think you know a lot and you couldn't know any more before you realize you don't everything.I was surprised to find out that the main character was a girl and that she was sixteen years old and also that she lived in this time. i would recommend reading this book only if you are interested in sci-fi and also adventure. =

Leviathan-by Scott Westerfeild

Leviathan--another great book is Leviathan. it is incredibly exciting and it is a wonderful work of Steampunk writing. For those who don't know, Steampunk is a sub-genre of science fiction, alternate history, and speculative fiction that came into prominence during the 1980s and early 1990s. Steampunk involves a setting where steam power is still widely used—usually the Victorian era in Britain—that incorporates elements of either science fiction or fantasy. Works of steampunk often feature anachronistic technology or futuristic innovations as Victorians may have envisioned them. This was based on a Victorian perspective on fashion, culture, architectural style, art, etc. The story is about an Austrio-Hungary prince named Alek Whose people have exiled him. Germans kill his parents and with only five people still loyal to him, his fencing teacher,
the master of mechaniks and the gunners of a storm walker war machine, he has to stop a war. Meanwhile, aboard the famous British airship, the Leviathan, a girl named Deryn Sharp is pretending to be a boy in order to serve in his Majesty's air service. A battle in the air will bring the two together. I would recommend this book to anyone who likes thinking about making things work, such as machines and    alternative history. I give this book 5 out of 5 stars. Review by Eamon Keefer-McGee. Date completed July 5, 2011. Started on July 4, 2011.

Perfect by Sara Shepard

The book Perfect by Sara Shepard is the third book out of the Pretty Little Liars Series. The first two books are important so it would be hard to pick up the plot and characters in Perfect. Four girls named Spencer, Aria, Hanna, and Emily were friends with Ali DiLaurentis who suddenly disappears. Each girl gets threatening messages from this mysterious person named 'A' revealing their own secrets. Every chapter goes by character and has a cliff hanger until the next chapter is about them.  For those out there who like realistic fiction but don't really like long books, I still recommend it for you because the cliff hangers make the book a very fast read. I really like how the author puts a lot of suspense on each character and you can really picture what is going on. However, some points of the book move really slow and sometimes the chapter ends at a bad time. I would rate this 298 page book 5 out of 5 stars because the plot is very good and it is easy to read.

Erin Frederick
Finished Perfect by July 21
Perfect
Sara Shepard
298 pages
5/5 stars

Makes Me Wanna Holler by Nathan McCall

Makes Me Wanna Holler is about a young  black man named Nathan who is 15 years old. He's a really smart kid that lives in a poor  nieghborhood with his family. Both his mom and dad have jobs to try and support the family. In this book Nathan is a bad 15 year old who hangs with the wrong people durring school hours. He steals a gun and is about to be a criminal because nobody knows he has a gun until 5 years later. Eventually he goes to prison for having a gun on him. Before Nathan gets caught he graduates from high school and his girlfriend Liz gets a job at Robert  Hall Villiage to help support Nathan's family and herself. This store is new and just opened near Cavalier Manor. Once he comes out of jail he plans to get married to Liz and have children to start his own family.

I would recommend  this book to people because it is very instresting, but I alslo wouldn't recommend it because it's too slow.

Date of review: 7/25/11
416 pg
*** out of 5 stars
Tonnis James

The Greatest By Bruce Phok

The book that I finished is called The Greatest by Walter Dean Myers. The genre is non-fiction, and is about a famous boxer name Muhammad Ali who fights to become the heavy weight champion. The book is all about Muhammad Ali's fights and his poems that he writes. One thing that kept me reading is because as you keep reading the fight that hes in you would want to know the ending if he wins or loses. one reason why I dislike this book is because the book ends kind of with a fight. Another reason why I dislike this book is because it is really confusing. When you finished a chapter it goes back to another fight. I gave this book 3.5 out of 5 stars because this book is not great but not bad. Another reason is beacuse its too short 160 pages.


By: Bruce Phok

Dear John by Nicholas Sparks

Dear John by Nicholas Sparks

Dear John is set in North Carolina where John Tyree grew up. The book starts in 2000 when John is talking about his strained relationship with his father, Bill Tyree. His father only talks to John about his coin collection. When John enters his teenage years and high school, he gets into a fight with his dad about how his dad never talks about anything other thing other than the coins. As soon as the fight is over John doesn’t talk to his father. John starts to get into the wrong crowd of people and becomes involved with alcohol and lets his grades fall dramatically. After high school, John enlists into the army and on his first leave he meets Savannah Lynn Curtis and Nicholas Sparks describes their relationship. When John is in Iraq, Savannah writes him, and this is how John falls in love even more with Savannah. However, don’t think this is a happy love story, it has its own twist to it.  

I completely fell in love with this book! Sparks wrote the book in such a moving way, that after reading the book I felt inspired. I could feel how John and Savannah felt every moment of their relationship and I completely admire how Sparks describes the time the couple spent with each other. The one part of the book that I dislike is that Sparks doesn’t reveal anything about Savannah’s perspective on what’s going on in the book. It’s only written in John’s point of view. I strongly recommend this 176 page novel for anyone who likes a romantic tragedy.

Hannah Natowitz
Pages: 176
5/5 stars 

Go Ask Alice, by unknown

The non-fiction book I read was called Go Ask Alice. It was an extraordinary book. This book is written as a diary by a 15 year old girl named Alice. Alice was a wonderful young girl until she was given LCD unknowingly at a high school party. This changed her life completely. After Alice tried LCD she became addicted to drugs and was eager to try other drugs such has speed, marijuana, and heroin. After a few weeks Alice began to realize drugs only meant trouble, so she wanted to leave her neighborhood, and lucky for her so did her parents. They moved to a different location. As Alice made new friends in her new neighborhood she got a boyfriend named Richie, and he introduced her to a drug called speed. But one day she deiced to runaway because she walked in to her boyfriend having sex with another man. Her and her friend Chris ran way to San Fransisco. There Alice opened a mini shop and Chris got hired a high class store. Chris became very close to the boss, it wasn't explained very well about how Chris became very close to her boss. Then one day Chris and Alice got invited to Chris's bosses house for a party. Alice and Chris were very excited but they didn't know what was going to happen to them. at the party Chris many people came both male and females. and there Chris and Alice were introduced to heroin. they loved the feeling they got from it and they kept going back to Chris's boss house to get more. but while they were using heroin at Chris's bosses house Chris and Alice were getting raped by the men that were there. Chris and Alice found this out a few weeks after they ran away to San Fransisco. A few days before Christmas Alice and Chris decide to go home for the holiday and they there. Alice stopped drugs but occasionally still used them.




   I finished this book yet on July 24th, 2011. it is 215 pages. I would give this book 4stars out of 5stars. I certainly recommend this book because it shows what is in our world, how it effects people and it's a great read.

And if you want to check out the first few minutes of the movie check out this link


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V_FqQ38DUaU


Reviewed by Nathaniel Bekele

The Battle of Jericho

6/1/11 competed two days after started The Battle of Jericho
Sharon M. Draper
337 pages
3 and 3/4 star for book in five star rating

The Battle of Jericho is about a boy named Jericho who wants to join a The Warrior's of Distinction club because everyone wears really awesome shirts from being in 13 clubs and treated like bad people. The boy is shy and nervous. The book is pretty intense and has a back breaking pace. It has great tests that Jericho has to face. Jericho has to choose about how much he will do in order to look like a cool kid, wear a jacket, and have the love of the hotest girl in school. "will she love me for not being cool." The details are incredible.  Will the stuff he wants make him work for  things that might change his life not to metion might kill him.

ZED MZHC

Just Listen by Sarah Dessen

Thalia Morales

July 24, 2011
371 pages
Rating: Four out of Five stars
Just Listen is a book about a girl named Annabel Greene and her life as a commercial TV star. You would think that her life outside of commercials was perfect but it is not.  At school she is called names and made fun of by her ex best friend Sophie. She is also an outsider because she is no longer friends with anyone at school because of a mysterious incident during the summer. Her sister Whitney has an eating disorder that made her move back home with the family. Annabel can no longer talk to her family about her problems because she is scared of what they would say.  After a few weeks at school she meets a boy named Owen Armstrong that has anger management problems and is obsessed with music. Annabel starts to have a close relationship with Owen making her perspective on life change dramatically. This book is a quick, intriguing read and anyone would enjoy it.

700 Sundays by Billy Crystal

Ollie Costolloe
7/21/11
700 Sundays
Billy Crystal
182 pages
4 out of 5 stars
700 Sunday is a non-fictional autobiography by Billy Crystal. It has 182 pages and isnt about how he became an actor, but his whole life in general, which surprisingly doesnt talk about his acting career very much. One of the main things that happens in the book is when his dad dies. Billy Crystal was 15 when his dad died. Becasue of his dads two jobs, he usually only got to see his dad once a week on sundays. After his dad died, he calculated how many sundays he spent with him and he only spent around 700 with him. He talks about how he and his family reacted to the death and how it affected them. This book is all about Billy Crystals life from march 14, 1948 to now. I would rate this book 4 out of 5 starts because it is always talking about something new and is very interesting. You'll learn everything from his baseball and basketball high school days, to when he graduated college, to when he first started acting. It is a very interesting book and I would suggest this autobiography to anyone that is interesting in learning about a funnmy, interesting mans life.

 

Wanted, by Caroline B.Cooney

Reviewer: Dawaun Hardy
Date Completed Book: July 19,2011
Book Tittle: Wanted
Author: Caroline B. Cooney
Number of Pages: 272
Rating: *****
Wanted is a mystery about a teenage girl named Alice who is not perfect but does the right thing every time. Alice has this great life but her parents are divorced, so she lives with her dad who works as a business man and keeps secrets safe which is very important. The main plot in the book is that Alice's dad was murdered and the killer sent a false email to her mom confessing that Alice did so. After speaking to her mom, Alice's mom tells her that she doesn't believe her and that she believes that she killed her own father. Now Alice has no one to trust and the police are after her and so is the real murderer. It's only a matter of time until someone finds her....

My reaction to the plot makes me want to continue reading because the suspense gives me (and I know it will to other readers) the urge to find out what happens next. In this book, Alice comes across mall security, college girls, elementary kids and just plain strangers. My reaction to the author's writing style is unique in a way that makes the reader want to think to him or herself "wow I wonder." Caroline' s writing style is that she doesn't give too much information, she gives just enough for the reader to capture and most of the time visualize the plot setting and even main characters. I recommend it to all who love to read, especially books based on mystery. I give this book five stars because mainly of it's beginning, middle, and end, this book is one that makes people want to read it constantly.
Reviewer: Dawaun Hardy

Fab Five, Mitch Albom

 
The Fab Five, by Mitch Albom is a 359 page book. It is a non-fiction biography about the whole adventure of the Fab Five. The book includes the recruiting process for Chris Webber, Jalen Rose, Juwan Howard, Jimmy King and Ray Jackson in depth, and doesn't leave out any information about the recruiting process. Mitch also evaluates the whole basketball season and the ups and downs of the Fab Five emotions. Their baggy shorts, trash talking and cockiness that they had acquired from there lifestyle brought a lot of criticism upon them which is very entertaining to read. They got criticized by the media, Michigan alumni. They said    that they acted like babies. Lastly, Albom studies the very controversial time-out that Chris Webber used in the NCAA championship, which resulted in a loss against North Carolina. The time-out is a very debatable topic and is analyzed very well by Mitch Albom.His writing style is very likable because it is very detailed and straight forward, which allows you to understand what is going on at all times. But, sometimes he puts in to many details which can make the book a little slow. I would recommend this book to any basketball lover over the age of 14. I would give this book 4 out of 5 stars because the adventure that the Fab Five went through is very interesting and entertaining. It is very hard to put down and always has something interesting going on. Also, ESPN made a documentary on the Fab Five. The trailer is at the top.
Finished: July 2011
By: Jack Moyer

The Running Man, by Stephen King

The Running Man, by Stephen King  is a Science Fiction book about Benjamin Richards, a poor man that enter a game show called the Running Man for his family in the year 2025. He needs to survive for 30 days to get 1 billion new dollars, but hunters will attempt to kill him. Not just the hunters are after him he will be attack by normal civilian  that would get 1000 new dollars for killing him. He will people who will kill him and help him.Will he survive the 30 days or get kill by the hunters?

Benjamin Richards is a difficult character to understand. He cares about his family but he would kill other people if they try killing him. He is a very intelligent character that is able out smart the hunters but has good social skill that helps him change people's opinion of him. He is portrayed as a bad person on the show but the people who meet him change their opinion and think that the program is the one at fault. This book is 317 pages.The start is slow but by page 50 it starts picking up and the reader would get hook on and not stop reading. Stephen King write in great detail about the character and the setting. It is easy to picture. Even the simplest things like him sleeping, he made it more interesting and make the writing stick in the readers mind. The book was interesting to read about a game show that has a goal to kill people that made the viewers play in it.  This plot is unique. It gets more intense every page that goes by.

I would recommend this book who enjoy science fiction or someone who like reading a well written book. The reader should be a teenager or older. I enjoyed this book and I do not usually like science fiction but this book made me like it. I could never give this book less than 5 out of 5 stars.
Reviewed by Gavin Hui
Finished July 18, 2011

LET'S ROLL!, Lisa Beamer

"Lets Roll!" by Lisa Beamer reveals information about her struggle to live without her husband, Todd Beamer who gave his life to save the white house on Tuesday, September 11, 2001.In the book, she talks candidly about the history of his parents, his childhood, school years up to their very first date together, their marriage, and their last family vacation all together. Lisa shares her and their three boys emotions also after the loss of her husband and father and how she found the confidence to go on in the face of sadness and loss. Its a non-fiction biography that is 317 pages long and I finished the book on July 21 2011.

A Child Called "It"

Samantha Hew

Date Completed: 7/7/11

Author: Dave Pelzer

Pages:206

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

A Child Called "It" is about a boy that has been going through child abuse from the age of 8. Dave, the victim, would be badly beaten by his alcoholic mother everyday for no reason. His father tries to help Dave by giving him food and warmth, but every time he does he gets yelled at by the mother. Dave would live in the basement and have to wear torn clothes everyday to school.  When you start reading this book you will already feel bad for Dave. I would recommend this book for strictly teens and adults. The genre is realistic fiction, it was based in California and was published in 1995.

Played

Sherly Estime
Date Completed: 7/11/11
Author: Dana Davidson
Number of Pages: 234
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Played is a realistic fiction book about an 11th grade boy named Ian who wants to get into a popular group in his school, called FBI.  To get into FBI he has to do numerous challenges.   One of those challenges is to get a girl that a boy like him doesn't usually go for to have sex with him.  He only has three weeks. The girl happens to be Kylie.  In the beginning the challenge is easy but as Ian goes along he starts falling for her.  The question is, is he willing to follow his heart and  give up the group for Kylie or finally get into the group, but end up hurting the girl he really likes.  I recommend this book for teens over 14 and up who enjoy reading books with drama, but with a  romantic twist.

If I Stay

 Book Title: If I Stay
Author: Gayle Forman
Page Numbers: 339
Book Review By: Raven S. Brathwaite
Date completed: 7/9/11


What if you had the chance to choose to stay on earth or leave it behind, do you know what you would decide? In If I Stay, by Gayle Forman, main character Mia has to make that difficult decision after a fatal car accident that killed the rest of her family.  With the help of her boyfriend Adam, Mia will have to choose to stay, or leave her life behind.

I thought that this book was a perfect 10 from cover to cover! Gayle Forman wrote this book so that you're in the mind of the unconscious main character, Mia. While reading this book I wanted to make the decisions for Mia, because of the heartfelt love story of Mia and her boyfriend Adam. This is a compelling love story for young adults. I definitely recommend this book for someone who is looking for a  good non-sappy love story. 

Letters to a Young Sister

Letters to a Young Sister by Hill Harper is a series of letters from Hill Harper himself and a girl he is mentoring. Throughout the book he gives her advice on her self-esteem and life in general connecting to being a young African American woman. When he gives his young sister advice, he has a unique way of doing it. Because Hill Harper is a male, you may be thinking who is he to give girls advice? Well, because Hill Harper is not only a very talented writer, but he is an actor as well. He knows many famous people, such as, Gabrielle Union (actress), Ciara (singer), Alfre Woodard (actress), Eve (actress/rapper) and many more. I really recommend this book to girls that are in high school or in middle school. This book has taught me so much about the decisions I will make as I get older and how to love myself as a person. This was not corny at all, but Harper was real in the way he wrote and meant everything he said. This book is a page turner and you should definitely read it. Out of five stars I would give this book a 5.


-Taylor James
pages: 278
finshed book: 7/22/11

Letters to a Young Sister Define your Destiny by Hill Harper

Date I completed book: 7/21/11
# of pages: 276
Rating: five stars


The genre of Letters to a Young Sister Define your Destiny would be non-fiction. This book is so phenomenal I couldn't believe that Hill Harper from CSI: NY made a book about young teens and their social life, love life , friends and family. I loved that Hill Harper told all the young sisters that wrote the letter a perspective from a guys point of view. 


Alayjah Flores

Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins

Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins is the final book of The Hunger Games. Compared to the first book it's not as well written. The description in all three books are very detailed. Between the 3 books the story line of number 3 doesn't compared to the first book. The second book is not as good as the 3rd one. Even though the 3rd book is not a well written as the firs I enjoyed the 3rd one a lot. It got very exciting towards the end. I do not recommend this book to anyone below the age of 12. The deaths and the feeling of the book is very dark and depressing and not appropriate for children under the age of 12. Over all the book was good and I recommend reading the other two books before this one.


*Out of five stars i give it four 
*There are 400 pages 
-Spikey

Lola, A Ghost Story, By: J. Torres and Elbert OR

The main character in this book is very strange and frightened to go back to what his family calls home. The main character, Jesse goes to Philippines to go to his grandmother's funeral. During his stay there he learns some interesting stories about his grandmother. He faces some scary experiences.
This book is so vivid because the drawings tell the reader how terrifying the story is. This book is only 102 pages, which makes it a good quick read.

I rate this story 5 stars out of 5. 
I completed this book on 7/1/11


By: Jessica Fang ;)

The Battle Of Jericho

The Battle of Jericho By Sharon M. Draper is the story of an over-weight high school boy with amazing talents for playing the trumpet, who is pledged to be in the fraternity, Warriors Of Distinction. This is a big achievement for Jericho because one, Being a warrior of distinction puts him higher in the food chain, two, Jericho's family would be proud, and third, the girl of his dreams, Arielle, would love him forever. Jericho struggles to make the decision between being a Warrior Of Distinction or pursuing his trumpet career. The Battle of Jericho is both intriguing and keeps you guessing. By the end of the story you are completely surprised and shocked at the outcome.

Rating: 4 Of 5 Stars 

Number Of Pages: 337

Date Finished: Friday July 15, 2011

The Pact by Drs. Sampson Davis, George Jenkins, and Rameck Hunt

Jhayr (JC) Castillo
7/22/11
The Pact by Dr Sampson Davis, George Jenkins, and Rameck Hunt
254 pages
5 out of 5

For my outside reading book, I read The Pact by Drs. Sampson Davis, George Jenkins, and Rameck Hunt. This book focuses on three real life people and their lives growing up in troubled projects and neighborhoods  in Newark, New Jersey.