Click by Kayla Miller

Click is an amazing graphic novel by Kayla Miller. Fifth grader Olive has an amazing life, she is smart, funny and has loads of friends. Her family is great too! Her mom takes care of little Olive and her brother, Simon constantly, she loves them both very much. Molly is Olive’s aunt, she lives very close to their house so she visits often, both Olive and Aunt Molly connect very well, that's why Olive loves to hang out with her. One day at school Olive’s teacher announced that they had a chance to be in the Variety Show, a talent show for the fifth graders. Olive was so excited to be in it but when everyone started forming acts for the show, no one asked Olive to be in their group, this made Olive feel left out. Now she needs to find a way to feel included in the show even if being in her friends acts were not an option.

I loved this book because it keeps you on the edge of your seat. For example, on page 58 it says; “I tried to talk to mom about it and she was saying she wanted to call Emily's mom about it but I don't want to have to ask to be included, I want someone to want me in their group.” This is a very intense part of the book and Click is filled with many more moments like this. Some of my favorite characters in this book are Aunt Molly and Olive. I like them because they are so funny and relatable! For example, when Olive was feeling sad Aunt Molly started telling funny and relatable stories to Olive to make her feel better.

Overall I really loved this book. I would rate it a 4.5 out of 5 because it is so relatable! If you like funny, colorful graphic novels that keep you on the edge of your seat, you will love this book! I recommend Click to kids from 3rd grade to 7th grade. I hope you enjoy it!

Review by Sadie B.

Amulet by Kazu Kibuishi

Emily is the main character of this book. Early in this book her father dies from a car crash and Emily, Navin, and her mom move to a different house. In that house she finds a Necklace that has special powers. Her mom gets poisoned later in the book and Emily and Navin go to find a cure, and they find that an elf is following them.

My favorite parts of the story are when Emily finds her great grandpa and a big house, because it shows a big house and a lot of robots in the scene.

I would recommend this book for ages 8-13.

Review by Alex E.

Aesop's Fables: The Hare And The Tortoise

Aesop’s Fables: The Hare And The Tortoise is a fantasy fable. The characters are a hare and a tortoise. Its theme is about doing your best.

I did like it, because the theme was about trying your very best. Another theme is about not letting teasing put you down. When the hare teased the tortoise about how slow he was, he calmly replied: "Then we shall have a race, to see."

If you like short stories with talking animals and clear morals, you might like this short story.

Review by Anaya G.

The Werewolf of Fever Swamp by R.L. Stine

Grady has just moved into a small neighborhood in Florida. His parents are scientists. They moved there because of an experiment with swamp deer. His sister on the other hand (Emily) was not happy because her boyfriend (Martian) wasn't there. Every night Grady hears loud howls deep in the swamp in his backyard. What could it be?

I really liked this book. Number one is that it has a lot of action. For example, in the book “the creature jumped on Grady and bit deep into his shoulder.” another reason I give it a 10/10 is because it has tons of suspense. Like one time, there where many suspects for who the creature was. But no one really knew.

If you like suspense and action and horror (but not too scary) you will love this book.
It has a very interesting plot and will always keeping you on the edge of your seat.
You will always want to read more because there are so many twists and turns all throughout this book.

Review by Elias J.

Orphan Island by Laurel Snyder

 

Jinny lived on the island for as long as she could remember. There could only be 9 at a time on the island, so said the rhyme. “Nine on an island, orphans all. Any more and the sky might fall.” But when the time came for her to go, she stayed. And that brought disastrous consequences.

Jinny is a caring, young girl who has too much stress and responsibility for her own good. She is kind, caring (as mentioned before), and just needs a break from being in charge.
Orphan Island is a rich, poignant book that will pull your heartstrings and make you think about the value of other people. Jinny is the new eldest on the island, due to her friend Deen leaving. She cares for a young child named Ess, who had recently landed on the island.

As one who likes mystery and fiction, I loved the book. The richness and diversity of the characters added to the already great world in which the orphans live. The unknown of the sea is symbolic of death, fear, and calm. As well, the descriptions of the objects were detailed and full, such as: “The stars blazing in the night sky as usual blurred as Jinny ran across the beach.” The flow of the story was impeccable, especially when Jinny had a turning point and decided to leave. “Somewhere out there, beyond the boat, was more. Jinny couldn’t see it yet, but the alternative was too awful to imagine.

If you like mystery, fantasy, and realistic fiction, you will treasure this book! It has a great mix of all 3 genres, and happens to be one of the best blends I’ve seen. For example, the blur between a normal island and a magical one is perfect. I give this book 5/5 stars and recommend this book to everyone, but especially to the aforementioned.

Review by Jackson P.

Fortunately, the Milk by Neil Gaiman

The characters that are in the book are Dad, Professor Steg, The milk and green globby things. When the father of two children, a boy and a girl, goes out to buy milk he takes a long time to get milk and travels to different worlds with other beings and a threat of being held captive there. The theme of the book is the importance of keeping promises and not panicking when confronted with different people.

I really enjoyed reading the book. It was funny and weird. Yes, I loved this book. My favorite part was when he saw the UFO in the sky. And the parts where he meets people that he has never thought of. My favorite character was the dad because he wasn't scared of any of the people that he saw and talked to.

You would love this book if you like to adventure and see different kinds of creatures and different kinds of people. It is weird and funny and maybe scary sometimes.

Review by Joseph C. 

Baby-sitters Little Sister by Katy Farina

 

Little 7 year old Karen and her brother Andrew love playing together, especially with their big family. You see Karen's mom and dad are divorced so in one house she has a BIG family and the next week she's at a chill area with a lot less people. Life’s good but there's one big problem when Karen is at her dad's house she always spies on the neighbor and thinks she's a witch whose name is apparently “Morbitta destiny” in Karen's mind. Her family keeps telling her that the neighbor is not a witch but Karen kept thinking she was and spied...ALOT. Karen had her best friend Hannie who would always reluctantly agree even when she knew they would get in trouble. On the other hand Andrew would just do his own thing. Oh and boo-boo Karen’s cat is pretty chill and cute! Karen is getting more skeptical of her neighbor and decides to prove once in for all that the neighbor is actually a witch…

I really like this book, especially boo boo and Karen Of course! I liked that this book was about 1 main thing, and not like different problems so I can connect with the one problem. I also like how in the beginning it explains all the characters and explains what the book is about a little. “I’m lucky because my little brother, Andrew and I have two families!” I also like Karen's personality. As in the book I love how Karen gets scared for the smallest little things. “Maybe morbida destina wants to turn me into a cat!”
“You will be Witchy witch and I'll be Samantha Twitchit. Now let's make up some witch rhymes” Karen says. This book is also like a witch book. “It's gray and chilly, the wind is blowing, and look at that full moon!”...... “It's a good time for witching,” Karen says.

I would recommend this book to 9-10 year old's because it is a nice and easy graphic novel so If you like graphic novels then this is the book for you, although it is targeted for younger children Overall this book was a great read and I rate it 4 I took out 1 point because it was a little short for me but it's good overall.

Review by Aishani N.

Greystone Secrets: The Messengers by Margaret Peterson Haddix

The 3 Greystone kids, Emma, Chess, and Finn are back at it again, solving mysteries and traveling across alternate worlds, in the newest edition of The Greystone Secrets! This time around, the 3 Greystone kids have help from some friends, named Kona, Kafi, Rocky, and Joe Deweese. The mysteries start when gold coins begin falling from unexpected places. They find codes and clues on the coins, eventually leading them to the alternate world. Chess, Rocky, Emma, Kona, Finn, and Kafi know what they have to do. However, can this group of misfit kids triumph over evil foes, and save both worlds from ultimate destruction? Read Greystone Secrets: The Messengers to find out!

I loved this book! My favorite character was Chess, because he is brave and courageous. One time in the book, Chess showed his bravery by volunteering to press down on the angel wing, even though he and the others did not know what was going to come out. This was a pretty dangerous task, but Chess stepped up and did it anyway, to protect his family, and save both of the worlds.

If you like to solve mysteries, and follow clues along with the story, you will love this book! I would recommend this book to science fiction lovers like me!

Review by Mira S.

Big Nate by Lincoln Peirce

11 year old Nate Wright is a young 6th grade boy, who has many problems relating to his middle school life. After his dad not buying him a dog for christmas, his baseball team changing their name to the cream puffs, and pledging not to get detention for a whole week in a bet against his classmate Gina. With his friends Teddy and Francis by his side, Nate tries to overcome all these problems the best way he can.

I liked the book a lot. My favorite part was when Nate’s classmate Gina bets that he (Nate) couldn't go a whole week without getting detention. Nate starts to become the teacher’s pet and wins the bet against Gina. But right before Nate wins it, Ms. Godfrey (Nate’s least favorite teacher) finds out that Gina was having a bet with Nate, which is against school rules. Ms. Godfrey gives Gina detention for trying to have a bet in the first place. Nate was so happy he proved Gina wrong, and he was more happier that Gina got in detention for it. In fact he said “This is the greatest day of my life!”.

If you're a fan of graphic novels, humor, and realistic life events you will like this book. This book has lots of pictures for those who like graphic novels, and it has lots of funny material.

Review by Pranesh B. 

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince by J.K. Rowling

Harry is facing a lot of weird stuff this year at Hogwarts. Whether it be Dumbledore giving him training, Draco Malfoy doing something suspicious or help in potions from the mysterious Half-Blood Prince. Harry also has to deal with trying to figure out what Dumbledore is training him for and make his friends not argue for 5 minutes.

I think the Half-Blood Prince is the best book in the series and this series has a lot of great books. The half-blood prince introduced a lot of new stuff like voldmort’s past, Horcruxes and (obviously) The Half-Blood Prince. I like this book for the same reason I like Prisoner of Azkaban, it tells you stuff that explains a lot but makes sure that there is still more to learn. I think the best line from the book is

Snape: “Do you remember me telling you we are practicing non-verbal spells, Potter?"
Harry: "Yes," said Harry stiffly.
Snape: "Yes, sir."
Harry: "There's no need to call me "sir" Professor."

If you like fantasy/mystery books then you will love this book, but don’t just read this book if you haven’t read any other harry potter books, finish the first five then read this book.

Review by Walter M.

Unwanteds: Island of Silence by Lisa McMann

After the gate is destroyed the Unwanteds of Artime are hoping they can live peacefully with the Wanteds and Necessaries. Although the Necessaries welcome the idea of Artime, most even move there, the Wanteds are angry. Angry that the Necessaries are leaving them, angry that the Unwanteds took the life of their leader, and angry that their new leader is ruining their perfect society. It doesn’t take long for the Wanteds to start attacking Artime, with Aaron to lead them. As the attacks get worse and some lives are even lost, Mr. Today plans to take a holiday, he just needs to find someone to leave in charge. But all plans change at the arrival of 2 children from a distant island. As Alex’s friends grow bored they start to want an adventure, but what starts out as something playful quickly turns into something dark and dangerous that will change the lives of everyone in Artime forever.

I deeply enjoyed reading this book and would definitely recommend it. Each character is well written and you get to find out more about them as the book progresses. The relationships that are built are amazing. You get to watch as the characters go through ups and downs. Lani becomes stronger and Megan has to take the hatred from her family well, Samheed struggles to accept what his family has done, and Alex finds his confidence again. The characters' emotions feel real and will tear your heart apart while making you cry tears of joy all at the same time. We get to unlock the secrets of Mr.Today along with the characters, and the story is so well written I guarantee you will feel like you are in the book. When Alex’s confidence slowly starts to come back you get to feel the rush of energy just like he did.

Although this book is so diverse I think anyone could read it and love it. People who like Harry Potter or Keeper of the Lost Cities will definitely love it. This book is a must read for all ages and will have you on the edge of your seat to the very end.

Review by Rhiannon R.

The Winter Duke by Claire Eliza Bartlett

Ekaterina Avenko is the middle child of the Avenko family. She was born royalty but has no intention to rule and was planning to run off when her brother is crowned duke. Yet a mysterious plague suddenly falls onto the Avenko family, sending all 12 of her siblings and her Mother and Father into sickness, but for some reason, Ekata is spared. With no one ruling, Ekata is forced to be the duke, if she wants Kylma Above to thrive. Now, it is up to her to find the cure, rule and protect Kylma Above, a kingdom made of ice placed over a frozen lake, threatening to shatter and send Kylma Above falling into the abyss at every wrong move. It doesn’t help that there are outside forces trying to take over, now that a sixteen-year old girl is ruling. But most importantly, Ekata must find a way to stay alive while she’s in the midst of magic, politics- and power.

Some nice aspects of the book were its characters. They all seemed so mysterious and there were a lot of layers to them. For example, it might seem like one of the characters might be good at first, but as you read on, you realize that he's a lot darker. I especially liked reading about how Ekata felt about the whole predicament and the lesbian representation within the main characters, yet it doesn't feel like the whole story is based around it. The author describes the scenes and places to the finest detail, yet still makes it not boring.

If you like political fantasies, I think you will enjoy this book. But if you also like lore-filled books and mysteries all around, you will certainly like it too. I would recommend it to an older generation, like middle school and up. 

Review by Natalie Z.

When You Trap a Tiger by Tae Keller

 

A girl named Lily and her family and her grandmother. Lily loves the stories that her grandmother told her when she was young and now, but she realizes the hard truth, her grandmother stole a stories and trap them in a bottle, but those stories are too bad to let them go out side of the bottle. And there's a tiger who trying to take the stories from her. When the tiger deals with you, Can Lily make a right decision with the tiger?

My favorite part of this book actually this is a part of sentence... : "I'm on a kimchi diet" said the tiger. I really liked this part because a magical tiger is on a diet. I really liked this part.

"If you like fiction tale books or are interested about Korean tales you will love this book!" And if you read about [The science of breakable things by Tae Keller] and enjoyed that you'll probably like this book.

Review by Judy (Yuna) C.

Beetle and the Hollowbones by Aliza Layne

 

Beetle is a goblin-witch who’s homeschooled my her grandmother, and learns magic from her. But she doesn’t have a crystal for sorcery, and doesn’t know how to ride a broom properly, and can’t make potions well, and so far, learning magic has just been a pain. At least she has her best friend, Blob Ghost (or BG), a ghost that haunts her local mall. Unfortunately, BG can’t ever leave the mall, and they don’t know how to get out.
As if that wasn’t enough to deal with, Beetle’s old best friend, Kat, is coming to her town for a sorcery apprenticeship from her aunt, Marla Hollowbone. Kat never stands up to her aunt, even when she’s belittling and uncaring, because she knows more than Kat does. As if that wasn’t enough, her aunt plans to tear down the mall that BG is living in. If they don’t get out in time, they might come to an unfortunate end.
Will Beetle find out a way to save BG, master magic, and convince Kat to stand up for herself? Or will everything come crashing down?

I loved this book!!!! The colors were definitely my favorite part of the book- there’s lots of warm and intense oranges and reds, and the contrast of the calm blues and blacks really tie the illustrations together. When it comes to plot, my favorite character is Katerina, also known as Kat. She’s a very level headed, calm, and cool character, but not boring in any way. Even though she’s a very good witch, she doesn’t brag about it often, and is usually modest.
I will say, I couldn't really connect or relate to this story since everything was so unique and strange, while the real world is more plain. But that strangeness and uniqueness is what made it so interesting!

I would recommend this book this book to anyone who loves fantasy, warm, bright colors, and nicely designed, unique characters.

Review by Mia O.

Greenglass House by Kate Milford

 

It’s nearly winter break and Milo Pine is just about ready for vacation when the doorbell to his parent’s hotel rings. There is a guest. More and more guests come to the hotel which is Milo’s home. Usually no guests stay at the hotel in this time of winter and everyone’s sudden arrival bothers Milo. As the guests come piling in, 2 arguing people- one man and 1 woman, a blue haired girl, a gusty red haired girl, and one grumpy secretive man, lots of secrets also come in. Milo and the hotel’s chief’s daughter, Meddy, go investigating the old house’s secrets, finding out the real reason all the mysterious guests came to the hotel after all. Greenglass House is a cozy mystery story for any person who’s up for a good read.

I really liked the fact that this book had such an interesting story for each and every guest that we met in the Greenglass House. The house itself had so much history, and learning about it more each chapter was really fun. The book only took place over a few days but it felt like so much longer because of all the details. It was really fun looking for the small details, trying to beat Milo to solve the mystery, and following all the characters’ stories. I think this book was really unlike a lot of other mystery books because it didn’t make you scared, and it wasn’t action packed, but it had such a warm vibe to it that made you happy. The Pine’s family was so nice to everyone that made me as a reader feel loved. Milo, the main character, was really relatable as just a normal kid, who went to school and had homework (even though the book takes place during winter break).

If you want a cozy mystery and are ready for the winter season, this is the book for you! I didn’t pick this book up immediately because it was pretty slow starting but if you like slow easy going reading, I would recommend this book to you. I would give this book a 4/5 because it was a really nice book, but just not my style of reading, but if you think you would like a cozy lighthearted mystery, this is your book. This is a good book for sitting down for a few hours and just being able to read. If you are interested in any of these characteristics, try checking out Greenglass House!

Review by Izzy C.

Gay-Neck The Story of a Pigeon by Dhan Gopal Mukerji

This book takes place in India where many children wish to have a pet pigeon. The main characters, a boy and his pet pigeon, go on a journey around a jungle. They soon get separated because of an eagle family “Gay-Neck flees from the eagle”.
While separated they both experience many journeys while the boy must travel with his 2 companions in search of his pigeon, the pigeon must face many dangers such as other animals “Gay-Neck flies in an circular motion in attempt to confuse the hawk”.
After many weeks of searching the boy finally reunites with Gay-Neck but soon Gay-Neck must go to war as a messenger pigeon. There Gay-Neck will face many danger. What could happen?
 I enjoyed reading this book because it had many adventures and it was very interesting. There was one adventure that was about the boy and his companions. They had to climb a tree to flee from a tiger “If I had climbed 2 minutes late that striped fellow would have eaten me”. My favorite character was the pigeon because he was very brave and talented. I did not really connect with the story because I have not really faced any incredibly dangerous situations or traveled a lot.

I would recommend this book to people who like adventures and people 11 or older. Since the book is hard to understand.

Review by Deborah S.

EarthSea by Ursula K. LeGuin

Earth Sea Is About A Young Priestess Tenar and a powerful Wizzard ged. They help each other sometimes but not always. They embrace each other and the simple pleasures of a ordinary life.

I do indeed like the books and I would want to read it again. I think the characters are good and the plot is good.

I would recommend this book if you like evilness the land and the sea! 

Review by Jenson P.
 

Whatever After by Sarah Mlynowski

Abby was baking for her 5th grade bake sale. But her little bother Jonah wanted to play so Abby told him to play in the basement forgetting there was a magic mirror. Then she heard a loud thunk! She saw Jonah broke the magic mirror later at midnight hoping, 1) to go inside a fairy and 2) making this story just right.  

I like the book because it is very plot twisting. You never know what can happen. For example in this story they land in Goldilocks and the 3 bears but Rumpelstiltskin is also included.

I recommend this book if you like suspense or plot twists.   

Review by Shahana B.