Loser by Jerry Spinelli

Loser is a book about a kid named Donald Zinkoff. Zinkoff never wins. You will find this out. He does not know how to control himself on top of that. Because of this, he gets into a lot of trouble. In 4th grade he could not have been more sad. However, in 6th grade then his life changed forever. To read all of Zinkoff's adventure read Loser by: Jerry Spinelli.

Reviewed by Jake - 6th Grade

Lexile 650

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When I first read it was thriller It was a very interesting book about a boy named Zinkoff this book Is about this kids life and event.

Reviewed by Joshua - 6th Grade

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The book is about Donald Zinkoff he is always happy he's very friendly Zinkoff is a very cheerful and loving boy in first grade he doesn't stop laughing he's very goofy he's always trying to make friends.

Reviewed by Kevin - 6th Grade

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The book was about a kid called Donald Zinkoff he had some problems one of his problems was that he would laugh a lot, he also LOVES school everyday he would go early in the morning. One time he woke up early, and got dressed and left for school.

Reviewed by Jose - 6th Grade

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The book that I'm reading is about a kid named Donald Zinkoff and the first day he went to school his mother told him not to wear his big long giraffe hat but he took it. at school he got bullied and didn't know that. when it was take your son or daughter to work day he wanted to go with him.

Reviewed by Jose - 6th Grade

The Battle for Skandia by John Flanagan (Ranger's Apprentice - Book 4)

WARNING: This is a review on the 4th book in the series. I would extremely recommend reading books 1-4 unless you like SPOILERS! 

Read my reviews of book 1; book 2; and book 3

Book 4, The Battle for Skandia, this is the book where things really start to get intense. Keep in mind where we left off. We left off with Horace and Halt going to Skandia to find Will and Evanlyn. It's starts with Evanlyn (or Princess Cassandra) who get's captured by a Temujai. Meanwhile, Will is back at the cabin still in a poor condition. Wakes up and realizes that Cassandra has been gone for hours. So it raised some suspicion to him. He sets out and finds tracks of her disappearance. Then he finds the Temujai and frees Cassandra. 

Meanwhile, Halt and Horace are able to get into a wolfship to sail to Skandia using a forged letter that Halt made. They finally reunite as Horace and Halt save the day from Will and Evanlyn as they got recaptured. Then after they shared there hugs they are then captured by Erak (Remember him?). After Halt convinces Erak to listen to him he the group later finds out that they can't go back home due to the Temujai. Then things start brewing as we have a battle at Skandia and then setup a sequel. 

That's basically it. There is little bits and pieces I've left off but that's fine you can always read the book. Until next time :)

Reviewed by Conrad ~ 6th Grade

Lexile 920

The Icebound Land by John Flanaghan ~ Ranger's Apprentice Series, Book 3

Warning: I would EXTREMELY recommend that you read Books 1 & 2 first.

I have also written book reviews for these - Click HERE for a review of book one. Click HERE for a review of book two.

So here we are Book 3, The Icebound Land. Will and Evanlyn (or Princess Cassandra) got captured by the raiding Skandians. They are sent away on a ship to Skandia where they will be enslaved. But before they head to Skandia they must make a stop to Skorghill (The Icebound Land). There Will and Evanlyn try to make a failed escape attempt. Meanwhile, Halt insults King Duncan to get free from all his work at the Ranger Corps. So he is banned from Araulen for a year followed by his suspension from the Ranger Corps for the same amount of time. After this happens he sets out to find his apprentice Will and finds out that he was taken by Skandians. He sets out to Gallica (shortest route to Skandia) and there he meets Horace (Will's orphan friend). Then they together set out to find Will. But they face some problems of their own.

Back to Will and Evanlyn. They are now in Skandia with their slave jobs. Because of the poor conditions, Will gets addicted to a drug called Warmweed (A drug to keep you warm). After Erak finds out he talks and Evanlyn about how he despises the drug and figures out an escape plan. Then Evanlyn captures Will and takes him into a cabin which is also where the sequel opportunity arises. 

This is basically it for this review so thanks for reading it. Also be sure to read John Flanagan's books and Enjoy your day : ).

Reviewed by Conrad ~ 6th

Lexile 950

The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan (Series bk. 1)

This book is about an infection spreading throughout the whole world and there are villages with fences to keep the "unconsecrated" (unconsecrated are the zombies that if you get bitten you "Return" and turn into one.) out. No one knows if there are other villages, if there are more survivors. 

In the first book the main character is Mary and her father died or got bitten and her mother kind of went crazy. Her mom waits at the fence every day waiting for her husband to come back perfectly fine, but he never does. 

[SPOILER] 

So one day Mary is down by a river with her old friend Harry (who loves her, but she doesn't like him that way) and while she is down there her mom is by the fence and the alarm goes off. (The alarm only goes off if someone is bitten or a unconsecrated brakes loose and is in the village.) Mary runs to her mom and she is too late. 

If you love fast pace books this is defiantly that! This is also a little bit of romance. Mary loves Harry 's brother Travis. Harry Loves Mary. Travis starts to fall for Mary but is already named to his wife Cass, Mary's best friend. 

So I won't tell you anymore about the first book but let me tell you it's amazing so fast paced and the author rips your heart apart and puts it all back but still missing pieces. 

[SPOILER] 

The second book to the series is The Dead Tossed Waves it's about what Mary's life is like after she leaves the Village except you don't know who she is because the main character is different. But you eventually find out and all the pieces fit together. The last book ties all the series together you have to read them because if I start really getting into them then you wouldn't even have to read them!

Reviewed by Hannah ~ 6th Grade

Lexile 900

The Ruins of Gorlan by John Flanagan ~ (Ranger's Apprentice: book 1)

Ranger's Apprentice: The Ruins of Gorlan is the first book in a 12-book series (which I've read all of them so I know they whole thing). It all starts with an orphan boy named Will and his orphan friends Alyss, Jenny, and Horace. Choosing day is coming up. Now at this point your probably asking yourself "What's Choosing day is it like Harry Potter or something"? Well I'm glad you asked, Choosing day is a event in which every 15 year old chooses a class (or a job specifically) that will be with them for the rest of their lives. They have multiple classes but I'm gonna name a few. They have Courier, Ranger, Knight, and Cooker (or something like that).

I recommend you read the book to know what all these classes are because if I told you the definition of every class then we'd be here for hours. So let's just focus on two in particular, a Ranger and a Knight. A Knight is something every fantasy reader should know so I'm gonna skip that. A ranger is a very special force that specializes in planning wars and deadly assassinations. Now at first Will wants to be a Knight but he's too short and not strong enough. So he doesn't get chosen to that class. To make things worse no other teacher (or whatever they call them) wants Will. Then the Ranger Halt passes a note to Baron Arald. (Baron: A position before king or queen. Kinda the second most important person in a kingdom or Fief.)

Skipping ahead Will gets accepted as a Ranger and starts training. In order to stop you from getting bored I provide you with one last sentence. Just then as Will is training a storm's brewing as evil Morgarath is planning a war, and a deadly war for sure.

So that's about it there are HUGE bits and pieces I've missed out so be sure to read the first book. Also here's a quick note: The first book MAY be boring because it's introducing you to everything but as you read for book 2 beyond everything gets better. I don't think you should skip around between the books as that will confuse you. Thanks for reading and be sure to check out Ranger's Apprentice at the Grove JR High Library (In the fantasy section).

Reviewed by Conrad ~ 6th Grade

Lexile 920

Black Anchor by Carl Bowen

This is a story about a team called Shadow Squadron that attacks a Chinese oil rig in the gulf of Mexico that's called Black Anchor. Strangely the oil rig was full of American mercenaries. On the oil rig there were also hostages being held at gunpoint. Shadow Squadron's objective was to neutralize all enemy hostiles and save all of the hostages. The Shadow Squadron team came in stealthy with suppressed machine guns and stealth suits. 

[SPOILER ALERT]

When they got in the oil rig they were caught a few minutes after entering in by mercenaries. After all of the gunfight they save most of the hostages and flew home in a sea hawk helicopter back to the nearest American military base. This story reminds me of a MW2 campaign mission. I'd recommend this book to people who like modern warfare. Not the video game but war now. I'd rate this book a 9 out of 10. The main characters were Cross, Yamashita, and Walken.

Reviewed by Alec ~ 6th Grade

Lexile 920

10 Days: Anne Frank by David Colbert

Anne's story is how millions of people have come to understand the Holocaust. And other events that are too scary to think about. Anne Frank lives in the Netherlands when the Nazis were taking over Poland and Hungary. But a few months later the Nazis invaded the Netherlands. Anne has to fight her way through harsh laws for the Jews made by the German government. Then the Nazis gave the Franks a chilling letter that said "All who live in this house should pack there bags in be put on a train to work. "Then Anne and her family move in to a secret annex. Then for Anne's thirteenth b-day her family gave her a diary (that now is on display in the Smithsonian) where she writes about her chilling nights and her scary life. An ominous event threatens to expose the secret lives of Anne Frank and her family. Then Anne's worst fear comes true she and her family were betrayed to the Germans. The franks arrive at a Nazi slave labor camp, and they are given harsh punishments. When Anne gets separated Anne has no more protection by her father and by her self she enters the scary dark world of the Nazi camps. (The only one that survived in the Frank family was Edith Frank Anne frank's father because he fought for the Germans in world war 1.)

Reviewed by Daniel ~ 6th Grade

Lexile 980

Diary Of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney

Diary Of a Wimpy Kid is a wonderful book. The main character is Greg; he’s entering middle school but he finds himself going through a lot of rough situations. Greg is having a rough time trying to fit in with all the other kids. He also has a hard time trying to meet girls. On the other hand, his friend Rowley is not really trying to bond with other kids nor get to know any girls, but it seems like he is doing a better job than Greg is and that’s him not even trying! I recommend you read this book because it’s really hilarious, but it also might tick you off because of the way Greg acts with his friend and other people. He can be kind of selfish!

Reviewed by David ~ 8th Grade

Lexile 950

The Emancipation Proclamation by G. S. Prentzas

The Emancipation Proclamation is about the process of which the Emancipation Proclamation was made. Some things I learned from reading the story was that I would not be a free citizen without it. Also that I would not be in this country without it. I also learned that slaves were one of the reasons why the Civil War was started. I think I could give this book a 7 out of 10 because the book didn’t keep me as interested as it could have, also the book was poorly separated with different segments and non-essential information. Overall the book was pretty good if you want to learn a few things on the Civil War and Emancipation Proclamation.

Reviewed by Yinka ~ 7th Grade

Lexile 980

The Legend of Bass Reeves: Being the True Account of the Most Valiant Marshal in the West by Gary Paulsen

The book titled The Legend Of Bass Reeves is about this young boy down south as a slave in the western frontier where we start the story as him as a little boy about 6 years old and he learns how to be polite to his master.  Then we time travel (not literally or in the book) to when he is about 10 years old.  He learns how to ride a horse but he has to sneak out or his master will beat him. 

[SPOILER ALERT] 

Then when Bass is 13 his master teaches him how to hunt.  Then when he is about 17 when he runs away.  Then he has a rifle, pistol and a horse with him and he hides in the west and becomes a marshal.  A great marshal.  Hunting bad guys and putting them in jail.  

Reviewed by Zach ~ 7th Grade

Lexile 950

Delirium by Lauren Oliver

Delirium by Lauren Oliver this book is a journey with government rules, and romance, and adventures. Lena is forced to be cured so love will never exist in her. Lena has anger and compassion and emotions throughout this whole book. She believes in the rules but something changed something that made her want to run away and never come back , and she doesn't care if the disease is growing inside of her she wants to be free. If you like the Divergent series then you will love Delirium. 

Reviewed by Nicole ~ 7th Grade

Lexile 920

Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules by Jeff Kinney

The book I read is Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules the author is Jeff Kinney and the genre is graphic novels. I enjoyed this book because its sort of like a comic, but with stick men figures with speech bubbles. This is a very funny and interesting book that people would like to read. The funniest part of the book is when Rowley tried to speak Spanish and it sounded like gibberish! I laughed out loud at that part.  I would recommend this book to people that like books with stick men and at the same time graphic novels.

Reviewed by Gabriel ~ 6th Grade

Lexile 910

How They Croaked: The Awful Ends of the Awfully Famous by Georgia Bragg

How They Croaked is a funny and creepy book from the beginning. This is a book about how famous people died in their own horrible ways. It goes into detail on how they died and what they did and where they buried them. It also tells you little facts about them and their culture. Some of these people where young and some were old when they died. Some of the stories tell you what they did when they were younger. Cleopatra, George Washington, and Beethoven are just some of the famous people in this book. If you are brave enough to read this book then you should check it out!  

Reviewed by Adrian ~ 7th Grade

Lexile 950     

Diary of A Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney

Diary of A Wimpy Kid is about a kid named Greg Heffley. Greg Heffley is one of those kids that gets picked on a lot during the day. One day Greg heffley woke up because his brother Rodrick was yelling at him to wake up. Greg reminded himself it is the first day of school. Greg rushes up and gets changed, he runs down to eat cereal really quick. [Spoiler ALERT] Greg then sees that Rodrick was laughing. Greg now knew that Rodrick was playing a joke on him. Greg fights with his brother a lot. Greg then goes to school. The school is a complete chaos. Greg gets to class and he has to pick his seat. He picks his seat next to Rowley his best friend. The day goes by fast. For the rest of the book check it out at the library. 

I recommend this book to people who like a book about a funny school year. This is in the graphic novel section at the library. This is a graphic novel. The theme of this book is to always make good decisions at the first day of school and throughout the school year. Hope you read and enjoy the book!!!!!

Reviewed by Michael ~ 7th Grade

Lexile 950

Roll of Thunder Hear My Cry by Mildred D. Taylor (Series Book 2)

Set in 1933 Missouri during the Great Depression. Cassie Logan is a normal African American girl that works in the farm and goes to school. Throughout the book there is many moments of intolerance towards African Americans. From the night men hanging and burning people. To the threats of Harlan Granger taking back the Logan family's land. This book is great at showing what life was like at that time. It is a great book for those who like historical fiction.

Reviewed by Daniel ~ 6th Grade

Lexile 920

Prom & Prejudice by Elizabeth Eulberg

Prom and Prejudice is a great book! It has this girl named Lizzie and she is on this scholarship for this really rich school. She gets made fun of and she doesn't care because she has plenty of things ahead of her so she doesn't have to live in the past! She also has her own way of doing things! I recommend this book for people who like drama!! Hope you read this book to find out the rest because it keeps you hanging!

Reviewed by ~ a 6th Grader

Lexile 690

Gallows Hills by Lois Duncan

When high-school Jr. Sarah Zoltanne moves from California to a Pinecrest because of her mom's new love. She tries to make friends, but that led to problems. She was doing a fortune lady act for money with her "friend" Kyra. When Sarah goes and finds she has supernatural powers and can look into the future she and her friend Charlie are accused of witchcraft and now are trying to get out of it.

Reviewed by Joseph ~ 7th Grade

Lexile 900

Evermore by Alyson Noel

This book is about a courageous fight for love. When a girl named Ever loses all of her family in a terrible accident she moves in with her Aunt. Going to school and meeting new people seemed rough but when she went straight to the wallflowers in school they immediately accepted her. But when a new guy named Damon comes to school, everything changes. Ever was very suspicious when she first saw him but she can't figure out what it is that's so different about him. I would recommend this book to either mystery lovers or romance lovers! Or even a mystery romance lover! If this story sounds interesting and exciting, guess what? There are six books in the series! So you will always be entertained reading this series!

Reviewed by a 7th Grader

Lexile 940

Owen & Mzee: The True Story of a Remarkable Friendship by Isabella Hatkoff

This book is a really good book.I like it because it has unlikely animals that became friends.This book is about a baby hippo when his pod got pushed down river and on the new lands they have never seen before. The people tried to get the hippos off there land but they couldn’t because they where so strong.Then one day the river flooded and took all the hippos away and left one behind, so the next day the people came out and saw all the hippos gone but one he was stranded at sea. [Spoiler Alert!!!] All the people tried to help him. It was hard for them to catch him with there nets, finally they did and the person that got him was named Owen so that's what they named the hippo Owen. That is when they called a place that takes care of animals and a lady came to pick up Owen, then he got mad and was running away from every body and did not want to get in the truck. Then when he was tired and they carried him in to the truck and went back to the place. When they got there and opened the back of the truck Owen ran and hid behind a turtle called Mzee he was an old turtle. When Owen hid  behind Mzee he hised because he didn't really like other people or animals. But then after a while Mzee got used to Owen and they became best friends forever. If you like a good story then you should read Owen & Mzee.

Reviewed by Nazareth ~ 6th Grade

Lexile 920

As Simple as it Seems by Sarah Weeks

It’s about a girl named Verbeda Colter that was born with problems because of her mother drinking when she was pregnant. But underneath all of this there is more secrets she doesn’t know. And when she does her world turns upside down. If you liked So B It , you will definitely like this book!!

Reviewed by a 7th Grader

Lexile 910