The Grapes of Wrath, by John Steinbeck

The Grapes of Wrath is about this guy named Tom Joad, he had just been released from prison and was headed back to his home land in Oklahoma where his family owned land and had a farm. When he got back he realized that there were a lot of people that were leaving Oklahoma and heading to California for cheap work because banks were taking back there land because the workers couldn't make there housing payments because of the dust bowl. When he finally got back to his family they got kicked off their land and they had to left for California for work.

My opinion of the book The Grapes of Wrath, written by John Steinbeck, would be that it is a good book to read if you want to know how it was back in time and how hard it was to find work. Most people depended on their farms for their income and when the dust bowl hit it ruined everything started killing their crops and that took their main maybe only source of income away. And they had to live on the road with little to eat and barely any money. I liked it because I like learning about what life what like is the past, that way I can compare it to how life is now.

Reviewed by Samantha, grade 12.
Montrose Library

Wicked, by Sara Shepard

Wicked, by Sara Shepard, is the fifth book in the unbelievable Pretty Little Liars series. A's identity revelation should've helped the girls right? Wrong. They have more problems then ever. Aria's attracted to her Mom's new boyfriend and he to her. She's thinking of moving to her dad's to escape his constant attempts of flirting. Lets not forget Hanna, her obsession with being the queen of the school is at its full peak. She befriends Kate, Naomi, and Riley, her recent enemies. But when she finds out Kate is planning something against her, Hanna might spill some dirty secrets. What will Daddy say? Spencer's dealing with the consequences of cheating on her Golden Orchard essay. Not only that, but now there are news that she might've been adopted! Too bad her mother never told her not to believe everything she hears! It seems Emily is getting the break, she has a new boyfriend! If only these girls remembered, in Rosewood, someone is always watching...

As always, I loved this book! It seems that every book I read by Sara Shepard is amazing! Those poor girls never seem to get a break! I was completely shocked by Hanna in this book and I'm dying to read the next one, Killer! Sara Shepard has an amazing writing style that I prefer over other books. Every chapter is a different girl's life. Seeing the story from different points of views makes it even more interesting and detailed! Also, you get to see what each of them is thinking rather than just one person! I would recommend this book to anyone who likes the television series or overall mystery! You won't be disappointed!

Reviewed by Kristine K, grade 9
Casa Verdugo Branch

 

Thwonk, by Joan Bauer

Thwonk, by Joan Bauer, is a fun leisurely read. A.J. McCreary is about to get the visitor of a lifetime, Jonathon, a Cupid. A.J., aspiring photographer, never prospered in the romantic field. She searched for looks not personality. When Jonathon gives her help in her choice of three categories ( academics, arts, and romance ), A.J. decides to have the guy of her dreams fall in love with her. Peter Terris, the guy she's been in love with, needed only one shot from Jonathon's arrows, THWONK! He's in love with her forever. But what did she love about him? His beauty...careful what you wish for..

I needed a light book to read for fun this week and Thwonk was perfect! It's relatable, for girls mainly, and interesting to read. I loved how our similar preferences don't usually bring the best matches! I have never read a book by Joan Bauer before so it was cool to see her writing style. I think it was an overall good book and I'm thinking of checking her other books out! If your looking for a light, relaxed read then I highly recommend you read this! However, I think only preteen-teen girls would enjoy it because it is more relatable.

Reviewed by Kristine K., grade 9
Casa Verdugo Branch



The Unwritten Rule, Elizabeth Scott

In Elizabeth Scott's book, The Unwritten Rule, Sarah has found herself stuck between making two important decisions: hurting the feelings of her long-time best friend, Brianna, which can potentially break their friendship apart, or being with the boy of her dreams, Ryan, whom she has loved since the eight grade. The problem is Ryan is Brianna's boyfriend, and we all know the unwritten rule, which is to never like your best friends boyfriend. So, as tension builds up, secrets come out in the open, and emotions are relieved, Sarah's fight to make the right decision slowly starts to become harder.

You may say that the story-line in this book, The Unwritten Rule by Elizabeth Scott, is very comparable to the way friendship between young teen girls in reality is. I really liked this book because it felt realistic from the beginning to the very end. I thought the characters were very raw by the way they put themselves out, which was helped by the well written description of each and every emotion they felt. Also, the cover of the book (two pairs of feet, with a purple background) was very eye-catching, and i thought was very cute. The sweet cover page is what lured me to read the book in the first place.

Reviewed by Anonymous, grade 12.
Central Library

Bleach, by Tite Kubo

Ichigo Kurosaki is a teenager gifted with the ability to see spirits. His life is drastically changed by the sudden appearance of a Soul Reaper—one who governs the flow of souls between the human world and the afterlife—named Rukia Kuchiki, who arrives in search of a Hollow, a dangerous lost soul that absorbs energy from souls. When Rukia is severely wounded defending Ichigo from the Hollow, she attempts to transfer a part of her reiatsu (literally, "spiritual pressure") energy to Ichigo so that he can defeat the Hollow. However, Ichigo takes almost all of her energy, transforming into a Soul Reaper and allowing him to defeat the Hollow with ease. With her powers diminished, Rukia is left stranded in the human world until she can recover her strength. In the meantime, Ichigo must take over Rukia's role as a Soul Reaper, battling Hollows and guiding souls to the afterlife realm known as the Soul Society.

Bleach, by Tite Kubo, is the best manga i ever read. The anime Bleach is one of the top three anime on world scale. It is about death gods (a.k.a shinigami) spiritual power (a.k.a. reiatsu) hollows and spirts. It has the most thrilling stories in the anime history. it also contains chapters about romance, action, comedy, and school life, so it is enjoyable by both girls and boys. if you are a manga / anime fan and you still have not read this manga i have to day you are really missing out. This manga is so successful, it have been going out since more than 3 years ago!

Tasneem, grade 9
Central Library

Halo: The First Strike, by Eric Nylund

Halo: The First Strike by Eric Nylund is the bridge between the first Halo game and Halo 2. It clears out many of the inconsistencies of the games and focuses on the time period after the events of the fall of Reach. The book follows the remaining Spartans and their battle to save Reach and get important military figures out, and take a strike against the Covenant. The book yet again follows Master Chief and Spartan Red Team to attack against the Covenant army and destroy on of their ships and to discover what the floating ring is spaced that is called Halo is and discover it's origins.

The book is a great one, it bridges Halo Combat evolved and Halo 2 together and clears the inconsistencies between them. It follows the same formula as the Fall of Reach does by going through the battles of the Spartans, I would recommend this book to any fans of the Halo series and any Sci-Fi fans out there. The only problems with the book similar to the fall of reach is that it has a lot of terms and words that would be more familiar with Sci- Fi fans, and people who have read other books similar to this one.

-Reviewed by Anonymous, grade 9.
Central Library

Halo: The Fall of Reach, by Eric Nylund

Halo: the Fall of Reach by Eric Nylund is about the Spartan II program and the origins of the Spartan super soldiers, and it focuses on how the Master Chief became who he is. The book describes the start of the human covenant war and how the planet of Reach falls. It focuses on the Spartan's training, becoming Spartans and their fight against the Covenant army. The book shows Master Chiefs Artificial Intelligence ally, Cortana and how she is born from cloning the brain of DR. Halsey and the first few fight with Master Chief and Cortana together before the setting of the games take place.

The book was good, I liked the extended background information the book gave about the origins of the Spartans, Master Chief and the human covenant war. I would recommend the book to any fan of the Halo Series and it deserves a read by anyone who is a fan of Sci-Fi novels and books. The book opens up for the next couple of books and is a great read to bridge between the first game and the start of the actual storyline. The only thing that I didn't like about the book is that it had too many big words and anyone who isn't familiar with Sci-fi terms wouldn't understand some of the things.

- Anonymous., grade 9
Central Library

Slawter, by Darren Shan

Slawter, by Darren Shan. The third book in the 10 part series of The Demonata is about a boy named Grubbs. Grubbs is the nephew of Dervish who fought along side Kernel Fleck in the second book and he is recovering from a recent battle with Lord Loss. Grubbs' family has a history of being Werewolves and he lost his parents and sister to Lord Loss due to a game the demon master plays in which the reward is a cure for the lycanthropy. Grubbs, Dervish, and Bill-E (Grubbs' brother) travel to a small movie set outside in the country in which a famous horror film producer plans to shoot a movie based on demons. The three travel with her in order to make sure she doesn't accidentally summon a demon. They encounter many twists and turns and end with a near-death battle with a surprising twist of events when it comes to who dies and who lives.

I really enjoy reading this series and this book which is the third in the 10 part series keeps me entertained and I am looking forward to reading the rest of the series. This novel is making reading fun again for me and no book has done that other then the Harry Potter series and yet again Darren Shan did a great job of making me feel like a character in his book. As Grubbs was battling Gregor and had his arm severed I actually felt a tingling in my arm and got goosebumps. I am yet again flabbergasted as to how Darren comes up with these endings and how I could not see it coming, I am hoping he will do the same in the fourth book of the series.

Reviewed by dp, grade 9.
Pacific Park Branch

Discover Linux: In the November 2012 edition of Maximum PC

Windows 8 may have a nice looking user interface, faster preference and other little features. There are some very obvious problems with it too. For one the metro user interface is garbage. It clearly designed for touch interfaces and mobile devises. Also windows 8 fells like a a newer version of Windows 7 with another mini OS glued on, but have no fear there is another operation system. Linux. Linux has many distros the most popular being Ubuntu. Ubuntu is Secure, Flexible, and powerful. It is faster and more customizable than windows while still being beautiful and secure like a Mac. Linux is easy to instal and its even available to try out on your current computer from a USB or CD. In conclusion Linux will probably become more popular after Windows 8 disappoints the public.

In my opinion this article is great for a new user to Linux but does not give so many in debt information about it. It does have a few interesting facts but not a lot of advance information. I did not expect to be disappointed by the amount and quality of information after reading other articles in Maximum PC, which people should keep in mind is an enthusiast Magazine. But strictly speaking for beginners this article is great. It Introduces Linux in a nice and clear way. Gives instructions on how you can try and maybe later even instal Linux in different ways. Besides stating the equivalents versions of applications for windows. In conclusion i would recommend this article to people who want to get introduced to Linux but it wont help the professionals.

Reviewed by SSN, grade 9.
Montrose Library

7 inch Tablets: In the October 2012 edition of Wired

A few years ago 7-inch tablets were believed to be failures. They had low resolution screens and underpowered internals. They were basically bigger phones, but mobile hardware learns to adapt and now we are having a boom of new, small, thin and stylish devises coming out from companies like Asus, Google, Samsung, and Barns & Noble. Although reading, checking e-mail and browsing the web are more the 7 inch forte. But lack of screen area and connectivity dont make it the best for video streaming. There are 4 tablets that get reviewed in this edition the Nexus 7, Samsung Galaxy Tab 2.0, Barns % Noble nook Tablet and Toshiba Excite 7.7. The Nexus 7 wins the competition with a 9 out of 10. 7 inch tablets are great when it comes to content consumption, This will probably stay like this for another 10 years until a new categories as bold risky and interesting comes out.

In my opinion 7 inch tablets dont get enough credit. They are great for content consumption and day to day use. They are not the best for editing and creating documents but that is because of the size and power. They also state that there are not many apps that look ascetically pleasing with the size and resolution. This problem will sort itself out as developers start updating their apps. Also they should state that you are getting a lot of price per performance. The Nexus 7 is $200 while the Nexus 4 a phone is $350. This Shows a lot about the price of the product. I would highly recommend this article to be read but i would tell people to not take some points lightly one being low price and high performance and amazing for daily content consumption.

Reviewed by SSN, grade 9.
Montrose Library

Demons and Druids, by James Patterson

In the book, Daniel X: Demons and Druids, by James Patterson, Daniel destroys Number five with much confusion and discomfort. He travels to England to hunt number three on the list, Phosphorus Beta. This alien was from a distant planet and rarest among his species. He was referred to as the "Demon of Fire" in historic tomes. But how would they know of him? After a few encounters with him, Daniel realized he was looking for something. It was clear Beta wanted to do something with Stonehenge, the famous and mysterious circle of huge stones. During a brief battle with the beast, Beta escaped into a fiery portal, but, as expected, Daniel followed. When he regained consciousnesses, he observed his surroundings. It was then where he met his ancestor, Merlin, guardian of the future King Arthur...

This book was very good! It didn't let me stop reading! The historic value of this novel bypassed the others and left me shocked at the ending and final battle. Unlike the others, the twist was not ironic, but more like confusing and mysterious. I really liked everything about this book, how the story connects all the books and how The Prayer, number one, ties into the whole thing. I believe this book would be for all who love the series, I honestly believe this book would be the peak of all them(I assume). This book also made me think of the significance of famous landmarks we have today, like the Egyptian Pyramids. Why are they there? Overall, this book was amazing I really got this in fast in my opinion. Good luck to all readers for this book will amaze you and confuse you if you don't know the right stuff.

Reviewed by David, grade 9.
Central Library

Watch the Skies, by James Patterson

The book, Daniel X:  Watch The Skies, by James Patterson, begins with our hero killing his first "challenging" alien, Urgent Seth number six on the List. Daniel decides to go after number five in Tokyo, Japan. His files are a mystery and he has no record of crime. He actually encounters him in his flight there. Turns out, he controls all media related tools, like television and the Internet. Here's the catch, if number five gets a hold of any technology, it belongs to him and Daniel's suspicions grew as many new inventions and technologies are being stolen. After all, its the best place to steal technology. What will become of Daniel? Will he defeat number five? Or will the corruption of the "New Age" infect Daniel?

My thoughts on this book are really good. I found just like the first book with its humor and action pick-ups. It also has that same ironic twist at the end like the first. I think this book is great, and I recommend all to begin this series and read it all the way through! This book really made me reflect on media today. Are they really corrupting us with broadcasts? Furthermore, I really enjoyed every page of this book and I hope to get the next book in very soon. By the looks of the cover, it sure does look very interesting.

Reviewed by David, grade 9.
Central Library

That Summer, by Sarah Dessen, is a book about a girl that realizes her life isn’t as great as she thought it was. She has to adjust because nothing is the same as it was in the past. The main character, Haven, is a very insecure girl because she is almost six feet tall and she feels like she doesn’t fit in. She is very stressed with everything going on because her father is about to marry a woman she can’t stand, and her sister is about to get married as well to Lewis Warsher, who doesn’t fit her at all. During her stressful life she runs into her sister’s ex-boyfriend, Sumner Lee, who reminds her of the happy days when her parents were married and her sister, Ashley, was carefree and everything was perfect. These stressful events in her life lead her to realize that that’s life; the past is the past and you can’t always get what you want.

In my opinion this book was very interesting because it relates to real life stories of people going through the same things. This book draws you in with all the drama and stress in her life. I felt like I was going through the same emotions as her, it was so real. This book was also very vivid, I understood it clearly and imagined every word in my head throughout the whole book.

Reviewed by Amy

Vampire's Assistant, by Darren Shan

The Vampire’s Assistant, by Darren Shan, is the second thrilling book in the Cirque du Freak series. This time, Darren can’t avoid drinking human blood, if he wants to stay alive that is. Mr. Crepsley and Darren have reunited with the freak show as Darren learns the rules to being undead. He even makes friends with Evra, the snake boy, and Sam, a local who isn’t part of the show. When a man, R.V., opposes things of the Cirque, he decides to do something about it. What happens when you mess with the Cirque?

Darren Shan needs only a pen and paper to satisfy me. This novel is the perfect sequel to the first book and it’s great to learn more about each of the characters as we go along with Darren. I think that this is the best vampire book due to the lack of cliché romantics and boring characters. I would recommend this book to young-teen boys and girls, mostly boys, because they might find the idea of vampires and the cruelty that takes place more interesting. This is a must read if you have read the first!

Reviewed by Kristine, grade 9.

House Rules, by Jodi Picoult

House Rules by Jodi Picoult is a novel that centers on the lives of the Hunt Family. When Emma Hunt gives birth to Jacob, she has no idea that he will be born with Asperger’s Syndrome. Her second son, Theodore is born a normal boy, but does not live a normal life when he and his mother have to spend their lives taking care of Jacob. Jacob Hunt is a boy who is incredibly smart, and loves crime scenes. He is especially fond of “Crimebusters,” and has every episode memorized. The only problem is that he cannot communicate so well with other people around him, and that’s where Jess comes in. Jess is Jacob’s tutor on how to interact with the world and the people around him. When one day his tutor is found dead, police suspect Jacob as the prime suspect. Just because he can’t look people in the eye and twitches around, does that make him a murderer?

I really enjoy reading Jodi Picoult’s novels. She writes with such ease and her writing flows across the pages. Before House Rules, I had never read a book about Asperger’s Syndrome, and seeing how just because people are born and look different, does not mean that they should be treated differently. People with Asperger’s Syndrome do not choose to be born like that, so shouldn’t we, as the people born normal, know better than to do that?

Reviewed by Christine L, grade 10.
Montrose Library

Things Fall Apart, by Chinua Achebe

Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe is a tragic novel of the senseless deterioration of one man’s power, dignity, and eventually, life. It tells the story of a proud African leader and his family. When British missionaries invade their village in hopes of converting its people to Christianity, as the title suggests, things begin to fall apart. A man who was once respected and revered in his community is now forced to give up everything and shamefully retreat into obscurity, thanks to the onslaught of his alien oppressors.

The novel underscores the disastrous effects that negative social relations between countries can spur. What happened to the village was more than mere misunderstanding, however. It is the primitive prejudices harbored against an innocent race that led to the eventual downfall of an entire village. The novel’s urgent message has run true through centuries, as history poignantly tends to repeat itself. It should be read and analyzed by all who comprehend the global magnitude of such blatant social catastrophes, and for those that don’t, this is a great place to start.

Reviewed by Tigran K.
Montrose Library

Velocity, by Dean Koontz

In Velocity by Dean Koontz, Billy Wiles is your ordinary person. He works in a bar, and he writes short stories. Nothing extraordinary happened in his life. One day after work, he receives a note on his car saying, “If you don’t take this note to the police and get them involved, I will kill a lovely blond schoolteacher. If you do take this note to the police, I will instead kill an elderly woman active in charity work. You have four hours to decide. The choice is yours.” Billy thinks it’s a joke so he doesn’t care, however he still keeps the note. The next day he sees in the news that a blonde schoolteacher had been murdered. Suddenly, Billy starts getting more of these notes. Billy is trapped in a psychopath’s game, which can lead to the death of his close friends, or himself.

Velocity was probably one of the best suspense books I read this year so far. I never put this book down; I just had to know what would happen next. I even read it six times I recommend this book to anyone who enjoys suspense and horror.

Reviewed by R.R., grade 9. Montrose Library

Theodore Boone: Kid Lawyer, by John Grisham

Theodore Boone is a thirteen-year-old boy who's surrounded by the ways of a lawyer and he strives to be a great one too. Knowing every judge, every policeman, and much more about law, he dreams of being part of the court cases. But when he gets caught up in the middle of a perfect murder in which only he knows the truth about, the proof of guilt of the suspect is dependent on him. With the evidence of a witness who cannot be revealed due to money and illegal problems, he will not stop for anything till justice has been made with the cold-blooded murderer.

In my opinion, I thought this book was the most brilliant I've read so far. With a totally realistic setting, this book is by far the most intriguingly interesting one. With its somewhat humorous scenes and typical life of a thirteen-year-old boy, it adds onto realistic setting of life. I simply loved the cleverness of the ideas and writing. This book was taken with me everywhere. And for once in my life, I actually sat down and read every word of the book patiently waiting for the ending to come.

Reviewed by Anne L.
Montrose Library

New Moon, by Stephenie Meyer

New Moon by Stephenie Meyer starts off with Bella Swan as she celebrates her eighteenth birthday. Things between her and her vampire boyfriend are running pretty smooth, until the Cullens surprise her with a birthday party. When Bella gets a paper cut while opening a present, Jasper, unable to control his blood thirst, launches himself at Bella and tries to kill her. Though Edward stops her from getting hurt, he begins to fear that their presence near Bella is harmful to her. He decides to end their relationship and leave Forks with his family. Bella is distraught and heartbroken, and in a desperate attempt to keep a part of Edward with her, she engages herself in a series of thrill-seeking activities, claiming to hear Edward's voice every time she does so. She also finds relief and comfort in her blossoming friendship with Jacob Black. She then realizes that he is a werewolf. The werewolf clan promises to protect her from vampire attacks from Laurent and Victoria.

Through a series of miscommunication, Edward believes that Bella has killed herself and feeling that his reason for existence is over, he decides to go to the Volturi and provoke them, as they are vampires that can kill him. Alice and Bella get to Edward in time to stop him from harming himself. Meanwhile, the Volturi inform the Cullens that since Bella is a mortal who knows about vampire existence, she must either be killed or be changed into a vampire. Though Edward's family votes on changing Bella into a vampire Edward voices his disapproval while Jacob warns them that if the vampires bite any human being, they will be in violation of the treaty between the vampires and werewolves.

Now, what I like about the story is of course the brooding Edward Cullen and the whole element of drama that exists in his presence. But, honestly speaking, not only does the book portray the female lead as being heavily dependant upon Edward Cullen, but she also takes him back at the end immediately, even after all the pain he's caused her. And, sure that is the ending the readers want, but the book is extremely predictable and cheesy; Meyer refuses to entice her readers even a little bit. Also, the werewolves lack the charm and charisma that the vampires possess, thus the book just seems to draw on with Edward...it gets extremely boring. The only reason I kept reading on through the werewolf parts was because I was anxious to reach the Cullens. All in all, Twi-hards will probably love the book, but for people who look to enthrall themselves with the magic of literature, well, they should look elsewhere.

Reviewed by Aline, grade 9.

Death Note, Vol. 1, by Tsugumi Ohba

Light Yagami is a talented student who is at the top of his class and with a bright future ahead of him. The only issue is that he's bored, until one day he comes across the Death Note. Any person's name that's written down in the notebook dies. Discovering this, Light uses the Death Note to seek out complete justice. Being intelligent and sly, he proves to be a good killer, but for how long until he get caught by the authorities? On top of that, there's the mysterious man who is on his trail.
I recommend this for complex-thinking mystery readers.

Reviewed by Momo, grade 10.
Montrose Library

The Warlock, by Michael Scott

The Warlock, by Michael Scott, is the fifth book in the series of The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel which continues the story of the two twins of legend, Sophie and Josh Newman, that are on they're quest to learn all elemental magics and retrieve the ancient codex Dr. John Dee had taken from Nicholas Flamel, the guardian. The book begins with Josh being kidnapped by Dee and his semi-faithful servant Virginia Dare. She proposed the magic of Air to Josh and ,unknowingly and under her spell, accepted. Sophie, Nicholas and Perenelle, Nicholas' wife, went to acquire help from Tsagaglalal, a powerful enchantress and wife of legendary King Gilgamesh. She also offered Sophie the final magic of Earth, leaving Josh behind. Meanwhile, Dee secretly plans to betray Dare and use Josh to summon the Dark Elders, a race of immensely powerful and intelligent beings, to destroy all worlds. Keep in mind Josh still has the two torn pages to the codex, which are t he final ingredients for the final summoning. Will the gang rescue Josh? Can Josh be freed of Dee's trap? Will this be the end of all reality as we know it? All answers will be revealed in the book.

My opinion of this book was pretty good. As mentioned in my last review for The Necromancer, I kept high hopes for this book. I liked how they kept the same elements as the previous book, but it didn't feel the same. By now, this book would be loved by the people already in the series. Honestly, this particular book wouldn't make sense if one just read as a new reader of the series. This book made me reflect a little less than the previous and I thought more of the story than the message, but I digress. I had tons of fun reading the five books, and I am aware of the final sixth book of the series, although I plan to come back to this series a bit later. Personally, I could never finish a series without taking a break from it and experiencing other novels. I don't see this as a goodbye, but more as I'll be back. However, I should not stop others from reading the sixth book, I'm very certain it is amazing judging from th e other books in the series. It's been great and hopefully, other novels will be posted besides the current series.

Reviewed by David, grade 9.
Central Library

The Other Boy, by Hailey Abbott

"The Other Boy" by Hailey Abbot,  is about a spoiled girl who has everything every girl wants. Rich parents, a wonderful house, a gorgeous boyfriend. Everything is going well until her Dad makes her go to a farm-kind of a place to do work! She hates working, of course. She got everything she wanted without working, but now she has to learn. The first day of that farm she calls "hell", she meets a nice guy who helps her to get used to the new place. After being very good friends, they develop feelings for each other and the book ends at a very happy note.

This book is the most fun and "girly" book I've ever read. It's considered Romantic Comedy. I just love that kind of books and movies. This book will never let you be bored. I think girls will enjoy it more, because the narrator is a girl and she describes all the feelings she has at the moment and I think us, girls can relate to them. The best part is that she falls in love with a new guy and realizes that her spoiled boyfriend is not as good as this guy. Maddie, the narrator becomes a better person after all these adventures and I think this book teaches us that happiness is NOT only in being rich and having everything given to you without working to get it.

Reviewed by Iren, grade 9.
Central Library

"EAT THIS MEAL," WIRED Magazine October 2012

Rachel Swaby, goes over the things you should and should not eat, and the reasons behind them. She discuses how feeding yourself is easy, but you have to pull yourself from fancy flavor combinations. She first starts up by giving an example of a great meal, which will help you outperform and outlive those who eat unhealthy meals. It has grains which prevents heart disease and diabetes, and also has fiber and nutrients. There is also fillet of salmon which has omega-3 fatty acids which help in several different ways one is reducing your risk of heart disease by 36 percent. Another part of a meal which most people forget is fruit. She sugests eating 2/3 cup of berries which provide vitamins A, C, and E. Even more forgot in common meals are Vegetables they lower blod pressure, and help ward off stoke and cancer. The final thing that almost everyone forgets to be health conscious about is the drink. Surprisingly its just water. It aids digestion, gets nutrients efficiently to your cells and protects your organs and tissues.

This article should be a must read for every one. It is very well organized and has excellent graphics so even children can comprehend it. Yet it has detailed information fit for a nutritionist. It gives and over all summary for what should be ate and shouldn't. Then it goes into a more in debt view and shows you a great example of a meal fit for a king, a healthy king. It tells you the reasoning behind every group of food. It also tells you why its a healthy choice. In conclusion i would highly recommend this article for everyone to read.

Reviewed by SSN, grade 9.
Montrose Library

Ten Things We Did, by Sarah Mlynowski

Then Things We Did, by Sarah Mlynowski, is about typical teenagers who like to party and ignore their parents. April, a 16 year old girl, doesn't want to move to another state with her Dad, so she convinces her Dad and her Stepmother, that she will behave and live in her friend's house until she graduates her High School. Her whole life pretty much becomes a mess after all the fun she had after her parents left the state. She is not doing good at school anymore, her boyfriend cheated on her and she loses some of her friends. Pretty much she did 10 things that she shouldn't have done, so she pays for her mistakes.

"Ten Things We Did" is a fun and great story. It teaches that we shouldn't lie to our parents. The truth is going to be revealed sometime. Sometimes we think we're mature enough to make life decisions, but at this age, we change our mind about something very easily, so we have to think about something for a long time then go for it. April wanted a carefree life, without parents, but all she got was problems. Many of them. The story does not end on a sad note, but she realizes her mistake, which is the best part of the story.

Reviewed by Iren, grade 9.
Central Library

"Phanteks PH-TC90LS small and quiet," Maximum PC's Holiday 2012 edition

Phanteks has been making fans for a while but this one os certainly special. Next to the Intel stock CPU cooler it looks small. Jimmy Thang reviews the new small and quiet CPU cooler which is great, but only in some circumstances. A big plus to the cooler is its size, it can easily fin into HTPCs or Home Theater Personal Computers. They are small computers that are usually connected to T.V.s and used for viewing movies or shows and light weight applications. When compared to the intel stock cooler it looses in thermal tests by several degrees Celsius. In conclusion, it is quiet, small and will fit in HTPC chassis, but the intel stock cooler cools better. Jimmy Thang gave it an 8 out of 10.

In my opinion i do not agree with Jimmy Thangs review. Although the cooler is small and quiet it should not have gotten an 8 out 10. However, if it was a 7 out of 10 I would of agreed. The cooler clearly can beet a simple stock intel cooler, now this is ok if you were going to do a small HTPC build but if it was a full size PC i would not agree. He should of stressed this in the article. Also i would give it the 7 and not a 8 because of the problems they ran into when installing the cooler. In conclusion i would recommend this article if you are planning on building a HTPC and need to do research on a CPU cooler because of its in debt review of the cooler and the valuable information it provides.

Reviewed by SSN, grade 9.
Montrose Library