Lisa

  __**The Great Gatsby Book Review**__ **By: Lisa Fendrick** **(summer reading)**

For my summer reading choice book I chose __The Great Gatsby__  a novel by F. Scott Fitzgerald. This book takes place in the North Shore of Long Island, and also in New York City at the time of the “roaring 1920’s”, specifically in the year of 1922. The main subject of __The Great Gatsby__  focuses on Jay Gatsby’s love for Daisy Buchanan; a past love that has been married to another man in the time that Gatsby was abroad at war. The story is told through a narrator named Nick Carraway, who is Daisy’s second cousin. I would recommend this book to anybody that was interested in it.

I think that __The Great Gatsby__ told a wonderful story, and it sounds very believable. The story kept me focused on what was happening at each point in time. The only time that I was confused was when I had a little trouble keeping track of the characters and their names. I think that the plot was very memorable, and I liked it a lot. As I said before the story takes place on Long Island as well as New York City. I believe that the setting of this book does play an important role, because it often talks about the Long Island sound and how Jay Gatsby lives on one side, and Daisy Buchanan lives on the other. The characters in this book were very well thought out. I believe that they connected with me as well as each other. Some of the characters definitely developed through this story, such as Nick who grows and learns about the real world while being around some of the other characters.

The conflict in this story is that Jay Gatsby who still is in love with Daisy tries to win her back, only to have Tom Buchanan (Daisy’s husband who is having an affair of his own) find out about their love for each other. This book taught me that money isn’t everything. You could be the richest person in the world, but money can’t buy you love and happiness no matter how much is spent. I do think that the author accomplished his goal in writing this book. There were many surprises in this book that kept me interested, but the one that I thought was the most surprising was that both of the Buchanans were cheating on each other; why didn’t they just get a divorce? Also, how the characters spoke was realistic for the time period that they were in. Many of the chapters in this book ended in cliffhangers making you want to keep reading.

Again, I would recommend this book to anyone who was interested in reading it, but I think they should be at least eleven to fully understand it. I would give this book a five out of five stars! I loved this book because it was very believable and interesting at the same time. http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_0_9?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=the+great+gatsby&sprefix=the+great

__**The Red Kayak Book Review**__  <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 12pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">**By: Lisa Fendrick** <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> For my summer reading required book I read <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">__The Red Kayak__ <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, a book by Priscilla Cummings. I believe that the main theme of the book focuses on making the right decisions. Brady, the main character, can make two decisions. The first choice would change his life, and the people he is around, and the second choice would be to ignore the truth. The story is told through Brady and his thoughts. I thought that this book was a good read and I would recommend it to people who have trouble making decisions. I do think that the book told a good story, but I think that if it were written in a more interesting way with more twists and turns or surprises, it would have been better. I think this because I feel like I knew what was going to happen next in some parts of the story. To me the plot was not forced because not every thing happened at once and it was believable. This book was not very memorable to me because nothing stood out to me as much as I would have liked it to. Most of the time my mind stayed on track, but when I did get distracted it was hard to get back to thinking about the book. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">__The Red Kayak__ <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> took place along the Corsica River, which is near the Chesapeake Bay in Maryland. I think that the setting of this book played a very important role in this story, because without the river Mrs. DiAngelo would never have been able to take her three-year-old son out on a kayak ride, and without that there is no story. I don’t think that the setting of this book made the story necessarily “exciting”, but it made it more interesting. The main problem of this book is that Brady experiences a great tragedy and then is faced with making two decisions. As I said before, he can hide the fact that he knows what really happened that day, or he can tell the truth, which would change his life.
 * (summer reading)**

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 23pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> The Characters in this book, to me, were very believable and natural in their dialogue. I think that this helped me to connect with the characters because they spoke the way that actual kids speak nowadays. I think that some of the characters developed through the story, for example Brady, develops in a way that helps him make the right decision. There were a few surprises and cliffhangers in this story that made me want to read more. The age group that I think would enjoy reading this book is 9-14 years old, because I feel that this age group would be able to understand the story, but also be interested in it. I would give this book a three and a half out of five stars. http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_0_10?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=the+lovely+bones&sprefix=the+lovely <span style="background-color: transparent; display: block; font-family: Times; font-size: medium; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">__ **8th Grade 1st Trimester Review** __ <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> For my first trimester reading book I chose The Lovely Bones, a novel by Alice Sebold. This story takes place mainly in a small town outside of the Philadelphia area, the time frame that it is set in is from 1978 to 1981. I think that the main theme of this book is grieving, because, to me, the book was about Susie and her family coming to acceptance with her murder. The story is told through Susie in Heaven. She watches from above as her family falls apart as they are trying to cope with the loss of their daughter, sister, and friend. I thought that this book was a great read. As I said before, the setting of the book is small town out side of Philadelphia. I do think that the setting does play an important role in this story. For example; the corn field, where she was murdered, there would be no story without it, or the fort that Mr.Harvey made “for the neighborhood kids.” I definitely think that the setting made this book more exciting. I thought that the author thought out the characters very well, from their personalities to how they look. I think that most of the characters develop in a way that helps them accept Susie’s death.

I think that there are two conflicts in this story. One is that Susie was raped and killed. The second conflict is that the Salmon family falls apart after she was murdered. The author helped me realize how how hard it can be for a family to get over a murder. I think that the author did a great job in writing this book and accomplished her g oals along the way. I felt that the characters were connected to the reader in this book. I felt that I was especially connected to Lindsey, because we are both very athletic and care deeply about our sisters. Between the frequent cliffhangers and the many surprises the story was always exciting and kept me interested. <span style="background-color: transparent; display: block; font-family: Times; font-size: medium; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"> <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> I loved this book and would recommend it to anyone who was interested, I would suggest that you should be at least thirteen years old to read this book. I would give this book a four out of five stars. <span style="background-color: transparent; display: block; font-family: Times; font-size: medium; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"> <span style="background-color: transparent; display: block; font-family: Times; font-size: medium; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"> <span style="background-color: transparent; display: block; font-family: Times; font-size: medium; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"> <span style="background-color: transparent; display: block; font-family: Times; font-size: medium; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"> <span style="background-color: transparent; display: block; font-family: Times; font-size: medium; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"> <span style="background-color: transparent; display: block; font-family: Times; font-size: medium; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">** http://www.amazon.com/Lovely-Bones-Alice-Sebold/dp/0316044938/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1289349061&sr=8-1 ** <span style="background-color: transparent; display: block; font-family: Times; font-size: medium; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; white-space: normal;"> <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">__**The Last Lecture Second Trimester Book Review**__ <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">**By: Lisa Fendrick**  <span style="background-color: transparent; display: block; font-family: Times; font-size: medium; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; white-space: normal;"> <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> For my second trimester book review I chose to read <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">__The Last Lecture__ <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, by Randy Pausch. The book was mainly about Randy Pausch’s famous “last lecture.” In the book he describes his many different childhood dreams, and how he achieved them over the years. A year or two before his lecture he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and he was told in a kind way that he only had six months of good health left. One of my favorite quotes from this book was “We cannot change the cards we are dealt just how we play the hand.” He could not change the fact that he had cancer, only how he spent the rest six months of his life.

I believe that this was the most inspirational story that I have read so far. His lecture inspired me to truly chase and go after my childhood dreams, and his cancer story inspired me to never stop trying. This book had me captivated from the moment I sat down and started to read it. The fact that a real person really went through these things just made it more interesting for me to read, it made me think about my own life and how I can change it for the better, and how I can live it to the fullest. The story takes place in many different places and time periods; his childhood home, the Carnegie Mellon University campus in Pittsburgh, Pa, his new house in Virginia, and many other places. The setting was important because in most of them one of his childhood dreams was achieved.

The dialogue in <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">__The Last Lecture__ <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">was very believable, considering the fact that it actually happened. The problem of this story is that Randy has pancreatic cancer and was given a year at the most left to live. He knows that he will not survive but he does this lecture to teach his kids and others a few lessons that he feels should be taught and talked about. I feel that in each chapter there was a different lesson that I learned. The type of people that I think that would enjoy this book is really anyone, because I think that everyone can connect with Randy in some way. I loved this book because it was very interesting and inspirational. I would give it a five out of five stars. http://www.amazon.com/Last-Lecture-Randy-Pausch/dp/1401323251/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1297441876&sr=8-1

__**The Hobbit Third Trimester Book Review**__ __**By: Lisa Fendrick**__ <span style="background-color: transparent; display: block; font-family: Times; font-size: medium; white-space: normal;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> For my third trimester book review I choose to read The Hobbit, by J.R.R. Tolkien. This is a fantasy book about hobbits. The author describes hobbits as being like little people with big bellies, hairy feet, and who like to eat (a lot). They live in holes in the sides of mountains that are very cozy and nice. Bilbo Baggins, a hobbit, is the main character in this book. He was a rather boring hobbit, always doing the same thing every day. When one day he meets the great wizard Gandalf, who tricks him into hosting a party for Thorin, another hobbit. This party is where Bilbo gets dragged into going on an “adventure,” something that he never imagined himself doing, and it is also where the story begins.

This book is filled with adventure as the pack of hobbits travel into the wild to retrieve the treasures that rightfully belong to Thorin. These treasures were taken away from Thorin when the dragon Smaug came and took over the mountain where Thorin once lived. The group must deal with trolls, goblins, large spiders, a violent dragon, and more all in their journey to find the stolen treasure. Over the course of the book Bilbo grows from being an unexciting elf to actually finding adventure inside of himself.

This book was very interesting and fun. If you like adventure or fantasy books I would definitely recommend The Hobbit to you. I enjoyed reading it because it is very different from the types of books that I normally read, and it told a wonderful story. I would give this book a four out of five stars. It was a great read. http://www.amazon.com/Hobbit-70th-Anniversary-J-R-R-Tolkien/dp/0618968636/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1305470997&sr=8-1