Jack

The Red Pyramid

By Rick Riordan

 “The Red Pyramid” by Rick Riordan is a very fascinating and fun to read book. The genres of the book are science fiction and adventure. The book told a good story which was that two kids that are hosting Egyptian gods have to go to Phoenix, Arizona to destroy the Egyptian god of chaos and rescue their father. On the way to Phoenix they have to use magic to overcome the challenges trying to stop them from reaching their destination. The kids also have the help of their uncle and the Egyptian cat goddess. The story was very easy to focus on once you understand the concept of the book. The book didn’t really have one setting because the characters were traveling the whole book. The story took place in modern time. The settings did help make the story exiting because different places in the World had ancient Egyptian traces. It also made me think that so many places all over the world could be connected by ancient Egypt. In the book some of the monuments such as Cleopatra’s Needle and the Washington Monument were used as teleportation portals. The setting really helped my understanding of the book because most of the names of certain places helped me realize where the characters were in the book.  The problem in the book is that the Egyptian god of chaos kidnapped the kids’ father and is going to take over the world. The book taught me that sometimes people and places can be more then what we see them as. I felt I could connect with the characters because they were my age. The two main characters really connected well with each other because they were brother and sister. The characters’ personalities didn’t change much during the story. There were many surprises in the book that threw me off guard. The chapters ended with very interesting parts which made me keep reading until I found a spot that was slower. The dialogue the characters spoke with is very believable for kids their age I really liked this book because it was a fun book to read, and it was hard to stop reading. I would recommend this book to kids from ages eleven to fourteen. I would recommend this age group because it would be hard for people under eleven and too easy for people under fourteen. I also think this age group would enjoy the book most because the characters are around that age. It is a very good book for people who like science fiction books. The book also teaches a lot about ancient Egypt.

Red Kayak

By Priscilla Cummings

 I really enjoyed the book “Red Kayak” by Priscilla Cummings and would recommend it to anyone. The genre of the book would probably be drama, adventure, etc. The book had a lot of parts that I couldn’t put the book down. The book also has a very good morale; be an upstander, not a bystander. Another morale is to do what’s right, no matter how hard it is. The morals made me think about id you don’t do the right thing it can put in a tough spot later on.  I think the book told a very good story because it had a lot of parts that really surprised you. The story was very good because it had parts that were just normal parts in the book then it would be a giant clue in the story. The setting was in Maryland, near the Corsica River. The setting made the story exiting because when the main character would go to a spot that he would hang out with his friends, he usually found out something big about the sinking of the kayak. The problem in the book was that a boy and his friends just let a kayak with a women and a little boy go past them on a stormy day without warning them. Then the problem grew bigger as the little boy ended up drowning, and the main character finds out his friends are responsible for the sinking of the kayak.  The characters really connected with me because I could really relate to the characters because they were mostly my age. I think the characters did change during the book because for the most part they became more mature throughout the book. I think the book did have a lot of surprises that really changed the story of the book. Some of the chapters ended so that you had to read the next chapter. I think the dialogue of the characters is quite believable for kids their age, because the talk like I talk and I’m their age. I really liked this book because it was interesting and there were many parts that I couldn’t put the book down. It was also very exiting to read the book because there were a lot of surprises. I would recommend this book to kids from the ages 10-16 because I think anyone younger then ten would have a tough time understanding the book. I would also recommend it to some adults because it is very fun book to read. I also really liked how the author wrote with so much detail and expression. I also liked the dialogue that the characters used because it was so believable for kids that age to talk.

Bridge to Terabithia
The book "Bridge to Terabithia" by Katherine Paterson is a very good book to read, and I would recommend it to people of all ages. The genres of the book the book are fantasy, drama, and some adventure. The book does tell a good story and that story is, Jess Aarons wants to be the fastest kid in the fifth grade. He's been practicing all summer and he wants to see the look on all of the other fifth grader's faces when he blows right past them in their recess races. Right before school starts a girl named Leslie Burke moves in right next to Jess. Jess doesn't think much of Leslie at first, then when school started Leslie ends up being faster then Jess and he can't believe it. After Jess gets over the fact that he is not the fastest kid in the fifth grade he begins to like Leslie and they become friends. The story was very easy to concentrate on because the author makes the book very easy to follow. The setting of the book is in Lark Creek, Maryland in modern times. Lark Creek is a very small town, and it is also a very rural town. The setting makes the story exiting because without the setting there wouldn't be the book because the whole stroy revolves around the settting. The whole plot of the book is Jess and Leslie create a magical land in the woods called Terabithia, but only for the two of them. They love to go to Terabithia and that is where they can talk to each other alone, and just have fun in their make-believe land. In this book I think the author was trying to say that no matter how wierd you think somebody is at first they can always end up being your friend. The author also created a very sad ending that seperates Jess and Leslie forever. The characters were easy to connect with, because i could see myself doing the same type of things they did when I was in fifth grade. Jess and Leslie were the two characters that really connected with each other, because they liked the same things, and they were perfect for each other. They also love and care for each other and they're the best of friends. I believe that the characters changed throughout the story, especially Jess. He went from being a kid that was only concerned about running and drawing to a kid that loved to have fun and do whatever he wanted. As a reader I could really connect with Jess, because I remember what it was like to be a fifth grade boy and I could really relate with him. This book was full of parts that made me never want to stop reading, but there were some parts that lagged on slowly. The author left so many cliffhangers for the end of chapters, which makes you want to keep reading. The dialogue between the characters is very believable, because I think I would've talked the same way when I was in fifth grade. I think this book should be for kids from the age of twelve to sixteen, but is a good book for adults. I liked this book because of the suprises and the cliffhangers. I also like it because of the relationship between the two characters. In my opinion this book should be rated four stars out of five.

[]
 * [[image:http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51CuhS%2BE8gL._BO2,204,203,200_PIsitb-sticker-arrow-click,TopRight,35,-76_AA300_SH20_OU01_.jpg height="300" caption="Bridge to Terabithia" link="http://www.amazon.com/gp/reader/0060734019/ref=sib_dp_pt#reader-link"]] ||
 * Bridge to Terabithia ||

 The Last Lecture By Randy Pausch

__The Last Lecture__  by Randy Pausch is a inspirational book about Pausch’s famous last lecture. In his lecture the main part of the lecture is dedicated toward following you dreams. This book is completely factual and involves no fiction of any type. Randy was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer which is a terminal disease, and that is why he was forced to give his final lecture at such a young age. Randy talks about his childhood dreams and which ones that he actually completed during his life. He also talks about the ones that he did not complete, but taught him lessons for life. In this book there is no setting because he talks about all his dreams as a child and about his life. Although, some places that often occur in his stories are his house as a kid, the University of Virginia, Carnegie Mellon University, and believe it or not Disney World. The story also flashes back to different time periods in his life throughout the book. In the book the main problem is that Randy is diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and only has months to live. Randy just kept living his life the same way he did before he was diagnosed, and that taught me to live life to its fullest because one day you might not have as much life left as you thought. The author kept mentioning that he won’t let the disease stop him from living his life, and that is great advice in my opinion. There are so many characters in the book. A few of the characters that come up the most are Randy’s wife, his kids, his parents, his older sister, his students, and of course Randy himself. The characters do develop a lot during the story because he always refer to them in different parts of the book. I am just amazed at how Randy develops in the book, also. The style that the author used was very interesting. He included so many chapters instead of incorporating multiple things into one chapter. Some of the chapters weren’t even a full page long.There is also a lot of dialogue in all of the stories about his life inside the book. I would recommend this book to the age group of young adults and adults. I would recommend it to this age group because I think it would be too difficult for the younger kids, and I think adults would find this book more interesting. I liked the book because it was very interesting to read about his life and his dreams. I also think he would be a cool and fun guy to be around. I liked how he made the parts of the book sound interesting instead of just reading his life story. The book was also funny in some parts, had some drama, and was just a flat out good book. would give this book four stars out of five. <span style="background-color: transparent; display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 19px;"> <span style="background-color: transparent; display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"> <span style="background-color: transparent; display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 19px;"><span style="background-color: transparent; display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; line-height: normal;"> <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Hobbit <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">By J.R.R Tolkien <span style="background-color: transparent; display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; line-height: normal;"> <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">__The Hobbit__ <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> J.R.R Tolkien is a story about a Hobbit, Bilbo Baggins, and his adventure with a bunch of dwarfs to steal treasure from a dragon. An adventure that many have perished trying to complete before them. This is a fantasy novel because hardly any of the things in this book exist in real life. Bilbo was always a hobbit that did not like adventures, but the dwarfs and a wizard, Gandalf, persuaded him to come. Bilbo’s role was to act as the thief of the group because hobbits were supposed to be good burglars. Bilbo was not a burglar, but he became one over the book. The story was hard to concentrate on at some times because parts of the story did not make sense. It was hard to read for an extended period of time because at some parts the story were not interesting at all. The story has no specific setting because the whole book Bilbo and his companions are moving to different locations. The book probably takes place around the Renaissance period. The setting made parts of the book exiting and parts of the book boring. The dwarfs and Bilbo really wanted to complete the mission, but it just seemed to keep getting harder for them. Throughout the book there were so many characters, but the main characters were Bilbo, the dwarfs, and Gandalf. Bilbo is the one character that changed the most throughout the book, in my opinion. Hardly any of the chapters ended with endings that made me want to keep reading, but there were some chapters that ended in cliffhangers. The dialogue was very interesting because it was so unlike anything I have heard before in my life. I think this book is for anybody from grade 7 to adults. I would recommend it this way because the book is too hard for younger kids, but its a good book for the age I recommended. I didn’t necessarily like this book that much, but there were some parts that I found interesting. I would give this book three stars out of five. <span style="background-color: transparent; display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; line-height: normal;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> <span style="background-color: transparent; display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; line-height: normal;"> <span style="background-color: transparent; display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; line-height: normal;">