Corinne

 **Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger BOOK REVIEW (trimester 3)** 

__Catcher in the Rye__  by J.D. Salinger is an nontraditional fictional memoir of the adventures of Holden Caulfield. This is a coming-of-age type story, however more like a coming-to-terms-with-himself type transformation. Holden begins in a preppy boarding school in Pennsylvania that he hates, Pencey Prep, where he flunks out of all of his classes. Before his parents get the news, he wants to stay in a hotel in his hometown, New York City, for a while to cushion the blow of him getting kicked out of yet another school. This is the story of his city adventures, where he meets many strange and kind new faces, old friends, and the true him. The story is a first person account of his thoughts and experiences, and the truth is, until the last few chapters, it could get really boring and long, no matter how short his encounters were. However, the last few chapters were exceptional. So, the plot was pretty good, but not fantastic. I did notice when I recognized it’s rambling, that it was very exciting for day after day life. It was very realistic as well, and really allowed you to get inside the mind of someone who was, essentially, crazy. This did have a lot to do with the people he had known and had come in contact with. He has his family, with his three siblings, Phoebe, D.B., and Allie (his dead younger brother). These characters define him. But the most influential character was Phoebe, which I found to be the most interesting part of the book, as Holden reacts to everything that he realizes is rubbing off on her from his actions. All the characters were seen through the eyes of Holden, and this was a very interesting to look at, because he was a bit strange in his thoughts. The characters were seen in a different light, and it really made you think how people see you, and how you see people. The style of this book was classic. It rambled a bit, and there weren’t very many twist and surprises, but then again, who has a life with segments that end in cliffhangers or has constant surprises? That wouldn’t even be realistic. This book was all about the truth. The dialogue did keep you pretty interested, but only because of its content in comparison to his tedious thoughts. The lines of dialogue did, occasionally, span pages, and that got slightly boring. But overall, it was a good truthful story. I would rate it 3.5 out of 5.  link


 * Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare**
 * BOOK REVIEW (trimester 2)**

__Romeo and Juliet__ by William Shakespeare is a fantastic Shakespearean play. It is THE classic love story of two rival families,the Montagues and the Capulets. Juliet Capulet, and Romeo Montague fall in love. In this story, they secretly get married by their good friend the friar, and then everything goes wrong. Romeo's friend and Juliet's cousin get in a deathly fight, where Romeo's cousin gets killed. Romeo, enraged, kills Juliet's cousin, and is banished from the town in which they all live. Also, Juliet's parents arrange a wedding for her, while she is married! This is only the beginning of what goes on until eventually they die thinking that the other one is dead. We start the story knowing everything, as this random person comes on and tells the whole story to start off with. It did give away the whole story, but as this has been a storyline done many times, and I have heard it before, it really didn't particularly spoil it for me. I still thought that that was disappointing. Other than that, there is nothing to complain about in this memorable plot, because it is so classic. It's Shakespeare! It was done in a way where everybody was understandable, and the plot was clear (with a lot of help from the stage direction). I couldn't stop reading, and the book really grabbed your attention. One of the most important parts of this plot, particularly, is all the characters. The author has a great way of describing all the characters through dialog by making their opinions very clear. They all have a side. Romeo and Juliet are madly in love, both the family's patriarchs are extremely concerned in honor, tradition, and dignity, and Friar Lawrence had the most neutral opinion, as he was on the good side, whenever in the story. The characters developed in all aspects: living to dead, depressed to in love, hatred and feud to acceptance and hope. The characters ultimately drive the story, unlike other stories where works of nature (or the supernatural) drive a part of the plot. In this story, it is completely driven by the characters and what they do: they cause the feud, they kill each other, they fall in love. The story had many twists, but ones you expected. It was, however, enough to keep me interested. The fact that it was a play made it completely actioned. It was a bit easier to follow, because you always knew who was talking, what they were doing, and where they were, thanks to stage direction and scene changes. I enjoyed reading this, and I would recommend it for anyone who REALLY wants to read Shakespeare. I would give this book 4 out of 5 stars. ^the cover of the book ^


 * Inherit the Wind by Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee**
 * BOOK REVIEW (trimester 1)**

__Inherit the Wind__ by Jerome Lawrence is a play based on a true story about a trial that takes place in the small town of Hillsboro. A local school teacher, Bertram Cates, has taught his class about evolution, a subject that is illegal to teach in this very religious town. He is put on trail for saying these things, and the opposing lawyers are Mathew Harrison Brady and Henry Drummond, two powerhouse lawyers who had it out for each other. Rachel, a bit of a love interest for Cates, still believes in Cates, and thinks he is still a respectable man. Rachel is also the minister's daughter which poses yet another problem. This play explores faith, loyalty, and seeing beyond personal beliefs and prejudices to see the real person inside. This made a plot that was difficult to pay close attention to, but once you understood it, you really appreciated it. This story is a memorable court story that is truly deep and makes you think about what side you would be on. The ending almost felt surreal, but it was so well thought out and memorable, you really didn't pay attention to that. The story was very dramatic, and had such a rich, developed story, it is hard to believe that something alike to that actually happened. It was a very mature story, so I think there may be some things I do not understand yet, but the story was understandable enough for me to comprehend. But, I learned a lot while I read this, and now I have a deeper understanding of this style of writing, and even law. This story was not the style or type of story I usually read, but I really learned to appreciate more classic literature, and the style of playwriting. There were not the classic plot twists and cliffhangers normal novels would have, but it did in its own special way. The court case would sometimes unfold, but changing scenes there aren't too many ways you can build up serious cliffhangers. It is well paced, and the courtroom dialogue is real, but still very interesting. The story is set up in scenes, and there was very much stage direction. I had to get used to reading without chapters, but in the long run, I enjoyed reading. The setting played a very important part in the story. At the beginning the setting was described as "Place: a small town; Time: summer, not too long ago", so I thought that it wasn't really relevant. As you read, you learned the place was a small town called Hillsboro. This was important, as this town was very centered around religion. Even during the case, there was a point where "amens" were shouted from the audience, and in another situation, as court was dismissed for the evening, the judge announced a prayer service that night. In the town of Hillsboro, it is illegal to teach evolution, so without the setting, the story would be nonexistent. You also learned by some of the language it was probably in the early 20th century. The themes explored in this book are faith, trust, loyalty, and it relies heavily on the fact that religion was of utmost importance in this story. The story's main conflict is evolution vs. religion. Throughout the story, the writers make you pick a side in their own subtle ways. This was very mature, but the character Drummond made it very understandable. I really enjoyed reading, but I think you should be in at least 8th grade when you do read it. I would give this book 4 out of 5 stars. link for Inherit the Wind .


 * Uglies by Scott Westerfield**
 * BOOK REVIEW (summer reading)**

 __Uglies__ by Scott Westerfield is a science fiction novel and a fantastic story. It explores the true meaning of beauty, as it is set after all humans as we know them (Rusties) practically go extinct, and a new, beauty-obsessed society emerges. In this world, once you turn sixteen, you are surgically turned into a Pretty, which is a high-tech perfect person, which is practically made of indestructible material. In fact, they are so perfect; their only job is to have a party. This was all in Tally’s future--becoming pretty, meeting up with her best friend Paris, and having a nearly perfect life of partying-- until, that is, she meets Shay. Shay doesn’t want to be pretty, and would rather “have fun” being imperfect. She runs away to the Smoke, a place where “Uglies escaping the tyranny of beauty” (pg 132) do everything by hand, and urges Tally to follow. This of course is where the story begins.  This was a page turner with a clearly thought out, developed plot. It kept you reading more with surprises and plot twists around every corner, without going too off track. It was a story with a lot of dimension, between the characters and even the language. When you were reading the story, you were transported to a different world. But, at the same time, it also made you think about this world and the choices you would have made. It was an amazing book to be reading, and your focus wouldn’t wander while reading this book.  The characters were exceedingly real, as they connected not only with each other, but with themselves. There weren’t too many characters, and most of them undergo a change throughout the book. The fact that they kept the characters at a small number was a good thing, because they weren’t hard to keep track of. The characters are easy to relate to, as they all have different opinions. But, even though this book was in third-person, the author found ways to have the characters connect with themselves. The author’s style was fun to read, and kept you reading right until the very end of the book. There were many cliffhangers and surprises, at the end of the chapters, and at the end of the parts to the book. I realized sometimes he tells you how it plays out at the end of a chapter or part, but still kind of leaves a feeling of “what will happen next?”, and this gave the story some extra drive. The story was written in third person (which I prefer), so you really got the bigger picture, opposed to one character’s point of view. This let you have your own opinions, and it almost let you choose who to “root for”. The dialogue, and even the non verbal interactions between characters fed the story, and let it flow.  Some themes explored in this book are beauty, forgiveness, friendship, freedom, and individuality. The story’s themes really were a big part in the development of the main character, Tally. The idea of a perfect specimen was unreachable, as the author really explained well. I would recommend this book to a person (probably a girl) who loves fictional stories, and is looking for a page turner. I absolutely love this book, and hope to read the sequels in the near future. I would give this book 4 ½ out of 5 stars.




 * Red Kayak by Priscilla Cummings**
 * BOOK REVIEW (summer reading)**

__Red Kayak__ by Priscilla Cummings was a fictional novel and a good read that really had an emphasis on regret, but mostly forgiveness. It was about a young boy named Brady who lived on the Chesapeake Bay, his two friends (J.T. and Digger), and his neighbors, the DiAngelos. The DiAngelos had a fancy red Kayak, and one day, before school, when the water was rough, he saw the kayak out on the water. He wanted to shout to Mr. DiAngelo, the man he thought was on the kayak, but his friends talked him out of it. Later, after he had gotten home from school, he got the news that the kayak flipped over. Not only that, Mr. DiAngelo was not on the kayak, but it was his son, Ben (who Brady was close with), and a pregnant //Mrs.// DiAngelo. This is where the story unfolds. This concept made for a page-turning plot line, and a bit of a mystery. There were twists and turns in the plot, as you learn more and more about the event that happened in the early part of the book, and this challenged every character. There were many points where the main character couldn’t turn back, and that made you want to keep reading it. Once you get into the book, you can’t stop. However, the beginning was confusing, and a bit slow. But beyond that, it was a great story and keeps you reading. This book was written as a memoir, which was both good and bad. It was good because it made the real as you could get inside Brady’s head, and feel the regret. However, it was bad because the author already knows what happens at the beginning, which is confusing, but, again, it was also very real. Every chapter made you want to turn the page, as they ended in cliffhangers, and this made the book fast paced, which is good for a shorter story like Red Kayak. But even though it was fast paced, it still got all the points across that the author was trying to make. It really made me enjoy reading it. This book had themes of forgiveness, regret, friendship, and trust. I do admit, when I first started reading, I really didn’t think I would like it. But, once I got into it, I found myself wanting to read more. This book was filled with different stories, characters, and ultimately points of view, but they all centered around one event. It had a page-turning plot, some interesting characters, and a mystery that unfolded itself throughout the story, and this is why I enjoyed this book. I would recommend this book to boys and girls of all ages that just want a short, but good read. <span style="color: #000000; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: 0.5in;">I would give this book 4 out of 5 stars.