Why We Broke Up by Daniel Handler

This is the story of falling in love and breaking up as told by a teenage girl named Min Green. But the twist is that the whole book is a letter to Ed, who she broke up with. She is returning a box of his stuff, and the letter explains each object. There are bottle caps, ticket stubs, toy trucks, and notes that they gave each other. Through Min’s words, you, the reader, begin to piece together the story of their relationship and why they broke up,  which you don’t really find out until the end.

What makes this book unique is that it is told in pictures as well as words. There is a full page painting of each object. I loved seeing the pictures and fell in love with Min, who is slightly eccentric and obsessed with old movies. It is also just a great story for teens who like romance and good books. I like Min the best, and also her best friend, named Al.

The Georges and the Jewels by Jane Smiley

This book is about Seventh grader Abby Lovitt, who lives on a horse ranch and has been riding since she was three. Her father’s job is to tame the horses and sell them for more than he bought them for. There is a colt on the ranch that Abbey shares a special connection with, and a difficult horse she refuses to ride. The book is basically about her relationships with the different horses and what she learns about riding, plus what is going on in her life at the time, like her brother is doesn’t live with them anymore, and things are difficult for her at school.

I really loved this book. You don’t have to like horses to read it, but if you do it will be especially good. I recommend it for girls of any age. My favorite character is Jack, a sweet colt whose mother died.

I Survived Hurricane Katrina, 2005 by Lauren Tarshis

Barry, the character in this book, has a sister named Cleo, a mom and of course a dad. He has a best friend, Abe and together they love to go on adventures and write comics. But when they are separated by a hurricane, Barry is once in his life scared by this magnificent storm. He once was in an airplane while a storm was going on. Barry’s house is turning into a pool of water when he is forced to go to his attic and then is forced to go to his roof. He falls off the roof and grabs a car for dear life and almost drowns. He then sees a rescue boat and is finally with his family and thanks the rescue boat even though the boat was crammed with people. Barry gets a temporary house in New York until New Orleans clears up. I like this book because it is based on true events.

Unraveling Isobel by Eileen Cook

Isobel’s father suffered from a mental sickness,and her mom worries that Isobel will inherit it. The book starts when Isobel’s mom remarries and moves out to an enormous, spooky mansion on a remote island with her new husband and his teenage son. Isobel does not trust her new stepfather, especially when she starts learning the bone-chilling mysteries and secrets of his past, like what exactly happened to his first wife and child. She starts seeing ghosts and experiencing strange occurrences. She begins to doubt her sanity along with her mom. This is combined with normal teenage drama- she has trouble fitting in at her new school, and there’s romance- but I won’t spoil that.

This book was a page turner for me.I had to stay up late to finish it. But it is one of the creepiest books you will ever read, so if you don’t like scary books you shouldn’t read it. Oh, and it’s also hilariously funny. Overall a REALLY, REALLY good book with something for everyone.

Double Feature By Julia DeVillers and Jennifer Roy

In this AMAZING book I read, there are two twins. Payton, and Emma! Payton LOVES acting and Emma is a ‘math’lete. They usually try to trade places with each other, only when something embarrassing happens. But why would they want to!? They get an unbelievable offer to go to Hollywood!!! Their teacher’s friend asks for two twins with great acting ability so Payton and Emma are the first girls that come to mind. The reason they are going is to star in a shampoo commercial for “Teen Sheen”. They can’t wait but then when they get there, they realize that someone is there that they are NOT looking forward to seeing. But on the bright side, they might see some celebrities!! But your just going to have to read the AMAZING book to find out!
I hope you enjoy the book as much as I did!!! I would recommend this book for girls ages 10-13! Enjoy!!!!

Around The World by Mark Phelan

Around The World by Mark Phelan is a graphic novel about three people, who in the course of eleven years made it around the world in different ways.  In 1884, Thomas Stevens went around the world on a bicycle.  Nellie Bly broke the record for traveling around the world on trains and boats in 1889.   And Joshua Slocum sailed around the world in 1895.

On the whole, I really liked this book.  The pictures are good and the stories are pretty well written.  The book does have some problems though, since the Joshua Slocum story is hard to follow, and you sort of get pushed in to the story headfirst in the beginning.  I would recommend this book to any kid 9 and up

Inside Out and Back Again by Thanhha Lai

This is a book that you don’t forget. It is about Ha, a 10 year old girl living in Vietnam. Her family consists of her, her mother, and her three brothers. Their father went away to war long ago and might not come back. Soon, Ha and her family have to flee Vietnam and come to America because of the war. Ha doesn’t want to leave her home and her precious papaya tree. This is a journey that will change her life.

Ha’s innocent but insightful narrative will make you laugh and cry. You feel her grief when she is teased at school. She is definitely my favorite character. In the end everything turns out okay, and it makes you appreciate what people go through when they are forced to leave their home. If I could use one word to describe this book, it would be: powerful. I recommend it for anyone, of any age. It is amazing.