Adventure/Action Stories
Student Book Reviews- See What We Like
Dec 10th
The Lost Hero By: Rick Riordan Review by Tracy
The Lost Hero is about a prophecy that needs to be completed. This is the first book of the series The Heroes of Olympus. This book is about 3 demigods, Jason, Piper, and Leo. Jason woke up on a bus forgetting his memories. Piper, a girl who says that Jason is her boyfriend, has a secret. And Leo has his way of using tools to create amazing items. The prophecy that was for told was very eerie to me; “Seven half-blood shall answer the call. To storm or fire, the world must fall. An oath to keep with a final breath and foes bear arms to the Doors of Death.”
Together these three must overcome every obstacle in their way to save the queen of Olympus. Will they succeed or will they fail? Read to find out the story that’s about to unfold.
This book also has Percy Jackson and a bunch of his other previous characters that he used in the series Percy Jackson and the Olympians. This is the author of the Percy Jackson and the Olympians, which include The Lightning Thief, Sea of Monsters, Titians Curse, Battle of the Labyrinth, and The Last Olympians. Also, he is the author of the Kane Chronicles, which has The Red Pyramid, and the author of Maze of Bones the first book of 39 clues. So if you’re an adventure loving, Greece lover then this is a superb book to read. I hope you enjoy this book as much as I did!
Later Gater by Lawrence Yep Review by Diana
This book is about a boy named Bobby. Tomorrow is his birthday and his brother Teddy has to buy him a present. Bobby’s mom tells Teddy to get an animal instead of a pair of socks. So, Teddy drove to a pet store on a bus with a ton of people while Bobby was with his dad at work having fun.
When Teddy went inside the pet shop, the owner said he should get a hamster or a turtle. Teddy thought that they were too nice. So Teddy got an alligator because he wants to scare Bobby. Do you think Bobby got scared? Read this funny book to find out.
The Missing: Book 3, Sabotaged By: Haddix Review by Alice
This book is the 3rd book in “The Missing” series by Haddix. In this book, Jonah and Katherine take a girl, Andrea, one of the 36 missing kids from history, back to Roanoke Colony. If you are in the 5th grade, I am sure you know of Roanoke Colony, one of the settlements England brought to the USA. Although, mysteriously, when John White (the colony’s leader), goes back to England for 3 years and comes back. everything is missing. No clues, except one carving that says “Croatoan”
So, when they go back into time, they see nothing, they lost the Eculator. The Eculator is a time travel device that keeps them camouflaged and safe. On their walk they bump into tracer Natives. They follow them and find something surprising! They later find out why time seems messed up. They are being sabotaged.
This book is recommended by me to all of the adventure, sci-fi, and mystery fans. This book will make you want to keep going and NEVER stop! Both genders will LOVE this book. But, I highly recommend reading the first and second book beforehand.
Into the Gauntlet Review by Moses
Into The Gauntlet is the grand finale of the 39 Clues series. Dan and Amy are hopeless, they have no leads. When they finally find the Clues, it is stolen. Suddenly, they find a poem on their doorstep, but it is stolen by evil Isabel Kabra. Somehow they manage to find out the Clues, but they do not know that they are followed by others. The clues lead Amy and Dan to a small island, only to be discovered by everyone else. They decide to team up and find out that the clues are the recipe to a serum which will make you the most powerful person in the world! Suddenly, evil Isabel crashes their celebration and she is holding a gun…. Read this wonderful book to find out what happens next.
The Sorcerer’s Stone by J K Rowling Review by Moses
This book is one of the most delightful fantasy books I have ever read. With a mix of Roald Dahl and J.R.R. Tolkien, it is both funny and suspenseful. The story begins when Harry receives a letter from Hogwarts, a school for Wizards. At the school he makes friends with a boy named Ron and a girl named Hermione. They “accidentally” find out that there is a stone that can give any wish the user wanted. They learn the hard way that someone else wants the stone too, and that someone will hurt, even kill anyone who gets”in the way”! Who will win, who will perish? Find out by reading this terrific book.
Firestorm reviewed by Gabe
I liked this book a lot. It is about a boy named Jack who goes on a quest to save the oceans. On his quest he meets new friends and learns new skills. The reason that I liked this so much was because it has a good balance of action, adventure and science fiction. It was also interesting because Jack learned about pollution and how it could affect his future. I give this book 4 out of 5 stars.
Chocolate by Wendy Blaxland Reviewed by JudyAnn
This book is a great book to read if you adore chocolate like I do! It tells interesting facts about chocolate. For instance, chocolate is made from powdered cacao beans which are the seed of the cacao tree. Also, the first chocolate was made thousands of years ago and was loved by many Aztec Indians. Well, now that I’ve told you so much about this book, you should check it out and I hope you enjoy it!
Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins Review by Will
The Hunger Games was the best book I have read in a long time! I would recommend it to anyone who likes action, romance and suspense. The most suspenseful part of the book was when there were only three people left in the games. Read it to see why.
Diary of a Wimpy Kid Review by Yana
Greg’s life is miserable; his mom buys him a diary and makes him write in it, he is forced to join the swim team, his parents make him do everything that he does not want to! Greg’s has to make sure that his friends do not find out about his diary.This book is funny and silly and I really enjoyed reading it. I think that you would like it too.
Skeleton Key Review by Mark
This book is very interesting because in the beginning it just tells you that no one knows where the skeleton key is. I started to read it and I enjoyed it. I would recommend this book for people who like adventure because this is big journey to a haunted house to get a key for an old kingdom. When they find the key, they discover that it is cursed! There is a letter saying that they will be taken to horrible places. Read this excellent book to find out what happens to them.
Student Review by Tina
Nov 29th
Leepike Ridge by N.D. Wilson
He stopped wondering, and he tested. He put his foot on the foam. Then he squatted down and knelt on it. It still floated. He pushed off the muddy bank and drifted toward the leafy ring. He reached out for the branches and quickly dropped onto his belly when the raft rocked and reeled. The leaves parted in front of him as he left his harbor and entered the moonlight.
This is how an amazing adventure could have begun. In this case, this adventure was taken by eleven-year-old Thomas Hammond, who lived near Leepike Ridge. He thought Leepike Ridge, as his home, to be a pleasant life, where he knows everything about it. But he doesn’t realize he’s just living above, and he ends up being dragged UNDER it. Now he’s in trouble! You’d think this to be TERRIBLE. It is of course, but, he finds many questions answered that he probably didn’t know existed. Most about his father and his death a few years back. Bit also, how will he get out? How will he get revenge on those who were responsible for his father’s death? Will he ever see light again?
So many questions build up when you’re near the end of the book. I personally loved how, near the end, you pull a “trigger” and the questions are answered while suspense is built. The action rises as things just get out of control for all the characters.
I hope others will pick up this book and enjoy it, too.
Red Pyramid by Rick Riordan
Nov 4th
I am trying a different kind of review today. This is a Tagxedo word cloud. It is similar to Wordle, but you can dictate the specific shape a word cloud takes. This example is using the text from the School Library Journal review of Red Pyramid, Book 1 of the new Kane Chronicles series by Rick Riordan. If you love his Percy Jackson and the Olympians books, you will want to check out Red Pyramid, his new series that centers around Egyptian mythology. Tell me what you think about the Tagxedo! Even better, can you figure out why I chose the shape of the bird for this word cloud? Send me a comment.
Keep Reading! Mrs. Hembree
I Thought My Soul Would Rise and Fly: Diary of Patsy a Freed Slave Student Review by Devon
Oct 6th
”Dear America” is a historic series that shows-off the important events that took place over a long period of time. Although it’s probably a fact that Patsy (the main character) was not an actual person, I sometimes wonder if this book is based on a true story. I put my opinion into this book review and I will try my best to get you all to read it, because in my thoughts, it breaks through the barriers of fact, and sprinkles a bucket of fiction throughout the rich pages! This book is historically adventurous!
Of course you have already guessed, that Patsy is the main character, and of course, a character has a cause, and for Patsy, that cause is slavery. Patsy is a slave, and she tries her hardest to work for the mistress, and she kind of enjoys it, well, as much as she can the task of dusting the library. But why would a slave enjoy dusting an old library? Well, to tell you, she is different from most slaves, but how? She can read!
A fact in this story is that most slaves cannot read or write, yet little old Patsy has her special features, behind the Master and Mistresses back, Patsy practices reading and writing. Patsy the slave, can read and write, and so she writes in her diary. She writes about her adventures of the day. She goes about her day’s events such as cooking and cleaning the manor, but one grateful day, the Yankees arrive and claim the slaves are… FREE! After this statement was made, the whole manor fell apart! One after another, the freed men and women left to search for their families. But in the mean time, everyone else must claim his or her last name! Everyone is joined in the commotion and still, Patsy still has not decided what her last name should be!
I’m not going to spoil such outstanding and thrilling historic events, so I strongly recommend this book to any adventure seekers and all the history admirers! ”I thought my soul would rise and fly” when I read this!
Hunger Games Student Review by Kwesi
Oct 4th
Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
This book is a thrilling, excellent page turner. The story is about 12 poor districts that bow down to the capital.
The main characters in the story are Prim, Katniss her older sister, and their mother. You have to be 12-18 years old to be qualified to be in the Hunger Games. Prim just turned 12 so her chance of being chosen is 1 out of 1,000,000. On the other hand Katniss loves her family and is an excellent hunter with a bow and arrow; well qualified for the hunger games. Out of nowhere Prim gets drawn to be in the Hunger Games. Every time a tribute is drawn a person from the district is allowed to volunteer to take someone’s place but every time it’s the same reply, “No”. But in this scenario Katniss take her sister’s place for the girl tribute for the hunger games. The other boy tribute for district 12 was Peeta Malark, a boy she owed big favor to. It was when she went hunting and could not get anything and was about to starve to death. She saw the boy walk into his house while getting beaten by his mother for burned bread. He tossed her the nice perfect bread with just a little burn on the side.
A reason I like this book is because the author is the best at writing action and depression in a good mix. Another reason I like this book is because it’s written by one of my favorite authors, Suzanne Collins. If you’re a Hunger Games fan and want to meet the author of this book, she is coming to the Barnes and Noble book store in Lynnwood on November 5th at 7pm.
The Red Pyramid Student Review by Tracy
Oct 4th
The Red Pyramid by Rick Riordan
The Red Pyramid is about two siblings who barely know each other. Since their mothers’ death, Carter and Sadie Kane have been separated. Carter got to travel the world with his dad, Dr. Julius Kane, while Sadie gets to stay with their grandmother and grandfather in London. After the night of an explosion at the British Museum, Carter’s and Sadie’s life quickly changed when their father summoned a mysterious figure. They find that they are the most powerful children born with the blood of the pharaoh.
This book made me not want to stop reading. It has electrifying moments where it’s indescribable. Such as “We only had a few hours, so listen carefully. If you are hearing this story, you’re already in danger. Sadie and I might be your only chance. Go to the school. Find the locker. I won’t tell you which school or which locker, because if the right person, you’ll find it. The combination is 13/32/33. By the time you finish listening, you’ll know what those numbers mean. Just remember the story we’re about to tell you isn’t complete yet. How it ends will depend on you…” That was the beginning of the book and I hope it grabbed your attention, because when I read it I couldn’t stop reading. Will they manage to save the world from the gods of Egypt or will they fail?
I recommend this book to the Percy Jackson fans or if you love Egypt, then this is a book for you. Rick Riordan again has left us with another piece of his superb work. I hope you love this book as much as I did.
Book Review: Jake Ransom and the Skull King’s Shadow by James Rollins
Sep 7th
The following information is from the publisher’s book jacket: ” When a mysterious envelope arrives for Jake Ransom, he and his older sister, Kady, are plunged into a gripping chain of events. An artifact found by their parents-on the expedition from which they never returned-leads Jady and Kady to a strange world inhabited by a peculiar mix of long-lost civilizations, a world that may hold the key to their parents’ disappearance.”
When I read this book, I felt like I had ventured into the middle of a Indiana Jones movie! It’s a little Indiana Jones, a little Alex Rider and Maximum Ride. If you are a fast-paced adventure novel fan, then consider this book the next time you want to go for an exotic reading trip to the Mayan Temples.(Review by Mrs. Hembree)
Book Review: Go Big or Go Home by Will Hobbs
Sep 7th
Want to go for a wild, extreme ride? Then check out this book! Set in the Black Hills of South Dakota, Brady’s world changes dramatically when a meteorite crashes through the roof of his house and lands on his bed! Luckily Brady was not in bed when it landed. As you can imagine, having a meteorite for a visitor is a bit extreme, and its arrival launches Brady and his cousin Quinn on a wild ride.
This book is for adventure and extreme riders only. It’s a fast page turner and I really like how Hobbs weaves in a lot information about the history and landmarks of the Black Hills region without getting boring. You can find out more information about Will Hobbs on his website at: www.WillHobbsAuthor.com (review by Mrs. Hembree)
