Diary of a Wimpy Kid

The book I read was Diary of a Wimpy Kid, and I must say I think this book is weird. Basically this book is what call a “comedy book”, a book that doesn’t focus on the central story but focuses more on trying to make you laugh. The whole idea of the story of “the common American teen and how he tries to the biggest douche on this side of the planet while also tries survive middle school and his family”. That surprisingly sums up the story of this book.

The story, as you may guess, is about a teen named Greg Hefley who is a part of a trinomial family. Alongside him we have his older brother, Rodrick, who sets low expectations, his younger brother, Manny, who is basically the queen of France, and his mom and dad. As we get closer through the story we learn about his best friend Rowley, who develops surprisingly more than the main character, Greg. The whole idea of this is to survive middle school without any problems. Honestly if this were a normal this would be Rowley’s story, but this isn’t no normal book. Honestly I would read this book from beginning to end for its gags. For example, when on new year’s, when Greg decided to play with Manny by pretending a piece of string was a spider, you expect some character development for Greg, Right? Nope! “Manny was squealing and you know what. The fool swallowed it.” Then later Manny runs to Mrs. Hefley and tells her that he swallowed a spider but Greg told him it just string. Mom gets out some and tells to pick the size. But, Manny pulls out an orange from the fridge. Then the ending quote: “My new year’s resolution was to never to play with Manny again.

I still think this is still a good book and it teaches you the morals of family and middle school. But at the same time it hits you with gags and it surprisingly keeps a balance. If you want something to keep you laughing and still want some morals this is a good book for you. However beware, you need a clear mind to read this book.

Book Review by Daemon F.

The Deadly Hunt

The Deadly Hunt by William L. Shirer, as it name suggests, is a hunt for Nazi Germany’s most powerful ship afloat, Battleship Bismarck. This book follows in the wake of Europe’s LARGEST warship at the time, German Battleship Bismarck. In this book, I visited, the Bismarck’s first engagement with the German cruiser, Prince Eugen, against HMS Hood, Great Britain’s biggest warship afloat, and HMS Prince of Wales, Bismarck’s second engagement against “Swordfish” torpedo bomber biplanes from HMS Victorious, and then the crippling of Bismarck via biplane dropped torpedo a few days later. And finally I watched Bismarck be pounded into a floating hunk of metal by HMS King George V, and HMS Rodney. The book also tells of the British’s Royal Navy’s perspective of the maiden voyage of an “indestructible” German Battleship. It tells of mistakes made by both German Admiral Günther Lütjens, and British Admiral John Tovey, and the results of those mistakes. I would recommend this book for anyone who likes to read about World War II, sea-battles, or just warships in general.

Book Review by Garrett N.

Battle Royale

I'm writing my book report on Battle Royale by Koushun Takami. Koushun Takimi is a Japanese author and journalist who wrote:

Battle Royale (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_Royale )

Battle Royale Ultimate Edition (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_Royale_%28manga%29)

Battle Royale: Angel's Border (http://battleroyale.wikia.com/wiki/Battle_Royale:Angels%27_Border)

Battle Royale is the main book, while the ultimate edition is a manga following a simular plot of the novel. Angel's Border is a manga that adapts the lighthouse scene in the Battle Royale novel that were not included in the original manga.

The summery is about a boy named Shuya Nanahara, a regular student who is one of the 41 students in third year class-B in Shiroiwa Junior High school. He is a regular student, riding on a bus on a class trip when it all turns bad as the bus gets gassed. They are taken to a deserted island and wake up with strange collars on their necks.  They learn that their class was selected to be part of the ruthless authoritarian program that happens every year, Battle Royale. The rules of the game are simple: each student is given a bag of supplies (including a bottle of water, map, loaf of bread, and a random weapon) and is forced to kill each other until one student survives. If three days pass and there is more then one survior, then the collars around the survivors necks will detonate and kill the remaining students. Before the game began Shuya's friend is shot after attempting to attack the program supervisor, and Noriko Nakagawa (who was seated behind him) runs towards him, which turned out to be a mistake as the supervisor shot her in the calf. As the game began, Shuya teams up with Noriko (who was wounded) and both agree that the game is wrong and they should escape. But the bad turns to worse as they realise that students were actually playing. After teaming up with Shogo Kawada, a previous Battle Royale victor, the book is about their journey trying to escape and surviving the three days they have.

I recommend this book because I found it very fast paced, action packed, and it kept me hooked until the very end. I would suggest the book to people who like thrillers, action, violence, or want a book that is like Hunger Games, only less character development and more action. This book is one of Japan's best selling and most controversial novels, which later was turned into a movie that is one of the ten highest-grossing films in Japan, and released in 22 countries worldwide. Overall this book is one of the best I've read, especially since I normally don't like thrillers. 

Book Review by Rayanne D.

A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to Heaven

I recently finished reading, A Funny Thing Happened On the Way to Heaven… (Or, How
I Made Peace With the Paranormal and Stigmatized Zealots and Cynics in the Process) by
Corey Taylor. Corey Taylor has written one other book titled, Seven Deadly Sins. Both of these
books are mad up of memoirs from Taylor’s past, as well as his opinions and outlooks on life. A
Funny Thing Happened On the Way to Heaven… (Or, How I Made Peace With the Paranormal
and Stigmatized Zealots and Cynics in the Process), is about Taylor’s encounters with the
paranormal throughout his life. Corey Taylor describes his experiences and how he made sense
out of other-worldly activity. I was unable to find a single theme that was constant throughout
this book, since Taylor uses each chapter and each one of his stories to bring across a different
point, but I did find that the themes of all of the chapters were closely relate in that they were all
meant to open the reader’s eyes to the paranormal, and to make sense of ghostly encounters.

A Funny Thing Happened On the Way to Heaven… (Or, How I Made Peace With the
Paranormal and Stigmatized Zealots and Cynics in the Process), takes the reader through the
mind of Corey Taylor, a grammy winning musician, and his thoughts and experiences with
paranormal activity. Corey writes about his adventures, hunting ghosts and sometimes running
into them by mistake, with his childhood friends, band-mates, his wife, and his lifelong
companions. Throughout the book, Taylor explains his reasoning for why he believes in ghosts,
scientifically, and philosophically.

I would definitely recommend this book to others. I would recommend this book because
it is very insightful, and is also mind-opening to the paranormal and unexplained occurrences in
our strange world. I think people who are interested in ghosts would especially enjoy this book,
and so would fans of Corey Taylor’s music. I think everyone should pick up this book and read it
as soon as possible. I enjoyed this book, and look forward to reading Taylor’s other book.

Book Review by Conor Q.

Artemis Fowl

So I read this book called Artemis Fowl by Eoin Colfer, and when I read it, I was intrigued.  From what I can tell, she seems to write a mix of Sci Fi, Mystery, and Fantasy novels.

So the story is that basically about when a twelve year old boy named Artemis Fowl wants to rebuild his family fortune by stealing from the LEPrecon (yes, that’s how it’s spelled), a secret government of fantasy creatures kind of like the CIA. The kidnapped, Holly Short, a fairy with an attitude who tries to escape while Commander Root, the leading officer, is trying to figure out how to get her out of there, all while Fowl and his butler are trying to figure the secrets of The Book, a mythical item in which they used as like a mix of the law and the bible.

As you can probably tell the book is very difficult to summarize, but that is the reason you should read it. There are so many good moments and plot twists in the book it does not make any sense. But if you try to think hard on it, it’s actually a creative story. So if you’re a Sci Fi buff or Fantasy lover you should check out this. Heck, if you like action books or love mysteries you should check this book out. And you have to see that ending because no one, NO ONE, wants to spoil the plot for new fans.

Remember well, remember hard, cause this is creativity at its finest!

Book Review by Daemon F.

Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe

The critically acclaimed book "Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe" is Benjamin Alire Sáenz fourth installment of a young-adult novel, including "In Perfect Light". and one of his most renown book. He's one of the few author with a gift of depicting a grand scheme reality into perfect description on a blank canvas, and Aristotle and Dante Discover the Universe is one of these example of his mastery. This book shares some resemblance with his other books about letting go the hard past and renewing yourself, but set in an almost surreal experience of captivation through emotion and events, while having a common setting in El Paso, Texas as many of his books has taken roots. It takes mind from a young boy name Aristotle as he overcome his hurdles, and unlock his heart.

It's the ordinary miracle of life that makes it so special, and on one uneventful summer day two unremarkable boys meet at a public swimming pool and create a unordinary lifelong relationship that prove it so. Aristotle is a socially awkward loner seeking to find the truth about himself and his incarnated brother, and Dante is a confusing sane boy who question his identity, whether it's his ethnicity or sexuality.when these two meets their whole concept of heartbreak and friendship changes radically for the better. The two found love by unexpected coincident, but it would take a span of four years for them to truly learn it. They both have their own emotional conflict that seem only the other has the key to, Dante will be the anchor for Aristotle that will keep him reminded not to run from himself, and Aristotle will be Dante falling angle, protecting him through any sacrifice. With hardship, suspense, and enriching character this book will make you reflect on your surrounding and appreciate the people that had help you grow into who you are.

When I was reading this book it didn't feel like repetition, there wasn't any effort in reading it, the text structure made you clear on the time. And embodied a still life in your mind. This book was an addiction for the simple pleasure of reading this masterpiece in every occasion made my day a lot brighter and hopeful, and I get a rush of euphoria when I could sneak in a few paragraph. A part of this book is in fringe into my soul, the lessons has been absorbed into my skins, and I recommend this book to anyone if they're also trying to unrivaled the answer to their complicated universe. And if you're not contemplating the truth about your universe it's still a good read.

Book Review by Hao L.