Silence

Silence by Natasha Preston

This book reminds me of me because, before her silence, she was getting bullied at school, didn’t really have any friends but her boy best friend that she knew since she was little. He was the only one she would talk to and love being around, and that was me at a time, only had a few people I talked to and love to hang with. But everyone knows that, during a certain time, all friendships and relationships don’t last a long time, even though yall been through alot with each other, you can’t trust everyone you call your friends. I was only close to like three people who I thought I could trust but they broke that and to this day, it’s hard to trust anyone anymore. I think in the book, she really can’t trust anyone because of the things she went through and just can’t put her trust into people anymore and that’s probably why she stopped talking.

I can relate to the main character because, she been going through the same similar things i was going through with some of the people who I thought I could call my friends/ best friends, be feeling like you don’t have nobody to turn to or talk too because you think they gonna judge you of what you gonna say. I feel her pain thought out the whole book, nobody wants to go to somewhere and everytime they turn around there's somebody talking, laughing, pointing, sharing like the haven’t seen a person before.

This book can relate to real life because, there are real kids out here who really be going through these things and be telling nobody about it and really be going through a lot by themselves. It’s not good for anybody to go through bullying or other things that’s outside of school, no child should go through anything like that at a young age. Bullying is the number one thing that’s a problem everywhere in the world, don’t matter what race, clothes, shoes, hair done or not, their will always be somebody or a person who’s always hating and have to say something about you, but it’s up to you if you believe in the rumours, believe the lies. There really nothing different. What's going on in the real world, there was a kid who was in her shoes and stop talking to her friends/ family because of something that happen to them or they couldn’t just take it no more and just started being by themselves and don’t care if they had friends or not.

Book Review by Dany D.

The Perks of Being a Wallflower

Perks Of Being A Wallflower is written by Stephen Chbosky. Stephen Chbosky has written many novels but the the perks of being a wallflower was the book that peaked his success of being a writer. The perks of being a wallflower is about a fifteen year old boy name Charlie who is coping with the lost of his best friend who commited suicide over the summer, so charlie starts feeling anxiety about starting high school with no friends so he starts writing letters to a stranger about his life.

Later in the book charlie gets really close to his english teacher and he helps charlie with shyness eventually charlie meets a guy name patrick and have a really nice friendship from there first encounter with each other during class and after there little conversation patrick takes charlie to meet his step sister sam who charlie develops a crush on throughout the story. At the end of story a big secret charlie has been keeping from his parents is unrevealed to them which makes do some harsh things that lead him to go to the hospital and receive treatment and there in that hospital is where charlie sends off his last letter to the stranger which makes chairle notice that  he wants to get out of his head and into the real world, participating in life instead of just watching it fly by

I enjoyed reading this book I would recommend this book to any teen and up, because the book goes through a lot of rough moments that people in our generation would go through in their everyday life. This book shows that even if you are a shy wallflower you can always find the right people or person to help comfort you with their presence. These people could bring you out your shell and show you that you a bright star hiding behind your scars and flaws In life.

Book Review by Dametria W.

Tyrell

Tyrell By Coe Booth

This is the first book. I’m not sure if there is a second book to this. This book is about a young boy he is 15 years old and go by the name of Tyrell. He is growing up real fast with his dad being in jail and his mom not being able to take care of him and his little brother forces Tyrell to grow up and take responsibility so him and his brother don’t have to go back through the state. Tyrell is doing everything to prevent them from going back, he don’t want his little brother living this type of life.

Tyrell his mother and his brother is currently living in a really bad shelter called bennet. Tyrell hate living there, they have roaches everywhere in their room. Tyrell met a girl Jasmine at bennet, Jasmine is at Bennet because her sister and her boyfriend got into a bad argument that lead them to get put out of his apartment. Jasmine big sister is 18 years old their mom passed away when they were younger. Jasmine is usually always in the room by herself at bennet, so tyrell goes and spend the night with her sometimes because she don’t like to be alone. Tyrell has a girlfriend that takes good care of him because she knows what he’s going through. Her mom likes tyrell a lot because of how he treats her daughter.

   

I liked the book because it grabbed my attention on the first page I read. I’m not the type of person that likes to read so it was very surprising to me when I actually couldn’t put the book down. It makes me sad because they have to go through so much at a young age I hate they have to live that type of lifestyle. I would recommend you to read this book so you can get the main idea.

Book Review by Koko S.

Shattered

Shattered,Paul langan

This book is a sequel of summer of secrets this story is the start of everything that's about to unfold in Shattered. Shattered is  an urban fiction the theme of this book is pain from the past 

Shattered is about the challenges,secrets and,life lessons of a  teenage girl name Darcy who just finished her sophomore year at bluford high with her two best friends Cooper,and Tarah  but,now that they're about to start their junior years Darcy must tell her best friends what happen over the summer. She’s terrified of what the outcome might be and this secret is driving her crazy despite all that's going on with Darcy there's a even bigger secret that's tearing her family apart now Darcy has to make some very important decision in order to keep her friendships. Will Darcy crack under pressure or will she keep getting lost in her thought?.

I like this book because it teaches you about friendships and life lessons on how to be a good friend and also how to deal with family issues as a teenager growing up in the united states you're going to face challenges and I personally feel like this book guides you through them. I feel like this book is written for teenages and alot of teenager likes  it. If you're a teenager,and you struggle with friendship and,life is driving you crazy take your time and read this amazing book that would have you on the edge of your seat  and have your mind going WoW. This is the book you'll want to spend time reading trust me you wont  regret it.

Book Review by Becky B.

Allegedly

Allegedly is a book by Tiffany D. Jackson, Jackson has written two other books since writing Allegedly. All three books being about teen girls dealing with heavy topics and the aftermath of some type of traumatic event. Allegedly is a nonfiction novel about a young girl named Mary B. Addison who was convicted of killing a baby when she was nine years old.

Allegedly focuses on the aftermath of Marys crime, almost as if the reader is navigating through life with Mary. The book begins with Mary telling about how the crime she allegedly committed has affected her and her mother's life. Her relationship with her mother was always strained due to the implied mental illness her mother suffers from and is now worse than ever. Her mother only visits once every couple of months and the visits are very brief. Mary lives in a group home with other girls who have committed similar crimes, she's the weakest link and gets picked on by the other girls in the house. Mary knows she will eventually get out of the group home and that it's better than baby jail as she would call it. Once Mary turns eighteen she will no longer be a ward of the state and can leave the group home to start her new life. That is until Mary gets pregnant by a boy named Ted that she works at an old folks home with. She knows based on the nature of her crime that she will never be able to raise her baby, so Mary decides to fight her case and tell the world what really happened.

Allegedly was an interesting book that had a really attention grabbing plot, my only issue with the book is the ending. Once Mary gets pregnant she seems very adamant she's going to tell the truth so she can keep her baby, but by the end of  the book she's done a complete one eighty in her version of the truth. The ending and how Mary handles the situation feels very out of character for her. The entire book she tells us one thing and by the end she's telling us another, this makes Mary feel like an unreliable source.  Although I do think this book would be a good read for someone interested in the plot I believe that Jackson writes books for teen girls. If you're looking for a fast paced novel to keep you on your toes I would allegedly isn't the book for you. On the other hand if you're looking for a slower more complex novel allegedly would be a good read.

Book Review by Ashauntae A.

Ender's Shadow

Ender’s Shadow is spin off from the original Ender’s Game written by Orson Scott Card. Ender’s Shadow not as well loved as the original book, it’s still a good book in it’s own right. This is science fiction novel taking place at the same time as Ender’s Game, focusing on Bean’s ascension from living on the streets of Rotterdam, scrounging/scavenging for food and supplies to making his way up to a facility where they select and train the best potential Commanders. The theme of this book is the fight against authority.

This book is about Bean, an orphaned child no older than two years at the time is forced to live on the mean streets of Rotterdam where the older kids and bigger kids(bullies) terrorize the smaller and younger kids for all their resources. Eventually finding his way up to the Battle School, a training facility where the finest children in the world are sent to be tested, selected, and trained to one day become Commanders and officers of the International Fleet. In the hope that one day one of these Commanders will finally defeat the formics commonly known as the buggers, an alien species that has attacked humanity twice in the past and came close to destroying the entirety of the human species.

I loved this book because Bean an underrated side character from Ender’s Game who finally gets the spotlight he deserves. In the original book he’s portrayed as a smart kid who happens to befriend Ender and become his right hand man. In Ender’s Shadow he’s not only intelligent but he is the most intelligent kid at the facility even beating Ender by a large margin and this book give more deep insight into his thoughts, actions, and background. This book was mainly intended for young adults, I think a lot of other people would like book but I would recommend reading Ender’s Game first because Ender’s Shadow gives the feeling of adding in chapters to the first one that we’re missed.

Book Review by Chris L.P.

Tyrell

Tyrell

Coe Booth

The book I read is “Tyrell” by Coe Booth. She’s also the author of “Kendra” and “Bronxwood”. Tyrell was published first in 2007, it’s about a teenage boy named Tyrell living with his mom and brother in a shelter while his dad is in jail. Then Kendra was published in 2008, which was about a teenage girl who doesn't know how it feels to have a real mother because she and her mother is 14 years apart and she lives with her grandmother while her mom is in college. Then, Bronxwood was published in 2011. This is about Tyrell’s life back in Bronxwood and about his pops getting out of jail and how Tyrell has to deal with this situation. Tyrell was a good book so I’m excited to read Bronxwood is about since it’s continuing onto the second chapter of Tyrell’s life. The genre of these books is young adult/drama.

The book Tyrell was about a boy named Tyrell who lives with his mother and his little brother. They got evicted because Tyrell’s dad went to jail for his 3rd time and his mother isn’t working. So, they’re living in shelters and in the book they’re currently living in a disgusting motel named Bennett. Troy feels in order to get him and his family out of there, he needs to make some money but he doesn’t wanna make illegal money cause he can’t go to jail so he starts DJing and throwing parties. “I ain’t looking to call all my pops friends cause most of them is into the same kinda illegal shit he into, and I don’t wanna end up where he at…”  -Coe Booth P.G. 108. Tyrell also has a girlfriend named Novisha and he’s in love with her. “I’m just looking at Novisha and wishing we have grown already and this was our place. She so perfect for me. It’s hard to explain, but she got everything I want in a women.” - Coe Booth P.G. 87. But right when Tyrell starts DJing and he gets enough money to get his family and apartment something else terrible happens.

I really enjoyed this book because there was never any dull moments while I was reading it. Tyrell went through some crazy things so after one thing it was always another. I love teenage drama books like the ones Coe Booth made and Bluford High books, genres like young adult/drama. They keep my attention because the situations and storylines in these books are relevant to me and my peer's lifestyles or what we’ve seen and been around. These books are actually interesting too because the drama they have in them is intense.

Book Review by Brittany J.