The Dead House-- Reviewed by Hailey Hinrichs

“Either the Darkness alters- or something in the sight adjusts itself to Midnight- and Life steps almost straight.”

                It has been 20 years since a fire destroyed part of Elmridge High that killed 3 people. After the fire, Carly Johnson disappeared. The fire was believed to have been started by Kaitlyn Johnson after her diary was discovered years later, giving hints as to what really happened in the days leading up to the accident where she is caught in the middle of it. But the thing is Kaitlyn doesn’t technically exist because she is the alter ego of Carly. She gets the night while Carly gets the day. Many people believe that Kaitlyn appeared after her parents had died, but she had been around long before. Carly was always the good child while Kaitlyn was the reckless one. But one day Kaitlyn wakes up during the day and cannot feel Carly anymore and Kaitlyn, with the help of Carly’s best friend Naida, has to find a way to search through the Dead House if she ever wants to find Carly. But the Dead House holds the power to completely ruin the lives of anyone who dares to enter it.

                I absolutely loved this book so I gave it four and a half stars. I loved the plot to this book and I loved that it NEVER got boring. There was always something going on and things were never slow. I also loved the character developments throughout the book. I would definitely recommend this to all teens who enjoy more paranormal type books. Those kind of books usually aren’t what I read but this book was amazing and it makes me want to look into more books like this. This book was pretty good as a stand alone, although I wouldn’t mind finding out more about their childhood and their parents and when exactly Carly began having an alter ego. All in all, I loved this book and would recommend it to anyone.

Everything Everything--Reviewed by Sarah Roberts

                    Imagine being stuck in your house and not able to leave because if you do, you will literally explode. Well that's the life of "Madeline Whitter". You see, she has this disease that makes her allergic to absolutely everything. She lives in a quiet home with her mother and "Carla", her nurse. Life is always constant...that is until Olly moves to town. Nothing will ever be the same. Follow Madeline through the duration of her illness and later find that she may not be the sick one in her home.

               I gave this book four and a half out of five stars. It grabbed your attention and definitely made you want to read more. I haven't really read anything like this book before. Madeline seemed be pretty well developed and seem to have the desire for freedom of any normal teen. One thing I thought could use a little work would have been the plot line. It seemed to need a little more development, but otherwise it was well written. I would recommend this to my friends because it makes you feel what Madeline feels. It makes you want desperately the freedom that Madeline wants. So all in all this is a great book.

October Poll

Autumn is here and it’s back to the classroom!  Type your answer to the question in the comments.

What memorable YA protagonist would best describe your school personality?: 

• Charlie from THE PERKS OF BEING A WALLFLOWER by Stephen Chbosky: You’re the quiet sort of intellectual that people don’t always notice, but that doesn’t faze you. When you finally come out of your shell, it’ll be worth it for an experience you’ll never forget. 

• Georgia Nicolson from ANGUS, THONGS AND FULL-FRONTAL SNOGGING by Louise Rennison: Everything about your high school experience screams awkward, but it’s okay --- your friends will have a million funny stories to laugh about later. 

• Andrew Wiggin from ENDER’S GAME by Orson Scott Card: You’re a tech whiz and proud of it, spending your afternoons playing video games and still somehow managing to do well in all your classes. 

• Felton Reinstein from STUPID FAST by Geoff Herbach: Your life revolves around sports --- living for the game keeps you sane. 

• Hermione Granger from HARRY POTTER: You are the smartest kid in school and you’re not afraid to show it. Getting great grades and eventually getting into a great college --- that’s what high school’s all about.

• Sam in BEFORE I FALL by Lauren Oliver: You are the popular queen bee at your school, but (at least after that dramatic accident) you’ve learned that bullying and cruelty are not the ways to use your power.

• OTHER -- please give character name, book title, and author as well as briefly describe that character's "school personality."

 

Go Set A Watchman-- Reviewed by Hailey Hinrichs

                                                          

                                                          

“Every man’s island, Jean Louise, every man’s watchman, is his conscience.”

                In Harper Lee’s first novel Go Set A Watchman, Scout returns to her hometown of Maycomb, Alabama to visit her father. Upon arrival, she begins remembering things of the past of the small town she grew up in. She also begins to see many differences. Set during the era of civil rights movements and racial tension, Scout finds herself dumbfounded by the behavior of people in her town, including her father, Atticus. As she begins to learn secrets about her once close-knit family, she begins to doubt her beliefs and what she thinks she knows about her family and learns that what will guide her is her conscience.

                I gave this book 3 out of 5 stars. I did like it well enough but I feel like it dragged on sometimes. I did like that it did relate a lot to To Kill A Mockingbird. Since it was written before To Kill A Mockingbird, I was worried it wouldn’t relate enough to the other book. This book is technically the second book to To Kill A Mockingbird, even though this novel was written before it. Harper Lee made a lot of the stories the same except for one major detail that honestly could’ve changed a lot in To Kill A Mockingbird which did bother me a little. A lot of the characters were the same and I like that as well except for one character who did change. I would recommend it to others because it was a good enough read and it was interesting to read this novel 60 years after it was actually written. If you want to read this novel, you should read To Kill A Mockingbird first because knowing in depth about Scout’s childhood will help you understand her behavior towards certain situations in this novel. All in all, I liked this novel well enough.

Damage Done-- Reviewed by Sarah Roberts

               
              Have you ever had something happened to you, where you just want to change your name and switch cities or even planets? Well that's exactly what happens to Julia Vann.

        When Julia Vann's brother does something that makes Julia and her family the talk of the town, she and her family pack up, change their identities, and move to a new town. Now living as Lucy Black, Julia has a chance at having a normal high school year. That is until, Dr. Spence, Julia's brother's therapist, comes to town with a plan to find Julia. When a sequence of events makes it hard to hide the truth about her past Julia is forced to confide in her best friend Alane and her high school crush, Michael. Julia tells them everything about her past life...or so they think. What Julia holds inside could be the key to unlocking what really happened that fateful day, which changed her life forever. One thing is clear the damage done can never be erased. It's only just the beginning.

         I thought this book was absolutely amazing. I gave it a five-star rating because i could not put it down for even a second. This book is twisted and touches on subjects that others are afraid to even hint at. It creates a feeling of numbness at the end, because you just can't process it at first. It makes you think about how the mind works and what really makes people the way they are. I would highly recommend this book to anyone and everyone because it is a story worth experiencing.