See You at Harry's

See You at Harry's

Author: Jo Knowles

Publisher: Candlewick Press (?)

Word of the wise: Make sure you have tissues nearby when you read this book. I cried for like an hour.

     Fern is the third child in a family of four. Her dad's alway's trying to get more people to come to his diner. Her mom's always off meditating, her older sister Sara is taking a year off before going to college, and can be found kissing the busboy at their dad's diner; her older brother Holden has a secret there's no way he's telling his parents, and then of course there's Charlie. The center of the universe. 

       Frusturated, Fern spends a lot of time with her best friend, Ran. Whenever he says  his motto, 'all will be well', she beleves it. When a terrible event flips Fern's world upside down, will all be well?

    I loved this book soooooo much. I can't really say much without giving anything away, but Jo Knowles spent a small portion of the book building up your relationship with the family, and when the 'event' happens, it feels as if your world gets rocked too. It changed my point of view on life.

Rating (out of five): ****

Suggested age: 11+

Warning: TEAR JERKER!

--D

A Tale Dark and Grimm by: Adam Gidwitz

A Tale Dark and Grimm

Author: Adam Gidwitz

Publisher: The Penguin Group

                A spoof on The Grimm Brothers’ stories, Prince Hansel and Princess Gretel, run away from home after a terrible incident happens in their family. They try to find a family that won’t cut off your head, or try to bake you. When Hansel and Gretel finally find  a respectable home, will something bad happen?

                Adam Gidwitz is an amazing author. In the story, when things start to get intense, he’ll ‘pop’ in to defuse tension. I loved that part, although some of the people in my book club weren’t as enthusiastic about it.

Rating (out of five): *****

Suggested Age: 11+
--D

Catwings

Catwings
By: Ursula K. Le Guin
Published By: Orchard Books

The Catwings are, well, cats with wings. Jane, the catwings's mother, doesn't know why or how. I really liked this book. It's short but not too short. It's 48 pages and has four chapters, but I still liked it. I hope you'll like James, Thelma, Roger and Harriet as much as I do. There are three other books in the series: Catwings Return, Wonderful Alexander and the Catwings, and Jane on her Own. I read this in less than an hour, but if you're looking for a short story, not really a full-length novel, Catwings is great.
Rating (out of five): *****
Suggested Age: 7 and up
Happy Reading,
~B

Warriors: The New Prophecy: Midnight & Moonrise

Midnight and Moonrise
Author: Erin Hunter
Publisher: HarperCollins

Midnight is the first book in the next series of Warriors, The New Prophecy. It is about a cat called Brambleclaw, who receives a message from StarClan. He goes on a quest with five other cats to see what midnight tells them. You'll never guess what midnight is!

Moonrise is the second book in the New Prophecy. Erin Hunter has surprised us again with yet another "Clan", apart from BloodClan. This is the Tribe of Rushing Water, and they believe that Stormfur is the chosen one that will kill Sharptooth, a mountain lion. But is Stormfur really the one?

Rating (1-5): *****  
Suggested Age: 8+
~B~

Sean Griswold's Head

                 Sean Griswold's Head
                Author: Lindsey Leavitt
                 Publisher: Bloomsbury



      After finding out that her father has multiple sclerosis, Payton Gritas is set up by her parents to meet with the school's Guidance Councilor. The councilor suggests having a Focus Object, which is supposed to be inanimate, but Payton chooses the back of Sean Griswold's head. (Which she stares at through-out most of Biology.) After prompting from her best friend, Jac, She plucks up the courage to talk to Sean. Was choosing the back of a head for a focus object the best choice? This answer gets harder to answer as Payton finds herself falling for Sean Griswold.

     I LOVED this book! I read it in four hours. It keeps you guessing until the very end about what will happen between Payton and her family, Jac and Payton, AND Payton and Sean. A page turner and definite re-read!

     Rating: (Out of five) *****

Suggested age: 12+

Caution: Swears

-D

Legend By: Marie Lu

               Legend

Author: Marie Lu

Publisher: The Penguin Group

     In what was once known as California, two very different teens live: Day and June. Day is a famous crimanal and June's a soldier-in-training. Their lives suddenly intertwine when June's brother (and last person in her immediate family), Metias, is killed and Day's the only suspect. June get assigned the job of finding Day, and reporting his whereabouts to the government.

        This book is packed with thrilling events which, by the way, kept me up until two o'clock AM reading... I enjoyed all the surprises Lu put into the book. Legend is a wonderful book, and I recomend it to 7th and 8th graders.

Rateing: (out of five) *****

Suggested age: 12+

Warning: Swears, Violence, Romance

-D

Maximum Ride: The Final Warning

Maximum Ride: The Final Warning

By: James Patterson

Publisher: Little, Brown and Company

In the fourth book in the Maximum Ride series, The Final Warning, Max and the flock are sent by her mom and father to Antarctica to help with the "Saving the world" business. When their there, Total, their talking dog, falls for a malamute, Akila. (Who by the way, does NOT talk.) While there, one of the researchers gets attacked by a leopard seal, and it is discovered that she works for the bad guys. Meanwhile, Max and Fang's relationship becomes more and more confusing for Max, as he's spending most of his time with a young scientist.  Angel goes off to find a penguin, and falls into a crevice. Max and Fang go out to rescue her, and the three of them get kidnapped. (Surprise there! Not.) Will they be able to escape while a category 4 hurricane batters there imprisonment?

I liked this book, although it wasn't my favorite. I liked one of the later books best. I'm getting a bit tired of the fact that the plot keeps repeating, but Patterson always finds a way to make it different then the others.

Rating: (out of five) ***

Suggested age: 12+

Warning: Violence and Kissing and Swearing (Use caution!)

-D

Maximum Ride: School's Out- Forever

                              Maximum Ride: School's Out- Forever                        

Author: James Patterson

Publisher: Little, Brown, and Company

   The Second book in the Maximum Ride series, School's Out- Forever, is just as thrilling and action-packed as the first. In this book Max and the flock, Fang, Iggy, Nudge, the Gasman, and Angel; are discovered by the FBI. The younger kids take a liking to one of the agents, Anne. She lets them stay at her house with one catch, They go to school. After two months of enduring school, an surprise attack from Erasers, whitecoats, and some crazy staff, the flock leaves Anne behind to escape.

I liked this book a lot. Patterson writes these amazing stories from Max's perspective. I enjoy reading her story, and she tells it hilariously. I end up laughing at the strangest times.

Rating: (out of five) ****(and a half)

Suggested Age: Mature 11, 12+

Warning: Violence, swearing, and kissing

-D

Maximum Ride: The Angel Experiment

                         Maximum Ride: The Angel Experiment
                         Author: James Patterson
                         Publisher: Little, Brown and Company


        The first book in the Maximum Ride series is The Angel Experiment. It's about a group of kids, ages 6-14, who have been genetically altered. They have been living a happy four years together, ever since Jeb, a "whitecoat" had rescued them from the School, where they had been held and tested on for most of their lives. All that falls apart when the youngest of the group gets taken away by Erasers, boys with wolf genes in them. The rest of the book is devoted to finding, and rescuing her, along with finding their long-lost parents.
      Over all, It was a great book. It kept me up till 11 pm, and I read it in a day although it was my second time reading it. It is filled with violence and suspense, so I wouldn't recommend it for anyone under 12.

                                              Rating: (out of 5) *****
                                              Suggested age: mature 11 or 12+
                                              Warning: Major Violence, swearing.

-D

Mockingbird

Mockingbird
Author: Kathryn Erskine
Publisher: Scholastic Inc.


     Mockingbird is about an eleven year old girl with Asperger's syndrome. Her brother had just died in a shooting at his middle school, and her "quest" to find closure, along with the hard jobs of making friends, and finding empathy. It was a nice book, although it would get pretty sad. The way the author wrote conversations was confusing at first, but I got used to it.

                                                      Rating: (out of five) 3
                                                      Suggested age: 11+

-D

Into the Land of the Unicorns
By Bruce Coville
Published By Scholastic Inc.

There is only one way to describe this book: amazing. It is about a girl named Cara and a unicorn named Lightfoot. Cara falls into Luster, the land of the unicorns, and meets Lightfoot, the Dimblethum, the Squigum, and the Tinker. There are enemies such as delvers and Beloved and many frights. Bruce Coville's Into the Land of the Unicorns is a true work of art.

I loved this book, no doubt about it. Though there were confusing parts (such as talking to Lightfoot through thought) and some that just didn't make sense (like the Squijum's talking), I was super pleased with this story, and I hope you read it and love it, too. Happy Reading,
~B~
Rating (1 out of 5): *****
Age Level: 7+

Hey, you over there!

Hi, Here's something new. We want YOUR book suggestions! post the book's title, the author and the publisher in the comments box below, and we'll read your books, Perhaps even write a review!

please make sure there are NO:
swears
-OR-
adult content
-OR-
detailed violence.

-D and B
p.s: please post who you think should read it. D is older. Thanks and Happy reading!

A Series of Unfortunate Events: The Bad Beginning

A Series of Unfortunate Events: The Bad Beginning
By Lemony Snicket
Published By HarperCollins

The Baudilaire children, Violet, Klaus and Sunny's parents have just died in a disastrous fire. They go to live with Count Olaf, and very unfortunate events occur. There is a very greedy villain, itchy clothing, a fire, a plot to steal the Baudilaires' fortune, and cold porridge. 

This book took some time to interest me, but the end was quite amazing, and I liked it very much. Happy Reading,
~B~
Rating (1 to 5): ***
Suggested Age: 8+
Warning: Some violence and a bit of child abuse. Do not teach your children to do things that Count Olaf has done to the Baudilaire children.
  

The Time Travelers (Book One in the Gideon Trilogy)

 The Time Travelers(America) or Gideon the Cutpurse (England)
                                Author: Linda Buckley-Archer
                                Publisher: Aladdin Paperbacks


   The first book in the Gideon Trilogy, The Time Travelers is a pretty good book.

 
    It is about two twelve-year-olds, Peter Schock and Kate Dyer. THey were helping Kate's dad with his friend's science experiment when they got sent back in time to 1763 England. Along the way they meet: Gideon Seymour, Cutpurse and Gentleman; The Tar Man, THe Honerable Mrs. Byng, Lord Luxon, and King George. (among many others.)

      The book was good, but I found a few errors that bothered me, probably because I was studying grammar this year. The book is very long, and chapters can be over 30 pages. I found I could only read two to three chapters every night, which bugged me since I like to finish books in a few days or a week.

                                                             Rating: (out of five)3 stars
                                                            Suggested age: 10 and up
                                                            Warning: Some swears that were not considered bad in 1763
              -D

Warriors Field Guide: Secrets of the Clans

Warriors Field Guide: Secrets of the Clans
By: Erin Hunter
Illustrated by: Wayne McLoughlin
Published by: HarperCollins

Hi again! I'm here with another Warriors book, but this time it is a field guide.
Read the Warriors? Liked it? Then Erin Hunter's all-new field guide lets you dive into the depths of the forest, discovering secrets as you go. Want to know the ancient Clans? Read History of the Clans: How the Clans Came to Be, page 3 to find out. Always wanted to be a medicine cat? Read Medicine: Healing the Clans, page 130 to find out. Sandstorm brings you through ThunderClan, Onewhisker WindClan, Feathertail RiverClan, and Boulder ShadowClan. Learn about the Warrior Code, Ceremonies, and Cat Mythology. I hope you enjoy this book and the Warriors Series.

I don't think this is one of Erin's finest work of art, but I think it wasn't bad either. However, I hope you keep reading the series. Happy Reading,
~B~
Rating (1 to 5): 3

The Hunger Games Series

                                                  The Hunger Games Series
                                                  Author: Suzanne Collins
                                                  Publisher: Scholastic inc.



    The first book in the Hunger Games Series is The Hunger Games. It's about a sixteen year old girl, Katniss Everdeen, and how she goes into the games. My mom thought it would be gory, but the author didn't go into detail. The Hunger Games is my favorite book in the series.








    The second book is Catching Fire, where Katniss is put into the Quarter Quell. (The Quarter Quell is a special Hunger Games that happens every twenty-five years.)  In this book the author introduces past victors that are some zany people, but some are still my favorite characters.







   The third, and final book is Mockingjay. In this book, Katniss is the heart and soul of the Rebellion. I felt this book dragged on and on, unlike the first two, and I got bored pretty quickly. I stuck with it though, and I'm glad I did, because the ending was VERY good. This book, by far!, had some of the saddest deaths in the series.



         Rating: (out of five) four and a half stars
         Suggested age: 11 and up
         Warning: Violence and lots of kissing in the middleish- endish part
-D

Warriors: Into the Wild

Warriors: Into the Wild
By: Erin Hunter
Publisher: HarperCollins

Warriors is about cats that live in the wild. There are four Clans plus StarClan, which is only for cats that have been good; and also if they are dead. There is WindClan, RiverClan, ShadowClan, and ThunderClan. A house cat named Rusty goes hunting because he has dreams and meets Bluestar who welcomes him into ThunderClan. He is renamed Firepaw and befriends Graypaw and Ravenpaw. There are a few battles and deaths, but everything's okay because Firepaw becomes a warrior.

I like the books because they are for kids my age. And because they have cats! I hope you'll read it because it's an awesome book! Oh, and be ready to read the rest of the series', (yes, there is more than one series) because each book leaves you at a cliffhanger! Happy reading,
~B~

Rating (1-5): *****

Welcome to Book Buddies Reviews, for kids, by kids

Looking for book reviews for kids, by kids?  Well, you came to the right place.  We are a home school family with two girls who LOVE to read.  They will be sharing their opinions of their most recent reads with you.  When ever possible, Mom will chime in with her thoughts as well.  Remember, these are just our opinions!! Our books are usually between 3rd grade level and young adult, so use your own judgement when making choices.  We hope you enjoy some of our Favorites! Keep Reading!!