Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli
I read Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli. I picked this book because the cover intrigued me --simple but powerful. A plain yellow star with a green stick-figure girl. This story is very interesting. It is about what you would do for someone you love and how doing something for someone else will help you in the end. I thought Stargirl would be about a popular girl who was always the center of attention, but it turned out to be a book about the ups and downs of friendship. Stargirl Caraway is strange, but in a good way. She is strange because she looks through newspapers to find out birthdays, weddings, deaths, etc. Sometimes when she is learning something, she breaks down and acts like a little kid. Leo Borlock is shy and outgoing –he stands out in the crowd by his actions, and only opens up to certain people. This book takes place in modern-day Mica, Arizona, located in the middle of a desert. It was an amazing book. You can tell that Jerry Spinelli spent a lot of time on the characters. The way they acted and the way they connect flowed perfectly. I wouldn’t change one thing, because if you change something it wouldn’t sound as good as it did before. I would recommend this book to anyone who is sick and tired of the same thing every day. Even though you’re not in Mica, Jerry Spinelli makes you feel like you are. I can’t wait to read the sequel to this book. Review by Shauna
When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead
A girl in New York City starts receiving many strange notes. She starts to think that writing back is the only way to save her friend’s life. But when Disaster strikes, she thinks it’s too late. This book is very mild. The characters never really leave the city and it’s more about the main character making new friends than solving the mystery. The book had really short chapters that were about 3 pages long, which was nice. I thought When You Reach Me was very mild, but an okay book. Review by Jordan
Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver
I did not like this book. I was originally attracted to the idea of a teenager’s point of view with a “Groundhog Day” type of plot. However, it just made me feel like I was reading a mess of a life happening over and over again with no change. Samantha was an annoying person, and the fact that we had to read about her stupid mistakes repeatedly while she didn’t have a clue what she did wrong was excruciating. The rest of the characters were not a joy to read about either. They were mostly drunks, drug users, or just plain selfish. Yes, there were the exceptiosn of Juliet and Kent, but the main character and her group almost destroyed them both. The book was tiring to read because there was almost no pause in the constant drama that filled their “typical” high school life. The author tried to make the ways Samantha spent her death day dramatically different to keep the audience interested, but I was just tired of it by the second death day. There were a few good moments in the book, but that was about it. This was a decent debut book, but even though the author is aiming for the teenage audience, she doesn’t need to dramatize everything. Teenagers are meant to read between the lines. Review by Hillary
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