Savvy by Ingrid Law

Savvy
Author: Ingrid Law
Lexile: 900
Length: 368 Pages
Genre: Fantasy
Awards: Newbery Medal
Reading Ram Star Rating: 5 out of 5


                    Mibs has just figured out what her savvy is. Everyone in her family except her father and her little siblings have one, and their's are amazing. Her older brother Fish can make hurricanes. Her Grandpa could move land around. Before he died, at least. Her mother is perfect. All Mibs is hoping for is a good savvy, not a weird one. But since she jinxed it, of course she got a weird one. Mibs can read people's minds through tatoos. And marker. Any bits of ink on a person's skin, and she can read their mind. Sounds pretty awesome, right? But the problem was, she couldn't shut them out. With her papa in the hospital, Mibs and her siblings travel to the hospital where he is staying. Picking up some unlikely friends along the way. And all the while trying to control her savvy and keep herself from going insane.
                    I really liked this book! It is the first book of a series, and it is very, very good. The other two books out are still this good. It is a funny tale about family, special powers, and friends. The family learns to trust each other, and their friends. I could not tell where this book was going, and that is a good thing. I can usually dissect the books plot as I am reading, which generally ruins the whole story. But not with this one! I would recommend this book to 5th grade and up. It is a good book for most ages. You should really try this book out in your free time!

Walk Two Moons by Sharon Creech

Walk Two Moons
Author: Sharon Creech
Lexile: 770
Length:
Genre:
Awards: Newbery Medal.
Reading Ram Star Rating: 4 out of 5 Stars


                    Salamanca or "Sal" as she likes to be called, is what most people would call, a country girl. She is used to wide open plains of green grass, a swimming hole, and lots of good climbing trees. She is not, however, prepared for the huge city with it's grey cement sidewalks and tiny patches of feeble grass. And of course, her father plucks her up like a weed and brings her to the city of Euclid. When Sal and her grandparents are driving to Idaho to find Sal's mother, she tells them the story of Phoebe Winterbottom, her mother, the lunatic, and the strange notes. But underneath all those crazy layers of story lies Sal's own insane story. The story of her mother, and how she left them back in April.
                    I really enjoyed this book a lot! It was very strange and definitely funny. As you can see, it won the Newbery Medal, so a lot of other people must have thought it was good. The only reason I gave it 4 out of 5 Stars, was that it was too childish. I would say it is good enough for 3rd grade and up. Because people of all ages can appreciate what is going on in this book. There are no inappropriate parts in this book, and it is a cute story all will enjoy. You should definitely try it out in your free time!

The Boys of Fire and Ash

The Boys of Fire and Ash
Author: Meaghan McIsaac
Lexile: 730
Length: 336 Pages
Genre: Fantasy
Awards: None
The Reading Ram Star Rating: 4.5 out of 5


                  The brothers of the Ikkuma Pit have one goal, stick together. Abandoned by their mothers, these boys are all living in the fires of the pit, knowing no outside world. They know no women, for all of them were left in blankets for Big Brothers to find. Urgle has only one goal, to keep himself and his "Little Brother" Cubby safe, at least until his leaving day. All Big Brothers have a leaving day, once they come of age, and a new little brother arrives, they must leave to provide space for the young ones. Then one day, a strange man appears in their pit, an outsider. But he has the mark, and he is Ikkuman, the first big brother to return. EVER. Then Cubby disappears with the monsters the outsider was chased there by. Urgle must go to the outside world to save Cubby, and discover the truth about the Ikkuma boys, and why they were ever left by their mothers.
                  This book was, to say the least, interesting. The Ikkuma boys were very primitive, and not at all used to the outside world. It made for a strange conflict, but that was probably the point. I really liked this book though! It had an original spin on cavemen, I guess. Because that's who they were portraying, though slightly more advanced, mentally wise. I would recommend this book to 6th grade and up, it would be hard to follow for anyone in a lower grade than that. The reason I gave it 4.5 stars instead of 5, however, was that this book made too much sense. It was hard to follow, but once you got the general point of the book, it was fairly easy to read. I would still definitely try this book out! It was a very tough topic the author chose, and you should give her some credit!

Untwine by Edwidge Danticat

Untwine
Author: Edwidge Danticat
Lexile: Unavailable
Length: 320 Pages
Genre: Realistic Fiction
Awards: None Yet
Reading Ram Star Rating: 4.8 out of 5 Stars

This book comes out on Tuesday September 29th. Thanks to Holland Saltsman of The Novel Neighbor bookstore, I got to read an advanced reader copy.

                                  Giselle and Isabelle Boyer are identical twins. So identical that even their parents have trouble telling them apart. Giselle is into drawing, and Isabelle is into music, she plays the flute like an angel. Giselle and Isabelle are on their way to one of Isabelle's concert's, stuck in traffic, and they will most likely be late. Then a freak accident happens, and Giselle's life is thrown into a blender. She wakes up in a hospital, with no clue how she got there, or where Isabelle is. Trapped inside herself, she is unable to communicate with anyone. Should she just give up and let go?
                                   This book was so good! I am so happy I got the chance to read it before it came out, otherwise I probably would have never read it! This story was so well written and so sad, I almost cried. (Well, actually, I did cry, but that's not important.) This book had no inappropriate parts in it. I would recommend it to 7th grade and up. You should really try it out in your free time!

The Dungeoneers by John David Anderson

The Dungeoneers
Author: John David Anderson
Lexile: None
Length: 448 Pages
Genre: Fantasy
Awards: None
Reading Ram Star Rating: 4 out of 5 Stars





                           Colm has eight sisters, and two parents.  In other words, their house is EXTREMELY crowded. Money is super tight, their father's job is as a shoe cobbler barely pays for the bare necessities. And of course Colm's mother doesn't work. So often the family goes without a treat for a week. Say sugar, or butter, or even (gasp) soap. Colm is tired of living in such a horrible way. He decides to go out in the market to get some money. Except he doesn't get it by working, he pickpockets off of every rich nobleman or woman in the square. When gives it too his parents, they tell the local law enforcer. Instead of him, a strange man named Finn Argos shows up at his door, offering him a choice. He can either be punished for his crime, or he can become a dungeoneer. Of course, Colm chooses the latter. The world of thievery is very complicated, thieves are only welcome at the dungeoneers castle fortress. Things are not as they should be, however, and Colm teams up with 3 other dungeoneers to pass the tests and find out what is wrong.
                           I did like this book, it was very creative. It told a story from a different side of view than the hero, the thieves. I really enjoyed that part, although they really didn't encounter any do-gooders that tried to catch them. But it was still interesting to me. The reason I gave it 4 out of 5 Stars, was because it was a little childish. It was probably directed towards a younger audience, but still. I would recommend this book to 4th grade to 6th grade. Just because of the age thing. But if you like Fantasy and want a different story, you could try this book.

The Testing by Joelle Charbonneau

The Testing
Author: Joelle Charbonneau
Lexile: 830
Length: 344 Pages
Genre: Dystopian
Awards: None
Reading Ram Star Rating: 4.9 out of 5 Stars




                             The Seven Stages war that has destroyed the world is a thing of the past. The world has been rebuilding for quite some time now, and is at a new stage in society. Cia has been chosen from the Five Lakes Colony for the Testing, along with 3 of her other classmates. They are the first to be selected from the colony in years, and everyone is nervous and quite surprised. It is a great opportunity for all of the candidates, because the winners of the testing get to go to the University, and receive prestigious positions of great importance in the government once they graduate. But Cia's father, a candidate from the Testing warns her that it is not the usual tests she is used to. Cia and her friend from school, Tomas. They each complete the test after test, but if either of them fails, the penalty is death.
                              I loved this book so much! It was like a combination of The Hunger Games and Divergent. Both books that I love. It was very interesting, and there were so many surprises, I never thought that any of that stuff would happen. I also heard that they were making a movie for it, but if they really are going to, it would be kinda scary and/or creepy. The nasty (in my opinion) parts of the book weren't so bad too read, but they would be icky to actually see. That is why I would recommend this book to 6th grade and up. That is also why I gave it 4.9 instead of 5 Stars. I don't like nasty things. You should definitely try this book out in your free time! If you are okay with a bit of gore.

Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan

Percy Jackson and the Olympians Lightning Thief
Author: Rick Riordan
Lexile: 740
Length: 384 Pages
Genre: Fantasy
Awards: New York Times #1 Bestseller
Reading Ram Star Rating: 5 out of 5 Stars




                             Percy Jackson has been kicked out of every school he has ever attended. This is because he is different from other kids. He is a demigod. Half human... Half God. As in Greek God. Like the old myths he learned about in school. Percy goes to camp Half Blood, a special safe haven for the other children of the gods. But in Olympus, somebody has stolen Zeus' Lightning Bolt, his most prized weapon. And he thinks Percy did it. Percy, Annabeth, and his friend Grover embark on a quest to find Zeus' missing Lightning bolt before it is too late. But on the journey, they get much more than they bargained for, and discover something that will change their lives forever.
                             I loved this book so much! Rick Riordan has to be my favorite author besides Stephanie Meyer, Kathryn Stockett, and Richard Paul Evans. He is so good at coming up with a story that draws you in, then you can't even put the book down for a minute. To be honest, the first time I tried reading this, I didn't like it and stopped reading. Then the second time, it was so good I finished it in a couple of hours. Thank goodness I had the rest of the series at my house, otherwise I would've been miserable until I got the rest. The series is kind of a pre-Heroes of Olympus, but it's only about Percy and Annabeth. This book is not inappropriate at all. I would recommend this book to 5th grade and up. I am sure most adults would like this adventure because of the way it is written. You should SERIOUSLY go and try this book out, it is amazing!!!!! Get the rest of the series while you're at it, trust me, you'll need it.