BOOK REVIEWS
Check out our list of books in the Library that have been reviewed by staff, students, and other resources.
BOY TOY by Barry Lyga
Review by Amanda K.
This book was amazing! It has a situation where a teacher and a student have a relationship. This book shows how a teacher is supposed to be there to teach you and support you but nothing more. There are times when teachers lose sight of being professional when they have their own issues and that it’s not the child’s fault. It’s the teacher’s fault because they know right from wrong. The story involves a 12-year old boy and an attractive teacher, of course. He was thrilled she was interested and now she ruined it for all the girls his age because he is never going to want to be with a girl his own age. When I read this book I couldn’t put it down. It really captured my attention because this does happen in real life. This is a book I would recommend to anyone that likes a juicy story
WHEN DAD KILLED MOM by Julius Lester
Review by Amanda K.
This book is very well written. I love the plot. It has a scenario that the dad kills the mom who is an artist. They have two children-Jeremy and Jenna. Each child was favored by one parent. Jenna was daddy’s girl and Jeremy was mommies’ little boy. So when this unfortunate event happened they had to recreate there own family because mom is dead and dad is in jail. Life as they knew it becomes something completely different. They had to go through a trial and a burial. These kids have to be emotionally disturbed and they end up living with Karen, dads ex wife, because she became a friend of their mother’s. There were so many different conflicts with their parent’s marriage that there is no wonder why it failed.
LUXE by Anna Godbersen
Review by Claire T.
If you liked Clique or Gossip Girl, then you'll definitely like Luxe by Anna Godbersen. This book takes place in 1899 Manhattan where money rules everyone's life. The story follows the lives of five teenagers, being Elizabeth, who is the favorite in society, Penelope, the girl who will do anything to secure her place on top, and Lina, the maid with big dreams. This book is the first in the series and after this, you'll want to read all of them!
THE EPIC OF GILGAMESH by unknown author
Review by Zach S.
“It is I, GILGAMESH!!”
Not actually in this story, sadly.
The first recorded story ever told, older than the Hebrew Bible by hundreds of years, written in the days of Sumer. The Epic of Gilgamesh is the story of the 2/3 god, 1/3 human king, Gilgamesh. The story is all in verses, as that was how the story was written on the sheets gathered. It is also one of the surviving epics of the early civilization, describing King Gilgamesh’s journey through his life. The first tale begins with Gilgamesh and his best friend Enkidu going through adventures together, facing the giant monster Humbaba in the Cedar Forest and other supernatural monsters. From there, Gilgamesh attempts to gain eternal life.
The story’s actions, using a little imagination, is amazing, particularly the fight against the Bull of Heaven. The characterization is interesting, including Gilgamesh’s fear of death. As well, it reflects Sumerian myths, with a list of gods and goddess that today are little known. The story is actually quite short, probably less than 200 pages. However, it reveals the epic tale of a king who wants to continue on eternally. And it gives a glimpse of the ancient Sumerians, and the early civilizations that have been lost in time. The story has influenced both contemporary popular culture and ancient civilizations. A number of video games off the top of my head that have elements of Gilgamesh or even references to it include the Wild ARMs series, the Final Fantasy series (where the top quote comes from), amongst other novels and games. For those who enjoy ancient literature, or who want to understand ancient myths, one should definitely read the tale of the great king.
THE BARTIMAEUS TRILOGY by Jonathan Stroud
Review by Zach S.
I first started reading the Bartimaeus Trilogy when I asked the librarian about a fun fantasy novel to read. She suggested The Amulet of Samarkand, and to be sure, I was not disappointed. The Bartimaeus Trilogy is set in an alternative history London, where magicians control the world using the powers of demons, who they keep as slaves and force them to do their bidding. The demons likewise utterly hate their masters, and kill them at any chance.
The titular character, Bartimaeus (of Uruk), is a 5000-year old djinni, wise-cracking and able to ruthlessly make fun of any character. The main character is the human 12 year-old named Nathaniel, who summons Bartimaeus to extract revenge on a person who humiliated and tormented him a year before. And from there, the quest becomes bloody and Nathaniel is forced to encounter numerous conspiracies.
The series has three books, all of them (minus The Ring of Solomon) about the adventures of Bartimaeus and Nathaniel. There’s enough characterization to match Harry Potter, as demons are forced to explore the consequences of their slavery, Nathaniel. Also, the writing is superb. It switches focus from Bartimaeus to other characters. When on a ‘Bartimaeus chapter’, the chapter is in first person, and Bartimaeus inserts his own personal comments. One of the most creative ideas in the book is to have footnotes at the end of the page, where Bartimaeus makes additional comments describing some detail. Other chapters focus on other characters, mostly Nathaniel, and written in third person, explaining what’s happening and the feelings of the character. To basically summarize it up: this book series is fantastic, and I would recommend it in a heartbeat.