March '19 Reviews

The Glass Spare by Lauren DeStefano, review by Wei Li

Set in a world similar to Earth but medieval, electricity is created through hydro and wind power. Curses exist, so you can go to your nearest magician and order one. It's about this king with three kids. The mother wanted a girl and she finally gets one, but she is kept hidden from the kingdom. In the kingdom she works as her father's spy and gets ingredients for her brother's alchemy projects. Then she finds out about the curse. When she can't pay a dealer, she ends up touching him and her turns into rubies. She can't control it, killing her brothers. She is banished from the kingdom. The story is about her surviving and meeting people in a new kingdom, preventing war and undoing her curse,

Rated: 5/5 crystallized plants "Tiny bit slow at the start but really good" 

Leah on the Offbeat by Becky Albertalli, Review by Eva 

This is by the same author of Love, Simon. It's about his best friend Leah. They're going to graduate soon. She bisexual. She can't talk to Ally because she likes her and she feels awkward. They're going to the same college so they decide to go on a road trip together. Abby has a boyfriend but she breaks up with him because he doesn't want to do long distance. Mick is depressed and drinks a lot. On the road trip Leah feels really uncomfortable until she ends up having fun and then Ally suddenly kisses her. But then she finds out Ally is only experimenting. She's upset because she stole her first kiss.

Rated: 5/5 Kisses "really good"

Carry On: The Rise and Fall of Simon Snow by Rainbow Rowell, Review by Bella

This is really, really, really good!
This boy gets into magic. It's basically Harry Potter but really complicated. Now I'm reading Fangirl which is connected. The sequel, Wayward Son is coming out soon, I can't wait!

Rated: 5/5 magicians "I like reading books with vampires, magic and monsters in them"

The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas, Review by Eva

It's going to become a movie so I thought I better read it first. It's about a 16 year old girl who has a friend who is killed by police officers. It's a really emotional book.

Rated: 4/5 basketballs "I recommend it for anyone wants to read a powerful book. It made me cry my eyes out"




Wonder by R J Palacio, Review by Maria

I started reading Wonder in grade 5 with my class, but I wasn't there for the end of it so I got the urge to finish it when I got it for Christmas. It's about a boy with a disfiguring illness who entering school for the first time.

Rated: 5/5 Ice creams. "I liked how carefully it was written with different perspectives."




City of Bones: The Mortal Instruments by Cassandra Clare, Review by Ciena

Clary finds out she is a Shadowhunter when her mum gets kidnapped. The book is about finding her mum and learning about the world of shadows. There's a war going on and this man Valentine, a rogue shadowhunter, is after the Down Worlders.

Rated: 4.5/5 Runes  "It's really exciting"




The Girl With All the Gifts by M.R. Carey, Review by Caitlyn

This book is very intense, I'm about halfway through. It's about this girl Melanie who is ten. She lives in this facility with other kids who are kept in cells. Everyday they have classes but they are strapped into wheelchairs and can't move. You're wondering why for the first few chapters. Then you find out there has been an infestation, and these kids have responded differently.

Rated: 4.5/5 Greek Myths "Kind of emotional, not sad as such, more intense"



The Hundred-year-old Man Who Climbed Out of His Window and Disappeared by Jonas Jonasson, Review by Kalani

This book is interesting but not super action packed. It's set back in Sweden in 2005. A hundred-year-old man, Karlsen, has his 100th birthday, but he doesn't want to stick around for it. He climbs out of his window and walks to the bus stop, stealing a man's suitcase as he boards the next bus. He doesn't know that the man he stole from is in a gang. There are flashbacks to his childhood and to Russia where he talks to the tsar. Flashbacks of the Russian Revolution, of his dad dying when he was 9. He lives by the quote: "It is what it is and what will be will be." You learn about his experiences of working in a glycerine factory, then of making explosives. He lived through the Spanish Civil War and worked on the US nuclear project. He has dinner arranged with Stalin and meets the half-brother of Einstein, Herbert.

Rated: 5/5 Centenarians