A review by Elizabeth

Title: The Mysterious Benedict Society
Author: Trenton Lee Stewart
Genre: Middle Grade mystery/adventure
Publisher: Little, Brown Young Readers
Available now in paperback

Reviewed by Elizabeth

Are you a gifted reader looking for more wonderful reading opportunities? Well, this is a book you won’t want to put down! A New York Times bestseller, Trenton Lee Stewart is one of the best authors you’ll ever read!

When the peculiar ad appears in the newspaper, “Are you a gifted child looking for special opportunities” many children take a series of mind-bending tests. Only four however, succeed, thus forming the Mysterious Benedict Society. The Society has one mission only they, as resourceful children, can accomplish saving the world. There are four children and one mission to complete. I cannot tell you any more. You’ll have to read the book to find all the answers to your questions.

Esther Gulli (an adult) has an interesting story to tell. Esther made a deal with her daughter that if her daughter read the Harry Potter books, Esther would read The Mysterious Benedict Society. She didn’t expect to enjoy it, yet she loved it!

“Real flashlight under the bedclothes material” rates Hornbook. This story is not a read once a week story. Once you pick it up, you can’t put it down! If anyone tells you to read this book, they’re right! You have to read The Mysterious Benedict Society.

Review by Rae Lo

Title: The Bayou Triology
Author: Daniel Woodrell
Genre: Crime fiction
Publisher: Mulholland Books
Publication Date: Available now
Reviewed by Rae Lo

Like the raging Mississippi river, Rene Shade questions whether his life has a predetermined path or if its course can be harnessed and changed by man-made interventions. Follow his journey through the gritty underbelly of the Louisiana delta.

Each part of the trilogy has a texture all its own, and Woodrell’s rich vernacular, more disarming than a purse-snatcher, catches you off guard and sweeps you along with his buoyant flow. Troubled career, rocky love life, and dysfunctional family are just a few things pulling Rene Shade down into the riptide of life. Will he sink or swim? Jump into this good read to find out!

Ready Player One

Title: Ready Player One
Author: Ernest Cline
Genre: Science Fiction
Publisher: Crown
Publication date: August 2011

Around the (second) time that I found myself carrying this book into the shower, I realized that I had a problem. I could not stop reading this book. Could. Not. Stop.

When I was in ninth grade, I read ENDER'S GAME. It wasn't the first science fiction novel I'd ever read, but it changed the way I thought about things. I got so engrossed in Ender's world that I expected to be living in it when I put my book down. (Sadly, this was not the case. I was still in a public high school in Syracuse, New York, and the kids behind me in study hall were throwing Cheetos at the back of my head.)

READY PLAYER ONE was like another ENDER'S GAME for me. It sucked me in on the first page and didn't spit me out until the last.

Wade Watts, like most people in the year 2044, lives most of his life in a simulated world called the OASIS. He's a gunter, one of thousands of people who have dedicated themselves to solving a series of challenges to find a massive fortune hidden within the game. Outside of OASIS, he is a poor, overweight, parentless teenager. Inside of the game, he is anonymous. Until he solves the first challenge.

Ernest Cline is a screenwriter, and it shows. Every scene in READY PLAYER ONE reads like a 3-D movie with surround sound and smell-o-vision. Whenever I put the book down it was like I'd paused the movie, but I could still see it out of the corner of my eye. It was impossible to get anything done because I was still waiting to see what would happen to Wade next.

Fans of Cory Doctorow will go CRAZY over this amazing debut. In fact, this book will quickly become Canon for nerds everywhere.

A review by Alexander

Title: Big Nate on a Roll
Author: Lincoln Peirce
Genre: Middle grade/graphic novel
Publisher: HarperCollins
Publication date: August 16, 2011

I read a book called Big Nate On a Roll by Lincoln Peirce, which comes out in August 2011. Lincoln Peirce uses a combination of graphics and writing, in a similar style to Diary of a Wimpy Kid. It is about a boy named Nate who wants to sell wall hangings to 1.win a cool skateboard and 2.beat Mr. Perfect-Never-Loses, Artur. He is trying to figure out every possible way to win. I really liked this because it was incredibly funny. Also, it was impossible to know what was going to happen and something interesting happened on every page. I would definitely recommend it!

Reviewed by Alexander Hutton, Age 11

Calling all Bay Area YA/Children's Authors!

Are you an author living in the San Francisco Bay Area? Do you write for children or young adults?

We need you*!

Our fourth annual Summer Reading Challenge starts on June 17th. Traditionally we've scheduled several author readings for the challengers, but this year we don't have any planned. We have upwards of 100 young readers participate every year who get special prizes for coming to events.

If you're interested in one of our Meet the Author nights, send me an email at jnhallman@gmail.com. I'd like to have two event nights, one on Saturday, July 9th and one on Saturday, August 6th.

Previous events have included:
Ellen Klages

Heidi Kling

Mac Barnett

Cheryl Herbsman

Marissa Moss

and many more!

*And are willing to bribe you with snacks and cute kids.

A re-post

Hello everyone, I know I already reviewed this book, but today DIVERGENT came out and I want you all to go buy it immediately. Here is a reminder, in case you missed my review:

Title: Divergent

Author: Veronica Roth

Genre: Young Adult Dystopian
Publisher: Katherine Tegen Books

Publication Date: May 3rd, 2011

Do you ever read a book that's so awesome that it ruins the next five books for you? Divergent is that kind of book. Every book I've picked up this week was just not what I wanted to be reading. I wanted to be reading more Divergent.

It's sometime in the future, and Chicago is in ruins. The city is divided among the five factions: Abnegation, Candor, Erudite, Amity, and Dauntless. Beatrice has grown up in Abnegation, wearing gray clothes and trying to make sure her every action is selfless. But every morning before classes she watches the Dauntless leap from a moving train and wonders what it would be like to be one of them.

After her aptitude test, the day before she must choose a faction, Beatrice has an opportunity to find out. Her choice sets in motion a chain of events that no one, especially Beatrice, could have predicted.

I loved this book. At first I was a little wary, because the dystopian world is one that I had a hard time believing, but within a few pages I was swept up in the story. Beatrice is the kind of character that I really like: strong, different, and struggling with an identity change. There is plenty of face-punching, awesome tests of daring and skill, a delicious romance, and a surprising twist that makes the book impossible to put down. In short, reading Divergent is like jumping onto a speeding train and holding on for dear life. (And then being cruelly pushed off before you're ready. I hope book 2 is forthcoming.)