Book Description

Read by the author
approx. 2 hours, 30 minutes
2 cassettes

In this sixth volume of the best-selling audio series, Jack and Annie are whisked back in time to the Civil War where they meet a famous nurse named Clara Barton; join General George Washington during the Revolutionary War as his army leads a sneak attack against their enemy; attend school in a one-room school house in the 1870s; and experience the famous San Francisco earthquake of 1906.

Volume 6 includes:
Magic Tree House #21: Civil War on Sunday
Magic Tree House #22: Revolutionary War on Wednesday
Magic Tree House #23: Twister on Tuesday
Magic Tree House #24: Earthquake in the Early Morning ... Read more

Reviews (2)

A pleased parent
I cannot believe how my son is reading! I bought him the first 8 books for Christmas and by New Years he had read all but one - on his own! He'd rather books than movies!

Afternoon on the Amazon - book #6
Meet Jack and Annie. Jack is an eight year old boy who seeks adventure. In every trip, Jack takes notes to learn more interesting facts. He carries his little backpack almost everywhere with his useful supplies inside. Annie is Jack's little sister. Annie is just one year younger than Jack. These two siblings have great times together in many different places. Annie is a sweet, honest, considerate girl who looks up to Jack.

Jack and Annie go lots of places, in lots of different times, helping others in their time, in the present and in the past. For example, in another book, in the same series (Magic Tree House Series) I read a book about Jack and Annie with George Washington! That was a long time ago!

Afternoon on the Amazon is an exciting book about Jack and Annie who try to help Morgan le Fay by finding four special things. (Everything they find starts with "M".) In the tree house, every time, they climb up the ladder, look for their trusty friend, Peanut the mouse, and point to a picture in a book while wishing to go there. The tree house starts to spin, spin, and spin faster until they appear in a tree in the place they wish to go. In the rain forest, Jack and Annie have trouble with the following animals: a mother cheetah, a crocodile, a monkey, an army of ants, piranhas and a snake. But in the end, Jack and Annie find out that the animals were just being themselves, with the monkey just trying to be helpful.

My favorite part of the book is when Jack is trying to stop their boat, and he accidentally snatched a snake. It really shakes up the story. Jack and Annie try to push the boat fast and duck their heads. They safely escaped, scared to death!

This is a very exciting book. In every book (from the Magic Tree House series) behind the cover, it says good things about the author and her books. By reading her books you can see if you think these words are right. I personally think this book matches what the people say. I recommend Mary Pope Osborne's books to everyone! ... Read more

Book Description

Will anyone take on Jake Semple?

Jake Semple is notorious. Rumor has it he burned down his old school and got kicked out of every school in his home state.

Only one place will take him now, and that's a home school run by the Applewhites, a chaotic and hilarious family of artists. The only one who doesn't fit the Applewhite mold is E.D. -- a smart, sensible girl who immediately clashes with the unruly Jake.

Jake thinks surviving this one will be a breeze ... but is he really as tough or as bad as he seems?

Reviews (44)

Survivng The Applewhites Book Review
Surviving the Applewhites, is a witty story about a
family out of the ordinary. Each member has his or her
own individual talent and come together at the end of
the book to put on a unique version of the Musical The
Sound Of Music. In this story, the Applewhites except
a boy into their home named Jake Semple. Jake has been
kicked out of many institutions and schools and this
home school called "The Creative Academy", is his last
hope. The setting of the story is modern time, which

makes all the mishaps in the book believable. Jake is a
unique character because like many teenage boys, he is
rebellious and causes some problems. The dialogue used
in this story provides the reader with a clear,
descriptive insight to the characters. For example,
the youngest Applewhite boy named Destiny, is a
typical, curious little boy who just wants to be
treated like everyone else. He especially likes Jake
and is always following him around. Destiny likes to
ask Jake all types of questions, and even dies his
hair to look just like Jake. The words and vocabulary
used in this book are precise and mainly to the point.
It is a very easy book to read and follow. The reader
can see the use of figurative language in the story,
when the schoolroom Jake's classes are held in, is
being described. A banner decorating the wall reads,
"Education is an adventurous quest for meaning of the
life, involving an ability to think things through"
(pg 27).
In the story, there are many observations and
dilemmas that occur that almost kill the plot. It also
kills the major dramatic question of the book which
is, Will the group all pull together, over come all
the problems that have happened and still put on this
modernized version of The Sound of Music? This makes
the reader want to continue reading to the end, to see
if this question is answered. The pacing and style are
very appropriate in this book. Each event proceeds
after the next one and one event leads into another,
in an organized manner.
This book could be enjoyed and appreciated by various
groups of people. It would mainly be found in an upper
elementary school or middle school classroom. There
are references made in the book and some concepts
talked about, that show this book needs to be used
with older children. It also is a neat book because it
gives a great background and incorporates the famous
musical, "The Sound Of Music". I always loved that
musical and I am sure many people do too. Mentioning
The Sound Of Music is a great eye catcher to have in
the summary of the book, because someone might see
this and automatically pick up the book because he or
she likes this musical. This book can be used in a
classroom, to teach children not to give up and that
everyone has a special talent inside them. He or she
just needs the opportunity and time to show it.

A Crazy Family and School
In the book Surviving the Applewhites by Stephanie S. Tolan, a bad city kid, Jake Semple, has been kicked out of every school he's been to. He was taken to a school called the Creative Academy, where you study what you want to, when you want to. A family called the Applewhites owns the school and they both are crazy, chaotic, and creative. During his stay, Jake learns new things and his life starts to change. He becomes part of a production of The Sound of Music along with other Applewhites. Through this school Jake finds deep inside himself who he really is, without being a bad boy.
We personally thought the book Surviving the Applewhites was a great book. We really liked it because it was funny, especially when a four year old named Destiny tried to dye and spike his hair. Many times we could relate to the characters because their interests and personalities were a lot like our own. It was very fun to read because of these things. We would recommend it to sixth - eighth graders or anyone who wants to read a really great book.

Disappointing 45th Review
Tolan's writing could have been more than just an average farce. The protagonist, a troubled youth, does not test for trust and acceptance with his arrival to the eccentric Applewhite household. She misses an opportunity to challenge the reader to wonder whether they could tolerate and overcome his past and form a bond.

surviving the applewhites
this book is about a sixteen year old boy by the name of Jake.
one day his parents stop a car outside their house. they asked the person driving it if they had any drugs, and to their surprise, it was an undercover cop ! oops, bad idea! anyway, the cop read them their rights and off to jail they went. so with his parents in jail, jake was sent to live with his grandfather and his grandfather lived with this wierd family , the applewhites.after awhile, jake gets tired of being bored so,
he decides to get into a little trouble! so, he gets aciggarette and smokes it ! if you want to find out if he gets into trouble , read the book.

APPLEWHITES REVIEW
SURVIVING THE APPLEWHITES IS ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS I HAVE EVER READ. THE WEIRDNESS OF THE APPLEWHITES AND JAKES PUNK ATTITUDE REALLY MAKE THIS A SPECTACULAR BOOK. THIS BOOK WOULD PROBABLY ENTERTAIN KIDS IN 6TH TO TO 8TH GRADE THE MOST BUT ADULTS WOULD GET KICK OUT OF IT BECAUSE OF ITS TINY SINCE OF HUMOR. AS A 7TRH GRADER I READ THIS BOOK IN ABOUT 2 WEEKS READING WHENEVER I HAD TIME SO THIS IS A QUICK BUT INTERESTING BOOK. BUT DON'T LET ME SPOIL EVERYTHING FOR YOU , READ IT AND ENJOY FOR YOURSELF! ... Read more

Book Description

Read by Lana Quintal
Approx. 2.5 hours
2 cassettes

Available now for the first time on audio—four Junie B. Jones stories in one collection brings four times the laughs!

Includes:
#13 Junie B. Jones is (almost) a Flower Girl
Junie B. is tired of everyone treating her like a baby.Too bad she wasn't picked to be flower girl at her aunt Flo's wedding.Then she could really show everyone how grown-up she is. But surely she can still find some way to get everyone's attention!

#14 Junie B. Jones and the Mushy Gushy Valentine
Junie B. gets a big, mushy Valentine's Day card from a secret admirer! Who is this secret mystery guy, anyway? Junie B. is determined to find out!

#15 Junie B. Jones Has a Peep in Her Pocket
When Junie B.'s homeroom takes an end of year field trip to a farm, everyone is excited—except Junie B. Jones.Farms have scary ponies and scary roosters. Will there be anything good about this place or will this be the "worstest " field trip ever?


#16 Junie B. Jones is Captain Field Day
Afternoon kindergarten is having a field day, and Junie B. Jones is team captain!As Captain Field Day, it's up to Junie B. to stop room eight from winning the championship.Will Junie B. find a way to lead her team to victory?Or will someone else save the day?




... Read more

Reviews (4)

So much fun in a book!
Junie B. Jones books are so funny! Barbara Park has a real talent in being able to write as if she is really a little girl... Some parents might complain about Junie B.'s "bad grammar", but the fact is that she is only a kid trying to immitate the way adults act and speak around her. Read them and laugh out loud, they're so good---for kids and for adults with a sense of humour!

Will Keep Kids Happy in the Car for Hours!
These books are terrific for kids in a wide range of ages--mine are 3, 5, and 8, and they all love them (they are over the head of the 3-year-old, but he's still mesmerized). Amazingly, the audiobooks are even better than the print versions. Lana Quintal, whose child-like voice seems a little grating at first, stands up incredibly well to repeat (and repeat and repeat) listening. She gets the tone just right. My kids are happy listening to these tapes in the car even on those long journeys that are usually occasion for hours of complaining. Worth gold! Check out the collection of books 9-12 too; if anything, it's even better than this one.

My Daughter Loves Junie B!
My daughter, just entering kindergarten this year, adores the Junie B. Jones books! While I admit, that I'm not overly fond of the grammatical mistakes (I tend to edit while reading aloud), the books are great fun for adults as well as kids. These books have helped my daughter deal with everything from a new sibling, to the start of kindergarten. I recommend them highly.

Who is it?
Who is it??

Junie B. Jones got a mushy gushy valentine from a secret admirer!! Who is this secret admirer?? She went outside but she forgot her valentine . She came inside. She saw Jim taking it. She said, "HEY WHAT ARE YOU DOING!!!" Did Jim give Junie B. the card?? ... Read more

Book Description

"Well, first of all, " said the BFG, "human beans is not really believing in giants, is they? Human beans is not thinking we exist."

Sophie discovers that giants not only exist, but that there are a great many of them who like to guzzle and swallomp nice little chiddlers. But not the Big Friendly Giant. He and Sophie cook up an ingenious plot to free the world of troggle-humping -- forever.

Reviews (217)

The BFG's the book you've been looking forward to !!!!!!
This is an extraordinary book, and the reader is immediately drawn into the fascinating tale. It begins like this.........

Sophie is an orphan... One night, the moon was pouring in all it's brightness through her windows, casting light directly on her pillow....., unable to sleep, then, Sophie looks out of the window and.....that's when she finds herself caught by a giant called the BFG (the big Friendly Giant), but a giant so friendly and kind, that when other giants go searching for edible humans every night, he eats horrible cucumber kind of vegetables. Soon after Sophie and the BFG gets to be friends and goes to meet Queen Elizabeth for help. In the end, Sophie gets to live in a big palace with the BFG. I couldn't put this book down, so I read it in one day! It's terribly funny and interesting. It's the kind of book everyone will love reading.

Charming fantasy about little girl befriending lonely giant
Sophie is an orphan, not exacly living "the charmed life". Enter a "big friendly giant", who came to town during witching hour to "blow dreams into the minds of sleeping children", but ends up kidnapping Sophie, because she saw him and "would have caused a giant hunt". -- The adventure for both Sophie and the "BFG" is wonderful to follow, at times even hilarious. The friendly giant has a wonderful way of "jumbling" almost the entire English language, making the reader laugh out loud during many delightful scenes. The "other" giants in Giant Country are not at all friendly, but man-eating monsters who torment the BFG. With the genius of Sophie and the aid of The Queen of England all ends well. -- I read this book with my 4th grade class, and all agreed that this was our favorite book we covered all year! Highly recommended!

This is a Total Blast
This book is the fiction story that you MUST read! It's about a girl named sophie who's an orphan that finds joy in a Big Friendly Giant. You can't let this story pass without reading it. I give it 2 thumbs up!

Just one word... WOW!!!!!!!!!!!!
This book ROCKS!!! I mean, seriously!!! You should really read this book!!! If you don't, your missing out on a lot, ...!!! Really, you HAVE to read this book!!!!!!

The BFG
The BFG
By: Roald Dahl
Reviewed by J. Yeh
Period: P.1

The BFG, written by Roald Dahl is about a young orphan who met a giant called the Big Friendly Giant. One night the orphan named Sophie couldn't sleep and out the window she saw an outline of something big. She saw it blow things into the windows with a trumpet. Sophie ran back to her bed and hid under her blanket. Next thing she knew when she peeped out was that a hand snatched her from the bed out of the window. Inside his hand was Sophia watching everything past her while the giant ran fast. They got to the cave where he lived and the giant set Sophie on the table. The BFG told her everything like why she was taken and his life. A giant bigger than the BFG came in and thought there was someone in the cave because the BFG was talking to Sophie. Sophie hid in what the giant calls snozzcumbers. The enormous giant went around searching for the human being but couldn't find her, and soon left. The BFG took Sophie to the Dream Country where the giant caught all his dreams. He didn't like the nightmare dreams and got really mad when he caught one. He caught a nightmare and left the country. He blew the dream into another giant. Suddenly the giant started squirming around and screamming. After a while all the giants got into a big quarrel. The BFG showed Sophie all his dreams he had caught and she read the labels written on them. There were dreams for girls and boys. Sophie thought of an idea of how to get rid of the other giants. So the BFG mixed the dreams for the queen to have about all the giants gobbling up human beings. They took a while to mix it and in the night while the other giants were gone, they blew the dream into the queen's bedroom. She woke up thinking that it was only a dream. Sophia was sitting by her bed like it was in the dream. She convinced her that the dream was real. So the queen sent army men and helicopters to capture the giants. They tied the giants up while they were sleeping and flew them into a pit where they couldn't escape.

I liked this book because it was kind of funny and interesting at the same time. One quote that I liked was,"One night, I is blowing a dream through a window and I sees this book lying on the little boy's bedroom table. I wanted it so very badly, you understand. But I is refusing to steal it. I would never do that." This quote tells me how much the BFG would never do anything horrible. Another quote I liked was,"Bravo! You is very good for a beginner! Let's have some more!" This quote was kind of funny to me because it seemed like the BFG was drunk.

My favorite part of the book was when Sophia and the BFG were mixing the dreams up for the queen to have so that the other giants would stop eating human beings. I liked it because it seemed interesting by the way the author described how it looked. ... Read more

Book Description

Read by Lynne Thigpen
Approx. 8 hours
6 cassettes

Why is the land so important to Cassie's family?It takes the events of one turbulent year--the year of the night riders and the burnings, the year a white girl humiliates Cassie in public simply because she is black--to show Cassie that having a place of their own is the Logan family's lifeblood.It is the land that gives the Logans their courage and pride, for no matter how others may degrade them, the Logans possess something no one can take away. ... Read more

Reviews (338)

Roll Of Thunder is Amazing
Roll of Thunder,Hear My Cry
Written by Mildred .D. Taylor
Publisher: Puffin

The book I am choosing to write about is Called Roll of Thunder,Hear My Cry. The genre is realistic fiction. It is about a black family living in Mississippi during the 1930s. The family struggles through racism,deaths and trying to maintain their land that they live on during the height of the Great Depression. Many scary things happen to the family. Such as burnings, night riders,and other close encounters. All through the hard times the family managed to keep their courage, love, and pride. It is a wonderful novel and I highly recommend it to anyone who loves a story of courage and hope.

The main characters are Cassie, who is the one telling the story a brave daughter of the Logan family. Stacey, Cassie's older brother considers himself the man of the family when the father is gone. David, who is the father, is often gone from home by working on the railroad. Mary and Big Ma are the mothers of the family. Mary is the mother and Big Ma is the grandmother. There are many other supporting characters

I personally love this book . I highly recommend it to anyone. Especially African American children. To learn how hard it was for their race during that time. It is good for people of all ages. It is a story of faith, courage , hope, love and family. The family in this book are very brave. It is one of the best books I have read in quite a while.

Roll Of Thunder Hear My Cry
It was the late 30's and the logan familiy had been trying to pay their bills and support each other. David, their father, worked on the rail road and Mary, their mother, worked as a teacher in the local school for blacks. Their kids names were Cassie(the nararator), Stacy(the oldest brother), little man, and Christopher John. They had many struggles, keeping up the farm, paying the bills, and having money for food were very hard things to do while the whites were harrassing, teasing, and trying to kill them. On top of all that, David and Mary were both out of a job. David got hurt by the Wallaces and Mary got fired for not teaching the white version of history. The Wallaces, Simon, and Mr. Granger were watching them like hawks, so that at any moment they could take their land and their lives. T.J., Stacy's friend, was not so lucky after Stacy stopped being "friends" with him. This was a very good book. I like how most of the book was in dialogue. I think that made it easier to read and tell what was going on and it gave me more emotions which makes it more interesting. It was just right for my reading ability, The book showed me how unfair it was bakc them for blacks to be hated so much and people could tease or kill with little emotion.

It was okay...
I had to read this book for school, and it just made me bored out of my mind. It didn't really hold my attention, and the only reason I finished it was because I had to. It was a very well-written book, but just not the kind of book I enjoy to read in my spare time.

Excellent book!
I really love this book. It kept my attention through the whole thing. I loved the characters and I felt for them as they suffered. The characters were well formed and it helps show what it might be like to be a black family living in that era and what they had to put up with.

A View into a new perspective
This book was about a family living in the 1930s in the Deep South. They struggle with racism and segregation. This family tries to stay together and keep their land. You are given a good perspective on what life was like as an African American in that time period and how they were unfairly treated. This story was low on action but told a great story, however, your interest is never lost. ... Read more

Book Description

Read by Angela Goethals
Approx. 6.6 hours
4 cassettes

Carmen got the jeans at a thrift shop. They didn’t look all that great; they were worn, dirty, and speckled with bleach. On the night before she and her friends part for the summer, Carmen decides to toss them. But Tibby says they’re great. She’d LOVE to have them. Lena and Bridget also think they’re fabulous. Lena decides they should all try them on. Whoever they fit best will get them. Nobody knows why, but the pants fit everyone perfectly. Over a few bags of cheese puffs they decide to form a sisterhood, and take the vow of The Sisterhood of Traveling Pants…the next morning, they say good-bye. And now the journey of the pants—and the most memorable summer of their lives—begins.

Angela Goethals' many film credits include Changing Lanes, Jerry Maguire, and Home Alone.She also starred on television in the series Phenom. ... Read more

Reviews (554)

Amazing Teen Novel
"The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants" is a novel about four girls (Tibby, Carmen, Bridget, and Lena), and the first summer that they spend apart from each other. But there's a twist.

The day before all of them separate for the summer, the girls each try on the same pair of pants, only to find that that pair of pants fits all of them perfectly, and makes them all look great, despite their physical differences. The girls make a pact that they will send the pants, which were picked up at a thrift store, to one another over the course of the entire summer. So each of them has a chance to experience the magic.

Brashares created four girls who were nothing alike, and brought them all together with the help of the pants. Readers will find it easy to relate to one, or all, of the characters. I found that I related the most to Tibby, because while she is at times cynical, and judges people to quickly, she has a very kind heart.

Overall, this is an EXCELLENT book, that I found myself unable to put down. I'd say that this book is for people 13 & over. Teenage girls will find this book easy to relate to, and feel a kinship with the four characters.<...

The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants
The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants is one of the best books I have ever read. (Trust me on this; I read A LOT.)
The story focuses on these four best friends who find this pair of presumably 'magical' pants at a second-hand store. Although all four girls are of very different sizes and builds, the pants fit each girl perfectly. As the girls embark on their first summer apart, they decide that the only way to keep their friendship truly alive would be to share the pants by mail. The Pants would be witness to all the big events throughout their summer, and would be a way to connect them while they are apart.
There is Lena, the introverted beauty, who goes to Greek to visit her grandparents for the summer and ends up falling in love with a boy out their and not knowing how and whether to tell him how she feels. There's emotional, Puerto-Rican Carmen, who goes out to South Carolina to spend time with her father, only to discover that he's engaged to a snotty woman with two blond kids. Tibby, the rebel, becomes a friend of a twelve year old girl, a rebel herself, who is dying of cancer. And Bridget, the hard-core athlete, goes to soccer camp in Baja only to find herself in lust with one of her coaches.
At times hilarious and at others emotionally intense, 'The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants' is a great book for teenage girls. It gives us an in-depth look at the world, and shows us how four very different girls found their identities.

A must read for all teenage girls
This is one of my favorite books of all time and one every teenage girl should pick up at some time or another. Brashares skillfully weaves together the tale of 4 very different girls' adventures over one summer bringing them together by the means of a magical pair of pants representing their friendship. while the idea of the magical pair of pants may seem a bit farfetched to some, this story couldn't be more true to teenage life. Both humorous and heartwrenching, i enjoyed every page of this book. i especially enjoyed the quotes that appeared at the beginning of each chapter. i think every girl can relate to one of the characters in some way or another. I find it almost scary how much i can relate to Lena. My two best friends (who are a lot like Tibby and Carmen) also love this book and we've started our own sisterhood v. similar to the one in the book, which has made us even better friends.

MUST READ FOR TEEN GIRLS OF ALL AGES
This book is an incredible look into the lives of 4 teenage girls as they face issues of their own and help eachother work through them. This is the best book I have ever read and I, like many teenagers do not like to read and finished this book within the first week I had it and right after I finished it I bought the sequel which is also incredible. I CAN'T wait for the third!!

I love this book!
"The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants?" you might ask.
All the people (well, at least, me.) who have read it will say "Yes. This is a great book. The idea is very creative. (Magical Pants?). The characters are fun and believable. Carmen, Bridget, Tibby and Lena were best friends since they could remember.
They always spend time together in the summer, but in this particular summer, they have to be apart. They discover that the pants Carmen had all along were magical!
They decided that the pants should be passed around the world to each other so they would be together without actually being together!
Ann Brashares is a great author, I could almost actually feel the sadness/anger/whatever emotions that the character is feeling!

This book is not like any other!!! ... Read more

Amazon.com

Aussie author Kate Constable has brought a music inspired fantasy to the States that is on a par with celebrated works like Edith Pattou's East, and The Golden Compass, by Philip Pullman. In The Singer of All Songs, young Calwyn is a Daughter of Tarsis, an order of priestesses who have mastered the ice call--a singing power over cold and frost. She lives with her sisters behind an enormous wall of ice that separates their small valley from hostile neighbors in the tensely divided lands of Tremaris. This seemingly impervious barrier is breached by a wounded "Outlander" named Darrow, who comes to the priestesses with a wild tale about an evil Sorcerer named Samis who has sworn to learn the Nine Chantments of the separate lands of Tremaris so that he can rule them as the powerful Singer of All Songs. When the elder priestesses dismiss his rantings and ord! er his sacrifice to the Goddess, Calwyn becomes determined to save his life and join his quest. Together, the two new friends travel into dangerous territories, assembling a rag tag crew of comrades along the way who agree to help prevent Samis from mastering the Nine Chantments. Constable has bewitchingly reinterpreted pagan lore for a new generation, and Singer will easily find an appreciative audience amongst devotees of Tamora Pierce and Garth Nix. Although the pacing of the novel is decidedly measured in places, it only helps the reader appreciate the author's rich characterizations and imaginative settings. Young fantasy fans will find much to sing about in this first installment of a planned trilogy. --Jennifer Hubert ... Read more

Reviews (13)

Thought
At first when I picked up this book I was just looking for someting to keep me occupied during one of my classes but as soon as I started to read it I couldnt stop.

This book is good for people who can follow a mysterie and enjoy unknown lands and people. A must read and I can't wait to read the 2nd instalment in the Chanters of Tremaris Trilogy

The Singer of All Songs
I'm an avid reader, but lately tired of magic. It was all the same, and bored me to death. As I read The Singer of All Songs, the flame was instantly relit. It's a wonderful book, and caused me to excercise some of my computer knowledge and start a fan club. The only board ready at the moment is

http://chanters.proboards33.com/

But I'm working on extending it. The book is amazing and a definite read for anyone looking for a wonderful fantasy book. My only complaint is that there are only three books!

An excellent fantasy
I won't go into the plot, because it's already described in the Amazon review, but I will tell you what I thought of this book during and after I read it.

Well, I don't usually read fantasy, but this was really, really good, and I don't regret reading it. When I saw the book, I made an exception because I skimmed through it beforehand, and it looked easy to read. And it was! It wasn't boring, dull or hard to read... like how I find some fantasy books (though those are mainly adult ones).

I loved the characters, and their descriptions were excellent. Everything was well described, and I could actually see in my mind what was happening as I read it.

I don't usually say 'wow' after I read a book, but after 'The Singer of All Songs', I did! I couldn't put the book down. I recommend this series to anyone who likes Tamora Pierce, Marion Zimmer Bradley, or just fantasy books in general. I'm dying for book 2 to come out. Kate, come out with it soon!!!

excellent fantasy for teens.
I'm a big fantasy fan and I loved this book. calwyn was a great character and I loved the world the author made. I can't wait to read the rest of this trilogy!!!

Wonderful fantasy novel for teens.
Sixteen-year-old Calwyn has lived almost her entire life behind the ice walls of Antaris, never seeing the rest of the world of Tremaris. Her mother had left Antaris as a young woman and brought baby Calwyn back shortly before her death, but she knows little of her father, only that he was an outsider. She is one of the ice priestesses of Antaris, working to keep their home safe from intruders. But one day, while inspecting the wall, she finds a stranger from the outside, a man named Darrow. By rescuing Darrow, she sets off a chain of events that will take her far from Antaris and lead to a showdown with an evil sorcerer who wants to take over all of Tremaris.

I really loved this book, and found it to be a unique fantasy compared to others I read. The story kept my interest all the way through, I really liked the characters, and I loved the world Kate Constable has created in this book. I loved the second book in this trilogy as well, and I cannot wait to read the conclusion. I highly recommend this book to teens who love fantasy. ... Read more

Book Description

What do you get when you put twelve lively kids together with a father -- a famous efficiency expert -- who believes families can run like factories, and a mother who is his partner in everything except discipline? You get a hilarious tale of growing up that has made generations of kids and adults alike laugh along with the Gilbreths in Cheaper by the Dozen.

Translated into more than fifty-three languages and made into a classic film starring Clifton Webb and Myrna Loy, Cheaper by the Dozen is a delightfully enduring story of family life at the turn of the 20th century.

Reviews (113)

It's still really funny
I was watching the attractions for the Steve Martin version of Cheaper By the Dozen and thinking that it looks like the only element they kept from the book was the title and having 12 kids. I really haven't read the book since..... 6th grade? It was my favorite book then. I decided to re read it and it's still really funny. I mean laugh out loud funny. The rest is a charming look at life in a different time.

It's just a wonderful story about Frank and Lillian Gilbreth (I believe he started motion study and invented touch typing, she was a psychologist) and their 12 children growing up around the turn of the century everything in the household is about learning and responsibilty to gently instill responsible behavior in the children as they grow to adulthood. That said I really loved the bit where the wife leaves him with the kids and when she returnes he says he only had problems with that one over there, but I spanked him and that worked it all out and she says he's not one of theirs.

Cheaper by the Dozen
Cheaper by the Dozen is a well written biography on the Gilbreth family and all the craziness they go through every day with such a big family. This large family consists of 12 children and a set of parents. All 12 kids-Fred, Dan, Anne, Bob, Bill, Frank, Martha, Lil, Ernestine, Jack, Jane and Mary-all have red or blonde hair and lots of freckles. My favorite character was Mr. Gilbreth. This story took place in Mont Clair, New Jersey and i think that was a very appropriate setting. My favorite part in the book was when Mr. Gilbreth would not let Anne and Ernestine wear make-up, high heels or short skirts. I also liked when the Gilbreths went to California to visit Mrs. Gilbreth's family. There are many more good parts, but you will need to read the book or listen to it on tape to find out about them. What i liked best about the story is that it was pretty funny. I would reccomend it to any one who likes books written with a sense of humor. There isn't any real plot or climax to this story, but that may be one of the reasons I liked it so much. It flows very well and the only confusing part is all of the characters. Overall, it was a pretty good book.

One of my favorites
A book that I have read no less than 10 times. It's entertaining and insightful and really a timeless story (although part of its charm is the historical information it provides too). It deals with subjects like family closeness, female empowerment, importance of education, and the loss of a loved one, all with humorous anecdotes and touching stories. As a book that I read both as a child and an adult, I was suprised at things I had missed (or where over my head) in past reads and how much I still enjoyed it.

I loved this book!
I just finished reading it ten minutes ago! I loved it! It has changed my life. I hope I can have such awesome experiences with my own five children! What an amazing family! Truly uplifting and inspiring! I will definitely read it again and again.

Cheaper by the Dozen
This book is about a family called the Gilbreths finding the best way to live. They have 12 children. All these children care for many different things and are different ages.They face many differnt obstacles. This family probably is like yours but maybe a little more funnier. You'll laugh by reading this book. The movie is a little differnt from the book. There are two versions of Cheaper by the Dozen. Reading this book will definately remind you of families and your own family. So if your ready for some laughs read Cheaper by the Dozen. If you liked the movie you'll love the book. ... Read more

Book Description

Dear Reader,

If you have not read anything about the Baudelaire orphans, then before you read even one more sentence, you should know this: Violet, Klaus, and Sunny are kindhearted and quick-witted, but their lives, I am sorry to say, are filled with bad luck and misery. All of the stories about these three children are unhappy and wretched, and the one you are holding may be the worst of them all.

If you haven't got the stomach for a story that includes a hurricane, a signaling device, hungry leeches, cold cucumber soup, a horrible villain, and a doll named Pretty Penny, then this book will probably fill you with despair.

I will continue to record these tragic tales, for that is what I do. You, however, should decide for yourself whether you can possibly endure this miserable story.

With all due respect,
Lemony Snicket

Reviews (126)

Got a whale of a tale to tell ya lads
Guardians of the unfortunate Baudelaire orphans can be easily separated into three categories. They are malicious (Count Olaf), benign (Uncle Monty), or useless (Aunt Josephine). In this particular book we meet the ineffectual Aunt Josephine, the third of the Baudelaire's guardians and, perhaps, the most useless of them all. I mean, certainly it is unfortunate that Count Olaf was their first, and continually follows them from home to home, always wearing disguises. But he was not useless. In fact, he moves the plots along quite nicely.

In "The Wide Window", the unfortunate three have landed on the shores of Lake Lachrymose (lachrymose here meaning, "given to tears or weeping", as I am sure the children were feeling at that moment). They have been placed in the care of Aunt Josephine, a woman afraid of everything. Still, this new home is not too too bleak. The children have a large library to go through (albeit a library full of grammar books) and things appear to be going fairly smoothly until they run across their nemesis Count Olaf yet again. This time, he is disguised as Captain Sham (love the name) and his new plans to get his hands on the orphans is just as devious as ever.

For vocabulary reasons alone these books are a wonder. Any parent reading them to their children would do well to explain all the little in-jokes that appear along the way (always assuming that the adults themselves GET the jokes in the first place). This book also is one of the first Baudelaire sagas in which the orphans actually see their guardian dispatched before their very eyes. Of course, you can't feel too badly about Aunt Josephine's death. She did attempt to sacrifice the orphans' lives for her own, in an act of cowardice that doomed her to death by (ugh) leeches. All in all, a wonderful continuation of A Series of Unfortunate Events.

Connor Gives This Book 5Stars
This book is the third book of the series and like all of them, they have an unpleasant ending. I liked this book because it had an interesting plot and because of the characters. My favorite character was Klaus because he loves books and so do I. Violet and Sunny were also good. Like all the stories in this series, Count Olaf tries to steal the Baudelaire's fortune but so far is not successful. In this book he tries to steal it by faking Aunt Josephine death and making her write a note saying that she wants Captain Sham (Count Olaf) to be the orphans' caretaker.

This book is about three unlucky orphans whose parents died in a fire. They move to Aunt Josephine house. When they were at the market one-day, they see a guy that looks like Count Olaf. He really is Count Olaf but he is in disguise as Captain Sham. The next day they find a letter on the library door saying that Aunt Josephine committed suicide. They find out that it was a secret message that ended up saying Curled Cave. They travel there and find her there. On the way back to the dock, leeches attack them. Captain Sham rescues them but he throws Aunt Josephine over board. And the leeches kill her. Mr. Poe find out that Captain Sham was really Count Olaf in disguise. He runs from them and locks the orphans and him behind a metal gate.

This book is good for people who like to read adventure and a little mystery. This book is good for children and young adults. People who read the first three books in this series should read this book for sure. I thought this book was good but not as good as The Reptile Room.

The Wide Window
I thought that the book was boring. Its good and all, but it is slow. They are sent to live with Aunt Josephine, a woman who is afraid of every thing, even the doorknob. Count Olaf appears and tries to steal the fortune.

The Third Book
This books picks up from the previous book as the orphans are now carted off to live with there aunt Josephine, ok so she's not actually their aunt but some odd fourth cousin twelve times removed or something. After reading two of the previous books in the series I am sure the reader can now guess that the children will have to deal with the horrid count Olaf again in some odd disguise that he has thought up. Still I did find this book enjoyable, but highly predictable by now. The author doses not change the style in which he writes and in fact the stories are of a very similar plot line. This is not to say that I will not read all thirteen books when they are published in their entirety. So hopefully all will enjoy this third installment of the orphan's grisly tale.

World Wide Window
This is the 3rd 'Unfortunate Events' book I have read, and call me slow, but are these books all just the same thing? Every book I have read so far has the poor orphans (a phrase meaning they lost their parents, not poor as in they have no money) being shipped off to some new location in the care of some well-meaning but dim person with a tenuous family connection, as the nefarious Count Olaf slips on a disguise and manages to fool everyone. Of course the children immediately know it is Count Olaf - the adults are dumb and stupid, and do not.

I guess that's what happens in every book of the series. Hmm. Anyway, this book finds the orphans heading off to visit their aunt, blahdeeblah, Count Olaf arrives dressed as a sea captain, blingbloo, Count Olaf almost inherits the orphans, so on, so forth, etc., etc. Adults die, threats of physical violence are made towards children...I think if I were a young child reading this book I'd be a bit frightened! I don't know who these books are targeted towards. ... Read more

Book Description

A loving threesome, they ranged the dark hills and river bottoms of Cherokee country. Old Dan had the brawn. Little Ann had the brains, and Billy had the will to make them into the finest hunting team in the valley. Glory and victory were coming to them, but sadness waited too. Where the Red Fern Grows is an exciting tale of love and adventure you'll never forget.

Wilson Rawls was born on a small farm in the Ozarks, where he spent his youth in the heart of the Cherokee nation, hunting with his old blue tick hound--his only companion.
... Read more

Reviews (804)

Exciting novel
Where the Red Fern Grows
In spite of being labeled as a sad sob story, Where the Red Fern Grows is a priceless novel filled with adventure and excitement. I believe that Rawls uses the two dogs Old Dan and Little Ann plus the emotional ending of the novel to attract the female gender. But to the same affect attracts the males with the adventures that these dynamic three undergo. Billy, a young boy, whose had a dream of owning a pair of coon hunting dogs. Works two long years of backbreaking work to finally raising enough money to purchase the two dogs. He embraces the dogs as if they are his children, working with them none stop so that they could become the very best coon-hunting team in Cherokee county. A lot of the time this book is required reading for many middle school students. So I believe Rawls uses this never give up attitude to encourage the young readers. After working so hard and accomplishing many goals with the dogs Billy enters a competition and wins. Thrilled with his accomplishment he ventures to other events. First place after first place Billy and the team seek higher standards. As you read, we follow the threesome on an adventure of a lifetime. Traveling on foot Billy and his two dogs head to the Tournament of tournaments the Coon Hunting Championship. Billy, unknowing of the dangers of the journey, runs into a little trouble on the way. As the book slows down and almost loses readers, this journey to the championship keeps us into it. Fortunately the team arrives in one piece and enters the competition. The team wins but to Billy's surprise the dogs aren't satisfied. Because they still have one coon to get, Shadow, the coon that cannot be caught. Rawl takes us on an adventure, and yet again has you sitting at the edge of your seat.

And So The Adventures Begin
If you are going to read a book to your class, Having your class reading a book, reading a book to yourself, giving a book to a friend or relative, or any thing else, Where The Red Fern Grows ,by Wilson Rawls is the book for you. it is a wonderful and touching story about a boy, Billy, and his dogs. It starts out with a man looking back on his childhood, and how he dreamt of having some fine dog. Finally he got enough money to buy the dogs his heart was set on, and so the adventures begin. This book is very well written. It brings you to the place, time and point if view of Billy and his family, and without being too descriptive or boring. There aren't those chapters which you find in moast descriptive books where all that seems to happen is you know EXACTLY what a certain character looks like. Not only that, it is a real page turner. No matter how much you read you have to know what happens next. With every chapter comes a new adventure! If someone told you that a book about a boy and his dogs catching raccoons would be a page turner, you probably would not believe them, but you are never satisfied to stop after any chapter. Some people find the way that they talk with a southern accent gets in the way, but soon you will get used to it. I think it ads to the atmosphere. You should definitely at least try out this book and when you do, which should be soon, you will find it is a excellent read.

Is there a better story out there?
NO, this has to be the best story I have ever read. I read this book recently to my 7 year old son. Wanting to show him the power of books. I was worried he'd be upset by the ending in this. I shouldn't of worried. I was the one who ended up crying and reading it to him at the same time. As an adult I felt foolish. He wasn't near as upset about it as me and I KNEW what was going to happen since I read it as a child myself. WOW, the power of a book. Simply amazing.

Once upon a time when I was a little girl
I hate it when a reviewer gives the story away, so I won't. Safe to say, though, that when I was a little girl, I read a book in one night, under the covers with a flashlight. That book, of course, was WTRFG. I just re-read it again after 20 some-odd years. I am surprised to find that I cried as hard as I did as when I was 9. I was once again, so engrossed that I read it in one night, ignoring the fact that I had to work the next day. It is a beautiful story, a timeless one. A childhood favorite. I am amazed that it didn't win a Newberry Honor medal, or some other kind of award. This is one of the books that helped instill a loving of reading at an early age. A GEM, don't miss it. A story about a young boy on the brink of manhood and his love for his pups....whom he worked so hard for. You will laugh and cry, at age 9, 29, or 99. Buy it for your kids, and rea it for yourself.

Read This Book!
Wow! this is one of the best book I have written in a long time. If you have not read Where the Red Fern Grows trust me it is the kind of book you will have regeted if you did not read it. Ok well the book is about a boy named Billy that works for his own needs. Billy wants to get 2 dogs that he can train to get racoons. He eventually works for weeks to get the money for his dogs and then gives the money to his grandfather for him to buy the dogs. Old Dan and Little Ann are the names of the two dogs. The exciting advetures that Billy,Old Dan and Little An go through are thrilling and endless. To top it all off the story has a twist at the end. You should definetly read this book to find out whuat happens! ... Read more

Book Description

Approx. 4.5 hours
3 cassettes

When Esperanza and Mama are forced to flee to the bountiful region of Aguascalientes, Mexico, to a Mexican farm labor camp in California, they must adjust to a life without fancy dresses adn servants they were accustomed to on Rancho de las Rosas.Now they must confront the challenges of hard work, acceptance by their own people, and economic difficulties brought on by the Great Depression.When Mama falls ill and a strike for better working conditions threatens to uproot their new life, Esperana must relinquish her hold on the past learn to embrace a future ripe with the riches of family and community. ... Read more

Reviews (121)

A Story of Hope
Esperanza Rising is the story of a young girl who started out very rich, and though she lost everything she owned, such as her beautiful dresses, servants, and her family's estate, ended up even richer. It is ten years after the Mexican Revoloution, and Esperanza Ortega enjoys a life of luxury in El Rancho de la Rosa. When a horrible tradgedy strikes, Esperanza and her mother must flee to California and leave her grandmother, Abuelita, behind. Appalled at the living conditions and "dirty peasents" that she is forced to be in contact with, Esperanza becomes miserable in the labor camp. But when her mother contracts Valley Fever and becomes very ill, Esperanza needs to start working to earn money to keep her in the hospital and pay the medical bills. Esperanza eventually learns to adjust with the major lifestyle change, and learns a lot about maturity and compassion. No wonder Esperanza means "hope" in Spanish. Based on the life of Esperanza Ortega, Pam Munoz Ryan's (author) grandmother, I highly reccomend this book to anyone who likes a fast-paced, sometimes humorous and sometimes sad, novel.

A Pleasant Surprise
First of all, I would like to say that to read this book would not be my first choice. In fact, a book called Esperanza Rising with a picture of a girl floating in the air is probably not any middle-schooler's first choice of a book. But, fortunatly, I have a really cool reading teacher that knows that you shouldn't judge a book by it's cover.

Esperanza Rising is a story about an 12-year-old girl who lives in Mexico. She is fairly rich, and she lives on a big ranch with her parents.

Then, her perfect life falls apart. Her father dies, her powerful uncle threatens her, and her house is burned down. Esperanza is forced to flee to the United States with her mother in poverty to work in a labor camp. It is the very life she has never known.

This book tells Esperanza's story (A true one!) and how she must adjust to her new life. It is no wonder that in Spanish, Esperanza means, "Hope".

Mexicano Tear-Jerker
This book is the true to life story of Esperanza Ortega by Pam Munoz Ryan. She is a very rich and happy girl until her dad is killed by bandits the day before her birthday. THen her uncle burns down their house because without her father, they're virtually nothing. Then he asks her mother to marry him. She pretends that she will but in the middle of the night before the wedding they pack their stuff and head for California with their servants. They have a very hard life their and her mother almost dies. They turn out ok though. Esperanza and the servant boy fall in love and eventually get married ( this part isn't in the story, but it's in the authors note after the book) Anyways every rich AND poor person should read his book it's great.
Bye

Esperanza rising
I like this book a lot because it has a lot of emotion like when her father died her mom got sick ect.,and most of all
it's a really realistic book/story because what happens to esperanza could happen for real.it's not a fairy tale.It is not fiction.That's why i like this book.At first you're not going to like Esperanza's charecter,but as her charecter changes you're going to like her more.

ESPERANZA RISING
THIS BOOK IS CALLED ESPERANZA RISING.THE AUTHOR OF THE BOOK IS PAM MUNOZ RYAN.ESPERANZA IS GIRL SHE IS THIRTEEN YEARS OLD.ESPERANZA WAS BORN IN AGUASCALIENTES MEXICO.ESPERANZA LIVES IN EL RANCHO DE LAS ROSAS IN A BIG RANCH.ESPERANZA IS SPOLIED LITTLE GIRL WHATEVER SHE WANTS SHE GETS.ESPERANZA MOMS NAME IS RAMONA FORTANLY SHE HAS HER DAD TO. HORTENSA ALFONSO AND MIGGUEL ARE THE SERVANTS THAT WORK IN ESPERANZAS HOUSE.MIGUEL IS HTE SON OF THE HORTESNA AND ALFONSO.MIGUEL IS 16 YEARS OLD. TIO LUIS AND MARCOS ARE STEP BROTHERS OF ESPERANZAS DAD.ESPERANZAS DAD DIED A DAY BEFORE HER BIRTHDAY.RAMONA AND ESPERANZA WERE VERY HURT ESPERANZA DIDN'T HAVE A GOOD BIRTHDAY.AFTER HER FATHER DIED A WEEK OR 2RANCH WAS ON FIRE.LUIS IS STEP BRO OF ESPERANZAS DAD.LUIS ASKED RAMONA THE ONLY WAY SHE WON'T SUFFER OF HUNGER WOULD BE IF SHE MARRYS HIM.RAMONA HAD SAID YES BUT SHE HAD PLANED TO LIVE TO THE UNITED STATES.THEY WANTED TO GO TO THE UNITED STATES TO WORK AND TO BE AWAY FROM LUIS. ... Read more

Book Description

Fifteen-year old Callie is so withdrawn that she's not speaking to anyone including her therapist at the residential treatment facility where her parents and doctor send her after discovering that she cuts herself. Her story unfolds primarily through dramatic monologues, gradually revealing the family turmoil that led to her self-destructive behavior. Her little brother, Sam, is ill he nearly died in her care. Since Sam's illness, Callie's mother has become so worried and fragile that she rarely leaves the house. Her father has responded to the psychological and financial stress of Sam's illness by disappearing into his work, and when that doesn't work, into his drinking.

Callie's efforts to understand herself and her family illuminate her process of recovery honestly and with hope. Cut provides an insightful look at the psychology of cutting a form of self-abuse an estimated 2 million teenage girls inflict on themselves.
... Read more

Reviews (176)

A brilliant story of a girl who needs help
Cut by Patricia McCormick was an excellent read. Stress. Piercing pain, slicing, stabbing. This is what callie feels,when everything around her starts to pile up, she decides to slit her wrists as a way of relieving the pain bottled up inside her. Her mother finds out and sends her to Sea Pines, a correctional facility. This book leads you through her route of self discovery there. You feel like you are there and you just want to help her but you can't, and you can almost hear Callie's voice trying to break through. It's happy but sad at the same time and this book helped me realize a lot of things about my own life. I think Mccmormick was trying to send a message to mainly teenage girls about the consequences of slitting or the hardships of self destruction. This book was written really well and it kept you guessing and hoping for more and it teaches you a great lesson so that is why I enjoyed it.

Bak Middle School of the Arts- Mr. Felt's Review
Callie is a fifteen- year- old girl who does not use the word 'normal' in her vocabulary. On the other hand, she knows far from 'normal.' Callie feels that, "there's no rush, no relief. Just a keen, pulsing pain. I drop the pie plate and grasp my wrist with my other hand; dimly aware even as I'm doing it that it's something I've never done before. Never tried to stop the blood." She says this as she cuts herself. So, with her problem, she goes to an institution called Sea Pines (or Sick Minds like everyone likes to call it there.) Here, there are teens with cases such as anorexia, obesity, and even substance-abuse issues. Then there are others, like Callie, that suffer from behavioral issues. She cuts herself when others aren't looking. In the book Cut, she desperately turns to the blade of a paper towel dispenser in a restroom or even a metal strip from the cafeteria to feel that rush of relief, to make her happy.
Not only does Callie have a problem with cutting herself, but also she won't talk about it. At Sea Pines, there are daily meetings where everyone talks about their problems aloud and counselors try to help out with the issues. Callie won't say a word about it. She avoids looking the counselors in the eye so that she wouldn't be called on. Even when she was called on, she rebels and still won't say a word. Can Callie stay silent for so long? Will she handle it? She has to say something, right?
With an inspiring author like Patricia McCormick, how can anyone lose the chance of reading a great book like Cut? McCormick gives so much description and detail into the book that anyone can understand how the character feels. Find out when Callie will crack. Read Cut, by Patricia McCormick.

good, but not what i expected
this book was a very good and intense read...but it wasnt really what i expected. the girl in the story indeed cuts herself as the title may suggest, but there isnt really much in the book about cutting. if youre looking for a book talking more about cutting, i wouldnt suggest this. but it is a good read nonetheless.

go get your knife
The book Cut is about a girl named Callie, who uses cutting as a release, an escape; an escape that lands her in a mental center, Sea Pines (Sick Minds, as the patients fondly call it.) It's a fairly easy read, pretty short, but to the point, truthful. It's a little sweet, with a baby of an ending, but for sure, Cut will stick with you. McCormick's detail work is what pulled me in; she makes it easy to sympathize with Callie, to understand where she's coming from. She softens the image of cutting and cutters, making them more personal, more vulnerable; instead of just seeing kids in a mental joint, you see yourself, your sister maybe, it could be anyone. If you were/are a cutter, check this one out, it hits pretty close to home.

Cut: Paper Back & Audio Book review.
First, I shall review the book itself...

Cut is about something that is hard to tell a story about without seeming melodramatic, soapoperish, or cliche. And I think Patricia McCormick succeeds in not being any of those. She did a few years of research on the subjects of this book before actually writing it, which makes it all the more real.

Okay, so Callie is a 15yr girl whom is stuck at "Sea Pines" or "Sick Minds" as the patients like to call it. It is a place where people with "issues" go; Food issues, drug issues, or self-mutilation issues. Callie, as you can guess cuts. Which means in order to release her emotional pain she gives herself a cut on her physical body. This is why she is at Sick Minds. When we come into her story she is not talking to anyone at Sick Minds or anyone period, she doesn't want to, and she doesn't want anyone to why she's there. There are other girls who are probably more screwed up then her, which include and anorexic girl that has had a heart attack because she wont eat, and she still doesn't eat, and a girl whom keeps eating to ease her pain. There is another anorxic girl, and two drug abuse girls in her group as well. Through the story we begin to find out why Callie is hurting herself and why she wont talk.

Now, I have had issues similar to these, I have eating "issues" and other things, I understand what these girls, especially Calie is going through. And after hearing it a second time on tape after I began counseling and such I've begun to really see the paralells between the characters and myself. I think that people with issues like myself are very well portrayed, it shows that there is hope if you seek help. Your life doesn't have to be a load of crap all of the time. :) Callie, and the other characters are all real people, there not just "issues" their people, and that's what's so refreshing about "Cut". Its also about making friends and how they help you overcome the hard times. :D

Now, for the audio book, I absolutely LOVED Clea Lewis' voice. She does the voice for Pepperanne's blonde friend(can't remember her name), in the cartoon show Pepperanne. At first I was unsure of whether or not it would be any good with her voice, but she makes very good use of it. Pretty much all the characters voices are very distinguishable from one another, and just like the books I didn't want to stop listening to it.

I reccomend Cut to anyone whom likes a good book, I read it in a few hours, I couldn't put it down.! Also, if I have one complaint, its that the book was so short, but still awesome, and it has a pretty open, but hopeful ending, so its nice. :D

God Bless & *enjoy* ~Amy ... Read more

Book Description

approx. 4 hours
3 cassettes

1999 National Book Award Finalist
School Library Journal Best Books of the Year
Booklist Editors' Choice

Melinda is a friendless outcast at Merryweather High.She busted an end-of-summer party by calling the cops, and now nobody will talk to her, let alone listen to her.As time passes, she becomes increasingly isolated and practically stops talking altogether.It is through her work on an art project that she is finally able to face what really happened at that terrible party: she was raped by an upperclassman, a guy who still attends Merryweather and who is still a threat to her.It will take another violent encounter with him to make Melinda fight back.This time she refuses to be silent. ... Read more

Reviews (721)

Emily's Speak Book Review
Laurie Halse-Anderson's novel, Speak, is a riveting story about a teenage girl starting her high school days as an outcast. The main character, Melinda, had called the cops on the end-of-the-summer bash and everyone is busted. The reason for calling the cops is something Melinda keeps deep inside and does not reveal until the end. This novel shows Melinda as she struggles with many difficult aspects of high school and her home life. She has trouble speaking to people and expressing her true emotions. Though she's still very apprehensive, one person she starts to open up to is Mr. Freeman, her art teacher. He has taught her how to express her feelings through art and also told her he'd always be there to listen. Will Melinda finally open up to him or anyone, and find her voice?
I enjoyed this novel because it was realistic and detailed. It is a book that brings forth a mixture of emotions. It will make you laugh, cry, and yell out in anger. I definitely recommend this book.

Very touching novel
Laurie Halse Anderson's novel, Speak, is very well written. It's an entertaining, riveting tale about a girl who calls the police to a party which results in several of her peers getting busted. Something happened at the end-of-summer party that changed her life forever.
Upon returning to school in the fall, the main character, Melinda Sordino, is blackballed by her classmates. She chooses to deal with her problem and those around her by silencing herself. There is an internal battle going on inside Melinda's head throughout the novel. She finally finds refuge in one of her classes, art. The art instructor is a very caring individual who notices that Melinda is acting strangely and that she is different and withdrawn. He wants to help her so he shows empathy toward her. She begins to use art as an outlet and finds meaning and symbolism in it.
Anderson does an extraordinary job using symbolism throughout the novel. She deals with a very serious subject, yet her writing is extremely witty and funny. I found myself laughing aloud while reading it.
School can be a very negative experience for many young people. The life of a ninth grade student is told from Melinda Sordino's point of view. She is unpopular and berated. The cruelty displayed by her peers, comfortable in their cliques, is something many young adults will be able to identify with. By the end of the novel, Melinda finally speaks! She tells why she called the cops that night. At first no one believes her, then another event happens that turns her life around. You have to read this book!

Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson
I really liked this book. I just finished it a few weeks ago, because in English we had to do literature circles and this was the book three other people and I read. I thought that the book was really good and so did two of the other people in my group they rated it 8 out of ten and 10/10 and I rated 9/10 but the other person in the group gave it 1/10. He said that all Melinda did in the book was whine about things but I don't think that's true.

Whatever you say can and will be used against you
Speak is an amazing read for anyone. While it is targeted towards Young Adults, I think it would be a good book for parents to read as well. Perhaps parents could read more YA books and it might actually give them a better understanding of their own teenagers. This gives the reader a good insight into the theory that there are two sides to every story. Not only does the unspoken character have to deal with the horrid aftermath of rape pulling at her emotional soul, but she can't talk about it to anyone. Fear of rejection, peer pressure, and teen angst play a major part in this powerful coming-of-age story

speak
I recommend Speak for ages 13 and up, especially, if you are going into high school. It talks about first experiences in high school, the struggles with her classes and teachers, and includes her experiences on the bus. "The bus picks up students in groups of four or five. As they walk down the aisle, people who were in my middle-school lab partners or gym buddies glare at me. I close my eyes. This is what I've been dreading. As we leave the last stop, I am the only person sitting alone." She met a new girl named Heather. "Another wounded zebra turns and smiles at me. She's packing at least five grand worth of orthodontia, but has great shoes. 'I'm Heather from Ohio', she says. 'I'm new here. Are you?' I don't answer. The lights dim and the indoctrination begins." This book gave me a heads up on what high school will be and some of the experience that an ordinary student would go through. ... Read more

Book Description

From the author of the sensational New York Times bestseller The Thief Lord comes a thrilling new adventure about magic and self-discovery.

Meggie lives a quiet life alone with her father, a bookbinder.But her father has a deep secret--he possesses an extraordinary magical power.One day a mysterious stranger arrives who seems linked to her father's past.Who is this sinister character and what does he want?Suddenly Meggie is involved in a breathless game of escape and intrigue as her father's life is put in danger.Will she be able to save him in time? ... Read more

Reviews (89)

One Girl, One Book, A Whole World of Adventure
I really liked this book! When I received Inkheart I thought, "Oh boy, this book is by Cornelia Funke, the author of The Thief Lord. From the minute I began to read this book I knew that Inkheart would be enjoyed by all who like fantasy, adventure and mystery.

The main character, Meggie, has always wanted her father to read aloud to her, but he never does. When Meggie finds out why, she gets dragged into a war to defeat the evil Capricorn (one of the characters that emerged off the pages of the last book her father read aloud). Will Meggie and her friends succeed in killing Capricorn or sending him back into the book?

I give this book a five star rating. It is well written and Cornelia Funke did a great job of capturing my attention and keeping me glued to the pages. I really love this book and highly recommend it to anyone who is at least 8 years old. I think my parents might like it too.

The Exact Opposite of Cliché
Just imagine it--if you had the ability to bring characters in books to life! The people you could meet, the things you could talk about...But think about the dark side of that power--what about the nasties, the evil ones, the shadows...?

"Inkheart" is a wonderful book, and a complex one, intelligent and challenging, with unclichéd characters and plot-twists, and a truly novel, double-sided premise: that Meggie's book-loving bookbinder father has the ability to draw characters out of books when he reads aloud--literally--and his gift has caused sorrow and tragedy to weigh over their lives. In less capable hands this could go very twee and icky, but Ms. Funke's incredible talent makes it work--the magic is believable, workable, with limits and rules. The villains are nasty, but interesting, multi-faceted. The good guys have their flaws, the bad guys have their human quirks. And the Italian towns and landscape are wonderfully-evoked. Really fine writing!

Plus she brings something else to the task--perhaps it's the fact that she's European, and not writing for publication in the American kids-lit pipeline, but there's a cosmpolitan richness to this book that's hard to describe, a sort of assumption that her readers are intelligent book-lovers, which I appreciate greatly.

I would nominate "Inkheart" as one of the best young reader's novels of 2003. What a wonderful creation!