STUDENT REVIEW - Frindle by Andrew Clements

Frindle

By Andrew Clements

Published by Antheneum Books for Young Readers, 1998

112 pages (hardcover)

Is Nick Allen a troublemaker?
He really just likes to liven things up at school -- and he's always had plenty of great ideas. When Nick learns some interesting information about how words are created, suddenly he's got the inspiration for his best plan ever...the frindle. Who says a pen has to be called a pen? Why not call it a frindle? Things begin innocently enough as Nick gets his friends to use the new word. Then other people in town start saying frindle. Soon the school is in an uproar, and Nick has become a local hero. His teacher wants Nick to put an end to all this nonsense, but the funny thing is frindle doesn't belong to Nick anymore. The new word is spreading across the country, and there's nothing Nick can do to stop it. (from barnesandnoble.com)

This book tells of an ordinary boy who does something cool and draws you in. This book could be longer. It is a little short, but it’s pretty cool. Yes, I would recommend this book because it is very intriguing and tells a very interesting story.

--Ella K.

STUDENT REVIEW - The Wizard of Menlo Park by Randall E. Stross

The Wizard of Menlo Park

By Randall E. Stross

Published by Crown Publishing Group, 2008

384 pages (hardcover)

Thomas Edison’s greatest invention?
His own fame.

Starting with the first public demonstrations of the phonograph in 1878 and extending through the development of incandescent light and the first motion-picture cameras, Thomas Edison’s name became emblematic of all the wonder and promise of the emerging age of technological marvels. But this critical biography of the man who is arguably the most famous of all Americans provides a fuller view of Edison’s life and times–revealing not only how he worked, but how he managed his own fame, becoming the first great celebrity of the modern age. (from barnesandnoble.com)

Well this isn’t a book I’d typically read, but the book is teaching me about Thomas Edison. The author put a whole bunch of pictures in the middle of the book. Maybe they should put the pictures all over the place. Yes, I would recommend this book to a middle schooler if they want to learn about Thomas Edison.

--Gabriella H.

Top Ten Tuesday: The Top Ten Worlds I'd Never Want to Live In

Top 10 Tuesday is hosted at The Broke and the Bookish. Today’s topic is the Top Ten Worlds I'd Never Want to Live In.

 

I think my life in Urbana is just peachy when compared with these worlds and times...

The Terrifying Past

Rose Under Fire by Elizabeth Wein

The Jungle by Upton Sinclair

Crispin and the Cross of Lead by Avi

The Horrible Present

The Ashes Trilogy by Ilsa Bick

Anna Dressed in Blood by Kendra Blake

The Secrets of Nicholas Flammel by Michael Scott

The Dystopian Future

The Hunger Games Trilogy by Suzanne Collins

Awaken by Katie Kacvinsky

Matched by Ally Condie

Immortal Rules Trilogy