BEST BOOKS READ IN 2011

Will's TOP PICK:

“Quill prevails when the strong survive.”

-Lisa McMann

            If you are looking for a magical fantasy book, you should read The Unwanteds by Lisa McMann.  This book is about two twins named Alex and Aaron who live in a dystopian society called Quill. The reasons that I think that this is the best book that I have read in 2011 are because it has magic, it is written with a third person perspective, the characters are very present and active throughout the story and you just can’t put down this shocker of a story.

            Every year the land of Quill has a ceremony called the Purge.  This is when all of the thirteen year olds in Quill get chosen to be Wanted, Necessary or Unwanted.  If you are Wanted, you go to the Wanted University to become one of the governors, teachers or “Quillitary” soldiers.  If you are Necessary you will be assigned a job that the Wanteds don’t want.  If you are Unwanted, you are shuttled to the Death Farm where you will “meet your doom.”

            Flying stone lions, paper dragons that breathe fire and hallways that disappear are just a few of the magical items you will find in this book. A thirteen year old Unwanted boy named Alex discovers that instead of “meeting his doom,” he is actually sent to a magical world called Artimé. The people of Quill do not know that Artimé exists.

            I enjoy stories that are written with the third person point of view. This is when the author has the characters telling the story by using the word “I.”  I like this because I feel like I am the characters.  The author often writes what the characters are thinking about.  This gives me a better understanding to how the characters react and feel in different situations.

            The two main characters, Aaron and Alex live in two separate worlds, Quill and Artimé, Wanted and Unwanted. Lisa McMann is so great with describing and developing her characters, I feel like I’m standing right next to them. When they are excited, so am I.  When something bad happens to them, I get mad or kind of sad. This makes me feel like I am “in” the book.

            This story is full of surprises that will shock and excite you.  That is why I feel 
this is the BEST book that I’ve read of 2011! Read this book soon!


Erin's TOP PICK:

Out of My Mind

Can you imagine not being able to walk or talk?  Well that is Melody's case.  She can not walk.  She can not talk.  The book, Out of My Mind, is about what Melody want to say, but cannot say.  This is my favorite book of the year!


One of the reasons why Out of My Mind is my favorite book is because I love realistic fiction books.  I also like books with disabled people in them too, especially after reading this amazing book.


Another reason why I love this book is that I like the way the story is written.  And when I say that, what I really mean is I like how it is Melody talking to herself in her head.  


Out of My Mind is my favorite book this year.  I hope you will read it and that you like it as much as I do!


Sean's TOP PICK:

THE PERFECT WORLD

A book isn’t just anything; it’s a whole different world. And there’s a favorite world for everyone. And it’s a different world every year. Mine is the first book in the trilogy, The Hunger Games!

     My type of book is an action packed book. The Hunger Games is beyond action. It is full of fighting and death. And they fight with knifes, swords, and bow and arrows. They don’t fight with guns, crossbows, or grenades. But I have to warn you, there’s a little bit of love between two of the characters which you will find out about now.

     The characters in this book are very interesting. First, there’s Katniss, the main character. She’s a little shy but through the book, she makes some changes. Then you have Peeta. He’s the son of a baker. His mom’s a jerk though, so beware. Haymitch I think I should leave for the book because he’s a riot. Gale is Katniss. But I think he’s jealous of the love. These are the coolest characters you’ll ever meet.

     I was sad when the book ended. Luckily it was a good ending. The end is sort of a cliffhanger and sort of a sad ending. It was bad for Peeta. I can’t say why. I can say that it was a fantastic ending though. That’s why I loved The Hunger Games!

     This book is a good book for people who like action, cool characters, and a little bit of love. So read…  The Hunger Games!

Nicole's TOP PICK:

                                                                                                                                                     

THE BOOKS OF ELSEWHERE

               Do you like mystery, suspense and fantasy?  Well if you answered yes to any of these, THE BOOKS OF ELSEWHERE is the book for you!  Ok, enough commercial talk, I think THE BOOKS OF ELSEWHERE is the best book of 2011.  It has all you (or at least me) could want in a book!  I’m guessing you want me to list the reasons why this book is the best of 2011, but I’m going to do you one better…

ELABORATE!!!

One reason why you should fall in love with this series (that’s right series) is because there are a lot of twist and turns.  One minute you’re in a garden of daisy’s, and the next you’re fighting a polar bear (that doesn’t actually happen, but you never know what’s next)!  You will find yourself never putting the book down!

               Now, the characters in this book are… unique.  Plus, there are talking cats.  But now that I said that, don’t go thinking that this is a girly book, because it’s not!  You’ll love some characters, and you’ll despise some characters.  But no matter what, you’ll find out some secrets, both about characters and some paintings…

               This book really makes your heart jump.  There are quite a few OMG moments.  You’ll be full of suspense.  When you read you won’t even notice the things around you.  You’ll love how it’s written (but most of all, I think you’ll love how you never get bored reading it).

               So now that I have ELABORATED do you think THE BOOKS OF ELSEWHERE is the book for you?  Well of course you do because it’s the best book of 2011!  Now if you’ll excuse me I have to start my best book of 2012 chart!

Matthew's TOP PICK:

                                                      BEST BOOK OF 2011

               If you are looking for a good book, here one is. Over The Wall by John H. Ritter. It is about a baseball player. OK, are you listening? Good. Here it comes. This book has a little bit of everything. It has suspense, romance, adventure, and comedy. I could go on forever talking about that, but I need to get to the good part. This kid is trying to nominate people when something happens. He also ( if you haven’t figured it out by now) loves baseball. He also is a “know it all.” He wants to get on a special team. If you want to know more, read Over The Wall by John H. Ritter.

Gabe's TOP PICK:

Diary of a Wimpy Kid

Ha, ha, ha, ha this book is so funny. The name of this book is

Diary of a Wimpy Kid!

If you like funny books you should read the series

Diary of a Wimpy Kid

Because it is funny, has great characters and I think it is also a comic book!

My focus is on the characters, how funny and how good the book is!

In this book the characters are funny like Gregs little brother Manny. He is so funny he calls Greg a name that is very funny.

So you should read this book.

This  book is funny because it has lots of  jokes in it! And tiny comics that are very, very funny! And because each book is different than each other!

This book is so good because it is funny, has tiny comics!

This book is good because they have lots of different books!

That is why I like this series,

Diary of a Wimpy Kid 

Jake's TOP PICK:

The Perfect Mystery Book

Have you ever read a book that you loved???  I have read lots of books that I loved, but only one really popped out to me. Among the Hidden is my favorite book that I read during 2011.  Among the Hidden is very interesting.  It has very descriptive characters and is beautifully written. 

The first think I love about Among the Hidden is that it is so interesting.  When it gets interesting my brain stops working and my heart stops pumping.  It is so interesting that it keeps me thinking about it all the time, even when I am not reading the book.  When I am reading a different book I can’t help looking back and thinking about how good that book was! 

            The second reason that I love Among the Hidden is that I love the characters in it.  I especially love Luke and Jen and I love the thought that the author put into writing them.  Those two characters really made it interesting and the way that they changed throughout the book I really loved. 

            The third reason I love Among the Hidden is that it is beautifully written.  It is beautiful from all the details and the elaboration.  The other big thing that is wonderful, is the thought the author put into the story, it makes this book so interesting.  The way she described the story made me have tons of sensory images when I read the book. 

            These are three reasons why I love Among the Hidden.  Do you think you would like this mystery book?  I think you should give it a try.  It is definitely the best book of 2011!  

Logan's TOP PICK:

The Rangers Apprentice

          Do you want to know what I thought was the best book I read in 2011?  The Ranger’s Apprentice series was wonderful!  It has monsters, fighting, and adventure.  And you should know that book seven takes place after book four.  Basically, I liked this book so much I wished the whole time that it was real!  Will is the best character because he is really good at sneaking around.  I think anyone who likes fighting and monsters needs to read this book.  It is wonderful!

Ashley's TOP PICK:

Best book of 2011

Swimming, splashing and snorkeling. After all you’re Callie Boone is the best book ever!  After all you’re Callie Boone is a really good book. It is about a girl who likes to swim. If you like Soul Surfer then you will definitely like this book. I think that everyone in the world should read it. After all you’re Callie Boone is a realistic fiction book. I love all the characters especially Hoot and Callie. Callie is a girl who likes to swim in races but she messed up on a dive and got laughed at by her friends. Hoot is the character who helps Callie learn what real friendship is. You would like this book if you like swimming and being with your friends. so if you are looking for a good book I recommend that you read After all you’re Callie Boone.                                                                                   Hannah's  TOP PICK:

The Best Book of 2011

The best book that I read in 2011 was… Okay for Now!  Okay for Now is a great book for people who like a tearjerker with changing characters. This book is definitely for mature and strong 5^th grade readers. I have found by reading this you have to pay really close attention to the pictures.

If you are trying to look for a good realistic fiction or even any book Okay for Now is the first book you should go to. The reason I say this is because Okay for Now is the perfect example for realistic fiction. I consider myself a realistic fiction expert, this is a must read!

Okay for Now also taught me a lesson on how some people live differently and can change. Doug is the main character and he has a pretty difficult life.  He could have easily given up and became a punk; instead he works hard to make sure his like is OK… “Do you know how that feels?”

If I had to pick one reason to encourage you to read this book it would be because of one of the main characters Lil.  Lil is a strong girl who sticks.  In this story Lil stood up to Doug for her town. I think that is a perfect thing for every kid to know how to do.  She also befriended Doug and helped change his life.   I think that all kids should stick up for what they believe in. This book teaches kids how they can do that!

There are millions of books in this world but Okay for Now is the very best of them all!   




Hailey's TOP PICK:

Best Book Of 2011!

‘My mom’s dream was to be an actress but then she had Tyler and I which she calls an accident.’

Call Me Hope

When life is hard call Hope Elliot because she deals with a bully every day, so don’t hide your feelings. In Call Me Hope I absolutely love the characters. Out of the whole book my favorite character is Hope because she goes through so much. Hopes life is so hard with her mother using verbal abuse, she is basically raising herself with the help of Tyler. I can’t say that Tyler is my favorite character because he isn’t through the whole book but he does a lot for Hope. It is good that Hope has a great brother. Last but not least, Hopes mom (D.D) is just plain nasty but she changes for the good of Hope.

Second of all, the way that Gretchen Olson wrote Call Me Hope is so touching. Also the way Gretchen Olson wrote Call Me Hope put some good text to text connection and good sensory images (I had a movie through the whole book). Vocabulary is very important in Call Me Hope. Some of the vocabulary words are confusing but using some of the words around the vocabulary words helped but then again I used a dictionary.

Call Me Hope was so touching and well written I couldn't put it down! Call Me Hope was such the perfect tear jerker. It was the perfect book for me is it just right for you? Read Call Me Hope to find out! Just remember sometimes words hurt so don’t hide your feelings.

                                                                                                                                   


Cayelin's TOP PICK:

 Best Book of 2011

          Funny, trouble, swimmer, Moxy Maxwell was called all of these things. My favorite book in 2011 was Moxy Maxwell. This book is a realistic fiction  about a girl that is a trouble maker.

          Moxy is a very funny girl. She does not like to read, but she makes it fun. Whenever she has been assigned to read she goes to swimming lessons instead. Moxy has a lot of problems in the book. She finds herself in trouble, but things usually work out.

          I think one of my friends should read this book because they would like it. It was so funny and that’s my best book in 2011.  

                                                                                 

Maddy's TOP PICK:

Best Book of 2011

Whenever you ruffle your dog’s fur you never think it will be the last time you see your furry friend. Well in Finding Danny that’s exactly what Brenda thought too. At that moment two hearts were about to be broken.

    Finding Danny was much more than I expected it was about friendship and still had adventure. It definitely had a bunch of twist and turns. This book also was about to be grateful for what you have and don’t worry about what you don't.

   My favorite character was Brenda because she truly loved Danny. I also felt bad because her mom always worked and never really spent time with Brenda. Sometimes it was just her and Danny when her mom was running late.

    Finding Danny is still a really great book. It can be for either girl or boy. Finding Danny is my favorite book and I’m sure once you read it it will be yours too.