M or F

M or F


By: Lisa Papademetriou and Chris Tebbetts
Reviewed by: Cindy, 14
Rating: Really liked it


When Marcus finds out his "brain twin," Frannie, has been keeping her latest crush from him, he decides he needs to interfere. The plan: chat him up on the school's chat room. The problem: Frannie is too scared to talk to him. The solution: Marcus does the typing. The second problem: Marcus, who is gay, starts falling for Jeffrey.

This is the best high school drama I've read in a while. Its takes a semi-common issue and puts a twist and fresh perspective on it.

The main characters are some of the most interesting I've ever read about. Marcus isn't the usaul insecure gay. He's okay with himself. Frannie isn't an annoying girl with a whiny attitude. She bold and unique.

The character interactions were my favorite part of the story. Realistic but not common, the interactions add to the conflict. Witty and funny, this was an absolute fun and quick read.


Recommended to: Queer Lit Fans, 14+

Gintama v.1

Gintama Vol. 1


By: Hideaki Sorachi
Reviewed by: Cindy, 14
Rating: Really liked it


When the Land of the Smaurai is overrun by Aliens, the enigmatic Gintoki decides he needs a new way to earn money. So, he becomes a do-it-all man. As long as he gets paid, he'll do it.

I can understand why ha110w33nm4n disliked Gintama. But when you say " have eney respect tword samurai dont read this pleas!!!!!!!" I highly disagree. Sorachi oftens uses honor and respect as themes in Gintama. Honor is a common quality associated with the Samurai therefore he is showing them respect. Plus, its a comedy.

Since its a comedy, there are jokes. And some of the jokes in Gintama require an aquired taste of humor.

The characters are unique and fun. There is actually a pretty large cast but no one is boring, in my opnion.

There's not really a plot but since it is a manga and a comedy, its not really required. Each chapter is a different story. It works by giving each chapter a small plot and development.

Gintama isn't for everyone but for the right people, it will be a great read.


Recommended to: Comedy Fans. 13+

Compound

Compound


By: S.A. Bodeen
Reviewed by: Cindy, 14
Rating: It was alright...


When the US is attacked by nuclear bombs, Eli's family escapes to an underground compound made by his billionare dad. Leaving his brother and grandmother behind, he starts a new life. After six years of seclusion, he starts to question what really happened.

The basic idea of this story had lots of potential. The problem was how it was developed.

Eli isn't always a very interesting character to follow. I do like how he isn't the basic male hero sterotype though. Plus, he loves his brother. I'm a sucker for family fluff.

Eli's mother was the one character I didn't find interesting at all. She was one dimesional and a little boring.

The writing style was enjoyable and simple. Its the plot that needed work. Overall, it could've been a little more suspenseful.


Recommended to: 13+

New Moon

New Moon


By: Stephenie Meyer
Reviewed by: Cindy, 14
Rating: Hated it!


To be fair, I gave the sequel to Twilight a try. It actually made me dislike the story even more.

The issue that bothered me the most was Bella's attitude for most of the story. She was practically suicidal. And since the target group of this book is female teens, I don't believe this was a healthy choice for such a susceptible group.

The book had a very annoying whiny tone to it. It was a bore to read and there still wasn't a plot. For such a long novel to NOT have a plot is a true annoyance.

The characters were a little one dimensional. I really didn't care much for them.

In the end, I believe this series is over glorified and I do not plan on further reviewing it.


Recommended to: No one.

Rainbow Boys

Rainbow Boys


By: Alex Sanchez
Reviewed by: Dillon, 16
Rating: It was amazing!


The book "Rainbow Boys" is one of the best books that I have read. Its about these three boys that are in high school, and one of the boys that is in the school's basketball team and gets the courage to get to a youth group and while there he runs into the two other gays from his school. Alex Sanchez is an amazing writer, and their is an number of books that he wrote that are good.

Along with this book there's:
Rainbow High
&
Raibow Road.


Recommended to: Anyone that is a gay teen.

Platinum Garden Volume 1

Platinum Garden Volume 1


By: Maki Fujita
Reviewed by: gothiclolitamaiden, 15
Rating: Really liked it


Platinum Garden is about a girl named Kazura who is sent to become Mizuki Magahara's wife. Her dead grandfather owes him money, but her family can't afford to pay. Kazura discovers that Mizuki can temporarily resurrect dead people. To make things worse, Kazura now has to attend a rich kids' school, and all of the girls are angry at her for "seducing" Mizuki. Platinum Garden reminds me of Fruits Basket. 15-ish girl has to go live with a mysterious, old family. The girl discovers that said family has a curse and has to keep the secret. Even some of the characters are similar. Mizuki reminds me of Yuki and Nanase is similar to Ayame. Fortunately, the resemblance ends there. Kazura isn't as naive as Tohru. The story is enjoyable, and I look forward to getting to know the characters, including Kaito, the housekeeper. The coming conflict between Mizuki and Kagami promises to be very interesting as well. The art is good, though it doesn't stand out from other Shojo art.


Recommended to: Girls mainly, though guys could probably enjoy it too. 13+ as the rating says.

Gothic & Lolita

Gothic & Lolita


By: Masayuki Yoshinaga
Reviewed by: gothiclolitamaiden, 15
Rating: It was alright...


To start out, I am going to say that lolita fashion has nothing to do with Vladimir Nabokov. This book is not dedicated to lolita fashion, it is dedicated to a range of Japanese street fashion. I recently discovered that Gothic and Lolita is a broad term that applies to many different styles. A certain degree of maturity is needed to look at this book without thinking, "What the heck are they wearing?" Lolita fans may want to look elsewhere. Approximately less than half of this book is lolita. The rest is visual kei, Japanese goth, or decora. Half of the lolita pictured is Sweet, while Gothic, Classic, Punk and other styles of lolita are under-represented. I would recommend the Gothic and Lolita Bible for loli fans instead. Despite the title, it is predominantly lolita, with only a little visual kei and other styles sprinkled in. For anyone interested in all types of Japanese street fashion, you have found your book.


Recommended to: Fans of lolita and other Japanese street fashion. You may not want young children looking at this book, some of the outfits are somewhat disturbing/revealing.

Kino no Tabi Book 1

Kino no Tabi Book 1


By: S.A. Harazin
Reviewed by: Cindy, 14
Rating: It was amazing!


Each country is different. Different people. Different cultures. Different morals. But they are still living on the same world. Kino travels to these places with her talking motorcycle, Hermes, as they learn that "The world is not beautiful, therefore it is."

This episodic novel is quite possibly one of the most amazing things I've ever read.

Kino, an enigmatic, ambiguous teen, and Hermes, her childish motorcycle, only stay in a country for three days but that's all the time they need. Every country they encounter is unique and interesting in its own way. They try not to interfere, only observe.

The writing is simple and easy to follow but at the same time poses a lot of questions. The author takes a moral question and exaggerates it to an almost impossible point.

The chapters are disjointed and unrelated, something I normally don't like in a book but it works for Kino no Tabi. Its almost like a travel journal.

I don't think I can offer enough praise for this book. Haunting and thought-provoking, I recommend it to anyone who wants to see the imperfections of a beautiful world.


Recommended to: 14+

Kamikaze Kaito Jeanne Volume 2

Kamikaze Kaito Jeanne Volume 2


By: Arina Tanemura
Reviewed by: gothiclolitamaiden, 15
Rating: Really liked it


I have to say that Kamikaze Kaito Jeanne is kind of like a cross between DNAngel, Vampire Princess Miyu and Cardcaptor Sakura. I am immensely fond of all three, but KKJ doesn't quite live up to them. It's light-hearted, like CCS, nowhere near as dark as VPM (though some characters are somewhat similar. That and the whole exorcism thing). And many of the characters and relationships are similar to DNAngel. This series is not enough for an "amazing" rating, but enjoyable nonetheless. Maron Kusakabe is Kamikaze Kaito Jeanne by night. Jeanne is the reincarnation of Jeanne D'Arc (Joan of Arc) and her task is to exorcise demons hiding in paintings, statues etc. Her enemy is Kaito Sinbad, who happens to be her crush, Chiaki by day (little bit typial). The key to pulling off a magical girl series is to keep a balance between action/fighting scenes and romance/drama scenes. Too much of either and you'll throw it off. Like one of Tanemura's other works (Full Moon O Sagashite) KKJ focuses mainly on relationships between characters. It worked in FM, because FM only contained a little bit of fantasy, but in KKJ, the fantasy should perhaps be playing a slightly larger role in the story. Kaito Jeanne (like Dark of DNAngel) is a thief for crying out loud! I didn't read the first volume, (couldn't find it) but I suspect that there was more action in it. Arina Tanemura's art is as good as ever. The plot isn't a typical love triangle, thank goodness. It doesn't rely on a cute little magical beast for comedy either. I look forward to further character and relationship development in future volumes and perhaps a little more action.

By the way, thanks Connie for posting about that Gothic and Lolita book.


Recommended to: Fans of the magical girl and shojo genres. Like the E rating says, its suitable for all ages.

Beauty Shop for Rent...Fully equiped, inquired within

Beauty Shop for Rent...Fully equiped, inquired within


By: Laura Bowers
Reviewed by: Tina R., 13
Rating: It was amazing!


This book is about a teenager named Abbey Garner. She spends most of her time at school, or working at Granny Po's struggle beauty shop. Her goal is to reach a million dollars by the time she is 35 and is trying to be just the opposite of her parents.

Abby lives with her great grandmother because her mom abandoned her after she tried to commit suicide. This book has a true meaning and is very interesting and its just a great book to read in your free time.


Recommended to: Teenagers, ages 13-15

Confessions of a Triple Shot Betty

Confessions of a Triple Shot Betty

By: Jody Gehrman
Reviewed by: Tina R., 13
Rating: Really liked it


This book is about three best friends, Geena and her cousin Hero, and Geena's best friend Amber. At first, her cousin and Amber hate eachother. But they all have to work together and when a couple of cute guys come along and change everything. This is a great book and will interest you in no time. :-)


Recommended to: ages 13-17

Dragon Eye

Dragon Eye

By: Kairi Fujiyama
Reviewed by: gothiclolitamaiden, 15
Rating: Really liked it


I have to agree with ha11ow33nm4n, this is a lot like Naruto. Not a total rip off, but very similar in a lot of ways. First off, the VIUS reminds me of the shinobi, defending the city and all of that. Some of the characters are similar. Issa is a lot like Naruto, he doesn't seem to be taking his job very seriously, but is more powerful than he looks. Leila is like Sakura, studious and dedicated. Yukimura is similar to Sasuke, seeking revenge, but for a different reason. Surprisingly there is no love triangle in Dragon Eye, as of yet. Dragon Eye also reminded me of a video game. "Clear the dungeon of all enemies and defeat the boss." I would like for the bad guys to be a little more original. The plot is interesting, despite some shonen cliches. The tension between Issa and Yukimura especially. Something tells me that we'll learn more about Issa's past in future volumes. The art is good and each character design is distinct and very memorable. I would like to see some more character development, especially for Leila. It would suck if the only female character faded into the background because of poor development.

Recommended to: Fans of shonen. The violence isn't especially bad, so I think the 13+ rating might be somewhat harsh. I'd go with 11+

Musashi #9 Volume 1

Musashi #9 Volume 1


By: Takahashi Miyuki
Reviewed by: gothiclolitamaiden, 15
Rating: Really liked it


Musashi #9 is about a 16-year old girl who battles terrorists and extremists. I enjoyed it because I'm a little bit of a political geek. I didn't enjoy it because the plot was episodic. Each chapter of Musashi #9 is a different case. None of the characters ever appear in more than one chapter, except for Musashi herself. There are new villains and new supporting characters every time around. I hope that the series can develop some sort of continuity and perhaps reveal more about Musashi's past. I want to get to know the characters, including Musashi. I especially want to know why she joined or was selected for Ultimate Blue.... The art isn't very flashy, but from what I could see, there were no problems with proportions. Like I said before, I kind of liked the politics, even though some of it seemed unlikely. There wasn't a lot of humor in the story, and usually it was super-deformed humor. Musashi appears to have no sense of humor. Overall, it was a good read.


Recommended to: Action fans, people who like world politics, Ages 13+ for blood

5 Centimeters Per Second

5 Centimeters Per Second


By: Makoto Shinkai
Reviewed by: ha110w33nm4n, 15
Rating: It was amazing!


ok ok i know i normaly reveviw manga but to day is diffrent i must tell you about this anime its not even an anime its a movie and oh my god this movie oh my god this movie i i just cant believ how good this movie is i wish i could still this from the library i truely wish i could in the three days iv had it iv probly watched it maby like 5 or 4 times this movie is in chapters its about this boy and girl who where best friends as kids and how they relize how there no going to be able to be together and there is a massive hiden messeg behind this movie like im starting to ball up just thinking about how sad this movie is i mean in the end u think that .... but then nothing i mean i just cant help it this story is so sad all there life they continu with there lives as if nothing is there but they know that they would have lived to gether for ever if they could have i mean .... sorry i just dropped i mean theres nothing rong wtih me i just have something in my eye thats all im truely am sorry but trealy this movie is very sad has alot of meaning and all in all has almost no faults for what the maker was going for he nialed it i mean hit it right on the head this movie is just to great for words and some of the art work is just buttiful i mean art work that i would personly buy with money watch this movie as soon as posible that is if i ever diside to trun it in ...oh ya this is a anime movie ok just so theres no confusion


Recommended to: life meaning lovers,sad movies lovers,and just people that are looking for a good movie

Doll

Doll


By: Mitsukazu Mihara
Reviewed by: ha110w33nm4n, 15
Rating: Really liked it

this book realy has something to offer im mean its about how these people treat other people and how people act in fear and desperation this book isnt one of thos main charecter books it has a bunch of storys in it each story haveing its own meaning there isnt much to say about this book but you shold read it its a realy good read itll get you thinking about how you act twords others and to your self and how open your eyes are to realitty i know this is very little for me to type but i dont have alot to say but read it if your into life thinking but i warn you the is small but breef nutity in this book children probly wount get this book very whell teens may need to think and this book most adults probly whont get it or under stand becaus what they dont relize is that they are guilty of theys crimes but there are still good adults out there

Recommended to: to trueth finders and people that like to thin about life

Gin Tama

Gin Tama


By: Hideaki Sorachi
Reviewed by: ha110w33nm4n, 15
Rating: Didn't like it


ewwww i hated this manga not the wors iv read but still pritty bad i didnt like the story i didnt like the charecters exept for one but he to was kinda of anoing its about tokyo in a few years into the futer and how aliens are now on earth and now all the samuria are week and have no pride and they all are poor thats one of the big things that made me go !@#$%& you sorry for the languag but realy !@#$%& you man samurai are amazing if u ever had a samuria read this head kill mister whriter i mean the only thing close to a samuria i saw was this guy runig around with a wooden sword i mean realy and plus there was a sword ban and this guy got in truble for haveing a wooden sword i ii just agh i cant stand this manga i whant to finde the guy that made this and bunch him in the fase and the one who published this was shonen jump oh come on jump you can do better than this if this wherent the librays book i would burn it realy i would but its not mine so im going to put it!
back and nver touch it again lisson to me if u have eney respect tword samurai dont read this pleas!!!!!!!


Recommended to: no one dont read it if you are ever given this as a presint burn it

Get Backers

Get Backers


By: Yūya Aoki
Reviewed by: ha110w33nm4n, 15
Rating: It was amazing!


i just have one thing to say first OMG!!!!!!!!! i love this manga i wish i could take every book and movie from the library this book hit of the charts on me scall of manga/anime first its funny realy funny and sieris at the same time theres alot of mystery what i realy love is that you havent seen or read the whole thing untill uv seen and read it becaus botht the book and seiris have 2 completly diffrent endings ...oh ya sorry about my spelling... eney way the main charecters are always broke no matter what they do they always end up on the short end of the stick both main charecters has a dark past and what i love but hate is that they end the whole thing befor you know every thing and they like just end it im like WTF give me more my fav person is akebone a.k.a. dr jackle to me he is godly if i had to go gay i would totaly go for him no joke eney way there is just so much mystery action and so much more in this manga/anime i would kill for another seisin there ar!
e about 11 mian charecters and almost every one has a past i love it i mean in most anime or manga only the main main charecter has a past(i know that i put 2 main) its alsowe awsome that there is no true good or bad guy every one is just doing what they where hird to do nothing more nothing less but of corse there r still hard feelings every once and a while theres himco with poison.ban with super strangth/demon eye or ....i forget the other name for it.ginjie cant control the electrsisy in his body.jackle hes just scary and from what looks like cant die.and meny meny more people with amazing abilitys


Recommended to: to evey one no sieris go read it right now befor i kill you for not reading something this amazing ....ps not realy going to kill you

I Luv Halloween

I Luv Halloween


By: Keith Giffen
Reviewed by: ha110w33nm4n, 15
Rating: Really liked it


k i know halloween already pst but just baerly so this is ok eney way i luv halloween is great for thos who like halloween,dark reading,death,and grim/alittle perverted hummer but i truely found this book to be funny messed up and all to gether what a true halloween/manga lover would like but i warn u now this is not for children to read teens yes adults ok if ur jennifer eney other adults is creepy this book is about a group of friends that get together every halloween to go trick or treating and a little killing if nesasery but one thing that ceeps bring me back to this manga is the fact that the main charecters die but in the next book they are still there as if nothing happend and there is one trick or treater that has my atention becaus he never dies and is never killed hes always still alive at the end of the book even if the whole town is nooked im just like WTF this guy is awsome but ya this is a good book


Recommended to: halloween lovers/grim readers and idk

Dragon Eye

Dragon Eye


By: Kairi Fujiyama
Reviewed by: ha110w33nm4n, 15
Rating: It was amazing!


i absolutly loved this manga it closely reminded me of the anime/manga "naruto" there is this group called the VIUS there like the protecters and the monsters are called dracula but there no where close to being like vampiers exept for the fact if u get hit or bitten by one u turn into one but thats where the VIUS come in there a group of humans with a resistens to this so they can fight back now almost every one in the VIUS have lost some one deer to them by dracula now heres how it remindes me of "naruto" theres this boy the main charecter he has the legendary thing inside of him called the (DRAGON EYE) it grants him extrodinary powers but the longer he uses it the more it eats away at his bodie and it will eventualy turn him into a dracula so when it comes down to it i just cant stop reading there is alot i didnt say becaus i dont whant to spoil it and there is one thing i need to say WHERE CAN I GET MORE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Recommended to: naruto fans and eney one thats looking for new/good manga

Trickster's Choice

Trickster's Choice


By: Tamora Pierce
Reviewed by: Lyssa, 16
Rating: It was amazing!


I got this book as a Christmas gift from my dad when I was 11. I didn't trust his choice, so I didn't even open it for several months. But once I did, I was sucked in! This book has a great balance of action, drama, intrigue, and fantasy for pretty much anyone. Tamora Pierce has also written 14 other books set in the same world, including the sequel, Trickster's Queen. I recommend every single one of her books.


Recommended to: Anyone and everyone