The Sorrows of Young Werther

The Sorrows of Young Werther


By: Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Reviewed by: Szoghi, 17
Rating: Didn't Like It

In my opinion, a reader will either love or hate this book. I will attempt to provide a terse summary of the book without giving too much away. It begins with a man named Werther, who moved to a new place in order to escape a woman named Leonora. When he goes to a dance, he meets a charming lady named Charlotte, with whom he falls madly in love with. However, Charlotte is married. The book is about his culminating love for her, and how he struggles with life. As the title implies, the book does have a tragic ending, but you'll have to read and find that out on your own. This book is filled with horrendous imagery and depressed thoughts. As my teacher informed me, the conqueror Napoleon carried this book with him wherever he went, since it's so powerful. Also, this book was the catalyst for the "Sturm and Drang" movement, which means storm and stress. I would recommend this book to older students and adults due to the content.

Recommended to: Ages 17 and up

Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry

Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry


By: Mildred D. Taylor
Reviewed by: Savannah, 15
Rating: It was amazing!

Daniel X: Watch the Skies

Daniel X: Watch the Skies


By: James Patterson
Reviewed by: Lisa H., 15
Rating: It was amazing!

The Great Gatsby

The Great Gatsby


By: F. Scott Fitzgerald
Reviewed by: Sarah, 15
Rating: It was amazing!


Recommended to: Teens

Daniel X: Watch the Skies

Daniel X: Watch the Skies


By: James Patterson
Reviewed by: Lukasz,18
Rating: It was alright...

Bomb in a Birdcage

Bomb in a Birdcage


By: A Fine Frenzy
Reviewed by: Kait, 17
Rating: It was amazing!


Guys. I'm actually going to do a serious review of this one. I know, I'm surprised too. But bear with me, we'll see how this goes (AKA, we'll see how long I can go before lapsing into sardonic commentary and sarcastic anectdotes. Don't whine like that.)

"Bomb in a Birdcage" is A Fine Frenzy's second album, and you can see how Alison Sudol has grown over the years between this album and her first. While "One Cell in the Sea" was very topical and poppy, relying mostly on straight-up piano with soft lyrics, in this second album Sudol experiments a bit more with synthesized harmonies and different kinds of lyrical arrangement.

The result?

Way cool.

The album has all of "One Cell in the Sea"'s classic, adorable characteristics that come part and parcel with Alison Sudol's style. In other words, the music makes you melt. SO. DANG. CUTE.

My favorite thing about the album is how completely calming it is. You can be completely upset, frazzled, stressed, or ready to jump off the deep end, and her music will just calm you down. It's incredible.

Now I'm not gonna lie, if you're not a girl you PROBABLY won't care for this very much. It's ridiculously feminine. So boys, deal with it.

That's all! I made it! No sarcasm! Who is proud of me?

Peace kids <3

Recommended to: Teenagers. Girls. Fans of good music. The like.

The Outsiders

The Outsiders


By: S.E. Hinton
Reviewed by: Ruby, 13
Rating: It was amazing!


This book is so good! The book just grabs the reader! Its about three boys who live in rough neighborhood who go through to changes in life. They learn to deal with eachother and learn about the consequences of life!


Recommended to: Everyone!

Winesburg, Ohio

Winesburg, Ohio


By: Sherwood Anderson
Reviewed by: szoghi, 17
Rating: Didn't like it


Right away, the reader can establish that this is a very boring book. This is a collection of little stories that are interconnected. There is the main character and news reporter, George Willard, whom everyone comes and confides with. The work is centered around George's life from when he was a child, to when he entered "manhood." The only reason why I had to read this book was because it was a school assignment. It is a somewhat boring and tedious book to read, and I would not recommend it to anyone. There is also a lot of confusion in the book, since it starts out in Winesburg, Ohio, but constantly jumps to different cities.


Recommended to: Ages 14 and up

The Skin I'm In

The Skin I'm In


By: Sharon G. Flake
Reviewed by: Myesha, 17
Rating: Really liked it


I am a dark skinned young girl, and i was teased for a while too. Until I chose to stop caring about what other say about me, and call myself beautiful if nobody else would.


Recommended to:

Sellout

Sellout

By: Ebony Wilkins
Reviewed by: Anne, 16
Rating: Really liked it


I kept seeing this book every time I searched "dance" on the library site. Not sure why it took me so long to request it. The cover isn't really appealing, but that is no excuse.

I ended up really liking it. It was one of those books I wish was longer. It's about a black girl who has all white friends and is always trying to fit in. Then she goes to help out at a rehab center with her grandma. She doesn't expect that she's the one who will be changed.

The girl's stories are sad, but there is no graphic detail, which I appreciated. Overall a really worthwhile read.


Recommended to: Everyone!