Reviews by Category: Fiction

Awkward is about a middle schooler named Pepi Torres. She has three cardinal rules for

surviving middle school. On her first day as the new kid at Berrybrook Middle School, she

makes a mistake that haunts her for the next few months. When she has to get science

tutoring with a boy that she can barely talk to, she must face her fears and break the awkward

silence, I like this book because it is relatable to middle schoolers. My favorite part is when Pepi

It’s the 1970s, in a small Ohio town. The Lee family’s daughter, Lydia, is dead.

Proof that a good series can always take a sharp downhill turn, the Mockingjay book truly

depresses me being the final book of the series. With so much potential lost on this book, it is

hard for me to recommend it. The book might not have been so bad had it been followed up with

the hunger games of the capital’s children, its ending truly sucked. Also, I will never forgive the

author for having killed off the best character in the series, Finnick. I wouldn’t recommend this

The only challenger to the seat of the best book in the series, Catching Fire is another amazing

book by Suzanne Collins in which we get to see Katniss and Peeta thrown back into the arena,

this time with the victors from other districts. Filled with intrigue and suspicion and political

instability, this truly does rival the first book-one of the few books that ever does. You also get to

The Hunger Games starts off the three (four now) book series that took the world by storm as it

beautifully ripped off the classic Battle Royale. In this book, you get to see the United States far

in the future where a small part of the population lives cushioned lives built off the backs of

starving people that might as well be slaves. In this book, you will watch a sixteen yea old girl by

High school senior Emoni Santiago is a wonder in the kitchen, crafting magic with flavors

and aromas. She dreams of attending culinary school one day, even if it seems as if there aren’t

many places for her to go in life. With an aging grandmother, an absent father, and the

responsibility of a three-year-old daughter to take care of, Emoni can’t afford to put herself first.

However, when her school announces a new culinary arts class, complete with an

The Outsiders by S. E. Hinton follows a 14 year old boy named Ponyboy Curtis. There are two

kinds of people in the world: greasers (always have to be cautious and not wealthy) and socs

(wealthy with a lot of attitude). Ponyboy is a greaser and he’s experienced a lot of rumbles with

socs with his other greaser friends. One night, one of his friends murders a soc and the world

around him slowly starts to crumble.

The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas is a very empowering book. The book follows Starr Carter

who witnesses the shooting of her best friend by a police officer. After his death, people started

calling Khalil (her friend who was shot) names. No one knows what went down that night, only

Starr does. The story focuses on Starr fighting for justice for her friend and her community.

Raina is a nervous kid bites her nails and tends to stress over everything. When 5th

grade starts, Raina finds out that she is scared of throwing up. Sbe has to see a therapist and

she doesn’t tell any of her friends because she doesn’t want them to think she is weird. When

Raina’s enemy ends up in the hospital, she must decide if she wants to make things right. I

enjoyed this graphic novel because it was funny and had a good message. My favorite part is

when Raina gets her own room. I would recommend this book to 5th graders.

Unwind by Neal Shusterman is the first book in a 4 book series, which Shusterman refers to as

a “dystology.” After a war breaks out between pro-life and pro-choice people in America, both

sides come to an agreement to implement a practice called “unwinding,” or the retroactive

abortion of teenagers ages 13-18. The method promises to keep 98% of the child’s body alive,

but harvest all of their organs and donate them. This is the story of three teens, Connor, Risa,