Lincoln's Grave Robbers by Steve Sheinkin

I read the book, Lincoln’s Grave Robbers, by Steve Sheinkin. The story takes place in the 1880s in Springfield and Chicago, Illinois. It centers around an undercover police officer who is originally sent to bust an undercover fake money ring. However, he stumbles onto something way more intense than that. 

In this book you will experience laughs and many intense moments. If you like historical fiction, this is the book for you. This book is a quick read for the casual reader. I recommend this book if you want to have a book to read during your free time, like a nice relaxing Sunday morning with eggs and a hot cup of coffee for breakfast. I highly recommend this book.  

I myself don’t really care for books but once I got into this book I couldn't put it down. Page after page I found myself wanting to read the book even more. Steve Sheinkin did a very good job of giving descriptions in the book; the detail was very vivid. I highly recommend Lincoln’s Grave Robbers to people aged 13 and up who would enjoy a good historical fiction book.

Mark S.

The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy by Douglas Adams

The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy was written by Douglas Adams and is a work of non-fiction. I have read many wonderful books in the past and The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy is the kind of book I enjoy. 

It is a well-crafted sci-fi story about a man named Arthur Dent who is sort of depressed with the nonsense of his life. He gets taken off the earth after the world’s apocalypse and put into an intergalactic adventure on a spaceship called the “Heart of Gold”. He goes on this adventure that takes him through such an uncomfortably absurd universe. 

There are others on his quest with him, including a friend of his who was secretly an alien living on earth for 15 years before the apocalypse. Also on the adventure were a woman Arthur met at a cocktail party, although he never got fully acquainted with her and a man with his eyes set on traveling through the universe. 

The adventure is set on such an excellent scale. It sometimes has moments when it thinks about the world around us and has an interesting inquiry about the tendencies of us humans. The book is written with a wonderful sense of humor, highlighted by one alien species’ attempts to mess with the protagonists’ heads with bad poetry.

The writing includes a lot of detail and usually makes a joke about the human race. Some jokes may be about digital watches or others about being careful what you say. This book can make you laugh at times and can also allow you to think carefully about a situation so you can get a better understanding of the plot. So hang on tight to your seatbelts and get ready for a wonderful adventure through the universe in The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy.

Louis C.

Child Called It by Dave Pelzer

Dave Pelzer’s book, A Child Called It, is a work of fiction. If you have ever seen young boys who had a bad childhood because of their uncaring mothers, you would enjoy reading A Child Called It. 

This book is a real life event about David, a nine year old boy, who gets beaten by his alcoholic, mad, heartless mother. She would not feed him for days! Many times on his way to school David would either stop by a store or he would have to steal his classmate’s lunches. His mother was so evil that one day she tried burning him in the stove! Thankfully, his father came home or else she would have burned him to death! 

His father was usually away because of his work. The father was miserable with the mother too, as she was an alcoholic, lazy, angry woman. David was so horrified of his mother he could not ask for help. Sadly, he had to deal with all his mother’s unfair games. 

If you would like to find out what other crazy things David’s mother made him endure, I recommend you read A Child Called It.

Deicy A.

Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck

Of Mice and Men, a fiction story, is written by famous writer John Steinbeck. It stars the two main characters named George and Lennie, two friends who moved to a better place to work and get settled. Their main goal is to buy a piece of land and have a farm. 


Lennie is a grown man with mental disabilities which causes him to struggle. He has a habit of petting rabbits because of their softness. George is a smart man but uneducated who is Lennie’s role model; he is like his dad. Both of them try to live a normal life and make money.

They encounter problems which are caused by Lennie almost getting them killed. It would be because of a woman since Lennie tried seducing her but he didn’t know he was trying something he shouldn’t have ever tried. There is a big question to resolve everything as a mob is about to find Lennie to kill him. To keep Lennie hidden so he isn’t killed George has to choose wisely while at a high stress point. Desperate hounds are coming and they are craving blood and men are armed and running in despair towards the lake where George found Lennie hiding. 

In my opinion, this is a must read book. It gets you wired so you want to stop but it gets interesting with a lot of tension and climax build in.

Gabriel C.

I Hunt Killers by Barry Lyga

Barry Lyga’s book, I Hunt Killers, is an action packed fiction novel. This book was a big mystery and full of puzzles and questions. 

The main character is Jazz Dent who is the son of one of the most notorious serial killers. With Jazz growing up with his dad pushing him to follow in his footsteps, Jazz has all the inside information on what serial killers look to do and why they perform some of their actions. This characteristic is important to Jazz in this book because a few years after his dad has been arrested, a new serial killer is using some of the same tactics. This is a problem for Jazz because now people think Jazz is following in his father’s footsteps. 

The only way for Jazz to stop these accusations is to help the police by using the skills he has learned from his father. He helps investigate the crime scenes and finds more clues about who the new serial killer is. Jazz is able to help the police because he sees crime scenes from a whole different viewpoint because of his past experiences with his dad.

This book is full of description and mysteries that are very interesting as they start to unravel. The author does a great job to help you picture all the scenes and really gets you interested in the book. You will want to keep reading. If you enjoy watching TV shows like CSI or Criminal Minds you will love this book. This is one of the best books I’ve ever read and it has an ending that will keep you wondering. A struggle you have is always wondering what will happen if Jazz will continue to blaze his own future or if he will decide to do what his father had planned for him. You will need to read this book to find out. Go pick it up at your local library and you will not want to put it down.

Lucas R.

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

I read the book, The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. The story of the book takes place in the future of the United States. The states are now districts and they have a dictatorship type government. 

Katniss Everdeen is a young girl who takes her father’s place after he dies in a gold mine cave. After her father’s death, her mother falls into depression and that puts Katniss in charge of the house and responsible for the care of her younger sister, Prim. 

In total, there are twelve districts and two teenagers are chosen from each to participate in the annual games. They are chosen to defend themselves and defeat others in order to win the games. The prize of these games is money and food for their family. 

As the ceremony begins, everyone is in front of the stage were Effie Trinket, the leader, stands to pull the names of the chosen participants from the ballot box. Effie pulls the first name and it is Prim Everdeen. Prim is Katniss Everdeen's younger sister.  Katniss volunteers to take the place of her sister. 

After she volunteers, the second name is pulled and it is Peeta Mellark. Both of them are chosen and they are the participants to fight for their lives in the games. They have personal trainers who help them fight against others. Since they are new, they don’t know how to survive. Both are together and trying to survive for their lives. 

If you are interested in finding out if they survive these games alive, read The Hunger Games.

Kate C.

The Hound of the Baskervilles by Arthur Conan Doyle

Over the past week, I finished reading The Hound of the Baskervilles. It is a Sherlock Holmes book so it will always make for a good mystery story.

The book is about the death of Sir Charles Baskerville and his nephew who will inherit the house. A man named Dr. Mortimer comes to Holmes to seek his help to prove if Baskerville's death was actually murder or the act of a supernatural being.

Arthur Conan Doyle uses vast amounts of imagery to bring you into the story. He also structures the book in a way that doesn't give you too many clues but keeps you tangled in the story. With its sudden plot twists and gloomy setting it really adds a level of suspense in the later chapters.

This book is said to be one of Doyle’s best works. I one hundred per cent agree with that statement. I am not one for mystery or Sherlock Holmes books but this one was genuinely a great read. To anyone who loves mystery or Sherlock Holmes this is one book to check out.

Daniel C.

Carrie by Stephen King

Anyone who loves Stephen King horror novels or movies will definitely love this book. I couldn’t put it down because of the entertainment it gave me. I personally love the way Stephen King writes and this book was a perfect example of that.

Carrie is the story of a timid, shy girl who is ridiculed and verbally abused or bullied everyday by her senior class. Little does she know she has a telekinetic power she is barely noticing. She ends up using this power to her advantage for revenge on her classmates for what they put her through on Prom night.

It’s a classic horror novel and a film as well. It’s creepy and serves as a thriller because the issue of bullying is so common today and the fact the tables are turned on her classmates is a great twist to a horror story. This is why this story will keep you on the edge of your seat throughout the entire book.

I loved this book and will read it and watch the movie again and again because I’ve always loved the horror themes in films and in books. If you love stories about revenge, I definitely recommend this book because even though the book serves for entertainment to scare people, a lot of Stephen King’s novels have a hidden underlying moral theme to them. In the case of Carrie it teaches the audience the effects of bullying with a horror story that will make you remember Carrie forever.

Gianna D.

War Horse by Michael Morpurgo

The novel, War Horse, made me understand more about the way horses contributed in a war and  the       hardships they shared with their caretakers and the solders.


Joey is the name of the famous horse that lived to tell his stories of the war and his return home to his owner, Albert. It’s amazing how many people can have a part in a horse’s life and make changes for an animal that you wouldn’t believe. Joey made and lost friends, horses and people alike. The suffering these horses endured really shows how strong a horse’s will is. Albert was the young owner of Joey who taught him the ways of running a farm. Then out of nowhere Albert’s drunken father sold Joey to the Army and this started the new life of the War Horse.

Yazmine M.

No Child's Game: Reality TV 2083 by Andrea White

No Child’s Game is a fiction book written by Andrea White. The story of the book takes place in the year 2083 and it’s about five teenagers who enter a reality TV show called “The Survival”. Their mission is to be the first group of teenagers to reach the North Pole. The journey to the North Pole is 150 miles in the freezing weather. 

At the beginning of the book, the kids didn't realize how brutal the journey was going to be but once they were on the ship they started to wonder what was really going to happen to them. It was supposed to be a reality TV show but there was no crew around them so they all started to get suspicious and wonder what was really going on. Throughout the story the kids learn to take care of each other and survive. 

If you like reading about adventure and suspense, No Child’s Game is a perfect book for you.


Arisaday N.

House Rules by Jodi Picoult

The book, House Rules, by Jodi Picoult is a fiction novel. I read this book during the winter for a class.

The book is about an 18 year old boy, Jacob, who has Asperger’s Syndrome. Jacob is an extremely intelligent boy. He is very interested in crime scenes and forensic shows. He watches a crime scene show on the television all the time and then tries to figure out the crime before the end of the show. Jacob also sets up his own crime scenes and has his mom and brother figure out the crime.

One day when Jacob was supposed to meet his tutor for a session, he showed up to the location and finds her dead. He freaks out, runs home and does not speak for almost a whole day. The police suspect it was Jacob who killed her but no one knows for sure. He gets caught in the middle of an accident even though he did not even intend to get involved.

I won’t say any more about the book. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone to read. It is extremely interesting and keeps you on your seat. I learned a lot more about what a person is like when they are living with Asperger’s Syndrome.

Kayla G.

Lock and Key by Sarah Dessen

Sarah Dessen is an author who makes her stories really relatable to young adult women. Her realistic fiction takes you into her own made up world with many different stories to tell.

 In her novel, Lock and Key, Dessen tells the story of Ruby. She had a tough upbringing with her unstable mother and is left without a father. Ruby tells the reader the patterns of her mother’s absences. After one of her mom’s longest trips, she does not return. Ruby continues to live in the house her mom rented for a few more weeks until the landlord realizes she is living alone. Since Ruby is a minor, the landlord calls child services. Cora, Ruby’s older sister, is contacted and Ruby is sent to live with her. 

Cora lives a vastly different life than Ruby does. Cora lives in a giant house and is married to the CEO of Ume.com, the hit social network everyone uses. Ruby has to switch from a huge public school to a small, private college preparatory school. She finds it hard to connect with many of the people at the school and only makes a few friends. It takes Ruby a long time to adjust to this new lavish lifestyle because she was accustomed to making all the money for her and her mom. There are clear signs of tension between the two sisters and eventually the truth comes out regarding why that tension is there. 

This book is about Ruby discovering who she is and it is an exciting journey to take. There are ups and downs and I had trouble putting this book down. It is a great read and I was never bored reading it!

Veronica K.

Thirteen Reasons Why by: Jay Asher

Jay Asher's Thirteen Reasons Why is about a girl named Hannah who had committed suicide. Before she committed suicide she made thirteen tapes that involved all the people who made her life go from great to terrible all in one month. The main person in the book is Clay. One day when Clay came home from school there was a box sitting on his front stoop. Clay was very confused because it didn't have a return address on it so he didn’t know who sent it. Clay opened the box and there were 13 tapes inside. He was very confused about them so he took tape one out and began to listen to it. As he hit play, he realized it was Hannah's voice. Clay was very confused about why she would have sent the tapes to his house. As Clay listened, he heard about all the people who made Hannah's life terrible. As each tape played, Clay found out what the people did to Hannah that made her life so bad. Toward the end of the book, Clay finished up the tapes. He felt very guilty and thought Hannah's death was all his fault but in reality it wasn't. Hannah was actually thanking Clay for being such a good friend to her when everyone else was putting her down. Hannah asked one thing of Clay and that was he would pass the tapes on to whomever was next on the list. At first Clay thought it wouldn't be right. After Clay thought about it, he decided to send the tapes to the next person. He figured if Hannah really didn't want people to know what happened then she wouldn't have made the tapes. So Clay sent the tapes to the next person wondering if the next person would feel the same way he felt after listening to the tapes. After reading this book, I have realized calling people names may not affect you but it sure is affecting the other person. Even though you might have meant the comment in a joking way, the person you said it to just might take it very seriously. My opinion is always to think before you speak, because you never know how someone else is going to take what you say.

Kelly R.

Ready Player One by Ernest Cline

Ernest Cline's book, Ready Player One, is an awesome fiction novel. If you're into sci-fi gaming and 80s culture you will love this book. Ready Player One is about a boy named Wade Watts, a motherless and fatherless kid living with his druggy aunt and her boyfriend. In the year 2044 people don't live in the real world anymore; they live inside a virtual reality called the OASIS. The OASIS was created by a man named James Halliday. James Halliday is one of the greatest videogame creators who ever lived. He was a mysterious man who left an Easter egg in the OASIS after he died. The Easter egg was a game; the winner of the game would win all of his money and be the owner of the OASIS. In order to get to the Easter egg it is necessary to decipher three clues. But nobody has figured out these clues in the past ten years. Wade Watts is a gunter and is the first one in the whole OASIS to decipher the first clue. When he does that the whole world is after him. Bad people tried to assassinate him outside the OASIS. He is an expert on James Halliday so he knows everything about him. He uses all that knowledge to advance in the hunt for the Easter egg. But there are many more problems to come. If you want to know more about Wade Watts and how the hunt goes make sure you read Ready Player One by Ernest Cline.

Eduardo O.

Million Dollar Baby By: Clint Eastwood

The book Million Dollar Baby is based on the movie. It starts by telling about Frankie Dunn who has trained and managed some incredible fighters during a lifetime spent in the ring. The most important lesson he teaches his boxers is the one rule to always protect yourself. Maggie Fitzgerald is a poor thirty-one year old waitress from Southwest Missouri who has been a waitress since she was 13. She sees boxing as the one way she can escape being a waitress for the rest of her life. Maggie just wants a shot at making it in the ring. In the beginning, trainer Frankie does not believe in training women what so ever but Maggie doesn't give up. She is determined to learn from the best and to fight before she gets too old to stand a chance against younger competition. Maggie is a perfect example of a woman who doesn't give up and does the impossible to prove all the potential and strength she has to offer in the ring. Trainer Frankie Dunn is a man who at first does not want to do anything for this woman but ends up doing everything he can for her. Later on, trainer Frankie takes on his first female fighter when he trains Maggie. He does not feel so sure about this but he decides to give it a shot. Maggie is determined to become a champion and trainer Dunn is determined to make her that champion. I would really recommend this book to anyone who enjoys the sport of boxing. Most importantly, I would really recommend this book to all those people out there who don’t believe a woman can succeed in the sport of boxing.

Jadira Z.

Impulse by Ellen Hopkins

Ellen Hopkins’ book, Impulse, is a book about three troubled teens whose troubled lives have landed them in a hospital where they are attending therapy to deal with their close encounters with death and harming themselves. The book tells the main stories of three of the patients. Tony tries to forget about his painful childhood and being a gay guy who tried to commit suicide. Vanessa keeps a secret from the group and her own family that keeps her going back to cutting herself to try and forget. Conner, the perfect boy, seems to have the perfect life but hides his struggles with his parents, his friends, himself and his obsession with a young girl that led him to try and pull the trigger. These three teens try to deal with their issues and try to let go of all their bad and dangerous habits. This helps them deal with trying to forget their painful lives and save themselves. Here in the hospital they are given a second chance to start over and learn how to cope and deal with their issues and go back to the real world and start living their lives once again in a healthier way. If you’re interested in finding out more in detail what led these teens to go to such extremes just to end their lives then read the book Impulse.

Jazmin A.

House Rules by Rachel Sontag

Through the book, House Rules, Sontag tells the unbelievable story of her family and their struggle trying to deal with her father’s obsessive and controlling ways. If you've read the book, A Child Called It, by Dave Pelzer and found it to be an incredible book, than chances are you would enjoy reading House Rules as well. However, unlike the book, A Child Called It, House Rules does not involve physical abuse but instead emotional abuse. Rachel Sontag is writing about her family’s struggle while also demonstrating emotional abuse can be as severe as physical and sexual abuse. House Rules tells about the life of Rachel Sontag, a ten year old girl living with her sister, Jenny, her mother who is a social worker and her father who is a well-respected doctor. Rachel is the type of daughter any parent would love to have. She respects others, does well in school, is involved in activities and does everything she is told to do. While she would be the perfect daughter to one, her father wishes she was never born. Rachel’s father is extremely strict even on topics most wouldn't notice. She is forced to have short hair and nails because, according to her father, it gives her a more respected view from others. If she ever disobeys, she must write him a well written apology letter. This is one of the few unbelievable things he does that makes Rachel feel as if she is in a prison with no escape. If you are curious to find out what else her father makes her go through, I recommend you read House Rules.

Ariana E.

Spanking Shakespeare by Jake Wisner

Spanking Shakespeare by Jake Wisner is a really good book to read if you like funny adventures and interesting events. Are you currently in high school and you don’t like many books because you think they are boring? Well you and I have much in common.  Spanking Shakespeare is a book about a teenager who has some problems in high school, like any normal teen does. He is not very popular and doesn’t have a lot of friends. This book has its ups and downs. For example, some of the chapters are really confusing and you need to pay attention in order to understand them. But the good thing is every chapter has something funny Shakespeare Shapiro, the main character of the book, has done or is going to do. I really recommend this book to all students because it’s fun to read and also it helps you solve some of the problems you might have during your high school career.

Antoy D.

Right Behind You by Gail Giles

Gail Giles’ book, Right Behind You, is a tragic story with a happy ending. It is a fictional book but I am sure this situation has happened before. What this book taught me was there is always another side to the story. Kip, the main character of the book, kills another child with fire. The book talks about his time in a mental hospital and fighting the reality of what he did. Once he does get past that, he decides to start fresh and get a new life. He then has the high school life many kids desire. He is the popular, good looking jock with the pretty girlfriend and popular friends. Yet Kip still has trouble getting beyond his past life. He feels he does not deserve this and that feeling is what I liked about the book. The author did give away his happy ending right there. She made the character really fight for his freedom and made him realize he deserved to be happy. One day he told everyone what he had done and his perfect life was gone. He then had to start again and believe what he did was in the past and it was a mistake. That made me really like this book. It is just like in the movies when you think the happy ending is coming and then something bad happens and you think everything is done. But then you see the light in the tunnel. The author took her time to show the hardships Kip’s family had and what he went through to get to that happy ending. Plus, the whole plot is great. It is a book about something we do not hear about often and it made me realize when things like this happen maybe we should be more understanding.

Elizabeth M.

The Pacific by Hugh Ambrose

The Pacific is a book about soldiers fighting in WW2 in the Pacific theater. The Pacific is written by Hugh Ambrose. You can see the TV miniseries based on this book, The Pacific, on HBO. This book follows six main people, Lieutenant Austin C.  “Shifty” Shofner, Ensign Vernon “Mike” Micheel, Sidney C. Phillips, Sergeant “Manila John” Basilone, Eugene B. Sledge and Robert “Lucky” Leckie. This book tells about their experiences during WW2 and all the stories and all the people are real. All six of them are fighting the Japanese but not all of them are in the same unit. Throughout the book it shows how they have to deal with death all the time and how hard it is to get through each day without dying. This book tells about the very first battle against the Japanese to the very last bullet shot in the war. This book mainly focuses on the Marines and the First Marine Division. If you like WW2 and want to find out what happened to these soldiers and are interested in reading a good book, read The Pacific.

Ben T.