June 13

‘Extras’ by Scott Westerfeld

My chosen sci-fi novel is called ‘Extras’ by Scott Westerfeld. It is the fourth book in the UGLIES series.

What I like about the book is that it is thrilling and it makes you want to keep reading. It engages whoever is reading.

The book is about the world of uglies and pretties and popularity, for example, imagine that the world is a huge game of a TV reality show such as XFactor. Whoever gets the most buzzes gets the votes. Basically, in the book, people judge people by their looks and who gets recognition and who doesn’t. Personally this book really makes the readers understand how the ‘mind-rain’ affected people all over the world.

In conclusion the book was really interesting, and enjoyable and I would recommend it to people who love unexpected scenes in the book.

By Shanece P., Year 8

June 13

‘Cinder’ by Marissa Meyer

“Even in the future the story begins with once upon a time.”

Humans and cyborgs crowd the streets of New Beijing. A deadly plague breaks out in Beijing. In space, Lunar people (people who live on the moon for e.g. Aliens) watch them, waiting to make a move (plan of attack). But no one knows that Cinder is their Hero.

‘Cinder’ is a science fiction book that is about a gifted engineer in New Beijing who is a cyborg but no one knows. It is revealed that Cinder is a cyborg by her stepmother, who accuses her for her step-sister’s sudden illness (the plague, caused because she is a cyborg). Prince Kai visits Cinder himself at the weekly market for her to fix his broken androids.

This book is for adults because they would understand the story line a lot better than children. Personally I didn’t like this book because it was boring and there was no excitement and adventure. Science fiction books are books that are not reality and include science like engineering, utopia, dystopia, good and evil etc. In conclusion this book is for adults because they would understand the story line a lot better so I give the book a 2/5 stars.

By Reilly J., Year 8

June 13

‘Specials’ by Scott Westerfeld

This book is about differences and equality mixed with futuristic themes. Is that your genre? Well, this book is for you. This book is very jam packed with emotions and jaw-dropping moments.

The book is called ‘Specials’ by Scott Westerfeld. It’s a futuristic science novel. Overall I would rate the novel an 8/10 because it had interesting scenes and characters. What happens is a bunch of 15 year olds are made differently and what if someone is special? Would they be judged differently?

Tally has been made differently from the rest and she has been made to fight others. What happens next you’ll have to read to find out. It is set in a futuristic place which was pretty cool and well explained. Yes it was, it summed up the story so well. Tally had changed so much and I didn’t really enjoy her character but it was good to see Shay back in the book.

In conclusion, I thought the book was good overall. I could have been a bit better and more interesting but I did enjoy it and I hope that you read it too.

Mia A., Year 8

June 5

‘Maximum Ride: The Angel Experiment’ by James Patterson

Have you ever felt the urge to just fly, to escape all your worries, doubts and problems and feel the wind rush through your hair?  For some, it would be a dream come true. For the Flock, it is all they have ever known.

The Angel Experiment is the first novel of the Intriguing Maximum Ride series by James Patterson, a series jam-packed with life-threatening adventures and a whole lot of saving the world. The main focus of this series is Maximum Ride and her flock, featuring Angel, Iggy, The Gasman and Nudge. Iggy is blind, although he still manages to keep up with the remaining members of the Flock. The Gasman and Angel are siblings.

The themes explored in this novel include good and evil, monsters, genetic engineering and superpowers. These apply to teenagers, as they excite and encourage teenagers with a good imagination.  The themes also make them aware of the less than honorable people in the world and the caution teenagers need to take when dealing with people of the said description.

The Flock has been assigned one task, to save the world, which in theory seems simple enough.  However, there is one particular group that makes the task much more complicated: the Erasers, blood thirsty hounds eager to track down the Flock and stop them in their tracks. Whilst saving the world, Maximum Ride acts as a motherly figure to the children aged six to fourteen. She is currently trying to locate the biological parents of each member of the Flock, rescue Angel from a bunch of crazy scientists in lab coats, protect her Flock and discover who she is in the process.

This novel is set in the future in various locations across the United States, including New York City and California. It was very enjoyable because it has the characteristics that all brilliant novels should have: adventure, intrigue, fascination and action.

Another reason I enjoyed it is because it appealed to my interests and made me think what living in an alternate universe would be like. I loved the characters, particularly Maximum Ride, as she portrays the image of fearlessness and knowing when it is the right time to be emotional and to be brave. This is a story that requires your full attention therefore you begin to deeply engage with the characters.

I would definitely recommend this novel to both boys and girls interested in Science Fiction and action packed books between the ages of ten and later teenage years.  I have thoroughly enjoyed reading this book and hope to see what the future will hold for the remainder of this series. This first novel is truly deserving of a five out of five-star rating.

Charlize O, Year 8.

……

With no home, no family, they are running for their lives. This is the incredible story of six kids, the oldest only being 13, running for their lives when captured by Erasers, (human werewolves) the  fastest predators around.

Does this captivate you? Are you the type of reader that would read the rest of this to see what’s about to happen?

The style is an action is a science fiction novel. I love this book because of the story it tells the reader. James Patterson, the author, has used such loving imaginative words to create the perfect scene in the reader’s mind.

What’s wrong with these kids? Why did they meet at a ‘school’? These very special six kids have angel wings; they were all normal kids just growing up in a ‘school’. Were these special kids designed to save the world? Or are they going to destroy the world we all live in.

James Patterson is the author of ‘Maximum Ride: The Angel Experiment.’ This books is about a girl, Max, who is trying to keep her family safe. This book is an amazing piece of work.  James Patterson captures the attention of those wanting to know what being a teenager is really like without a family.

The scaffold of this book is a little confusing as in one chapter Angel gets taken by the evil side (I then thought the book was going to stay with her missing) but a couple of chapters after Angel comes back because Max saved her.

The recommended age for reading this book is 13.

June 24

‘Maximum Ride: The Angel Experiment’ by James Patterson

Maximum RideHave you ever wondered what it would be like to fly, soaring through the sky above everyone else grounded by gravity? For most of us, it would be a dream come true. For Maximum Ride (A.K.A. Max) it is the nightmare that will never stop. Max was taken away when she was just born to a laboratory filled with scientists and test subjects. Max and five other kids had bird DNA put in them, allowing them to grow wings. They also grew larger lungs, thinner bones, extra muscles and their hearts grew more efficient. This allowed them to fly without too much pressure. The children were living in dog cages until one day a scientist called Jeb Batchelder took them away from the lab (A.K.A. The School) and up into a house in the mountains. There, he raised them like they were his own children. He clothed them, taught them survival skills, how to fight and how to read. He acted like a parent to them; two years of raising them until he disappeared. They all assumed that he was killed. From then on, they did everything themselves.

“The flock” has six members in it. Max is the eldest, so she looks after everyone else as though it is life or death. Fang is the second eldest, and he is the silent one. Sometimes he likes to sneak up on Max. Iggy is third, and he is blind, but he can still hear everything and he can also cook and make bombs, even though he’s blind. Nudge is next, and she is a chatterbox. She likes to talk all day long. She also likes looking at things she’s not supposed to, which is a good thing. Gazzy is fourth, and he likes to eat food and fart. He tries to always act tough. Last is Angel, and she is the most special. She can read people’s minds and she is the most important to Max. These six are always getting into trouble with erasers. Erasers are humans that have wolf DNA in them, and they are always being sent out to capture the flock, and one day they get Angel. This is the moment where they go out to get her back from the horrible scientists.

Maximum Ride is an amazing book. It talks about trust and friendship. I couldn’t take my eyes off it, it was so intense. Once I started reading, I was always left with a question in my head, so I had to keep reading. I would recommend this book to kids aged 13-15, and kids who love a combination of action and fantasy. If you also love massive twists at the end of a book, than I would recommend Maximum Ride to you. I would rate this book 9.5 out of 10.

By Cooper, Year 8

November 13

‘Maximum Ride’ by James Patterson

Maximum RideMeet Max, an innocent young 14 year old girl, living in the shadows of her enemies. No parents. No grandparents. Just her, and her unrelated ‘Flock’ she lives with. Max and all the members of her ‘Flock’ – Fang, Iggy, Nudge, Gasman and Angel are just like normal teenagers living a normal life, except, they all have a secret… they all have wings and can fly! Does this sound like the book you would want to read? Then of course this is the book for you!

Things are quite normal in this so called ‘Flock’ Max belongs to, but of course there is always a bad side to things. They are being hunted down by the wolf/human mutants they call ‘Erasers’. They have to now live under cover and protect themselves because anyone could be a traitor.

I was glued to this book from start to finish by the way that James Patterson described the characters and by how he made it look like we could interact with them throughout the book. The pictures and descriptive language used in the book made it easy to understand and visualise all the scenes in my imagination as though I was there. The story continued fantastically with enough mystery and wonder to keep my full attention.

I recommend this book to people aged 12-16 and in between if you like the mysterious and wonder type of book with a full on twist at the end, then of course this is the book for you. If you really enjoyed this book, then I recommend the rest of the ‘Maximum Ride’ series and the rest of the James Patterson collection. I’d rate this graphic novel ‘Maximum Ride’ a 4.5 out of 5.

By: Phoebe G., Year 9

…..

Maximum Ride Vol.1

Fourteen year-old Maximum Ride, better known as Max, knows what it’s like to soar above the world. She and all the members of the “flock” (Fang, Iggy, Nudge, Gasman and Angel) are just like ordinary kids but with extraordinary powers: they have wings and can fly. It my seem like a dream until the youngest out of the folk is kidnapped and taken back to where everything began, a place they like to call ‘The School’. The school, the place were everything started, is a laboratory full of scientists and test subjects. Max, Fang, Iggy, Nudge, Gasman and Angel are just six extraordinary kids and after many years of being experimented on, they are all now prepared to take revenge. After the youngest, Angel, is kidnapped by erasers, they go on a life-threatening quest to find her and discover new secrets.

Maximum Ride, as you may already notice, is the lead character in the book. This book shows that Max is very loving and mature for a 14 year-old girl who is looking after her family, ‘The Folk’. When Angel gets kidnapped, she doesn’t hesitate to go after them and fight back for she is always the first one to pull her wings out to rise up in the sky and take the chance.

The categories in this book are Thrill, Heart-filled, Adventure and Fantasy. I liked this book a lot for there was always something different about to happen which kept me on my toes and wanting to know more. I would recommend this book for high school ages. This is a very easy read and has great imagery.

By  Jordan G, Year 9

……

Don’t you wish you had wings? To fly, high in the sky with the wind in your hair, to have the feeling of complete freedom? Wouldn’t living a life with wings be glorious? Well for Max and her flock, having wings was what put them all in danger. Max, a 14 year old girl and the oldest of her winged family of six, lived high in the mountain range, hiding from all those who wish to harm them. One bright, peaceful morning, the six of them went out into the field to pick fresh strawberries but the peace did not last long. Ari and his Erasers attacked the flock and kidnapped the youngest, Angel. Now Max, Fang and Nudge leave to travel far distances to find Angel and bring her home safely. Iggy and Gazzy are left at home where they are meant to be safe but end up getting themselves into a lot of mischief with the Erasers. What will happen to Iggy and Gazzy? Will Max, Fang and Nudge find Angel? Or will it be too late?

I enjoyed reading this book because I enjoy the fantasy genre and I am able to relate to the strong family bond they have. None of them are related by blood yet they still look out for each other and care about each other as if they were blood related. I rate this book 4 out of five stars and I recommend it to people between the ages of 11 to 18 who enjoy reading a fantasy genre.

By: Amy B, Year 9

November 10

‘The Adoration of Jenna Fox’ by Mary E, Pearson

Jenna FoxJenna Fox…a normal teenage girl, until the accident. After being in a coma for a year, Jenna is about to discover who she really is, gradually putting the puzzle pieces together.

              Do futuristic mystery novels intrigue you? If so, this novel “The Adoration of Jenna Fox” written by Mary E. Pearson is definitely the book for you! With the family having to hide secrets and move far away due to the use of illegal medical sources to keep Jenna alive, Jenna discovers that she may not be a normal teenage girl and, with that knowledge, her life is changed forever. With the help of videos from previous years, every day Jenna watches the videos trying to remember what her life was like.

        Why does Jenna’s grandmother Lily have hatred towards her? Why does Jenna’s family have so much protection over her? What does Jenna find out that will change her outlook on her family? Jenna then meets a neighbour who seems to have done his research on her; will he inform her of what he knows?

          I enjoyed this novel as it is all about secrets and leaves you wondering what is going to happen next. I was glued to this book and found it very creative and different. The puzzle pieces all came together well to create a fantastic novel recommended for teenage girls aged 13-18 who are interested in a novel that really gets you thinking and imagining if this was to happen in a real life situation. I would rate the book “The Adoration Of Jenna Fox” a 4 out of 5 stars, as it was a very satisfying read that I never wanted to stop reading!

Jacinta, Year 9

November 18

‘The Adoration of Jenna Fox’ by Mary E. Pearson

 Jenna Fox     You wake up, you don’t know who you are, where you are and you don’t recognise anyone. It probably won’t happen to you but this is the scenario that Jenna Fox faces. It takes place in a California of the future where we meet Jenna, her Mum, her Grandma, her neighbour and her two friends, who are all being very secretive and strict on Jenna. She is told that she was in a coma for one year as a result of a car accident and when she wakes up

she can’t remember a thing. Her family is showing her old home movies in the hope she will remember something. As she starts to remember, she wants to know more but she doesn’t get to know.

     I enjoyed the book because it kept me intrigued during the surprising twists, clever language and the perfect amount of suspense. I also like how we are thrown into the book, only knowing as much as Jenna Fox and we follow her story all the way to the end, learning when she learns, fearing when she fears and celebrating when she celebrates. I would recommend this book to teenage girls who like sci-fi/fantasy novels as this story follows the life of a teenage girl who is just like you or I, only one car accident tipped her life upside down, just like it could tip one of our lives upside down.

I rate “The Adoration of Jenna Fox” 4 out of 5.

Grace L, Year 9

——————————————————

       Imagine if one day you were having a great time, hanging out with your friends, and a year and a half later you wake up and can’t remember any of it. This is the life that Jenna Fox has just faced, after experiencing a near-fatal car accident.

       When reading this book you are thrown into the life of Jenna where we know only as much as she does. Her journey begins as she starts to live a new life. In this book we meet her mum, her grandma, a neighbour and two friends. Her family shows her old home videos to try and get her to remember things, but she can’t. They are very strict on her and won’t tell her any secrets or facts about the accident. Jenna doesn’t think it’s fair that she isn’t being told everything. She meets her neighbour, and finds out the secrets that her family have hidden from her and the truth about who she was, is now and will be in the future. Her mind is now bursting with more questions than ever. The only thing is that nobody will answer them.

       I really enjoyed ‘The Adoration Of Jenna Fox’, by Mary E Pearson, because it is an exciting book that keeps you intrigued throughout, with new challenges, experiences and twists coming all the time. Whenever Jenna is excited, we are excited and when she is sad or fears bad luck, we do too. I would recommend this book to teenage girls who are willing to go though an exciting journey of someone’s life till they find out who they really are and how they became that way.

 

Melissa M. Year 9

November 6

‘Maximum Ride: The Angel Experiment’ by James Patterson

Maximum Ride       How would you feel, growing up in a lab, being an experiment, running from horrifying creatures and not knowing how to survive in the real world outside of the lab?

       Maximum Ride would be the perfect book for you if you were the type of person that is into dark mysterious stories. Meet the six main characters named Max, Fang, Iggy, Nudge, Gasman and Angel. These children grew up in a lab as an experiment. The evil doctor made the children 98% Human and 2% bird.  Running from the creatures called ‘Erasers’ the children undergo a sequence of events such as one child getting poisoned and another getting kidnapped. Their mission is to save the children and save the world from these horrible creatures.

       The children are traveling all over the world to try and find Angel after she gets captured. Max, being the oldest is the most responsible and is therefore the leader of the children, Max tells them what to do and how to act.

       The reasons I liked the book Maximum Ride is because it is a story about adventure and discovery. This is the type of book that gets you so tensed up that you have to stop reading the book for you to calm down. The thrill it gives you is amazing but the book is for experienced readers such as teenagers that know how to put a puzzle together. I would recommend the book to teenagers that are into dark and mysterious type of books and love some adventure. I definitely recommend this book because once you stop reading you will never stop, the book is just too addictive. This book was an amazing read and I’d rate Maximum Ride 4 out of 5 stars.

       Patrick, Year 9.

 

October 26

‘The Adoration of Jenna Fox’ by Mary E. Pearson

The book that I am reading is ‘The Adoration of Jenna Fox’ by Mary E. Pearson.  Jenna has just woken up after being in a coma for a year and a half.  She remembers nothing about her life. She is told that her memory should slowly start to return.  Watching old home movies gives her some view of what her life was like but they still don’t help her remember anything.  When she does start to remember, it comes in little parts but it is of a life she doesn’t understand.  The hardest part for Jenna is that her parents are always having secret conversations and her grandmother doesn’t even like her and she has no idea why. When Jenna starts putting all the little parts together and discovers the truth about herself she starts to come up with questions that her family is not willing to answer.  When you get further into the book many questions start to arise like, how far would a parent go to save their child?  What kind of rules would they break to save the most important person of all? And, at what cost?

Overall I have really enjoyed this book and I look forward to reading it again. The book makes you want to keep on reading and reading and not stopping because new things for Jenna happen quite frequently and some of which are very interesting. When she started to remember little bits and pieces I found it really enjoyable because I wanted to know about what her life was like. I highly recommend it to high school students and adults. Everyone that reads this book will most definitely love it as much as I did.

Zoe, Year 9

‘The Adoration of Jenna Fox’ was an interesting read. It was definitely different to anything I’ve ever read before as ti gives you an insight into what it would really be like to have everything taken away from you. The book is about a girl named Jenna who is involved in a really bad car accident. She was burned so severely that she couldn’t be saved, but her dad was the inventor of Bio Gel, a gel that can replace organs and other things in your body. Jenna Fox was saved with the Bio Gel and faced a tough journey of trying to remember her life and who she used to be. Along the way she meets new friends, learns new things, lives a completely different lifeand discovers the painful truth of what really happened to her.
Libbi, Year 9

‘The Adoration of Jenna Fox’ is a compelling, page turning and edgy read. I enjoyed its unusual plot and its use of many different characters. The way ‘Jenna’, the main character, expresses how she feels about the accident and her miracle recovery is explained in depth and with power. She is a strong girl who has strong opinions and thoughts about who she wants to be, who she was and her wanting to be an individual and make her own life decisions. Shown through this novel are typical teenage situations, such as having love, friendships and enemies.  The unpredictable storyline made the overall read more enjoyable and addictive. I loved how the further you got into the book, the stronger the emotion and overall feeling became.  This book was delightful, had natural meaning and was very entertaining. Olivia, Year 9
I really enjoyed this eye-opening novel.  There was a unusual story line with some unusual characters. It is not until later in the book when we find out what was really the cause of Jenna’s memory loss. Reading this novel helped put me in a perspective to understand and almost feel what it is like to be faced with so many challenges such as the ones Jenna is faced with in this novel. This book constantly has me asking questions and wondering what’s happening next.   What is so curious about Lilly? Why are Claire and Jenna’s father trying to hide something from Jenna. What exactly happened to Kara and Lockie? Question after question made this book so hard to put down! Overall, this was a amazing novel and I would definitely recommend this as a great read. – Georgia, Year 9

‘The Adoration of Jenna Fox’ was a good read because I have never read a book like it before. I enjoyed it a lot because all the characters were very interesting with a very interesting/enjoyable storyline. The thing I enjoyed the most about this book is that it related back to real teenagers’ problems and situations. All in all, this was a great read and I recommend it to any book worms that enjoy a good novel. Kurt, year 9

October 26

‘Maximum Ride: The Angel Experiment’ by James Patterson

Want to come along for the ride? Set in locations ranging from California to the bowels of the New York city subway, this story is about a girl named Maximum who lives with five other kids who are mostly normal except they are 98% human and 2% bird. They were all science experiments, living like lab rats in cages. Though they escaped they are constantly being followed and hunted by malicious wolf-like creatures called Erasers. Unfortunately the Erasers captured one particular interesting experiment, Angel. The rest of the gang have to try and rescue her before it is too late. Can they get Angel back without her being harmed once again by the scientist? Will everyone be safe again? You’ll have to read the book to find out more.

I love this story because it is full of adventure and heart stopping action. The thrill ride takes you right to the edge. It is also written very cleverly. I would recommend this book to early adolescents. The book is based on six kids whose ages range from 6 to 14. Maximum Ride is full of adventure and keeps you on the edge of your seat. If you’re waiting for the thrill ride of your life pick up this book and read it. It is hard to put down.

Jemma, Year 9

Strap your self in for the thrill ride you’ll want to take again and again! From Death Valley, California, to the bowels of the New York City subway system, you’re about to take off on a heart-stopping adventure that will blow you away. This book is called Maximum Ride The Angel Experiment by James Patterson. It’s about six extraordinary kids: Max, Fang, Iggy, Nudge, the Gasman and Angel. These kids are pretty normal in most ways except for the fact that they were experimented on in a laboratory called the “School”. They endured scientific experiments that rendered them 98% human and 2% avian. There was a kind scientist named Jeb who helped them escape. He looked after them until he disappeared. They are now living on their own. The six kids are collectively known as the “Flock”.

Throughout this book, the kids are tracked down by Erasers (part human, part wolf), and these Erasers are trained to kill. Ari, the head Eraser, kidnaps Angel and takes her back to the school cause she is Experiment 11.  She can obtain seemingly random powers at random times, such as the ability to breathe underwater, talk to fish, and read and control minds. Her ability to control people’s minds puts her in reach of extreme power.

The kids now have to use their powers to rescue Angel from malicious mutants – while finding out more about themselves, their mission is to infiltrate a secret facility to track down the kids’ missing parents, scavenge for sustenance, get revenge on an evil traitor and also save the world.

After rescuing Angel, The Flock flees to New York City, where they start trying to find out who their parents are. Max also meets Ella, a girl who she rescued from some bullies along the way to save Angel. Her mother, Dr. Martinez, is also added to the group after the Flock breaks into the Institute and releases all of the “experiments” held there. Maximum Ride The Angel Experiment is a book that you cannot put down, as it’s a fast-paced adventure with lots of action and humour.  The characters are unique and unforgettable.  I would recommend this book for teenagers only. So if you want to know more about what happens in the book you should read it.

Madaliene Year 9

Maximum Ride is a thrilling, fantasy-like book from the No.1 bestselling thriller writer James Patterson. As thrilling as it is, each page you read just tells you everything and you won’t want to put this book down. From on the ground to high in the sky danger is near no matter where they are.

Maximum Ride is about a fourteen year old and her flock who are Fang, Iggy, Nudge, Gasman and Angel and Max’s story of rescuing the flock from the horrible half human and half wolves they call erasers. After Angel gets captured by the erasers, the rest of the flock goes on a journey to find her even though they know the eraser would have taken her to a place they call the ‘school’, somewhere they have been trying to stay well away from.

James Patterson’s novel about trust, surviving and betrayal would be a good read for readers aged 12-16 years. It is full of action, drama and the skills they have to have to survive in the big cities and try to stay away from the erasers. I really enjoyed this book and rate it a 10/10 because it was really exciting and had a lot of adventures. Madi, Year 9

 

“The funny thing about facing imminent death is that it really snaps everything else in perspective.” Maximum Ride

As this thrilling story flies from the pages of this book you wouldn’t be able to put it down. From down on the ground to up in the sky, danger is never far away for Max and her flock, because these bunch of kids are special: they have wings.

This story is about 14 year-old Maximum Ride and her flock who are Fang, Iggy, Nudge, Gasman and Angel, and Max’s story of rescuing one of her own from the place they tried so hard to stay away from, the ‘school’, a mad science lab where the flock was born. Now they have to travel across the country to rescue her, beause one of their mottoes is: ‘the flock comes first’. They have to fight terrifying beings called ‘erasers’ which are half wolf, half human and they are thirsty for the blood of the flock.

James Patterson’s novel about trust, betrayal and surviving, is what 12- 16 year olds would all enjoy. It has action and cross country experience. I would rate this 8/10, because I got hooked on this book from the first paragraph.  Bonnie Yr 9