Rosalind's List Of The Best Books Ever

This is a list I have made over the years of really, really good books. If you need a book to read, look no further!

Rosalind’s List Of The Best Books Ever

(Alphabetically by title)

• Acceleration by Graham McNamee

• Across the Wide and Lonesome Prairie by Kristiana Gregory (Dear America series)

• Agnes Parker: Girl In Progress by Katherine O’Dell

• Along For The Ride by Sarah Dessen

• Amanda by Candace F. Ransom

• The Angel Experiment- Maximum Ride, Book One by James Patterson

• Audrey, Wait by Robin Benway

• Beauty Queens by Libba Bray

• Caddie Woodlawn by Carol Ryrie Brinks

• The Candymakers by Wendy Mass

• Code Orange by Caroline B. Cooney

• Coraline by Neil Gaiman

 • Cornelia and the Audacious Escapades of the Somerset Sisters by Leslie Blume

• The Cricket in Times Square by George Selden

• A Crooked Kind Of Perfect by Linda Urban

• The Danger Box by Blue Balliett

• Divergent by Veronica Roth

• Do the Math: Secrets, Lies, and Algebra by Wendy Lichtman

• Drama by Raina Telgemeier

• Elijah of Buxton by Christopher Paul Curtis

• Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine

• Emily The Strange- The Lost Days by Rob Reger and Jessica Gruner

• Emily Windsnap (series) by Liz Kessler

• Emmy and the Incredible Shrinking Rat by Lynne Jonell

• Esperanza Rising by Pam Munoz Ryan

• Flipped by Wendelin Van Draanen

• Fly on the Wall by e. lockheart

• From the Mixed-Up Files Of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler by E. L. Konigsburg

• Fudge (series) by Julie Blume

• Gilda Joyce (series) by Jennifer Allison

• Gimme a Call by Sarah Mlynowski

• Ginger Pye by Eleanor Estes

• The Giver by Lois Lowry

• The Gollywhopper Games by Jody Feldman

• Half Magic by Edward Eager

• Harry Potter (series) by J. K. Rowling

• Heart of a Samurai by Margi Prues

• The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

• Ida B. by Katherine Hannigan

• In a Heartbeat by Loretta Ellsworth

• The Indian in the Cupboard by Lynne Reid Banks

• Isabel of the Whales by Hester Velmans

• Island of the Aunts by Eva Ibbotson

• Lily B. on the Brink of Cool by Elizabeth Cody Kimmel

• Lily’s Ghosts by Laura Ruby

• The Last Book in the Universe by Rodman Philbrick

• The Lottie Project by Jacqueline Wilson

• Lunch Money by Andrew Clements

• The Lying Game by Sara Shepard

• The Magician’s Elephant by Kate DiCamillo

• Main Street (series) by Anne M. Martin

• Mandy by Julie Edwards

• A Mango-Shaped Space by Wendy Mass

• Maniac Magee by Jerry Spinelli

• Matched by Ally Condie

• Meg: Mystery In Williamsburg by Holly Beth Walker

• Molly Moon (series) by Georgia Byng

• The Mother-Daughter Book Club (series) by Heather Vogel Fredrick

• Movie For Dogs by Lois Duncan

• My Life in Pink and Green by Lisa Greenwald

• The Mysterious Benedict Society by Trenton Lee Stewart

• The Mysterious Case Of the Allbright Academy by Diane Stanley

• The Mysterious Matter Of I. M. Fine by Diane Stanley

• Never Mind by AVI and Rachel Vail

• Not As Crazy As I Look by George Harrar

• Password to Larkspur Lane by Carolyn Keene (Nancy Drew series)

• The Penderwicks (series) by Jeanne Birdsall

• Percy Jackson and the Olympians (series) by Rick Riordan

• The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster

• Plastic Angel by Nerissa Neilds

• Princess Academy by Shannon Hale

• The Puzzling World of Winston Breen (series) by Eric Berlin

• Rash by Pete Hautman

• The Red Blazer Girls by Michael D. Beil

• The Return Of Santa Paws by Nicholas Edwards

• Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry by Mildred P. Taylor

• Saffy’s Angel by Hillary McKay

• Sammy Keyes (series) by Wendelin Van Draanen

• Savvy (series) by Ingrid Law

• Science Fair by Dave Perry and Ridley Pearson

• The Secret Garden by Frances Hogson Burnett • Secret School by AVI

• The Secret Series (series) by Pseudonymous Bosch

• A Series Of Unfortunate Events (series) by Lemony Snicket

• The Shadow Children (series) by Margaret Peterson Haddix

• Shadow Spinner by Susan Fletcher

• Shiloh by Lynne Reid Banks

• A Single Shard by Linda Sue Park

• Sketchy Behavior by Erynn Mangum

• Smile by Raina Telgemeier

• Solving Zoe by Barbara Dee

• Surviving the Applewhites by Stephanie Tolan

• The Talk-Funny Girl by Roland Merullo

• The Thief Lord by Cornelia Funke

• There’s a Boy in the Girls’ Bathroom by Louis Sachar

• The True Meaning Of Smekday by Adam Rex

• The Wednesdays by Julie Borbeau

• When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead

• Which Witch? by Eva Ibbotson

• The White Giraffe by Lauren St. John

• A Wrinkle In Time by Madeline L’Engle

• 11 Birthdays (series) by Wendy Mass

A Mango-Shaped Space by Wendy Mass

A Mango-Shaped Space by Wendy Mass is a really good book! It's about a thirteen year-old girl named Mia who has a condition called synesthesia. Synesthesia is when your senses are sort of mixed together.  For example, when Mia sees a letter, she associates a color to it.  (To read more about synesthesia, click here.)  

Mia kept this to herself for many years after an incident in third grade when everyone teased her for thinking every number has a color.  She didn't even know there was a name for her condition!

This book also has a captivating plot and lots of great characters. There is even some romance.  My favorite part of the book was where the title came from, even though it made me cry. I would recommend A Mango-Shaped Space to everyone, and I rate it five out of five stars. By the way, Wendy Mass is one of my favorite authors, and I love her 11 Birthdays series (11 Birthdays, Finally, and 13 Gifts). I hope you all got lots of great books for Christmas/Hanukkah/Kwanzaa (I know I did)!

⊿ Rosalind⊿

Eve And Adam by Michael Grant and Katherine Applegate

    Eve and Adam by by Michael Grant and Katherine Applegate is a really good, suspenseful book.  It starts when a girl named Evening (a.k.a. Eve or E.V.) gets hit by a car. Her commanding, perfectly put-together mother brings her back to her company, Spiker Biopharmaceuticals, which houses a hospital.  Evening meets a mysterious boy named Solo (what a great name, right?). Her wounded leg heals astonishingly fast... Then, her mom gives her a project to create a simulation boy from the DNA up. 
   
I really can't tell more without giving anything away, but let me just tell you that this book has a very intriguing plot line, and there are lots of little things that I never saw coming! I would rate Eve and Adam five out of five stars and recommend it to anyone twelve and up (As with all books, it definitely depends on the person). Merry Christmas and a happy New Year!


                                                        Love,

                                       ❤ ✰ ✡ ❄ Rosalind ❄ ✡ ✰ ❤

Acceleration by Graham McNamee

    Acceleration, by Graham McNamee, is about a teenager named Duncan who lives in Toronto. It is in the middle of a terrible heat wave. Duncan is kind of a schmooze and his summer consists of hanging out with his friends Wayne and Vinny and working underground in the subway's Lost and Found with Jacob, a crabby old man who rarely speaks.
     Duncan's boring summer takes a turn when he finds a small leather notebook that someone turned in to the Lost and Found. Scribbled inside the book are notes, plans, and newspaper clippings. Notes about  how fast it takes mice to drown in different liquids, plans for killing, and articles about animal abuse and arson cut out from the local newspaper.  What should Duncan do about this sick scrapbook?
   Acceleration is an exciting mystery/suspense novel that is hard to put down. I would rate it five out of five stars, and recommend it to anyone twelve years and older. Thanks for reading!


                  >>>>>>>>>>Rosalind<<<<<<<<<<<<

Matilda-Book and Musical

Hey people! So I know, I know, I haven't posted in like a super duper long time. And I know I should have posted about the wonderful book I read at camp right when I got home, but truthfully, there wasn't one. A wonderful book I read at camp, that is. All I read in three whole weeks was this Hunger Games Tribute Guide that could barely be counted as a book and was just meh. So then after only a week I took off again, this time traveling to London. And I came back like 3 weeks ago, and then school started, and then all of a sudden I was busy. I'M SO SO SO SORRY.

Ok, so, anyways, the... thing I'm reviewing is Matilda. I know that you must know it's a book, but did you know it was a musical? I didn't until we got tickets.

Most of you who have and haven't read it are probably thinking it's a book for little girls and we shouldn't be reviewing it on TEEN bookshelf. I personally don't agree. I think that Matilda is a good book for all ages, really. Except maybe if you are 3. Because the Trunchbull is a pretty scary character for 3 year olds, if you know what I'm talking about.

So guess who the main character is? A GIRL NAMED MATILDA. Woah! She is 5 1/2 years old and just happens to be a genius. She is so much smarter than me. And I'm not even dumb! Like, she reads adult novels (for example, Charles Dickens) and she can multiply things like 14 times 19 in a millisecond. What even is that? Comment below if you can mentally solve it. Back to the point. So the genius-ness is not passed down in the family because her parents (who, by the way, have the craziest fashion sense), are not smart at all.

Mr. Wormwood, her father, is very full of himself. He runs a used car business, selling cars that are totally worthless, but making them appear almost good as new for the first few days, until they break. His idea of a good book is a car magazine, and he can barely figure out his profit for one day (using addition and subtraction only) in 10 minutes. With paper.

Mrs. Wormwood is a useless lump. She sits around watching television all day, and her favorite expression is, "You chose books, I chose looks!"

Matilda's older brother, named Michael, is very dim and isn't really a big character.

Mr. and Mrs. Wormwood are terrible parents. But only for Matilda. Kind of like how in Harry Potter, the Dursleys spoil Dudley the Dud and hate Harry. So anyways, they love Michael and think he is extremely bright and wonderful, and they hate Matilda, and think she is useless, and worst of all, stupid. They think a 5 year old reading Charles Dickens is stupid!

So, I'm kind of... I don't know... terrible at summaries, but I'll try anyway, because if you haven't read Matilda yet you'll be just like "so what exactly is the point of this book? It sounds pretty stupid. I guess I won't read it..." and I do not want this happening so... here I try...

Mr. Wormwood is a very, lets just say, terrible father/person, and one day Matilda gets absolutely fed up with him. To calm her down and keep her sane, she decides that whenever she gets sick of her dad mistreating her, she will play a prank on him. Then he will be bearable for a little while, until he is nasty to her again, and deserves another prank.

One day Mr. Wormwood decides to send Matilda to school. But this isn't just any normal school. This school is... CRUNCHEM HALL ELEMENTARY, run by... THE TRUNCHBULL. The Trunchbull is an ex-Olympian, who used to throw the hammer for Great Britain in the Olympics and retired to throwing small children in elementary school. She enjoys punishing children by stretching their ears, holding them in the air by their hair, and, even better, throwing them to the next county. She also has a torturing device called... THE CHOKEY. The Chokey is a small closet with nails and broken glass that she throws kids in for up to a day. If you are in the Chokey you have to stand up absolutely straight or else... you DIE! Just kidding.

So then there's a bunch of other characters I didn't name and yadayada.

Anywhoo. Now I will review the musical, which by the way I saw with my cousin. By the way you people might want to check out her blog, E's World, especially if you enjoy fashion and random stuff.

So I saw the tickets that we had before we went, and it said it was recommended for ages 6 and up. I thought, "Why on earth would Matilda be recommended for ages 6 and up? Maybe it's just wimpy 6 year olds." Then, after I saw it, I thought it should be for, I don't know, 8 or 10 and up. Some of the REALLY loud parts were kind of overwhelming and I think if I were 6 or 7 or even 8 I would be freaked out. But maybe it's just me.

The weird thing is, I saw mostly adults at the show. I feel like there were, like, 4 times as many adults as there were kids, or even more.

The cast was SUPER good. Matilda was just like I imagined her, and so was Mr. Wormwood. The Trunchbull was played by a guy, but I think that really fit her and was a very good choice. It was like how John Travolta plays Tracy's mother in Hairspray, if you know what I'm talking about. But I had this one problem. Mrs. Wormwood wasn't fat enough! In the book she's supposed to be a total couch potato but in the musical she has a dance partner and all that jazz. LOL, get it? Hahaha.

Also, they casted the kids GREAT! They were adorable, and good dancers, and good singers, and did I mention they were adorable?

You people should TOTALLY read this book. And see the musical if possible.

I rate both the book and the musical 5 stars stars stars stars stars...  yeah I'm kind of hyper hyper hyper hyper hyper.

ANNABETH <3

The Wednesdays

    The Wednesdays, by Julie Bourbeau, is about a little village in the middle of nowhere.  It's a pleasant little place that tourists occasionally visit.  Except on Wednesdays, when strange things happen, like cakes burning, shoelaces coming untied, and pants falling down.  Fortunately, no one has gotten seriously hurt from these occurrences.  It's annoying, but the villagers are used to it, so they just use Wednesdays as an excuse to hole up in their homes, shut out the bad luck, and do nothing.  

           

       It's funny because everyone in the village refers to the mysterious force that causes all of the mishaps as the "wednesdays".  No one really knows what these wednesdays are until Max, a village boy, goes out on his birthday (which, since it falls on a Wednesday, is going terribly wrong) and decides to find out for himself.  With the help of a weird neighbor, his dog, his best friend Noah, and an interesting girl from school, Max discovers what the wednesdays are, and  the true story behind all of the Wednesday mishaps.  Then, the wednesdays' evil plan is revealed, and Max and his friends must put a plan to this evil scheme once and for all.

I thought that The Wednesdays was a very satisfying book with an interesting plot.  At the end, I felt like there was nothing more to be desired.  With all the book series out these days, I think that it's refreshing to have a great story that is in the form of just one perfect book.  I rate The Wednesdays five out of five stars.

🔵🙊😄 By R☮salind!  🔳🐌🌹

P.S. The Wednesdays is available as an ebook (I checked it out of my library and read it on my Kindle).

P.P.S. Phineas and Ferb is the best show evahhh!* Watch it, people!

* Also included in my List Of Best TV Shows Evahhh are Glee, Pretty Little Liars, and Cake Boss.

Divergent

Divergent, by Veronica Roth, is about a girl named Beatrice who lives in a futuristic world that is split up into five communities, or factions.  There's Abnegation, which Beatrice was born into, the faction that values selflessness above all else, Amity, which values total kindness and peace, Candor, which values honesty, Dauntless, which values bravery, and Erudite, which values knowledge.  The factions are very separate, and everyone has a place.

  When a person turns sixteen, there is a ceremony where that kid gets to choose what faction they will be in for the rest of their lives.  If that person chooses a different faction than the one they grew up in, it is sometimes considered a disgrace to their family, and they might never see their family again.  An important saying in this book is "Faction before blood."

When Beatrice takes the aptitude test that tells her which faction she is best suited for (The results don't mean that you have to choose that faction, it just gives you an idea of what to pick), the official giving her test is surprised.  According to the choices she made, she is not suited for one faction, but three.  The perplexed official, named Tori, tells Beatrice that the factions best suited for her are Abnegation (the faction she knows so well), Erudite, and Dauntless.  Tori also says that her inconclusive results mean she is Divergent.  This, apparently, is a very dangerous thing that must be kept secret.

Finally, the day of Beatrice's Choosing Ceremony arrives.  She makes her choice, and a lot of very interesting things happen. Sorry, I would tell more, but that would spoil the whole book and give away what faction Beatrice chooses! 

This book has action, romance, battle, and a few sad deaths.  I would recommend it to fans of The Hunger Games, and even people who think that The Hunger Games is sick and too violent (I'm in between those two categories, by the way.) I also think that readers of Divergent should be at least eleven years old.  I rate this exciting novel four out of five stars.

➡ Rosalind ⬅

P.S. Divergent has a sequel called Insurgent.  I haven't read it yet, but it looks good.

P.P.S. Divergent is available on the Kindle as an ebook.

Summer Camp

Hey people. So I am going to the best place ever - summer camp - on Sunday for three weeks, so I won't be able to post until I get back. Sorry about that. Anyways, I'll probably read some more books while I'm there, so there will probably be another review when I get home. -Annabeth

OMG!

OMG! So far, we have gotten over 6,000 page views!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! YAHOOOOOOOO!

Rules for Secret Keeping by Lauren Barnholdt

Rules for secret keeping is a story about a teen girls drama filled middle school life! Samantha has barley started her middle school life and the You Girl magazine has named her one of the finalists for their Young Entrepreneur of the year award. Samantha has a business of passing secrets. you just put a piece of paper in Samantha's locker with 1 dollar and she will pass it to the person of your choice.   But this starts to get overwhelming when Emma, Samantha's half friend starts passing secrets to Samantha's crush... Jake.

The difficulty doesn't end there. Another girl, Olivia, starts her own secret passing business, but hers, is online. As the days go on, Samantha starts to get less and less secrets until they stop coming. Samantha gets angry at Olivia for ruining her business, Emma for stealing her crush, her family is falling apart and the New Girl magazine crew is going to shadow Samantha for a day to watch Samantha's business.









 Will Samantha be able to figure it all out?     
          Read the book to find out!!!


-Luna Lovegood

We're on Google+

Dear all Teen Bookshelf writers and readers! I am extremely happy to announce that we now have Google+! If you have a Google+, feel free to friend us! This is a new way for you to tell us about good books you think we should read, or bad ones, and submit your own reviews! Remember you can also write us at teenbookshelf2@gmail.com . Enjoy reading!!!

-Alex

Twilight-I know, I know, Twilight

Sorry about the lack of blog posts and book reviews in the last long time. I wish I could blog, what, 2 times a week, but I can't, since I can't read that fast, and I'm sorry. One of my excuses is that I have been reading Twilight for a while now, and it's long, and in some parts I just space out because it gets... just... kind of... boring. I know, I like those little dot dot dot things... 

I have a question about the cover. Why are the hands holding an apple, of all things?  

So anyways, back to the point. I read Twilight. But I do have an excuse. Sappy love stories with perfect, sexy vampires aren't really my thing, but I felt I needed to check out the series to see what all the hype was about. Now, with the view of the people who like it in mind, it's about romance, and one of the main characters is good looking and blah blah blah. Also, a lot of fans probably saw the movie first and yadayadayada. I can see why they like it, but I think this is not a good reason to love a book. And with the people who hate it, I understand them too. It's definitely not as well written or as good as those books like Harry Potter or the Hunger Games. Stephanie Meyer depended on her thesaurus WAY too voluminously. The words she used were gargantuanly surplus! See, that is what materializes when you employ the thesaurus too much. And I have another reason that people might hate it. The fans! Kind of like why a lot of people hate One Direction and Justin Bieber and all those things like that. The fans are crazy! Now why they like Twilight, I guess it's a) because of the movies and b) because it's popular. There are many vampire books, many romance books, and many vampire romance books! So I think one of the reasons so many people think it's the best book in the world is that a lot of other people think it's the best book in the world, and so on. Kind of like a snow ball rolling down a hill.

You should check this out - http://www.goodreads.com/list/show/1816.Best_Teen_Girl_Books. There are a bunch of comments on Twilight, mostly bad, and they are genius! Especially the first one, which is a spoiler, but is still super genius.

The protagonist is Isabella Swan. Sure, Edward Cullen is also a main character, but the story is told from Bella's view. So I looked up Bella Swan on Wikipedia, and apparently Stephanie Meyer named her Isabella because that is the name that she wanted to name her future kid and Stephanie "loved her like a daughter". Personally, I wouldn't love a main character (especially like a daughter) who a) loves a guy only because he is perfect and looks good (which she mentions every page), b) has very low self-esteem c) would sacrifice herself willingly, d) WANTS TO BECOME A VAMPIRE! FOR SOME STUPID GUY! WTF?! and on, and on, and on, and on, and on. Is that what she wanted her daughter to be like? I hope not...

Then there's Edward Cullen. He loves Bella because she "smells good". I have one major problem with Edward Cullen. Well, more than one... but... anyway, I have a major problem with him. He sparkles in the sun. He's a vampire! Vampires don't sparkle! They are demons and they are crazy and they drink people's blood and they are evil and they don't sparkle!!! Of course, that's only my opinion. Also, how would a vampire be vegetarian? They drink people's blood! I know, the Cullens drink animal's blood instead, but really? Now I know, sure, it's kind of like human vegetarians, but I don't think that vampires resisting from drinking a humans blood is really like a vegetarian resisting from eating bacon. That's because the whole point of vampires is that they drink human blood.

I have to say that my favorite character is probably James. If you haven't read the book you don't know who I'm talking about, but he actually gives the book a plot, instead of the book just being about two people who love each other because the guy looks good and the girl smells good.

Also, the messages that the book sends out are terrible and totally anti-feminist. There are statements like "it's totally fine to change everything about yourself for a guy", (Bella wants to become a vampire, even if it means leaving  everyone she loves [well except for Edward]. What's wrong with her? She is seriously messed up.) and "there's nothing wrong with being obsessed with your boyfriend and depending on him for everything!" (she is a clumsy damsel in distress and she depends on Edward for EVERYTHING.)

If I offended you because you really like Twilight, I'm sorry, and if you understood and enjoyed this post, yippee! I rate this book... 1.3 out of 5 stars. I don't recommend it.

-Annabeth

p.s. That whole blog post (including this thingy) was 851 words! I'm so proud!

Background Changing Decision

Okay, so based on the results we are... keeping the background the way it is! I think that's a good choice because I really like how it looks. Thanks to everyone who voted!

Peace, Love, and Baby Ducks

☮♥♥☮

       Peace, Love, and Baby Ducks by Lauren Myracle is a great book with themes like "sisterly love,"growing up, jealousy, crushes, and friendship.  Carly, the main character, is starting her second year of high school at a super religious Christian school, while her younger sister, Anna, is becoming a freshman there.  Cute little Anna suddenly grew big boobs over the summer, and she is getting lots of attention from boys, jealousy from girls, and even unfair treatment from their poopyhead of a gym teacher, Mr. Schranker (or, as they call him, the Wanker).
       Carly, who tries to not be just like everyone else and cave in to the social norms, finds a great new friend while watching some of her old friends change drasticly, thinks about who God really is, and even starts to crush on a boy named Cole, who -hmm... isn't exactly all he's cracked up to be.
         Then, the climax of the story happens when Carly's parents go out of town, and Carly invites a few friends over, who invite a few more friends over... and you can guess what happens next.  It's totally cliche, but what happens is kind of different than in all the other teen books/movies.
     I just love this book, and just it makes me want to read more and more of it.  In fact, I'm surprised it lasted as long as it did.  By the way, I'm sorry if my review makes it sound like all the other books out there, but it's definitely not.   Peace, Love, and Baby Ducks  is unique and totally worth reading, and I rate it 4.5 out of 5 stars!


                                                                        ✭Rosalind ✭

Woah!

Woah! Not even 3 months in and we have over 4,000 pageviews! Thanks to all the viewers! Great work writers! Woah!

Annabeth

What to Read?

I have not finished a book that no one has posted about yet lately. Sorry sorry sorry sorry sorry! I just finished reading The Boy on Cinnamon St, which Rosalind already blogged about. Right now I'm reading Treasure Island. Since I'm only something like 30 pages in, I'm not sure if I like it or not. I'm hoping to get my hands on the second Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants book, but if I can't get it, what should I read next?

-Annabeth

New Background?

Ok people. Listen up. We now have a vote for: Should we have a new background? Anyone and everyone can and should vote! We want as many votes as possible! The new background would still be books, but it would probably be a bookshelf. I was thinking it might fit this a bit better. Kinda sorta maybe. So what do you think? Tell anyone and everyone you know!

Annabeth

The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants

 

 This book is really good. If you haven't read it already, then you should. There are 4 main characters, who are all girls almost 16. They are Lena, Tibby, Bridget, and Carmen. Lena is the pretty one, Tibby is the "regularish" one with the nose ring, Bridget is the amazing soccer star, and Carmen is the half Puerto Rican one. They have known each other since before they were born. Their moms took an aerobics class together, and they were all born either 19 or 17 days apart. I can't remember. I'm sorry.

They usually spend all of their summers all together, but that summer they were all in different places. Tibby is the only one staying home, which she does not like. She gets grumpy the day before people start leaving, and for some reason asks for a pair of pants that Carmen got at a second-hand store. Carmen had never even bothered to try them on, so (of course) she was not attached to them. Then everyone tries them on and the pants miraculously fit them all! They then call them the Pants and have 10 rules that you have to follow. One of my favorites is #5 - You must not pick your nose while wearing the Pants. You may, however, scratch casually at your nostril while really kind of picking. They each have 2 turns in the summer to have them wherever they are.

Bridget, also known as Bee, etc. is my favorite of the four girls. Her mom died, and she has a twin brother, who you don't hear much of. She goes to an extreme all-girls soccer camp in Baja California for the whole summer. She has bright blond hair, and is probably the best soccer player in all of her camp, even though she is one of the youngest girls there. Then there is a coach at the camp who apparently is very attractive. Bridget flirts with him a bunch, even though there is a "no flirting" rule at camp and he is 21. She's not even 15! WTF!? He tries not to flirt back but it's kind of hard for him, especially when he's half asleep or has had several alcoholic drinks.

Carmen is half Puerto Rican. Her parents are split, and she lives with her mom. She doesn't know much about her dad's personal life, and when she goes to visit him in South Carolina to spend the summer doing fun things with him, she has an unpleasant surprise. Then she gets grumpy and everything is very dramatic.

Lena is part Greek. She has a younger sister who is 14, named Effie (I know, like Effie Trinket), and they go to visit their grandparents in Greece for the summer. Her grandma tries to set her up with a guy named Kostos, who Lena just thinks is kind of... whatever. But then she goes skinny dipping and overreacts when something happens that I don't want to give away. Except I probably did give it away.

Tibby has to stay at home all summer, while her friends go to amazing places without her. She has a part-time job at a drugstore and is really bored. Then a girl who looks about 10 falls into a deodorant display and then they get to know each other well. The girl is 12 and her name is Bailey. She has leukemia (cancer of the blood) and kind of worships Tibby for some reason. Then they make a documentary together and not much happens except then something happens of course you know what it is.

I would rate this book 5 out of 5 stars. It's really good and I would recommend it to all girls 11-...I dunno, 16 or 17 years old? Also there are several more books and I can't wait to read them. And there's a movie that I can't wait to watch. K that's all.

-Annabeth

The Secret Identity Of Devon Delaney

       I would say that instead of reading  The Secret Identity Of Devon Delaney, by Lauren Barnholdt, you should pick up a copy of it, and scan the back cover. It's not like you'd get any more out of reading the actual pages.  Basically, a 13-year-old girl named Devon goes to her grandma's house for the summer and meets a girl named Lexi, and they become really good summer friends.  Devon tells Lexi that back home, she is super popular and dating this hot, popular guy named Jared, who Devon has actually crushed on forever.  Lexi believes her because, why shouldn't she?
         But then -surprise surprise- Lexi moves to Devon's town and they suddenly are in the same school.  For some dumb reason, Devon goes along with her popular-girl lie and pretends that Jared is her boyfriend, even though Jared barely even knows her name. Basically, that's what happens throughout the whole entire book, and Devon's friend Melissa starts feeling really left out because Lexi's now in the picture.  To add to the drama, Devon realizes that she is falling for a boy, and he isn't Jared.
            My favorite character in this book is Katie, Devon's wacky five-year-old sister, who wants to be in the Olympics when she grows up.  It's kind of weird though, because Katie talks like she's about thirteen at least, and I think the author might have forgotten what a five-year-old has for vocabulary. Or maybe she's doing it on purpose.  Anyway, it's kind of cute, and Katie's an interesting character.
      Even though this book is predictable from start to finish, with no new concepts, if you're feeling kind of brain-dead at the moment and want an entertaining book, disregard the first two sentences of this post, and try it out.  I would rate this book 3 out of 5 stars, and if you'll excuse me, I'm off to devour my new issue of Girls' Life!

                                                                ♻ Rosalind ♻

The Potato Chip Puzzles

     If you like puzzles, fun adventure books, and mysteries, this book is for you! The Potato Chip Puzzles, by Eric Berlin, is in a series I really like called The Puzzling World Of Winston Breen (The first book in this series is called The Puzzling World Of Winston Breen, and it's just as good as this one, maybe better.  Also I heard that there's a third coming out this year, called The Puzzler's Mansion!)
     
       Okay, so this fun-filled book starts off with a twelve or thirteen year-old boy named Winston Breen who loves doing puzzles and is really good at them too.  One day, his school's principal receives a slip of paper with seemingly random letters and numbers on it in his mailbox, and so calls Winston to the office to help him with this little mystery.  One deciphered, the message is a phone number.  Winston and his principal call it, and soon become part of a statewide (at least) puzzle hunt at a potato chip factory, owned by Simon's Snack Foods.  And... bump bum bum... the winner gets fifty thousand dollars for their school!
     
       Winston, along with his two best friends and a mean-ish advanced math teacher, set off on a puzzle hunt against lots of other schools.  But someone is determined to win.  And by determined to win, I mean willing to cheat in the contest by giving their competition flat tires and moving important signs.  Who could the cheater be?

   I think the best part of this book is the fact that every time Winston gets a puzzle to solve, whether it be on the back of the granola bar box or in the puzzling competition, the reader gets to solve it too!  The puzzles, from word squares to cool math problems to riddles, are just perfect for a twelve-year-old to solve, and have a lot of fun doing it!

        I rate this awesome book five out of five stars, and I think that anyone from nine to sixteen would enjoy it, boys and girls.  Happy reading!

                                                             ✻  Rosalind  ✻

Here's to You, Rachel Robinson

This book is pretty good. It's the sequel to Just as Long as We're Together, which I read a while ago, which is also good, and I suggest you read that first. As you can see, the author is Judy Blume. Both of these books are about a girl who, (obviously),  is named Rachel Robinson. She is super tall, super smart, and an overachiever. She has a friend named Stephanie, and in Just as Long as We're Together, meets a friend named Alison. But I'm talking about Here's to You, Rachel Robinson, so back to the point. Rachel has an older sister named Jessica, and an older brother named Charles. He gets in a lot of trouble, and was expelled from his boarding school. So he came back home, where he got all the attention, especially negative. Charles also gets on Rachel's nerves by calling her "Child Prodigy" and "Baby Sister". A bunch of stuff happens and it's a good book to read. I would recommend it to anyone... 12 or older. Out of 5 I rate it a 4.3.

Annabeth

A Spell For Chameleon

A few days ago, I finished an action-packed fantasy book my grampa gave me called A Spell For Chameleon, by Piers Anthony.  A book unlike most I have been reading recently, it starts off with the main character, a 25-year-old man named Bink, in the North Village of Xanth, where he lives.  Everyone in Xanth is born with a unique magical talent that only they can do.  For example, Bink's financee Sabrina has the talent of making holographs in  the air, and the village bullies have talents like creating poison gas and making mirage-holes.  Unfortunately, poor Bink is the only one born without a talent. Or so he thinks.

And so Bink sets off on a journey to the Good Magician Humfrey's castle to determine if he has a hidden talent.  Along the way, he meets a centaur named Cherie, attends a hearing, fights a dragon, meets a sorceress of illusion, and saves the life of a wounded soldier.

After Bink meets the Good Magician, I thought the story would end, but boy, was I wrong.  I can't tell you much more of what happens without giving important parts of the book away, but I can tell you that Bink meets the Evil Magician Trent and finds out something about him he never would have guessed, discovers a secret connecting three girls he met on his quest, fights battles and magical plants, and most importantly, realizes a very important thing about himself.

Since this book is about a 25-year old, I would say that you should be at least twelve to read it and also to really enjoy it.  I think this is great novel, and although I felt like giving up on it once or twice because it was so long and the print so small, it is a book definitely worth reading.  I would give A Spell For Chameleon 4.7 out of 5 stars.  Oh, and by the way, if you like this book, there are ten more in this series to read and enjoy!

♥☮☺ Rosalind ♥☮☺

     

School of Fear

Okay, so this is my first post y'all!!!! So I read this book "School of Fear" (que dramatic music).  So it's bout these 4 kiddos,  Madeline (Maddie),  Garrison , Lulu and Theo.  They all have different severe phobias like afraid of bugs,water,small spaces and death.  It's sort of boring and has a really bad ending.  Ok it might sound like I hated it but I guess it's okay light reading.  Some of the characters are really annoying, but lulu is AWESOME!!! Okay she's not too awesome actually but the only one I could stand.  So I guess, read it on a rainy day when you have nothing to read(I found it when I had left my regular book at home and I needed something to read at school for a few days.) I rate it a 2.5 out of 5
                                                -KATNISS!!! :D😳

Give!

      Hi people!  So there are these two websites I really like because you can take a little bit of your time to give things to needy people for free.  (They work because the advertisers on the website that you see pay them, and they can use the money for giving.)  I figured, why not post this on Teen Bookshelf so that lots of people can see it?  Anyway, the websites are:  http://www.care2.com/click-to-donate/ and http://freerice.com.  Gracias, amigas!               ~~~~~~Rosalind~~~~~~~~

The Boy On Cinnamon Street

           The Boy On Cinnamon Street by Pheobe Stone is written in a very poetic way.  The book starts with seventh grader Louise Terrace, or Thumbelina, as she renames herself.  She absolutely hates the fact that she looks like a fourth grader, because everyone is always assuming that she goes to elementary school and boys are always looking over her head.  The reader then learns out that she used to be great at gymnastics, but quit suddenly for some reason, which we later find out.  Thumbelina also lives with her hopelessly in love grandma and grandpa in a condo, and her best friends are tall,  Justin Beiber-loving Reni and geeky-in-his-own-way Henderson, who are brother and sister.   There are some foggy, mysterious secrets in Thumbelina's life, which are revealed throughout this interesting book.  Then, love factors in to the equation when Thumbelina gets mysterious love notes from someone who she thinks is the boy who delivers her pizza.  She starts sending him notes back, but I get the feeling that she is more in love with the idea of a crush than the boy himself.  At the very end of the book, we find out who the note-sender really is, and even though Thumbelina was clueless the whole time, I totally predicted this ending from the start.  The Boy On Cinnamon Street is a good read if you like mysterious books about crushes written in an almost poetic style (Another book like this is Love, Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli).  It was worth reading, and it made me think.  All things considered, I would rate this three and a half out of five stars.  Have a good spring break, and don't forget to keep reading!

***Rosalind***

The Ruby Key

 

I recently finished The Ruby Key, by Holly Lisle. It was pretty good, I thought, but it was kind of slow, especially in the beginning. It's about a girl named Genna, and her younger brother Dan. They go on a quest so they can save their mom, who is very sick. Their father disappeared years ago. It's really complicated, and all in all, it's OK. It was recommended to me by a girl who reads a lot of fantasy, which isn't really my thing, but I decided to read it, even though the beginning was a little boring. I rate this book 3 out of 5 stars. If you're into fantasy, try reading it!

-Annabeth

Mia Is Now Rosalind

Hi!  I have decided to change my blogging name from Mia to Rosalind (from The Penderwicks).
She is an awesome character!  (If you haven't read The Penderwicks, you should!  It's a great book, and there's even a second book and a third book!)
     I changed my name to Rosalind on all of the posts I have written and on the "About Us" section.  Just so you know! :)

P.S.  Come on people, send your book reviews to teenbookshelf2@gmail.com and we will put them on our blog if we like them!  (See the post entitled "Review Books For Our Blog!" for more information)

                                                   ~Rosalind~

Surviving The Applewhites

     I just finished reading this book today, and I really liked it.  It pretty cool because there was some sort of grant that allowed everyone in my school district to get a free copy of this book.  I might have never even heard about this book if it wasn't for that.
     Surviving The Applewhites, by Stephanie S. Tolan, is what I would call a fun, light read.  It all starts when a juvenile delinquent named Jake Semple, who was rumored to have burnt down the last school he went to, goes to stay at Wit's End, which is the name of a big house where lots of kids in the Applewhite family are homeschooled.  There's Cornelia, a moody dancer, who at first sight Jake thinks is the most beautiful girl he's ever laid eyes on, there's the mysterious artist Hal who never comes out of his room, except when the rest of his family is sleeping, there's cute four-year-old blond-haired Destiny (He's a boy), who takes a liking to the rebellious Jake and follows him wherever he goes, and of course there are pets and a bunch of cool, eccentric grown-ups like the mom Sybil (An author), meditate-y Aunt Lucille, and Grandpa Zedideiah (I don't think I spelled that right!).  But the main character, besides Jake, is a girl named E.D., who is the only organized, not-so-artistic person in the family.  As the story unfolds, we also meet more colorful people (The  great characters are definitely my favorite part!), and the dad directs an interesting version of The Sound of Music.  It's totally worth reading to see how the show turns out!  All in all, this is a fun, interesting read, even though it might be a little predictable in some parts, and I would rate it four and a half out of five stars.  Thanks for reading!

                                                                ~Rosalind  (^ - ^)

Chicken Soup For The Pre-Teen Soul

I was just reading Chicken Soup For The Pre-Teen Soul

This book is a collection of inspirational stories. They're each about 2-4 pages long but the book is 386 pages all together. The book is divided into sections depending on what the story is about. The book includes stories about...

Achieving dreams
Friendship
Family
Love
Attitude and Perspective
Overcoming Obstacles
Choices
Changes

Chicken Soup (especially on achieving dreams) are amazing inspiring stories. I would rate this book   4 1/2  out of 5 stars. It was really nice for me to read especially when I was feeling down. But it didn't have enough action or adventure.

I hope YOU love it too if you read it!!!

-Luna

Matched

I just finished reading Matched, by Ally Condie. It's about a girl named Cassia, who lives in a society where officials choose everything for you. They pick your job, when you die, and your match, the person you are expected to marry. At first, Cassia is matched to her life-long best friend, Xander. She is very happy and thinks it's a perfect match. Then, soon after, when she is looking at the information that everyone gets telling more about your match, a different face flashes on the screen. It's Ky, another person Cassia knows. Now, she is not sure whom to love. Sweet Xander, or kind but not society-perfect Ky. As time goes on, she falls in love with Ky. Now, Cassia has to hide her love for Ky from the society. But keeping secrets is hard. Cassia fights for freedom and the right to choose her match.

This book is very good and hard to put down. I would rate it five out of five stars, because it's a really cool story and has a positive message. I hope you get to read and enjoy this excellent book too!

                                       

                                         -Cassia

Boy 21

Finley's life revolves around basketball.Every pre-season, he and his basketball player girlfriend Erin practice their butts off. Shooting drills, passing drills, a five mile jog around town, dribbling the basketball whichever way you can possibly dribble it, and the practice ends with weightlifting. And every season, the  high school senior couple break up, because Finley can't focus on Erin and basketball at the same time. Why is Finley so obsessed with basketball you might ask,and the answer is this. Finley's dad grew up in the same drug dealing Irish mob ruled town that he lives in now, Finley's mom died when he was a toddler, and his grandfather, or "Pop" now has stumps for legs because he tried to sneak back to Ireland from America. One day Russ  Allen comes to town and Finley's coach brings him to meet Russ. Coach says that Russ is an incredible b-ball point guard, like national high school standards, but that Russ's parents, Coaches good friends were murdered, and that event shook Russ mentally. In the car ride over Coach explains that Russ came from California and might come and play for Finley's team. Finley's is anxious because point guard is his position and the way that Coach is talking about him Finley thinks that he might lose his starting position. But it turns out that Russ is now acting like he is from outer space, and calls Finley an "Earthling". He also tells Finley he wants to be called Boy21. When the season begins, Russ obviously isn't trying so Finley gets the starting position. During the rivalry game against Pennsville, Pensville uses a special defensive formation that means that Finley will be open to shoot. Finley's team, Bellmont, plans to give Finley the ball and he will shoot, so once Pennsville realizes they need to mark Finley, Terrell, Bellmont's best shooter, wouldn't be double teamed. But Finley can't sink a shot. At halftime, Coach takes Finley out and puts Russ in. Right before they go on the court, Russ asks Finley if he can use his extraterrestrial powers to win the game. Finley says yes, and Russ shows what he can really do, sinking half court shots and making perect passes. After that Russ gets the starting position. Soon after, Erin is hit by a car and recieves many severe injuries.Will Erins injurie change the way that Finley feels about the game, and will it change anything else as well? Read the book to find out.

I rate this book five stars.Definately. It kept me wanting to read it and had the perfect amount of sadness and drama. The author Matthew Quick did an outstanding job on this book, and I definatley think there should be a sequel.This is a must read teen book.

-Alex

Review Books On Our Blog!

If you're awesome and want to review books for Teen Bookshelf, listen up!  You can email us at  teenbookshelf2@gmail.comwith your book review, and if we like it, we'll post it!  Include a title, a photo of the book cover, your review (duh!), a book rating from one star to five stars, and a made-up name (A book character you like, or maybe your first initial).  We'll give credit to you with your made-up name.
   Thank you, anonymous commenter, for suggesting that our readers might like to review books too.  This is gonna be really cool!  And Annabeth came up with the details so that this plan would actually work, which rocks.  I'm just the one telling everybody about it.  So start emailing us, dudes!  :D  And Teen Bookshelf bloggers, we'd better start checking our blog email!

                                                            ~Rosalind