The Six Newsies
Six girls, six articles
Top Six Books
1) Out of My Mind
2) Elsewhere
3) Pretty Little Liars
4) Life of Pi
5) The Becoming
6) Anna dressed in Blood
Anna Dressed in Blood: #6
Anna Dressed in Blood by Kendare Blake
Theseus Cassio, known as Cas, carries his father’s legacy by killing murderous ghosts to be at peace. In the beginning of the book, he had just heard about a spirit known as Anna Dressed in Blood, who kills everybody who sees her in her old house from the eighteen hundreds, and he moves to Canada with his mom to find her and kill her. In this tense story, Cas learns the secrets of Anna and finds that she is not like any other ghost he’s ever encountered and is much stronger emotionally and physically than anything he’s dealt with. With his three new friends, Thomas, Carmel, and Will, he goes on an adventure of murders and crimes, of dead and alive, and of hate and love.
Personally, I really liked this spine-tingling story. I loved the way Blake gave Cas feelings towards every character and reacted in his own thoughts to events with a lot of detail. I would give this book three stars out of five based on the fact I enjoyed the terrifying yet sad story of Anna, Cas, and friends. I didn’t give all five stars because of the way the author ended the book; a hook. There is a sequel but it always frustrates me when something really exciting is happening and then the author doesn’t tell you how it ends! I also didn’t like how fictional it all was. Although I really like fantasy genres, it was completely unreal and could never happen and it didn’t sit well with me. I think, if ghosts are actually real, could be sent away but they couldn’t be physically killed because they’re already dead. Overall, I liked this book even though it had a few elements I didn’t love.
The Becoming: #5
The Becoming by Lynne Ewing
Everyone has a dark side, but for Tianna, she feels as if hers is threatening to destroy her. For this Daughter of the Moon, everything is falling apart. Constantly she has to look over her shoulder because she feels as if someone is stalking her, watching her every move. L.A. was supposed to be a safe place for her to fit in and be an average girl, but Tianna knows that is next to impossible. She has the power to move things with her mind, making her stick out like a sore thumb. Eventually, she meets girls like her, with magical powers too. Even though her dream of having friends came true, everything isn’t as perfect as Tianna thought it would. Everyone keeps telling her that she is “becoming”, yet Tianna has absolutely no idea what that means. Tianna knows that she had better learn fast, because she feels a stirring inside her and she knows she is changing rapidly.
This book was really exciting. I kept on having to read it and find out more. This book’s genre is definitely fantasy, but it is one that I think anyone would enjoy. The Becoming is part of a series that is all about Greek gods and goddesses. I really loved how Lynne Ewing started off each of the books with a flashback. It never says which character they are talking about, so you have to infer. There is something that I would definitely change. As you transition from each book in the series, it is really confusing. Usually in a series all the books flow smoothly with each other. In this series, each book doesn’t really do that, so I can see how it would be confusing to someone. As a whole, this book was really good! I would rate this book with 4 stars because I really liked how it was fast paced and based off of mythology.
Life of Pi: #4
Life Of Pi by Yann Martel
The chances of surviving a shipwreck in the middle of the Pacific in 1977 are rare. The chances of surviving on a lifeboat with a male Royal Bengal tiger are even rarer. Teenager Pi Patel is traveling across the sea to Canada from Pondicherry with his family on a Japanese cargo ship. The ship sinks and Pi is the only human survivor. He lost his family, and now all he has is a Bengal tiger, an orangutan, a zebra, and a hyena on a small lifeboat. Pi knows humans are dominate to animals, but in a small area with a known predator, the only rule to the animal is kill or be killed. One should read this book because it is just so heartwarming. It can change one’s mind about anything; from zoos to survival. Yann Martel did an amazing job writing this book. The setting well described, and the plot is wonderful. The only thing to dislike is staying up late at night to read it. In this book, Pi Patel faces three threats. The first is health. He can run out of food and water or even catch illness. The second is the tiger. A 450 pound beast can easily kill a human or drive them into the sea where sharks can get them. And the third one is giving up itself. One may say to themselves there is no way to live, and just give up on life. Pi was determined to survive; with a tiger or not, and in the Pacific or not.
I give this book 6 out of 5 stars. It was truly an outstanding book. Usually I am not all that interested in fiction, but this book changed my mind. Everyone should read this book.
Pretty Little Liars: #3
Pretty Little Liars
By: Julie Elwell
Five friends, everything was perfect. It was a stormy night and the girls were having a fun sleepover. Well, it was fun until their friend Ali stormed out of the sleepover and could not be found. A tear dripped down each of the four girl’s faces as they found out Ali was most definitely gone. The book is about what happened three years after Ali disappeared. It explains how the girls are getting strange text messages from someone named A. Also, how they must come together to find out what really happened to Alison. That’s not the only thing these girls are worried about. Spencer steals her sister’s boyfriend. Aria is heartbroken that her English teacher doesn’t love her the way she loves him. Emily likes her new friend Maya as more than just a friend. Hanna’s obsession with looking flawless is making her sick. All these unbelievable girls have many secrets that they think only they know. Heads will turn and questions will spin. You never know what will happen next and this will make you not want to stop reading. Pretty Little Liars is not just a great story it also has a great message too. The message is to be strong and work together and if you do this success will come to you. This book is full of drama and suspense. It is definitely a five star book! So, if you like dramatic mysteries and five star books this is the book for you.
Elsewhere: #2
Elsewhere by Gabrielle Zevin
When 16 year old Elizabeth Hall dies, her life is changed forever. Liz, as her friends call her, is hit by a taxi cab on her way to the mall to meet her best friend Zooey. On Liz’s way to Elsewhere, traveling by cruise ship, she learns why she is here, and is not happy about it at all. She should be at the mall with Zooey, going to Prom, getting her driver’s license, and simply enjoying life. But she’s dead. Soon after departure, Liz finds her grandmother, Betty, whom she had never met before because of breast cancer. Liz learns the way of life on Elsewhere and slowly accepts it. A major thing that Liz has never gotten over would be the way you age. Here on Elsewhere, you age backward. This happens from the age you die until you are an infant again and need to be sent back to Earth where they are born again. This may sound like a very positive thing to look forward to, but as we all know, when you are a baby, you cannot remember many things when you are a baby. So, as you get younger, you forget all of the things that has happened to you on Earth. So, the question is: How will Liz handle being on Elsewhere?
I read this book because I love fantasy books. If you are not into this type of genre, then I suggest picking up a different book. Out of 5 stars, I would rate this 4.5, which is very good to me. Something I loved about this book would be how there was action, cliff hangers, and how well written it was. A thing, I don’t have many, I did not like about this book was the beginning. It was a little sad when Liz had to leave Earth, but other than that, I loved this book!
Out of my Mind: #1
Out of My Mind By Sharon Draper
Melody is a ten year old girl with cerebral palsy, a disability restraining her body from doing anything by herself or being left alone without anything bad happening. Her wise mind is trapped behind jerking motions and undirected words. This book follows her journey in being a “social outcast” and new classrooms to her first friend and her first word. She’ll never be able to go shopping, talk on the phone, whisper secrets to her friends or sing and dance. Melody is physically silenced; the odds are not on her side or in her favor. Her days of special-Ed classes and mindless cartoons are behind her as she’s wheeled into a real classroom for the first time. Melody is a compelling character who invites you to see her world through her mind. When a quiz team opportunity is offered, Melody is ready to jump on it and start, but people have their doubts about having a disabled girl on their team. When winning nationals is on the line, will Melody pull through and study? A horrid event at the end of the story steers the story into the deep and changes Melody’s perspective on her condition. Her teammates and classmates both see her in one way, the weird girl with the problem, but the story shows who she really is and what keeps her strong. This book is a captivation tale on how one person can change everything, and how everything can change with one simple person.