Middle School Critics

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The critics in this issue!

Me, Myself and I Hannah Epstein Bath and Body Works KK Panda www.briarcliffmanorlibrary.org, Vol. 11, Issue 3, June 2016 Triple Mama Newt Legolas Sunshine Book Dolphin Hugs4theworld The rating system Jinx NYR ALL THE WAY chezcake chez cream

Meet the Critics on Page 11 Excellent Good Okay Bad Horrible

In this issue

The Face on the Milk Carton · Mockingjay · Hamilton (soundtrack) · Sims 4 · Color Switch · The Seventh Most Important Thing · Step Up Revolution · Life As We Knew It · Welcome to Nightvale · The Giant Wave · The Jungle Book (movie) · Island: Shipwreck · Ab- solutely Positively Not · Peak · Every Day · Winter · Jumped In · Across the Universe · Peak · Alchemyst · The Seven Wonders · These Shallow Graves · The Giant Wave · Alex Rider: Stormbreaker · Color Switch · City of Bones · Fuller House · Attack on Titan · Catching Fire · Grimm Fairytales · The Princess, The Scoundrel, and the Farm Boy · The Giver · Nimona · Save the Date · Flowers for Algernon · Red Queen · Among the Hidden · Cress · Rangers Apprentice

The opinions expressed in the reviews are not necessarily the opinion of the Library. The appropriateness of the materials reviewed is not for the Public Library to determine and the students are encouraged to review whatever they’d like— therefore, we encourage parents to be involved in and be aware of their children’s book, movie, television, gaming, internet and music choices. All non-original images are property of their various copyright owners. The Face on the Milk Hamilton Carton (soundtrack) By Caroline b. Cooney Critic: Sunshine Music and Lyrics by Mi- randa Lin-Manuel Parent-given name: Jane “Janie” Johnson. Self- Critic: Mama Newt proclaimed name: Jayyne Miranda Lin-Manuel is a Jonstone. Real name:….Jennie genius. I know what Spring? In the late 1980s, you’re thinking; a musical about a founding fa- nobody paid much attention ther? And a rap musical at that? Well, Hamilton’s to the missing children on milk cartons. But when music is catchy, well-made, informative and it has Janie Johnson sees her own face on a milk carton made me cry many times because I’m so into it. from when she was five it triggers daymares of Every single detail is accurate, like Thomas Jeffer- what could have been her life before a kidnap- son mentioning “Sally” in “What’d I Miss,” Sally ping. She gets answers, but just a thing or two was a slave who Thomas Jefferson had children don’t match up, leaving her unconvinced. This with. I am dying to see it, I haven’t listened to an- book leaves you on the edge of your seat, and I ything else in two weeks...But listen to it, it’s the wish I could tell you more, but you’ll just have to most amazing music I’ve ever heard, and it’s all read the book to find out! Rating: connected!! And if you don’t, then… And finally, you are the worst, Burr. Rating:

Mockingjay The Sims 4 By Suzanne Collins Video Game Critic: Legolas Critic: Jinx Mockingjay is Bad. It’s Love being an evil (or good) boring, very, very boring. dictator controlling people’s, The first half of the book is or an entire town’s, lives? tragically boring. Though That’s right. Control people’s the second half of the book lives. YOU make them, design is entertaining and thought their outfits. This game’s provoking the first half is enough to make me graphics are SUPER realistic and amazing! The stop reading all together. The series as a whole is Sims you create can get jobs, if they are children great. Mockingjay is bad. I did not tell you about then they do homework. If they don’t, they fail. the actual book because...Dont’ read it. (Read The Parents skip work? They get fired. There are end- Hunger Games and Catching Fire though) less possibilities, and endless items in the store to Rating: buy. Live simple? Or live grandly and rich? Move up in your career? Or live on minimum wage? Endless possibilities. Rating:

Color Switch Step Up Revolution App Movie Rated PG-13 Critic: Hannah Epstein Critic: KK Panda This game is really addicting. Step Up Revolution is the fourth It is really fun. Your goal is to movie in the Step Up franchise. It get your colored symbol to is about Sean, a middle-class guy the finish line. Your goal is to who with his friends is part of a finish all the levels in that flashmob called “The Mob.” They round. You get a prize if you do dances to show how they feel do so. Rating: and to prove they have a voice. Emily, the

daugther of a rich realtor, wants to be a profes- sional dancer but her father doesn’t approve. When Emily meets Sean, they form a connection. The Seventh Most Problems arise when Emily’s father wants to re- Important Thing make Sean’s neighborhood and take down all the houses and stores. The rest of the movie is about By Shelley Pearsall how Emily and Sean dance to show their voice. Critic: Book Dolphin This movie is amazing and has lots of dance, romance, and drama. Rating: This book is about a boy named Arthur who threw a brick at an old man’s head. Life as we Knew It The brick missed and the man broke his shoulder instead of dying. Arthur’s father had died recent- By Susan Beth Pfeffer ly, and the old man was the “Junk Man.” Arthur’s Critic: NYR ALL THE WAY mom was throwing out his dad’s stuff. The Junk Man had taken Arthur’s dad’s hat from the trash, This is a book about a family and that made Arthur mad. He went to Juvie but who is perfectly normal, and in court the Junk Man (Mr. Hampton) stood up for then a meteor strikes at the Arthur and said that instead of going back to Ju- moon and moves the moon vie, Arthur would work for Mr. Hampton. Arthur into a perfect spot to begin an collects the seven most important things: light- ice age. The family must survive in these terrible bulbs, foil, mirror, pieces of wood, glass bottles, condictions and often strugges to survive. They coffee cans, and cardboard. Arthur didn’t know go on a big shopping spree and read to find out what this was for until….Nope. No spoilers here. what happens. Rating: Read this book to find out! Rating: The Jungle Book The Giant Wave Movie Rated PG By Peg Kehret Critic: Starbucks Critic: chezcake123 I really love the new movie The Giant Wave is such a good Jungle Book because it had a book. It was about two kids, lot of action. Also the actors one girl and one boy, alone, on are very good. For example, an island...a tsunami is on its Mowgli is very good and is way. Will they survive being very brave. I would recommend this to any alone or will they perish? Read the book find out. person who loves action. Rating: Rating: The Giant Wave Island: Shipwreck By Peg Kehret By Gordan Korman Critic: Starbucks Critic: chezcream Two kids are in a hotel by This book is about six kids who themselves and then bam a were sent on a boat and no one tornado comes and the hotel is wanted to be there, then a terrify- on fire then they get out of the ing storm hits...who will survive? hotel and have to run up a hill Who will die? Read the book to and watch the tsunami and find out more. Rating: then another wave comes and they have no energy to run. Will they survive the tsunami? Read the book. Rating: Absolutely Positively Not... Welcome to Nightvale By David LaRochelle Podcast Critic: Jinx Critic: Mama Newt It’s perfectly normal to check The scorching sun sinks behind guys out...right? That’s what the empty desert dunes. Wel- the main character does. He’s come to Nightvale. a boy, too. This boy doesn’t want to be gay, or doesn’t In this strange spontaneous de- know it. However, his best friend and probably a sert town, it seems anything can lot of other people do know. This is the hilarious happen. And I mean anything. Growing second story about his journey of getting out of the heads, canceling Wednesdays, minor exorcisms, closet, and putting up with his gay-disapproving major exorcisms, 5-headed dragons, hooded fig- parents. Rating: ures in a dog park you’re not allowed to even look at, evil wheat and wheat by-products, imaginary corn crops (so good!), angels and glow clouds. Peak (All Hail the Glow Cloud). Join radio show host Cecil, scientist Carlos (who Cecil gets an immedi- By Roland Smith ate crush on) and his beautiful fair, Old Woman Critic: Sunshine Josie and her angel, the sheriff and his secret po- lice, Steve Carlsburg (unfortunately) and you. And Fourteen-year-old Peak has a goodnight, dear listener. Goodnight… Rating: complicated past. Long story short, he’s ultimately punished

himself into climbing Everest Every Day with his long lost father to be the youngest person to ever reach the mountain By David Levithan peak (pun intended). Between shaky relationships Critic: Hannah Epstein and unexpected competition, this is a must-read that should go without saying. Rating: Every day this person has to check if they are fat, skinny, dark, light, ugly or pretty. One day this person falls in love with a really pretty girl. This person changes bodies every day. How can the person confess their love if they change bodies every day? Read to find out. Rating: Winter By Marissa Meyer Critic: Me, Myself & I This is the most satisfying Across the Universe conclusion to a series I’ve ever read. Unlike Blood of By Beth Reves Olympus, in which they fly Critic: Triple away on a golden dragon named Happy. Anyway, back This book is a really...wow to Winter, which is an amazing book that tied up book. At some points it’s really all loose ends from the series. All your ships from hard to read, but not because the whole journey come together eventually and it’s bad but it makes you really it’s beautiful. It’s a final battle between Queen sad, and of all things, hopeless Levana and the crew of the Rampion (which is the and alone. Amy is a girl who equivalent to the Argo II, since I’ve already made a gets cryogenically frozen with her parents on a reference to the Heroes of Olympus series). All of spaceship called Godspeed. This spaceship is the characters each go through the hardest times headed to a planet orbiting Alpha-Centauri. This of their lives, creating a satisfying plot full of ac- trip will take 350 years. However, Amy is woken tion. Rating: up to a dictatorship led by a man named Eldest 50 years before the ship is set to arrive. This book

makes everything feel so different, yet so similar. Jumped In Everything is artificial and the people on board are By Patrick Flores-Scott all of the same ethnicity and strangely...normal. However, something dark is going on behind the Critic: Book Dolphin scenes. Other cryogenically frozen people are dy- Jumped In is about a boy ing and a mysterious killer is pulling the strings. I named Sam. Sam doesn’t don’t want to spoil any more of this book, but it’s want to be noticed. He used so touching and you don’t want to miss it. There to live in Alberdeen, but then are also two sequels, which change every- his mom left and Sam thing...Rating: moved to Washington with his grandparents. Everything seems to remind him of his dark times when his mom left. Soon a new kid, a gangster, Peak named Luis Cardenas moves in. He seems to be By Roland Smith as unnoticeable as Sam. When they have to do a Critic: Legolas new English project, Luis and Sam got partnered up. The until was poetry, and Luis and Sam actu- Peak is a great book. 14 year ally gave this project a chance. As the project old Peak Marcello is arrested goes on, the truth is revealed about Luis with this while climbing a Woolworth huge plot twist. This book has its fair share of building. Long story short curse words, but is REALLY good. Rating: Peak ends up climbing Mount

Everest with his father that he hasn’t seen for 7 years! He is also climbing with the cagey Sherpa Zopa, Peak’s new best friend Sun-Jo, and a Post news reporter Holly Angelo. This book has great plot, a great reveal, and a touching ending. Read it!!! Rating: The Alchemyst These Shallow Graves By Michael Scott By Jennifer Donnelly Critic: Jinx Critic: Mama Newt Nicholas Flamel is a Jo Montfort has her whole life bookseller. A really old planned out like it’s a play: bookseller. Like, 600 years she’s going to finish her pri- old. He has discovered the vate all-girls school, practice secret of immortality, but it all the right manners, marry comes with a price. He rich, have kids and drown her- knows of a prophecy, “the two that are one and self in dogs and gardens if love doesn’t follow her the one that is all.” Very creepy and mysterious… future husband’s money. Then her father dies. Jo Nicholas and Perenelle (his wife) have their knows the story of his revolver going off while he bookstore destroyed by Dee, and Sophie and Josh was cleaning it can’t be true. Charles Montford Newman get caught up in a mess they don't want was way too smart for that. Jo’s dream is not her to be in. They have gold and silver auras (SUPER planned out, easy, rich life; she wants to become a powerful) and just might be the twins from the journalist. At the newspaper press her father prophecy. Along with Scatty (a vampire), they set owned, she overhears a boy talking about Mr. out to save the world from Dee, an evil crazy Montford’s death. The boy is Eddie, and this powerful person. Rating: gossip has gotten him stuck with a story-hungry

Jo. Soon, she falls for the poor boy’s comfort and The Seven Wonders the way he doesn’t give her special treatment. Between fighting the treatment of women in her By Peter Lerangis time, trying to play up her rich life, and her feeling for Eddie, Jo tries to dig up the truth about her Critic: JInx father’s murder. Rating: Jack is an ordinary boy (don’t

most books start with that?) with an incredible problem. Alex Rider: Stormbreaker He is going to die, all By Anthony Horowitz because of some mysterious gene. A mysterious organization claims to save Critic: Hannah Epstein people like him through surgeries. This gene This book is SO AMAZING!!! A teen gives each person who has it amazing superspy, Alex Rider, is “recruited” powers (so cliché). Marco gets super strength/ because his uncle was “in an accuracy. Alys is a movie geek and coding genius. accident.” Alex knew that wasn’t the Cass gets to be a human GPS (congrats). Their truth, and the bullet holes prove it. entire mission for the whole book is to find a The computer, Stormbreaker, is supposed to be magical artifact. Overall, this book is written dangerous. Alex Rider is supposed to go and nicely, but too cliché for me to appreciate. Investigate the man who created them. Will Rider Now...Percy Jackson is an entirely different find out if the man and the computer are story...Rating: dangerous? Read to find out! Rating:

WORD SEARCH s y c j p g l x c p e c g p a k w h n c s b t g l c t l c y t t e u h k r t p g u x l l m u e e e b n n r i d t w s e a k e t z t i u i l s r g q m h s n a c e p y h s i u q s e g g e h y h n o s s n b p f n e e u g t y j k t u n a r o t m h n a u d o b a a e g m a e u b l h d o a x e t t e l q r c n q j b n e l w s c o p u p y s r e d n a l s i c s m v m y p n a t n z p r o f r i y n p o m o r i u x h m v n o v u u q d j r e d c c v d e z d q w

books clement gnome library pecans rice sweetpotato cheetah gem huh moist Pink squishy tennis chocolate glump islanders panda purple sweatshirt wristband Color Switch Game app Critic: Bath and Body Works Your goal is to get your ball through the color traps. When you beat all the challenges you get a prize. Play the game to find out what the prize is. There is a mode called “black and white” and it is really fun. In total there are 12 modes, including this new mode called “spin” that came out on April 19, 2016. You should check it out. Play color switch! Rating: Attack on Titan City of Bones Anime, based on manga by Hamjimi Isayama By Cassandra Clare Critic: Sunshine Critic: Book Dolphin Eren Jaeger is eager to join the only forces that go This book is about a girl to the outside world. He lives in a town surround- named Clary. She seems per- ed by three walls that protect all citizens from the fectly normal until she realiz- Titans, giants that, well...eat humans. He lives with es that she could see shad- his orphan best friend, Mikasa, who hardly speaks, owhunters (people who kill daemons). Her mom but seems to be a perfect human. But as soon as gets kidnapped and he thinks her mom’s friend Eren is old enough to join, he discovers the price has betrayed them. Clary meets Jace, Alec, and to be paid when trying to save the world. (viewer Isabel (other shadowhunters) who take Clary in. discretion is advised) Rating: Clary realizes that she is a shadowhunter as well, but her memory has been blocked. What will happen? Read to find out. No, read anyway. This Grimm Fairytales book is beyond awesome. I love it. So will you. Rating: By Brothers Grimm Critic: Mama Newt Fuller House Grimm fairytales (REAL fair- ytales) are so, so, so, so, SO Tv series on Netflix much better than the boring, Critic: KK Panda predictable, overtold “girly” things that we all read to our Fuller House is the sequel three-year-olds today. Grimm fairytales are gory, to Full House, the popular exciting, unpredictable and—you guessed it– sitcom of the 90s. Fuller House is very similar to grim. Full of plot twists and things so awful you Full House. In Fuller House, Deejay has to take can’t believe somone actually wrote it. Take care of her 3 kids alone until her sister Stephanie Cinderella for example. Her step sisters who were and her friend Kimmy come to her rescue. In so mean to her? They get their eyes pecked out Fuller House the girls make time to go through by a raven and then go to hell where they suffer parenting while at the same time having fun. for all eternity. ☺. Although they are legitimately Fuller House is amazing and I highly recommend HORRIBLE, you can’t put them down. Rating: it. Rating: Catching Fire Nimona By Suzanne Collins By Noelle Stevenson Critic: Legolas Critic: chezcream Catching Fire is the best This book is amazing! It is book in the Hunger Games about a girl that wants to be a trilogy. First was good, third sidekick for a villain and she was ok, Catching Fire was can shapeshift. She will turn epic. New tributes, new alli- into something that will ances; and a new...plan? Yes surprise you. Read the book to find out more! the master plan of the series is revealed, and half Rating: of the tributes are in on it. The whole arena, it seems, are rooting for Katniss, “The Girl on Fire.” What’s the plan, you ask? Read the book!!! Save the Date Rating:

By Jenny B. Jones The Princess, The Scoundrel, and the Critic: KK Panda Farm Boy Save the Date is about a girl, Lucy, who shelters homeless By Alexandra Bracken girls. Her shelter, Saving Critic: Legolas Grace, is about to be taken away from her. Her only hope is to pretend that This is a book adaption of Star she is going out with Alex, the son of a rich Wars: A New Hope. Just so businessman, who says he will pay her. At first it you know, I only rated this was just for the money, but as time goes by, Alex good since I saw the movie and Lucy start to fall for each other. Read the and knew everything that was book to find out what happens. Rating: going to happen. Otherwise, this is truly a great book. If you’ve seen Star Wars still read it. I’ve been told not to spoil anything...but, I know you’ve seen the movie! Among the Hidden Rating: By Margaret Peterson Haddix Critic: Bath and Body Works The Giver A kid named Luke is a third child but third children are By Lois Lowry illegal….one day he saw a per- Critic: chezcake son through a window when everyone else was gone in the This book was a very good neighborhood. So, will he go book. It was about a boy who over to see if that shadow was a third child, too? has his career in his communi- Read the book to find out. Rating: ty’s hands. Also, he might get chosen to be the most important kid in the community. Read the book to find out what job he gets. Rating:

Flowers for Algernon By Daniel Keyes Cress Critic: Tripe By Marissa Meyer In the beginning of Flowers for Critic: Book Dolphin Algernon, Charlie is a (mentally retarded) adult who dreams of Cress (or the Lunar Chronicles) being smart. Charlie agrees to is a MUST READ! This book is undergo an experimental about a girl named Cress who procedure that, over time, has lived on a satellite since makes him the smartest man alive. However, all is she was 10. She got in touch not well. Charlie soon comes to realize that the with Cinder and her crew by a world isn’t as nice and forgiving as he thought. D-comm chip (direct communication device). It’s really sad, but it’s interesting and definitely Captain Thorne came to rescue Cress, but they worth the read. Also, let’s just say that if it seems got tricked and stranded on a desert. too good to be true, it probably is. Rating: Their relationship grows as Cinder and her crew reunite with Dr. Erland. Scarlett gets

captured. This probably makes no sense, so read Red Queen Cinder, Scarlette and then Cress. As the plan to By Victoria Aveyard kidnap Prince Kai unfolds (this is a good thing), there is a big chase involving the Military. Just Critic: Me, Myself & I read Cinder and you’ll want to continue with the This book is a New York series. This plot is beautiful. Rating: Times bestseller, and it totally deserves that honor, because this is one of the Ranger’s Apprentice most amazingly-written books. Set in a futuristic By John Flanagan kingdom, Red Queen is a dramatic, romantic, Critic: Hannah Epstein dramatic, suspenseful, (did I mention dramatic?) When Will is chosen to story of love, betrayal and hierarchy. There are become a Ranger’s Appren- two kinds of people: Reds (who have regular tice, he was not excited. He blood) and Silvers (who have silver blood and wanetd to go to Battle School. powers and are superior over all Reds and can Will was training with Halt, the basically treat them like dirt). Follow a young girl Ranger Master. When the named Mare as she finds herself a single Red Kalkara, vicious beasts, attack Halt is injured. He among Silvers, and she has a choice to make as a was bitten by Kalkara. Will, Sir Rodney, and Baron rebellion starts. Rise, read as the dawn… Arold all fight the Kalkara. Will can choose to Rating: become a battlemaster apprentice. Will he stay a Ranger or become a Knight? READ TO FIND OUT. Rating:

Meet the Critics chezcake I’m nice and I Me, Myself and I like cheesecake and puppies Legolas and my besties Hannah, I am Sam. Sam I Stephanie and Claudi and I am. JK my name’s If you think I’m love to read!!! not Sam. I am perfect...I am! Myself not Yourself because that just doesn’t make sense. Anyway, I am just one Triple Book Dolphin of the billions of people on this earth. Yup. I’m Triple, the video-game I love books, but I playing, bad pun-making guy am not a book who spends most of worm. I am a book dolphin. Bath and Body Works his time well… playing video Loves to go shopping. games and making bad chezcream puns. I also like drawing My name is smiley faces Claudia. I love animals. I like graphic novels. Jinx I am Jinxed. I have the worst luck ever. Literally. Except for finding this club, and my awesome friends. Oh, and I Hannah Epstein LOVE peanut butter and cheesecake. And brussel sprouts. And books. And…..well, you get the point. I love hockey. I love the Islanders! Let’s Go NYI! KK Panda Sunshine

I love pandas and Yes, the Mama Newt penguins. My name is favorite kind of ironic. Never. Stop. Running. book is fantasy. Or... Reading!! Books = life, Maze Runner = soul, fandoms = spirit. NYRALLTHEWAY My name is Hugs4theworld Michael. The Love everyone, hug everyone. When Rangers are being a human is too hard...time to be a amazing and will be forever unicorn. for all eternity. Let’s go Rangers! 9