The Underneath

Okay...I'm really bad at writing blogs,mainly because I can't seem to remember to write any posts! But here's another attempt! Introducing...

                                        
                                                   The Underneath,by Kathi Appelt 
       


Rating:Five Stars
Awards:National Book Award Finalist, Newberry Honor
Genre: Fantasy


   The Book starts with a pregnant  tabby cat that has just been dumped into a forest and abandoned by a family she thought loved her. One day,she hears the sound of a lonely Bloodhound. This Bloodhound called Ranger is abused by the cruellest man alive. His name is Gar Face,and he's an ugly man that loves to hunt alligators. When the momma gives birth two the kittens,she names them Puck and Sabine. Ranger And Momma constantly tell the kittens to never go outside-or risk becoming alligator bait for Gar Face! One Day,Puck steps outside-a big mistake. Puck and Momma get captured and thrown into the river. They get separated,and Puck needs to find his way back to Ranger. Now,this sounds like realistic fiction. Then there's the other half of the book. The trees have a secret language, and the alligator Gar Face hunts is 100 feet long and 1000 years old. There is also short chapters about a half woman half serpent that has been trapped in a jar for WAY to long to be real.
   This book is absolutely amazing! It is very peaceful,and even action parts somehow sounds poetic. Kathi is an artist of literature,and you will read this book is record time! The only way to explain this is from a part of the book:
This piney woods forest in far East Texas is wet and steamy. Take a step and your footprint will fill with water. Look up,and you will barely see the sky,only small blue puzzle pieces,blocked by ancient trees. It is hidden,this place,and so are the traces of civilization.  OR THE SNAKE PART : But despite her affection for the alligator king,she longed for her own kind...Here in the swampy forest,there were millions of snakes...but there was no lamia (half human,half serpent) Ahh..lamia,half serpent half human.Blood that ran both cold and hot. 

My Award: Most Poetic Novel

 

New Features

I have some trademarks of my posts,usually with a small introduction,then a picture of the book. I go on to explain the book,then review it. But now,I am adding two new features!

1.I will name the genre of the books. I will also have the label Teacher's Choice if this was read by a teacher,and mention any awards the book has received.

2.The book will receive it's own award,such as: Most Creative. Let's say there are two books. I name book A the funniest. Then I read Book B,and it's even funnier! Book A will be changed to Funniest Book-2nd Place.

What do you think of these ideas? Let me know in the comments!

Escape From Warsaw

The following book is one that my teacher read to us.We finished it 3 days ago. Introducing....
                               Escape From Warsaw,by Ian Serrillier

Rating:3 and a half Stars

  The book begins with the story of a man named Joseph Baliki and how he escaped from a death camp in World War II. His wife was sent to a labouring camp. They left behind 3 children and a friend. Ruth,the oldest of the four must take on responsibility as mother. Edek,a boy scout with a strong will. Bronia,a sweet and caring toddler. Jan, who Joseph met,and loves thievery and animals.When Jan brings a message that their father was heading the Switzerland,the children go on a journey. Leaving their home town in Warsaw,they endure seperation,soldiers,and sickness.
  Escape From Warsaw goes by slowly,using lots of detail,sometimes too much. But you do get attached to the characters,and want to encourage them. This is also just a book out of thousands,the one that your teacher chooses to read. There was nothing much to make it stand out from other book on World War II,but I do believe that it is a small book worth reading. Also,this book is also called The Silver Sword,so you have two titles to look out for! On my next post,I will be reviewing another teacher's choice,so look out! 

Extras

Here is the final book in the Uglies series...

  Extras,by Scott Westerfeld

Rating:Five Stars 

    It's been 5 years after Tally Youngblood brought down new Pretty Town and it's secret. A whole new world has formed. Everyone is ranked and has a place in society. This rank is based of your feed,the new type of social media. People have TVs,and each channel is a person. You have a hovercam that follows you around,and you can record everything you do,to feeding your cat to going to parties on the cam. The #1 most popular person is Tally,and she doesn't even live in the cities,but in the woods,fighting off people who want to start cutting down trees. There are 4 types of people in this world. Surge Monkeys, who go through radical altering surgeries to get views. Kickers,who record other people and talk about them.Tech Heads,people who invent great new things. Extras,who are in the background. They are unpopular,and have low face ranks. Aya is an Extra,with a sad face rank of 451,369. She's trying to hit fame as a kicker,but nobody really watches. One night,Aya meets a group of girls that have found a way to ride 200 mph trains. They keep their face ranks low on purpose. If Aya kicks this story,she'll be a legend. But there are some complications. She must find a way to capture a video secretly. And right when things,can't get better,they go so bad Tally herself makes her way to find Aya. 

       Scott sure has a lot of worlds in his head! This was so interesting,and the face rank system isn't bad or hiding something,but rather a creative lifestyle. There were plot twists that were super unimaginable,and kept me glued to the book. The face rank confused me at first,because I thought the higher the number,the more popular. That's not the case. But this was a great book,and I am sad this is the last of the series. Read this book if you like:social media,hate pollution,animé,and radical honesty(read the book to find out)!

Specials

I'm here with the third piece in the Uglies series! Take a look at...

    

Specials, by Scott Westerfeld

Rating:4 stars

 

   Tally's friend Shay has turned her into a Special. Specials are pretty much superhuman. Their senses are 1,000 times stronger than a normal human,and super fast. They are pretty,but in a terrifying way that sends shivers down everyone's back that see them. Tally remembers being a rebel Ugly and the reason why. But now Tally knows that this secret is here to protect humanity. Now it's her that fights the rebels and almost always wins single handedly. There's only one problem with this life. Her boyfriend,Zane,was not turned into a Special,and Tally cannot look into his pretty face without being disgusted. She and Shay create a plan that will make Zane impossible to deny as Special material. But the plan goes wrong with a security breach and Tally's world think a neighbouring area is starting war. Realizing her mistake,Tally travels to San Diego,where people can go through any surgery they want. With some more Special arrivals (get it?) San Diego thinks the Specials are too dangerous and must go through a surgery to remove their powers. They even remove the creator of the Specials,one herself. Tally is the last to be transformed back,but she escapes. The book ends here with a large cliffhanger!

   This book was a bit slower than her sister's. The plot goes slowly at some parts,but at other's,there are huge plot twists! The book itself is interesting,with high speed chases and brutal defeats. Each chapter leaves you wanting more. I think that this world is very interesting,and if I had multiple lives,I would spend one here. this left me wondering what I would be,so I took an online test:Ugly,Pretty,Smokie,or Special? The results say I'm a Pretty,so my life here wouldn’t be as interesting as,say,Tally's,but the test says I'll enjoy it! 

Here is the link to your own quiz. What did you get?Share for Ugly,Comment for Pretty,+1 for Smokie,and Subscribe for Special.

Uglies Quiz

Pretties

I'm back with the next book in the Uglies series...

          
                                    

Pretties,by Scott Westerfield

Rating:Four Stars

  The book starts where Tally has been turned into a pretty...and loves her life!There's only one problem. She remembers her time in the Smoke,but not why she turned herself in. But Tally doesn't care because this life is so much better! She is popular,goes to the best parties,and is in the best club ever:the Crims.  This group focuses on being bubbly,which means having an adrenaline rush. Her super hot boyfriend is also in the club,and they both discover a secret. Tally and Zane find a note from pre-ugly Tally,reminding her of the reason she turned herself in,and the secret that makes her run away-again.
   This book was really good,and at the beginning of the book,her life sounds like bliss-because it is!This book was kind of confusing,but I just went along with it. There  are HUGE plot twists,and I couldn't stop reading. I like the world in which Earth has become,and there are amazing things like hoverboards, self boiling water,and bungee suits which allow you to jump from a huge distence without support. If you are looking for a good book to read,READ THIS BOOK!!! (after you read the Uglies)

The Uglies

Sorry about the time distance between my posts,but that was because there was nothing to read!!!!Well,I had something to read...until I finished it. What is this book,you ask? Take a look at
                           

Uglies,by Scott Westerfeld

Rating:Four Stars

   First,let me explain about the world in this book. From birth to age 11,you are considered a Littlie and  live with your parents. From age 12 to 15,you are considered an Ugly. Friends have nicknames for each others flaws,such as Squinty and Shorty. You live in a dorm with your friends. At age 16,you get a life altering surgery. You receive flawless skin,large eyes,and full lips,along with other changes to hair and height. After this transformation,you are a Pretty. You live in mansions and have parties all day and night till about 30,when you get another surgery that makes you look more adult. You get a job and raise your own littlies. After the age of 90 you get another surgery that makes you have softer skin and lighter hair and you stay that way for the rest of your life,where you live to be about 117!
  Tally Youngblood is a 15 year old Ugly,and she can't wait for the treatment. Her best friend just turned 16 and is living in New Pretty Town having the time of his life,Tally finds out after sneaking over. While waiting for those long 3 months to pass,Tally makes a new friend called Shay. Shay doesn't want to become pretty and runs away to the "Smoke" to live with a guy called David after Tally turns her down to come with her.
  Finally,it's Tally's big day. But terrifying pretties take her to their lab and tell her the bad news. These people called Specials know that Shay has run away,leaving Tally in a mess. Tally must find Shay and turn her in,or never become pretty. Tally chooses to find Shay and the Smoke. But she soon finds the reason this place exists. The reason isn't very pretty. Tally must make the choice to continue with the mission or become a wanted rebel.
  I love this book!It seems like a shallow plot with people living in Pretty Town and everyone is happy,but it's anything but that!There are extreme plot twist,and I finished this book in 5 days. There was a huge cliffhanger at the end,leading me to start a frantic search for the next book!I would recommend this book to people who like survival,utopian realities,betrayal,and dehydrated spaghetti called SpagNoods.