All The Bright Places By Jennifer Niven

Maria Ortega

Plot Summary:
Two troubled teenagers meet unexpectedly in a situation that will connect them together. In a struggle that will embark them in a romantic adventure. Soon Finch and Violet realize that they need and count on each other for love and support that they are neglected at home.

Critical Evaluation: 
I rate this book a 10 out of 10. Since it was real page turner and had built a lot of suspense in the end of the book. Also its teen romance book with a slight twist but the good kind.

Marine Sniper by Charles Henderson

Alexis Torres Aguilar

Plot Summary

The book Marine Sniper by Charles Henderson is about a man named Carlos N. Hathcock who wanted to join the Marine Corps at a young age. Once he gets the opportunity to join, he finds he's the youngest male in his platoon. He becomes a scout/sniper and goes to the Vietnam War. The book describes the dangerous missions he does in war.  

Critical Evaluation

I rate this book a 9 out of 10 because it really is descriptive and tells you what it's like being a sniper in the Vietnam War.  The story really got my attention and I wanted to learn more about his job.

Why We Broke Up by Daniel Handler

Jodye Rivera 

Plot summary 
Min, short for Minerva, is a  sophomore in high school. She's one of the unpopular kids who is seen as "artsy." She dates Ed Salton, the basketball's team co-captain, for a while but ends up breaking up and this is what the book is focused on. Min has a box full of stuff that either belongs to Ed or reminds her of him. For every item, Min writes him a letter on the way to drop off the box at Ed's house. So why is it they actually broke up?

Critical evaluation 
I would rate this book an 8. I would give it an 8 because it paints the picture of all the scenes but still creates suspense for the next letter and makes you want to keep reading.

Good Fortune by Noni Carter

                                               

Carlos Diaz

Plot Summary

Good Fortune by Noni Carter is a book that follows a young female slave named Ayanna Bahati as she embarks on a dangerous journey in order to find the freedom she believes everyone deserves. What Ayanna wants the most is the right to learn, but the slave owners don't like the idea of slaves getting an education, so Ayanna must seek a place where she can escape her mischievously vile masters and receive an education. But, the only problem with this plan is that she has no idea where to begin. Luckily, she overhears that two people are escaping, so she tags along to see where this action may lead her. But the question remains: Will she find the freedom she's looking for?

Critical Evaluation

I believe that this book deserves a 10/10 because it's filled with suspense. It has various messages on relationships, goals, perseverance, and humility. This book will keep the reader interested in its mysterious plot and interesting characters.

City 1 by Gregg Rosenblum

Erick Arias-Lopez

Plot Summary
This is the third and last book of the series Revolution 19.  The main characters are Cass, Kevin, and Nick, and their parents.  They all live in a safe zone base called freepost.  The people in the freepost rebelled against the robots that have taken over cities in which they used to live. The robots hunt them down and either kill them or "re-educate" them, a process where the robots brainwash the prisoners into believing that the robots are good. Once the humans get that through their head, they are eligible to live within the city.  In this finale, the three main characters, along with a rebel group, fight the robots in their cities.

Critical Evaluation
I give this book a 7/10. Since it's the last book in the series, I thought there would be some plot twists that would make the book exciting.  There were some, but not as much to change the course of the book.  But, it's still a good book.

FullMetal Alchemist by Hiromu Arakawa

Daniel Bautista

Plot Summary
In the Manga series, Edward Elric and his younger brother Alphonse Elric set out on a journey to obtain the philosopher stone in order to get their bodies back. While trying to bring back their dead mom, Ed lost his right arm and his brother lost his whole body. Ed gives up his left leg to get his brother's soul back and attaches it to a suit of body armor. In order to get their original bodies back, they must now hunt down the legendary philosopher stone that can significantly amplify one's powers, but it will be a rough journey.

Critical Evaluation
While this manga is short, it's packed with lots of action and comedy. I would rate this book a 9/10 because it kept me entertained and the only boring parts were the parts where there wasn't something happening, which was rare.

Nimona by Noelle Stevenson

Gordon Jack

Plot Summary
Nimona shows up one night at the secret lair of the evil Lord Ballister Blackheart begging to be his new sidekick. She has shape shifting powers, which makes her a valuable ally in his campaign against Sir Ambrosius Goldenloin and his buddies at the Institution of Law Enforcement and Heroics.

As their campaign against the government proceeds, Blackheart begins to realize his minion is harder to control than he realized.  Her destructive powers puts him in the difficult position of having to protect the society he was so determined to bring down.

Critical Evaluation
I give Nimona an unqualified 10 out of 10.  It's one of the most entertaining graphic novels I have read in a long time.  Nimona is a great character, really funny in her desire to cause chaos and destruction.  Her relationship with Blackheart is the best part of the story.  At first she is a great asset to him, then she's a real pain, then she becomes a loyal friend who Blackheart will do anything he can to protect.  The artwork is imaginative and beautiful and captures the characters shifting alliances really well.

Predator by Richard Whittle

Owen Winkler

Plot Summary

Predator is the story of how the first military drone was created. The cast of characters includes Kareem, who is the best inventor in the Israeli Air Force.  He leaves his research firm to come to the United States to start developing his drone in a garage. Pretty soon, he’s being backed by DARPA. Along with Kareem, the Blues, two brothers educated in Ivy League schools, go down to South America to work on their own drone on a banana plantation in Nicaragua.  

Both groups have different ideas for a drones and different approaches to create, test, and fly the machines.  The two groups offer different aspects of our modern day drone vehicles. 

Critical Evaluation

The book has a lot of interesting stories, like when the Blues Brothers are going to Nicaragua and are forced to land in Cuba or they will be shot down. As soon as they land, they are taken into custody by guys in machine guns.  This is an exciting story that also informs the reader about drones, their history and their current use.

Goal II: Living the Dream by Robert Rigby

Alexis Torres Aguilar

Plot Summary

In the book Goal II Living the Dream the main character, Santiago Munez, who was born in the barrios of Los Angeles, begins his professional soccer career with Newcastle United after leaving his local soccer team Los Americanitos. In his last season, he has a conference with the manager and president of Real Madrid. He then keeps this conference a secret so he can surprise his wife, Roz, with the news that they will go to Spain for a year. Once he tells her she does not like the fact that she is going to leave England. Santiago then signs a contract for Real Madrid and becomes a “super sub”. After becoming the “super sub” Santiago also becomes a celebrity. As Santiago starts exploring Madrid, he runs into his younger brother Enrique. Santiago starts asking Enrique questions about his mother so that he can find her in Madrid.

Critical Evaluation

On a scale of 1-10, I would this rate this book an 8 because it’s about my favorite soccer club, Real Madrid. The story provides an inside look into what it’s like to be a professional soccer player. The main character is from California and he’s complicated. He starts out doing good for his family and then becomes more selfish as the story progresses. Even though he’s more arrogant, he’s still interesting to read about because he’s living a life that no one really gets.

Vibes by Amy Kathleen Ryan

Debora Solares


Plot Summary

Kirsty is a 16 year old girl who knows how to read minds. Her parents are divorced and Kirsty doesn't get along with her mom. Gusty, the guy Kirsty likes, thinks she's werid. When a new guy named Mallory comes to school, Kirsty thinks he's cute. A teacher has Kirsty and Gusty work on a project together. When Gusty comes over to Kirsty's house, he tells her that she is beautiful.The question that the author poses is: Will these two end up together?

Critical Analysis
On a scale 1-10, I would rate this book an 8 because I normally don't read books and this caught my attention.

Back byNorah McClintock

Andrew Cervantes

Plot Summary

Jojo has just been let out of jail for putting someone in a coma. Now he must take care of his very sick mother and face the whole neighborhood hating him for what he did. Everyone on his street wonders if he's still as bad as he was before he went to jail. The question that the author poses is, “Did Jojo change, or is he still the bad person he was before he left?”

Critical Evaluation

I rate this book a 8 out of 10. I give it this rating because the writing is good and it has some suspense. There is a death in the story which makes it a little sad but the story is still very exciting.

Al Capone And The Roaring Twenties By David C. King

Vito Virrueta

Plot Summary

The roaring twenties! Where history was being made whether it be in politics, music, economy, or crime. The twenties were filled with gangsters. One such was Al Capone. This man could and did get away with any crime committed. He was always careful with everything and anything he did until he got caught up with the fame and attention resulting in him getting distracted ending his career with the conviction of tax evasion. Al Capone has been getting away with murder (and prostitution) so he should have a trick up his sleeve to get out of this seemingly easy conviction.

Critical Evaluation

I rate this book a 9 out of ten because it talks about all the happened during the twenties while also giving us insight on Capone's life. Also, because it gives us a picture to make us feel as if we are there living life with him in the roaring twenties. It almost seems as if you are right there living the life in Capone's generation and bumping in with Capone once in a while.

Everyday by David Levithan

Jodye Rivera

Plot Summary

What makes my main character special is that it changes bodies everyday. One day it is Leslie Wang helping her brother convince their parents he is not a drug dealer. Another day it is a drug addict trying to not give in to what the body needs. But when it is in Justin’s body, he meets Rhiannon, takes her to the beach for lunch and spends all day with her falling in love. This causes a problem because Rhiannon does not know anything about it, not even that it was in Justin’s body. Later it shares everything with her and sees her almost everyday. The main question the author poses is if it and Rhiannon will ever be together.

Critical evaluation

I rate this book a 8 out of 10 because it makes you think and once you start reading you won't want to stop reading.