Becca's Book Review: Brisingr

In the elven language, brisingr means fire. It makes it the perfect title for Christopher Paolini’s third book in the Inheritence Series. With only one book left, Brisingr does an amazing job of getting you ready for the final battle between Eragon and Galbatorix. Let me first suggest that you read Eragon, and Eldest first. They provide a great foundation for this captivating work, but this review may spoil just a teensy bit if you haven’t yet read them.

We first find our hero Eragon, with his cousin Roran, pursuing their goal of rescuing Roran’s love, Katrina. Most everybody is familiar with Twilight, the teen romance with a little bit of action, well, Brisingr is an action tale, with a tiny bit of romance. And I mean tiny. We’re talking 3 chapters tops, in a 700+ page book.

Another huge deal is Eragon and Saphira (can’t forget the total bamf dragon) begin to fulfill their oaths, while making more, and more. Since the previous king was betrayed and killed by Murtagh, Eragon’s own brother (omigoodness!) a new dwarf king is elected, leading Eragon to plenty of danger in the underground kingdom.

Did you ever have to work with somebody you completely despised for your entire life? Well the humans of the Varden did. The ugly mofo Urgals joined up with the Varden in Eldest, and now we get to see how this combo plays out. *Hint, it involves bulky manly Roran vs big horned ugly guy. AHHHH!

Another important race is the elves. They have joined in the fight too, slicing and dicing through Galbatorix’s oath slaves. When Eragon returns to the Weldenvarden, the Cripple that is Whole, teaches him many things, like how Galbatorix gets his power (you’ll never guess hahaha) and how Eragon came into this world (not the gorey details). Saphira and Eragon battle the entire elven forest (bad idea) and Eragon visited a man he provided the most unthinkable punishment for (it’s so cool). Plus, reading this book will teach you, step by step how to make a Dragon Rider sword (not kidding).

If you haven’t already guessed, I think this book is AWESOME. All those sci-fi freaks and battle lovers will love this too. You may even love it if you’re neither, because it’s just that good.

~Becca C.

Teen Review: Cory's Hip Hop Recommendations, Pt. 1*

If you are more into rap music or hip hop than R&B then you may like artists like Lil Wayne, Fabolous, and Young Jeezy. They are very great artists and they create very good music and hits that people like to listen to over and over again. But there are more good artists that are being discovered every day like Gucci Mane, Drake, and Jamie Foxx. These are artists that make good hits too that people like to listen to over and over again. Gucci Mane is an artist that has been out for a while and he is a artist that people compare to other artists. Most people say that Lil Wayne is the best rapper alive but some say Gucci Mane is better than Lil Wayne.

*Thanks to teen reviewer, Cory, for writing this review. It was completed as part of our Fine Alternative Program, which allows teens to work down their fines at the library. Stop by and we'll tell you all about it!

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Becca's Book Review: Twisted, by Laurie Halse Anderson

A Twisted Review
By Becca C.

If one thing is true, it’s that very few books appeal to every type high school student. After reading “Twisted” by Laurie Halse Anderson, it’s easy to tell why this is one of them. Anderson is able to combine the life of a teenage boy, and the drama teen girls thrive on to make a gender neutral page turner. The book has an underdog feeling to it, yet doesn’t turn the popular kids into “mean girls” and there’s some life aspect that you will find you’re personally going through.

The story is about a high school senior by the name of Tyler Miller. Picked on during his middle school years, he decides to make himself a legend and end the torment for high school. He eventually suffers for his stunt. While paying his debt to society, Tyler also has to deal with his growing attraction to the popular girl at school, an ashamed, over bearing father, a sociallite sister going out with his best friend, and an effective solution to his bullies. He even develops a reputation that makes him the cops go-to-guy when the giant scandal goes down, and yes, it’s a huge shock.

Anderson has the inept ability to blend family issues, peer drama and inner battles without making it a giant cliché. There’s enough fights and female anatomy to keep the guys happy, but enough emotion and social strains to keep chicks interested. It’s easy for anyone to relate to this book. Whether you’ve ever been the butt of everybody’s joke and the target of everybody’s hits, had a giant thing for the cool kid, had the urge to do something reckless, had an unbearable home life, or even had the desire to end it all, you will find something that links your life to Tylers.

There are even some life lessons snuck inbetween the lines. Things like your actions will come back to haunt you and to be responsible are learned through the characters the hard way; Through public humiliation, social isolation and hard labor. It makes you think about how your actions will effect you in the future. You begin to question whether or not the perfect kids are really that perfect.
One of the most important things about the book is that it’s new. Released in 2007, there aren’t any references to how “groovy” the Brady Bunch is. With the exception of the geek’s universe aka Star Wars, everything in the book is all recent events. Everybody already knows that KISS is really ugly when they take off their makeup.

If you couldn’t already guess, I really suggest that you read this book. “Twisted” isn’t just for one type of person. Girls, boys, happy, sad, cowboys and indians will enjoy this book as much as I did.

Special Guest blogger!

Igor O. reviews some wicked-awesome manga to start off the new year. Enjoy.


One Piece

When an ordinary boy eats a devil fruit he becomes an empowered being. The powers of the devil fruit have enchanted him, and for it he pays the price of being able to swim. Originally you may think that would be great - getting near superpowers and having to stay on land, but Luffie's goal is to become kind of like the pirates, and that is not any easy task. With a promise he made to someone and other strong pirates with more powers can he do it? Read One Piece to find out!


Xxxholic

There is no such thing as coincidence in this world but only Hitsuzen . . . or at least according to this parallel-world book coinciding with Tsubasa. The book is about a boy in high school who has an unusual ability - he can see spirits and ghosts. He is not very happy about this and wants this ability gone. But every wish has a price. Will Watanuki be able to fulfill that price, or will the people he meets change his outlook on spirits and make him acknowledge his gift? Read Xxxholic to find out!


Murder Princess

I have to admit this one was an unexpected find. I was not really expecting it to be any good. But the book was great. The princess and a well-known female bounty hunter switched bodies and now, when the kingdom is under attack, it’s the princess who fights the war. The real princess only wants the kingdom to stay safe and gave up the life to become a servant instead. What will become of this story? One thing I know is that I want to know!


All reviews by Igor. Posted by Connie.

Want to review a book or CD or game or magazine or series or something for our blog? Just ask!

Twilight Took a Bite out of the Box Office, But What Do *You* Think?

The L.A. Times reports that the movie adaptation of Twilight, the vampirrific romance that's caught the world by storm, grossed a whopping 70.5 million. But just because you saw it doesn't mean you liked it. Cat and I were both bitten by the Twilight bug, and you can see our opinions below. What did you think? Leave a comment!



~Joseph
Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh, Main

Joseph's Lexically Limited Review of Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist

Late in the movie, Norah tells Nick about the Judaic concept of tikkun olam, a Hebrew phrase that translates to "repairing the world." It turns out to be the perfect phrase to chart the course of two characters who begin the film broken but find solace in one wild New York night. [view trailer | find the book]

Nick (Michael Cera) begins the movie not with Norah but in the bedroom amidst photos of Tris (Alexis Dziena), the lying, manipulating heartbreaker who has reduced Nick into a blubbering sack of tears, rambling voice mails, and mix CDs. Norah (Kat Dennings) goes to the same private school as Tris and uses the tossed-away mixes as a way to escape Tris's cutting comments, her best friend Caroline (Ari Graynor)'s constant state of drunkenness, and her father's shadow of fame.

Nick also happens to be the only straight boy in the queercore band the Jerk Offs (played by Aaron Yoo and Rafi Gavron), and they soon arrive to pull Nick out of his stupor and out to New York City, where they have a show the same night that Nick's favorite band, Where's Fluffy?, is playing a secret show. Where's Fluffy? happens to be Norah's favorite as well, and soon the entire cast finds themselves at the Jerk Offs' show in preparation. To prove to Tris that she isn't a boyfriend-less loser, Norah goes over and makes out with the first single guy she sees. That guy just happens to be Nick.

Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist winds its script around the strengths of its two leads. As characters, Nick and Norah's ultra-hip energy are toned way down in favor of stressing the moments between the two. Michael Cera's nervous, quiet stutter and bashful smile blend well with Dennings's distant coolness to create a believable night in which two people can meet each other and fall in and out of love faster than you can ask, "Where's Fluffy?"

In between, humorous interludes featuring gay holiday cabaret, an awkwardly sexy dance on the hood of a Yugo, and a disgustingly well-traveled piece of gum set up each emotional beat so well that everyone in the theater was groaning, awww-ing, and cheering Nick & Norah until they "see red" (you'll get it once you see the movie). This is a can't-miss film not just for teens but for anyone with a heart.

~Joseph Wilk
Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh, Main

Igor Reviews Night of the Soul Stealer

The book, Last Apprentice, Night of the Soul Stealer is a book that is part of the Last Apprentice series. The book is the 4th from the series. In the book Tom and his master the spook have come across some trouble with the witches of Pendle (town in the book). Its the spook's job do deal with the witches, gasts, and other forms of "the dark". Tom had lost his father last winter and his mom left for she had nothing to keep hold of. Tom was left a room in the old house that held all the valuables his mom collected and only he had the key to it. But the contents of that room was stolen and his brother jack and his family was being held hostage. he journeyed to Pendle with his master and Alice. Alice was raised by witches but tom believes that she is good and wants her by his side for she saved his life numerous of times. While in Pendle Tom runs into trouble he encounters a witch by the name of Meg who wants Tom to be hers' and will kill Alice to get Tom, but there is more foul deeds plotting in Pendle the 3 witch covens are uniting and old blood feuds are waining so the 3 covens are ready to summon the devil itself. Tom and his master try to stop them but fail, for 3 days the fiend tries to kill Tom for he is under the witches' bidding but Tom was able to hide in the room his mom left him, that room protected him and saved his life for on the 3rd day the fiend was free and went to do what he wanted to. Tom is alive but now that such evil is in the world what can he do? it remains to be seen, i haven't read the fifth book yet...
Rating: excellent

Note: Igor reviewed this book as part of our fine forgiveness program, which allows teens to reduce selected library card fines at a rate of $5.00 per hour. You can write reviews of books, movies, CD's, and more - all while getting your library card in functional order again. See us for details!
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Two Amazing Reviews by the Illustrious Katie D.!

Runaways
by Brian K. Vaughn

How many times in your life have you thought your parents were evil? I’m guessing that would be a lot, especially if you’re a teenager. But what if they actually were? And I don’t mean confining you to your room, grounding you for life, or taking away TV priviledges. We’re talking secret-society, super-powers, blowing-up-Los-Angeles evil.

This is what a group of teenagers discover in the graphic novel Runaways, written by Brian K. Vaughn and illustrated by Adrian Alphona. It’s not your average superhero comic, and that’s what makes it interesting: instead of muscled-up, costumed heroes punching eachother out on top of the Empire State Building, you have normal teenagers faced with the fact that their families have been lying to them for years.

In the first volume of this entertaining series, at a yearly “get together,” the main characters, while exploring a passageway in Alex Wilder’s house, overhear a meeting where their parents, in full super-villain costumes, commit a yearly sacrifice for some unknown reason. Disturbed by this encounter and completely sure that something is very wrong, four of the five teenagers run away from home to try and find the body of the sacrifice. They end up not only finding a psychic velociraptor and some sort of ancient book, but having to save the fifth from all of their parents—something that’s easier said than done, as it turns out.

This graphic novel is a great new angle on the tired superhero genre, and totally fun to read. The dialogue is fresh and not too overdramatic (HA HA! I SHALL KILL YOU, et cetera…) and all of the characters, as you see later, have their own personalities. It’s the perfect blend of a little sci-fi, a little action, a little fantasy, and a whole lot of humor. Don’t worry if you can’t find the second book in the series—I couldn’t, either, but I managed to continue on to volume three and only miss a little.

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As a student at Rogers CAPA middle school, I have had to suffer through weeks of teacher hysteria, spontaneous group craft projects, and people constantly being called out of class for costume fittings.

The source of all of this chaos was the one act plays by three Rogers 8th grade writers being performed, a whole-school activity that (un)fortunately, I wasn’t involved in. The scripts of these plays are available online at CafePress. Since I’ve been reading these plays since the earliest drafts, I thought I might review them here are prove that you should SO TOTALLY order the book, now.

The first of the plays presented in the book is “Entanglement” by Juliana Collins. The play, to sum it up in a sentence, is about the relationship of a couple from opposite sides of the class and race divide. The dialogue is spot-on, of course, and the idea was good, but (oh dear god Juliana will kill me for saying this) it ends up being a leetle bit *pinches fingers to show how leetle* unresolved at the end. Still, it’s a really interesting story.

The second play is my personal favorite. Entitled “My Blood Is Still Red” and written by Claire Matway, a hugely talented poet and writer, it’s about what happens to an average middle-class family when their teenaged son reveals a huge secret. What’s the secret? You really think I’m going to tell you?! Go read it and find out for yourself, already! There’s nothing I can say about this play except, IT’S. AMAZING.

DeeDee Reaves, the author of the play “Twists of Heaven and Earth” had better look out, because her play is going to be a little bit critically challenged in this review. Her dialogue is fast and funny and full of great pop culture references (the SpongeBob line is particularly great) but it just… falls apart into a scene that’s a little bit soppy and tries a little too hard to make the end seem very much like an after-school special. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t buy the plays, though *wink*

You can find the plays here.

Eli Reviews Stan Lee’s Just Imagine Stan Lee Creating the DC Universe Book 2

Batman, Superman, Green Lantern, Wonderwoman, The Flash, Robin, and Shazam are all your favorite DC heroes. Now put them in the hands of the greatest comic book dude in the world and you’ve got yourself one SSSSSSUUUUUUUHHHH-WWWWWWWEEEEEEETTTT comic. Now in the last book Batman, Superman, Green Lantern, and Wonderwoman all were warped by Lee and the marvel team, so just add the flash (also featured in this book) and bam you got yourself the first Marvel JLA issue. Loaded with explanation and villains, JLA is a fun read.

But don’t stop there. What about the ever loved, ever cool side kick of Batman, Robin. I won’t give it all away but here’s the gist of the comic, Robin is controlled by the big baddie of all the Stan Lee DC comics. Fallowing Robins fateful (or not as much of one as they have in DC) turn to the to good, Shazam steals the spotlight for the final comic of this book. In well I think its in the middle east (because of all the sand), A young man, Rob, finds Merlan and the story launches. The drawing of Shazam is pretty sweet so check it out.

After all the comics are said and done, Stan Lee adds in goodies and bios that explain a lot. If you’re a DC/Marvel fan you enjoy checking this book out. Don’t forget this is book 2, so read book one first.

Zoë reviews Leepike Ridge, by N.D. Wilson

Tom Hammond, 11 years old, but he feels older, due to the fact that his father has been gone for three years. Elizabeth Hammond, Tom’s mom, who is finding the strain of being a single mother difficult. Tom runs away from home when his hated Elementary School teacher proposes marriage to Elizabeth. He gets swept up by a creek and winds up deep under Leepike Ridge. I thought the book was well written, and that it was captivating. I was intrigued. I can’t wait to read more!