The Gallangher Girls

On the outside The Gallangher Academy For Exceptional Young Women may seem like a snobby rich girls boarding school, that's what it's suppose to be. But look inside the door, the bulletproof windows, and you see an all girl spy school. Yep, as in learning about bombs, poisons, tailing, covert operations. For the headmistress' daughter Cammie things begin to turn into a real mission in her sophomore year. A new Covert Operations teacher comes, along with a senator's daughter. Well, and then Cammie gets a secret boyfriend in the nearby town and has to sneak out of school. Cammie and her friends have to use all their spy training to try and make it work. Then operation Blackthorne starts, and a whole new chapter opens in Cammie's life, along with reopening of her father's death on a mission. Bugs, laundry chutes, and secret passages later their real mission begins. Kidnapping attempts, double agents, and top secret come into play as they learn of a new threat, a real threat, one that will stop at nothing to get their unknown prize.Their lives in danger, and confusion on friends and enemies lead to unreeling plot, and the fact that the group will kill. In a world where espionage, lying and spying is normal, how will Cammie figure out how to be a normal girl, or at least pretend to be one. Plus, for a girl who knows fourteen languages, will she ever figure out the language of boys?

A Great and Terrible Beauty

Sorry I haven't posted in a while, but I've been reading a lot. "A Great and Terrible Beauty," by Libba Bray just goes to show that you should never judge a book by it's cover. Looking at the title you think of some high society rich girl drama with love and stuff like that. Although there is some of that throughout the book, this story is much more interesting. There is intrigue, magic, fights, confusion, and friendship. After some unfortunate and unclear events in India, Gemma Doyle is sent to London, to go to an elite private boarding school, The Spencer Academy. But something else is new to Gemma, other than her new home. She can see into the realms, magical places beyond our world. The only mention of anything like Gemma's gift is The Order, a secret group of women who had magic to travel to the realms. They have long been gone, and forgotten. With a group of friends, Gemma begins to realize the power she has, and it's importance. She also realizes the danger it poses to the world. What will she do to save her world?

I really liked this because it is more than what meets the eye. You find this heroin confused in this odd world. The beginning of the book you find the people you want to hate, but then you end up loving them. It shows how friends can be the most important thing ever, and you never do know who your friends will be. There is just enough magic that's mixed in with the drama of school and pressure to be proper noblewomen to make it good. I really enjoyed this book, and you can also check out the rest of the trilogy:)

The Hunger Games

Hey, I just finished reading The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. I really truly loved the books. I've been meaning to read them for a while, but they were nothing like I expected. It's set sometime in the future in the area once known as North America. There is a capitol and 12 districts. Every year, to show their power, Capitol requires one girl and one boy from each district to participate in a televised fight to the death. They are called the hunger games.

The main character, Katniss Everdeen lives in district 12. She's 16 years old, a hunter, and the leader of her family. District 12 in incredibly poor with coal mines being the main export. Katniss' father was killed, and all she has left is her mother and 12 year old sister, Prim. When it's time to chose the tributes for the year's games Prim's name is called. Katniss, desperate to save her sister volunteers for her. She practically signed her death certificate. The other tribute is Peeta Mallark, the bakers son. Katniss and Peeta head to Capitol for the games and soon become friends. Then, Peeta changes their relationship drastically, and the games start. Katniss and Peeta start of a spark so powerful that it can't stop. The 74th annual Hunger Games may be the most important in the nation's history, all because of a girl from Distict 12. Nothing is ever the same in their world.

I really loved these books. In the beginning you think it is all just about the games but it becomes so much bigger. You realize how important Katniss and Peeta are. I also love the way that their is so much romance twisted in, but yet not to the point that it takes away from the story. Collins kills of characters expertly. Everyone who dies dies for a reason, to show you something. They're sad but the books are fast moving enough that you don't wallow in the sadness. My favorite one is Catching Fire, and my least favorite is Mockingjay. The ending seemed rushed and I didn't like some of the ways things happened at the end. I also thought the way she showed society was very good. Overall, these are great books. Also, the movies are going to be made, and I may have a project with this series coming up, up be sure to check that out. Lastly, I'd like to thank my friend Maria for letting me borrow these books. You can check out her blog and thought at the link below.

http://bookspoetrymusic.blogspot.com/

kkuhar

Google Library

I know I've posted this before, but we've had some now followers, so be sure to check put my google library. Google library allows you to post books you've read, liked, reviewed, want and other categories. Be sure to make your own and post the link in the comments so we can see what books you've been reading. The link to mine is below.

http://books.google.com/books?op=library&hl=en

Messenger

In Messenger, we follow Matty( Matt from the previous book) and Seer (Christopher from the previous book). They live in a peaceful, democratic village where many people seek refuge from their past. Matty begins to discover that he has a power, he can heal things. First a frog, then two dogs. Leader (Jonas from The Giver) can sense it.Then people begin to become rude, mean to others. Matty finds out that people are trading away their souls at the 'Trade Mart" for materialistic things. Then Mentor, a ind and loving man, starts a petition to close village. Seer is afraid that Kira will never be able to come, so he sends Matty to get her. Matty travels through Forest spreading the message that village is being closed. He realizes Forest is beginning to darken. Then he gets to his old village, where Kira awaits him. She can sometimes weave and see the future, and saw him coming. She refuses to let him heal her twisted leg. They head into the forest, but Matty senses it is not the same. Then vines attack them, the path disappears, poison attacks Matty's arms. A foul stench seems to be coming from the center of Forest. They continue on through the forest, but they are continually attacked. Leader tries to go in to rescue them, but he is also repeatedly attacked. It gets to the point where they can't go any longer, and they think that they'll die in there. I don't want to put the very end because it's the biggest surprise, and I don't like it very much.

Gathering Blue

NOTICE- THIS IS A SUMMARY> DO NOT READ IT IF YOU PLAN ON READING THIS BOOK.

The next book, Gathering Blue is set is a village where there is much violence, and unrest. Kira, now a young orphan with a twisted leg, is a afraid for her life. She is brought to the Council Of Guardians of their village, where they give her a job. She is to repair the ancient singer's robe, which tells the history of the world. Her mother was a weaver, and so Kira was to be too. Her only friends in her new world are Thomas, who has an amazing talent for woodcraft and Jamison who is one of the Guardians. Kira's friend Matt, a young dirty, but reliable boy always wants to help them. Thomas, Kira, and Matt find a very young girl, Jo who can sing amazingly locked in another room. The kids realize that they all have special gifts, Kira with weaving, Thomas with woodworking, and Jo with singing. They also realize that their gifts are trying to be harnessed by the council, they must listen to every command they are told. They cannot use their gift as it was meant, but the help complete the village "song" celebration. Then Matt disappears into the forest, where Kira's father was supposedly killed by beasts. When the annual Song comes along Kira notices a metal noise, then she sees the singer has cuffs and metal chains around his feet. Jo is to be the next singer. Kira realizes that she is a prisoner, and that is her future, all of their futures. Just then, she sees Matt. Matt brings her a visitor, a blind man. His name is Christopher, he's Kira's father. He was attacked and left for dead by Jamison on the hunt, not killed by beasts. He lives in a village of many other broken people, and Matt brings her a gift, blue. Blue was the only color Kira never had. Christopher and Matt leave to this other village and Kira promises to follow after she changes the village.

TheGiver

I read the Giver trilogy by Lois Lowry recently. It contains three books, The Giver, Gathering Blue, and Messenger. I will ba posting about them one at a time over the next week, My favorite from the trilogy is The Giver. It follows a boy who lives in a supposedly Utopian society. When he is given his job at the age of 12, Jonas is afraid. His job will to be The Receiver Of Memories. It is not a normal job, and the last girl who was chosen ended up mysteriously dead. He soon learns that it means he can see the world. Set sometimes in the future, people have no memory of what happened to society They don't know what it's like to be independent, to feel, to see color, and other similar things. Jonas is given memories of the past, color, music, love. Then Jonas realizes that even his own family lies, and does whatever they are told to do, including covering up deaths. He knows he has to leave, and return all the memories to the people, so he sneaks out with a little boy marked for death the next morning, and travels through the countryside. It ends with him thinking he sees people. This is a intersting series, so I would suggest reading it. The Giver won the 1994 Newberry Medal. It's a very popular book. Check it out:)

Music, "Who Says"

Also, a music update. Selena Gomez's new single, "Who Says," just came out, and it's really good. "Who Says," is a song about being perfect because you are yourself. It's an empowering song all about how you shouldn't care about what others thing of you, with lyrics like: You've got every right to a beautiful life, or, I'm sure you've got some things you'd like to change about yourself, but when it comes to me, I wouldn't wanna be anybody else. The music video is also out, and I highly recommend you watch it,( you can find the link at the bottom.) This song is really unlike any of Selena's previous songs, and I really liked it. Let me know what you think in the comment section.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BzE1mX4Px0I

Shadow Children series

Hey everyone, I found another new series! The Shadow Children series has seven books in it, and is written by Margret Petterson Haddix. They are set in a futuristic world where the government controls everything. Due to a population law, families can only have two children, or are a least only suppose to have two. Different books come from different kids perspectives, but all of them are third children. Third children, or "Shadow Children", live their life in hiding, horrified the Population police will kill them. The only way to survive is to get a fake I.D.

Luke Garner is a third child, who lives on a farm with his family. When the government builds a housing development behind Luke's house, he is forced to hide. During his days of hiding Luke meets another shadow child, Jen. She is planning a rally for freedom, and her father is a part of the population police. He is a double agent, secretly helping shadow children get I.D.s. Jen's rally goes wrong, but Luke begins to believe in freedom, and the reality that he may be free one day. He gets a fake I.D. and is sent to a boarding school. He meets other shadow children there, and helps his friends come out of hiding. Captures, imprisonments, and the ever impending threat of death hang over Luke and his friends. The government gets worse, and the kids and their allies must begin taking action against them. With the reward of freedom, scared, hidden children, become heroes and may change the world.

I like this series, it's really interesting. These kids start out as pretty much nothing, and end up fighting, sometimes behind enemy lines, for freedom. I would recommend this series.