The Pantanos

  Hello readers! In this blog, I will be reviewing The Outsiders by S. E. Hinton. Hinton was known for writing this book when she was only in high school. I can say that this helped her develop the realistic emotions of the characters. I read this book in 2021 and I still remember being intrigued by the captivating plot of the "greasers" and the "socs."  The Outsiders tells a story between the drastic differences in social status of teenagers living in the same city. The "greasers" were a community of a lower class, while the "socs" were people belonging to a higher class. The main character, Ponyboy Curtis, a 14 year old "greaser" who lives with his brothers, Darry(oldest) and Sodapop(middle child). Readers follow his narration through the events that he experiences in only a couple of weeks of his life as a "greaser." Many of those experiences include the "socs" making harsh comments and threats against the ...

  Continuing the dystopian theme (Animal Farm, 20,000 leagues under the sea), I decided to write about another book I really enjoyed: 1984. This book is written by the famous author George Orwell, also known for writing Animal Farm . His writing style is unique in that his books are concise but often contain deep meanings. They are written so that even a 3rd grader could easily understand the words used in this book. Still, even adults discover hidden meanings in the book, often containing elements of historical satire. The book mainly features Winston Smith, a 39-year-old man living in London, Oceania (a fake country, of course, to encourage the reader to figure out which place Orwell is talking about). The Party, the political party in power, watches everyone in the community through telescreens (basically a Zoom meeting that never ends). On the telescreens, a message that says "Big Brother Is Watching You" is present at all times. In this world, even thinking about rebelli...

  The Silver Eyes is mostly based off of the first three games of Five Nights at Freddy’s. For those who don’t know, Five Nights at Freddy’s is this horror game franchise created by Scott Cawthon. The basics of the first three games is that you are a nighttime security guard working at different locations within Freddy Fazbear’s company. While they work just fine in the daytime, the animatronics there can become a little quirky at night. Your goal is to survive each night with limited power and animatronics who are on the hunt for you.  Even though the original book is a novel, they did a great job of creating it as a graphic novel. The art is amazing and really shows the details of Freddy, Bonnie, and the rest of the crew. While the plot can be a little confusing at times, you can still make sense of what's happening. You can see where the plot of the book uses lore from the games and where its entirely new concepts. The book stars Charlie who with her friends, decide to chec...

  SPOILER WARNING Summary: This book, like most of the Harry Potter books, starts over the summer with his aunt and uncle who want nothing to do with him. As he is kicked out of the house for using magic and blowing up his other aunt he is informed that there is a killer that has escaped from the most secure magical prison in the world, Azkaban. Sirius Black (The Killer), was found guilty to have led Voldemort, (The Evil Wizard) to Harry’s Parents, to find them and kill them. When Harry is at school, he learns more about Sirius Black, but he hears something that makes him enraged and he wants to go looking for him. Later on in the book, he finds Sirius Black and learns that Sirius was framed and it was Peter Pettigrew, a wizard thought to be dead who was the cause for the death of Lily and James Potter. Sirius then goes into hiding, as he is still assumed to be guilty by the wizarding world.  Reflection: This is one of my favorite books and I have read it a couple of times. It...

  This book is a short, simple and fun read that lets you get to know Pusheen and her family. Each part is pretty short and about a different aspect of her life. From things to know about cats, to how to live, this book goes into all the fun parts of her life. Each page is fun, colorful, and drawn in a simple cute style.         I first discovered this book at our school's book fair in third grade. After looking through a few pages and deciding it looked like a good book to get it. However, the book I was looking at was the last copy so I had to order it online. It arrived a few weeks later and I read it and loved it.  I like how this book mixes up the content inside by switching from cute little stories to fun pictures of Pusheen and repeating the process.          Since the book came out, Pusheen has gained a massive amount of popularity and she now has a website that has fun things that include quizzes, comics and merchandise! Sh...

  Hello fellow readers! In this blog, I will be reviewing  Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher. I read the book last year for my banned book project, which had many controversial bans and challenges due to the abuse, drug use, and teen suicide. It was ranked 6th in the American Language Association for the most banned book in 2018. Following this, I can understand why there were so many people trying to ban the book because the main story line revolves around our main character, Hannah Baker who commited suicide.  Like the name of the novel, the book showcases 13 reasons why Hannah Baker committed suicide. Documented in  13 cassette tapes, each one is about one of the 13 people who contributed to her depressed mental state and eveutually her death. It's an absolute roller coast full of emotions instead of excitement. Reading the heartwrenching descriptions narrated in her own voice really makes a difference to the story.  We are introduced to Clay Jenson, he ...

  I read this book through a book club a few years ago and thought it was interesting so I decided to do a blog post about it. I liked how the author created an almost modern sci-fi world all the way back in 1870. I think that the author’s imagination is truly incredible.  The story begins in 1866 when scientists report discovering a giant unknown creature in the water. At first, this unknown object is not taken seriously. Rather, it is a huge source of gossip for people. However, people start taking it more seriously when two ships, the Moravian and the Scotia , sink near where the creature was first seen.  Pierre Aronnax, the main character, claims that this object is either a huge narwhal-type creature or a submarine. To find out what it really is, he goes on an expedition with the US Navy to explore this phenomenon. Upon getting close to this creature, Aronnax thinks that the creature is indeed an electric narwhal. When they finally catch sight of the creature, the n...