Shannon's Review: A Little Bit Wicked Life, Love, and Faith in Stages by Kristin Chenoweth and Joni Rodgers

Shannon, 8th grade

Growing up in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, singing, dancing, and living life to it's maximum through God, Kristin Chenoweth takes you on a journey through her past. The journey begins in her home town, getting an opera masters, moving to NYC, starring on Broadway, becoming a TV star, and all her concerts. Her family was as she said her biggest support through troubles, boys, being adopted, career ups and downs, or deaths in the family. I laughed and I cried, but I enjoyed every minute of Kristin Chenoweth's story. From learning to "Sing from your Hoo-hoo", to "Defying Gravity", Kristin Chenoweth will make you fall in love with her too.

Why I picked the book up:: I LOVE Kristin Chenoweth!

Why I finished it:: I LOVE Kristin Chenoweth!

I'd give this book to:: Theatre Girls or any Girl with an acting dream.

My rating for this book:: ***** It was amazing!

Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier

"This is Manderley, notorious, ridden by evil. Its mistress Rebecca de Winter, has been dead for eight months- drowned in a sailing accident." Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier is a classic mystery that seems to only get better with time. Published in 1938 it was an instant hit. Today it is compared with other classic works such as Bronte's Jane Eyre. It is up to Max de Winter's second wife, the un-named Mrs. de Winter to discover the secret behind Rebecca's sinister power that continues to captivate the house after her death. Secrets begin to unravel and a shocking revelation is made towards the end of the novel that will change Manderley forever. Rebecca is an incredible mystery and further proof of this is its inspiration for Hitchcock's film adaptation Rebecca released in 1940 that also took away an Academy Award. It's a novel that all classic book and mystery fans would greatly enjoy, not to mention it is extremely well written.

Why I picked this book: I'd seen the movie and my mom recommended the book for me to read.

Why I finished it: The language and story plot kept me interested all the way to the end.

I'd give this book to: Anyone who appreciated classic literature and a well written mystery.

My Rating: ***** Loved it!

Cool Beans a Maya Davis novel written by: Erynn Mangum

Name: Shelby

Title: Cool Beans

Author: Erynn Mangum

Follow in the footsteps of Maya Davis a charismatic young woman in her early twenties. She has everything she could ask for a fantastic job as a coffee barista at the coolest coffee place in town aka Cool Beans, a loving family who supports her... except her long lived rivalry with her older brother for life in general, she's perfectly happy being single, and wonderful roommates and co-workers... that is until one day she wakes up smelling the coffee too much. Could life be to sweet to last. Her roommate Jen begins dating her high school sweetheart, and he doesn't recognize her, her perfect medical doctor brother and sister in law moves back and invades her weekly dinners with her parents. As if that weren't hard enough her dear friend and co-worker, jack, begins showing interest in Maya, and even the daily coffee and ice cream "help save me" have no success. Maya must truly learn to deal with her life as each new event is dished to her each day. Hilarious, and downright true this novel is a must read and hard to put down once you start!


why I picked this book up: it was recommended to me, and the title made me laugh, and was attractive looking & I love coffee!! :)

why I finished it: It was difficult to put down :D

I'd give this book to: Any girl that loves coffee, light humor, and a novel that's an easy read, and hard to put down.

My rating for this book: **** Really Liked It!

The Green Mile

Name: Serina

Grade: Graduate

Title: The Green mile

Author: Stephen King

The green mile is the nickname the hallway in death row has been given, due to the stripe of green paint that leads past the cells and all the way to the electric chair. Paul has worked on the green life for a good amount of his career, but in all his time there, he had never met a man like John Coffey. John Coffey, the largest black man Paul has ever seen, was captured and sent to death row for the gruesome rape and murder of two little twin girls. The troubling part for Paul is that John can only spell his name, seems completely illiterate, and he afraid of the dark. Paul has to wonder how such a shy, seemingly harmless man, could have done such a terrible thing. John Coffey isn't the only person on the green mile that worries Paul. The newest guard, Percy, has a beautiful face but a violent mean streak. He hits the inmates even when they are on their best behavior, even though Paul and his partners have often told the young man that it is not how they handle things on the green mile. And Percy isn't just nasty with the inmates, he drives everyone else crazy as well. After many confrontations, Paul and the other guards are glad to hear that Percy will transfer. The catch is that he will only transfer if he is allowed to be the front man at the next execution. Delacroix, a Cajun/Frenchman was put on death row for burning down a house and killing everyone inside. Timid and deathly afraid of Percy, Delacroix is next in line for the electric chair. Paul and the others are a little nervous about running the show, but they figure that the worst that could happen is that Percy gets his lines wrong. However, things go horribly, horribly wrong. Onlooking spectators and the guards are appalled by the gruesome, agonizing death of the timid Frenchman, which should have been an average execution. After the terrible death of Delacroix, things start to go even more downhill when Paul discovers that John Coffey has the touch of God, and that the enormous man may be on death row for a murder he never committed in the first place.

With an amazing talent for telling touching, horrifying, and even comedic stories, Stephen King's greatest novel by far was The Green Mile. The novel was constantly intense!

I picked this book up because it was something by Stephen King that I had yet to read.

I finished it because I HAD to know what was going to happen next!

I'd give this book to anyone with time on their hands that can handle the things Stephen King dishes out.

*****It was amazing!

The Adoration of Jenna Fox

Briana

12th grade

The Adoration of Jenna Fox, written by Mary E. Pearson

This is a novel set in the future, and is based on a teen girl who goes through an astounding transformation. Jenna Fox was in a (what should have been) fatal car accident. Her body was so badly burned and none of the doctors thought she would live, and yet somehow she does through the work of her father. As Jenna tries to fit into a new community, and a new body, she discovers things that make even herself cringe. Jenna learns who and what she really is, and attemps to bring awareness to those closest to her.

I read this book for the teen book club, but was unable to make the meeting. I also enjoy the style in which Mary E. Pearson writes, and have read a few of her other novels.

This was such a fast read, not just because it was somewhat short, but because the reader can connect with the characters in one way or another. I never wanted to put it down because I needed to know what would happen next.

I would give this book to any teenage, because it is a good book that has suspence, romance, it's a bit sci-fi ish, and it has a little something for everyone.

**** Really Liked it

Michaela's Review: Ashes of Roses by Mary Jane Auch

Michaela, 8th grade

From the second i opened the book i knew it was going to be good. Auch really captured the details and made the story come to life. This book is moving and makes u think how hard it really was in the 1911.

Why I picked the book up:: it was recommended to me

Why I finished it:: It was moving

I'd give this book to:: Anybody interested in the history of america

My rating for this book:: ***** It was amazing!

(This book is available through InterLibrary Loan)