The Hobbit

The Hobbit    

By JRR Tolkien

Reviewed by Anna C.

This is the story of a Hobbit. A Hobbit named Bilbo Baggins, who lives in a cozy little Hobbit hole in the ground in an area known as The Shire, with everything he needs. A hobbit hole is a hole in the ground. It is not a dirty hole li  Hobbits are little creatures smaller than dwarves that have a thick layer of skin and fur on their feet, so they almost never where shoes. Hobbits love eating and drinking and are normally fat. Hobbits also love comfort and they are in no need of adventure. Just their own cozy Hobbit hole full of food and comfort.

One day the Wizard Gandalf came to Bilbo’s home with a company of 13 dwarves. Gandalf is a tall, powerful wizard who believes Bilbo is an adventurer at heart. The dwarves’ names are, Dwalin, Balin, Fili, Kili, Dori, Nori, Ori, Oin, Gloin, Bifur, Bofur, Bombur and Thorin. They are all skilled, homeless old dwarves with very long beards. Thorin is a descendant of rulers from the town of Dale who were once very powerful.

Gandalf believes Bilbo would be a good thief to take on the dwarves’ mission to take back Dale from the evil dragon Smaug. Smaug lives inside Lonely Mountain which towers over Dale and he sleeps on a pile of treasure stolen from the once amazing town. The town is now in ruins and no one lives there. Thorin wants to bring back the beauty of the town. The plan is simple. Get to Dale, defeat Smaug, split the treasure. The journey just to get to Smaug’s lair in Lonely Mountain would be long and dangerous, though. They will leave the Shire, go through Bree, Rivendell, the Misty Mountains, by the goblin’s lair, pass Carrock, through the dark forest of Mirkwood, where many hidden dangers lurk, past the Long Lake, and finally arrive at Lonely Mountain to face Smaug.

Suddenly craving just a little adventure, Bilbo agrees to go on the mission. Along the way he was wishing he hadn’t said yes, but still loving the feeling of adventure. Bilbo will meet many dangers like goblins, trolls, giant venomous spiders, the deceitful creature known as Gollum, wolves, and most of all, Smaug. Bilbo’s key to success is his ring. He found it in the cave of Gollum on the way to Lonely Mountain. The ring can make anyone invisible when they wear it, but if it falls into the wrong hands, the results would be catastrophic. He will trick people many times by slipping the ring on his finger. He will also make many friends on this adventure, like dwarves, forest elves, and eagles. Bilbo will learn to love adventure on this dangerous journey. In the end he will take part in a dangerous battle fighting over the treasure with the evil forces of the land, winning his prize of a share of the treasure and will return home victorious.

 It was a little ironic that everyone thought Bilbo was a normal Hobbit with no skills and he ended up being the key part of the mission. This book is a fantasy because of evil goblins, shape shifters, elves, dwarves, hobbits, and dragons. I love the way this book is told in the third person by JRR Tolkien and how wonderfully words are used to tell the story. It was so detailed that I could really see what the characters were seeing. I can relate to Bilbo in how he was hesitant to try something new, but ended up loving what he tried. I wouldn’t change anything in this book and nothing should be changed. I would recommend this to anyone who loves a good story.

Magyk by: Angie Sage                Ana M.

Characters:

The book Magyk by Angie Sage is the first in the series about Septimus Heap. Throughout most of the book Septimus is known as Boy 412, his army number. Septimus is the seventh son of the seventh son and the seventh son is known to have great powers. His parents are Silas and Sarah Heap. Septimus was stolen at birth by DomDaniel, because of his magical powers and was raised in the Young Army till he was ten.

Jenna is the Queen’s daughter but did not discover her true identity until her tenth birthday. Jenna was orphaned at birth and raised by Silas and Sarah Heap.

Marcia is the Extra Ordinary Wizard and has a lot magical powers and takes her job very seriously. She was Apprentice to Alther Mella who was the Extra Ordinary Wizard until DomDaniel’s Assassin killed him.  Marcia has a temper and isn’t very fond of Silas. Most people are afraid of Marcia, but she doesn’t realize it.

Silas Heap is the seventh son of a Wizard and he is a Wizard himself. Silas was Alther’s Apprentice and on track to become the Extra Ordinary Wizard but gave it up to marry Sarah. He has seven sons and found Jenna as a baby and took her in. He is a very loving father and very attached to his wolfhound Maxie.

Aunt Zelda is Silas Heap’s sister. She is a very kind woman who is a little out of the ordinary. Aunt Zelda is a White Witch. Aunt Zelda lives at the Marram Marshes in the Keeper’s Cottage. Her job is to watch over the dragon boat, which is kept in a secret underground tunnel. Aunt Zelda is good at making magical potions but not so good at cooking.

Alther Mella is a ghost. He used to be the Extra Ordinary Wizard. Alther was Apprentice to DomDaniel but hated Darke Magic and didn’t want to get involved. Alther was next to DomDaniel when he plunged himself from the Wizard Tower and into Darke Magic. People respected Alther for ridding the castle of Darke Magic. Alther is very close to the Heaps and Marcia and is loyal to Jenna the Queenling.

DomDaniel is the evil X Extra Ordinary Wizard. He practices Darke Magic and tries to kill Jenna so he can return to the castle and regain power. DomDaniel killed the Queen on the day Jenna was born and tried to kill Jenna the Queenling but was unsuccessful.

Nicko is Silas and Sarah’s sixth son. He is very close to Jenna and very protective of her. Nicko is a Wizard but his passion is sailing.

Dragonsong

                Dragonsong

By Amelia E.

Dragonsong is by Anne McCaffrey.  The main character of this book is a 15 year old girl who is named Menolly and she loves to sing and play instruments. She lives on a fishing boat where they have a human  harper who sings and plays instruments. The harper has never been a female. Although the harper has never been a female it doesn’t mean they can’t be a harper. Harpers don’t have anything to do with dragons but dragons are an important part of the story. It can be done although Menolly’s father does not wish for her to be a harper.  She is the apprentice of a harper although her father still doesn’t approve. Eventually she escapes the people on the fishing boat and finds a nest of fire dragons. She raises them and many of them become loyal to her. In the end she ends up in the harper hall which is where those with great musical talents go to learn how to become a harper.

It is a book that has third person view.  I personally am not a big fan of third person view but this book was by far the best with third person view. I would really recommend this book to dragon lovers. It has lots of dragons and firedragons, which are miniature dragons, there are also dragonriders that ride dragons, there are also something called thread that falls from the sky and is like acid.. I just love it. I wouldn’t change a single word in it.  There isn’t much irony in it for those of you that love the funny books that make spit come out of your nose.  I would recommend it to anyone who is good at reading and loves dragons.

Ferno the Fire Dragon

Ferno the Fire Dragon

First book in the Beast Quest series by Sawyer H.

                Caldor the Brave stood at the foot of the misty mountain. The knight’s bronze armor gleamed in the pale morning sunlight. He gripped a heavy sword.

               Turning to his squire, Robin, he used his weapon to point up the mountainside. “I’ll climb above the mist,” Caldor told the boy. “The dragon is close by. I can feel it. I just need to get above the mist so that I can see it.

               For the sake of our kingdom, it must be stopped!”He was soon lost from sight, swallowed by the eerie mist. Robin had never seen a mountainside like this before. With his master gone, he noticed how quiet it was. He shivered, although the air was warm.

               Suddenly, the mountain started to shake. Robin could feel the vibrations traveling through his feet and up his legs. He stumbled to one side and a huge shudder threw him to the ground, knocking his head so badly that his teeth clattered. There was a metallic taste in his mouth and he put a hand to his lips. Blood! What was happening?

             “Caldor!” Robin yelled, scrambling to his feet as the rocks shifted beneath him. “Come back!” But there was no way he could be heard above the grinding screeches that filled the air. The whole mountain shuddered and Robin froze. Was it about to come crashing down?

Rolling out of the way, he glimpsed Caldor high above him, clinging to the dark slope of the mountain. The spiked head of a huge beast reared up behind the knight. It's face was the same color as the slippery stones of the mountain. It's eyes glinted with dark fire.

              In this mythical, fantasy, adventure book: The main characters are: Tom, Elenna, Robin, Caldor, Ferno the fire dragon, King Hugo, Aduro the Wizard, Storm the Horse, Silver the wolf and the blacksmith.

             They live in Avantia--a  land that has been peaceful for ages--with terrains of deserts, mountains, seas, ice lands, forests and plains. Here Tom is  trying to do is put the beasts back to good because the evil wizard Malvel has cast a spell on the beasts so that they wreak havoc on Avantia.

Tom sets out on a quest to free the beasts from Malvel's spell. freeing the dragon restores water to Tom's town. The way Tom frees the beasts is by unlocking the enchanted chain and lock that Malvel put around each beast's neck. Each time tom frees a beast he gets a token, the fire dragon gives him a scale which he puts in his shield ,then his shield can withstand extreme heat.

             This book would be great for 3rd to 5th grade adventure lovers. My experience reading the Beast Quest series is that it is has balance of good, evil, tense, relaxed and happy. the other books in the Beast Quest series have an ice beast, centaur, cyclops, sea serpent, phoenix and many dark monsters like: a giant ape, stone charmer, moon wolf and a ice dragon.

The Secret Series

The Secret Series

By: Pseudonymous Bosch

Reviewed By: Madeline S.

This book series by Pseudonymous Bosch is unique because it is all about a secret, THE secret. I think that Bosch’s style brings you close to the story because he writes in a way that intrigues the reader and really brings the story to life. I personally think that this book series is good for ages 7+ and anybody who likes mystery, humor, fiction, and most of all secrets. The plot will make you want to read through all five books in all your spare time.

This series starts with the book The Name of this Book is Secret and with a warning, that’s right a real warning. “Warning: do not read beyond this page.” The narrator goes on about how dangerous this book is. Then he X’s out the first chapter, he apologizes and says that he can’t tell you the real names of the people, the real place, or anything else real. He makes up names for his characters: Max-Earnest and Cassandra, or Cass for short, then he launches into the story. He starts off with telling you all about Cass, then all about Max-Earnest. The story really begins, though, when Cass overhears one of her Grandpas’ customers telling them about the newest house she is selling. Her name in the book is Gloria and she is a relator.  She always drops off old junk at the abandoned firehouse that Cass’s grandpas call home. They have an “antiques” shop downstairs and live upstairs, but whenever someone comes they never buy anything, they just give away their old stuff to the shop. Gloria drops by all the time and tells stories about the houses she sells. The story about the current house, however, really intrigues Cass because the house belonged to a magician, a magician whose kitchen suddenly burned down! When the gardener smelled the smoke, he went to investigate but found no remains of the magician. Cass starts to wonder if the magician really died or if he escaped.  When Cass and Max-Ernest go investigate at the house, they find themselves pulled into a great and dangerous mystery. The kids join the ancient Terces Society. Throughout this series they are on a quest to discover THE Secret and protect it from falling into the wrong hands!  They and the other Terces Society members have to fight many battles against the Midnight Sun, a group of villains who are also after the Secret. Will Cass and Max-Ernest ever discover the Secret or will it remain just that, a secret? Will you the reader ever find out what it is? Do you really want to know? Bosch warns the reader that this information could be deadly!

I really enjoyed the mystery and suspense that are present throughout this series. There are some surprising twists and turns in the plot that keep you guessing what is coming next. But the best part of this series is that Bosch makes the story really fun to read because he uses so much humor!

The Trespassers

The Trespassers

By Logan W.

The Trespassers was not that good of a book and did not impress me. It seemed like it was trying to be scary but wasn’t. Also, parts were added to make it dramatic but the book had foolish endings. The conflict was too quickly solved, not allowing the reader to understand how the disagreements and tragedies started and developed, instead the Trespassers gave too much information on what the surroundings were like.

The story starts when summer vacation starts and an older sister has to help her eight-year-old brother [thus being Neely and Grub]. Neely is the only person in her family who can help Grub get through his strange emotions. They usually go up the hill to a mansion known as Halcyon House. Halcyon House’s previous inhabitants had bad luck running through their rich blood, making some to believe the manor is haunted. Despite what others say, the two sneak into the house and explore; that is until the owners, the Hutchingson’s, return to the mansion. Neely and Grub and the family that live at the home will have to get along before and accidents happen in this haunted mansion.

The story is not scary and does not explain how the conflicts are solved. It includes a very bad ending, by not explaining how things happened. The book told me useless information about the past. To top it off, the main conflict is in the last 18 pages [has no climax!]. This book is unfitting to its genre and is not good. The book is for people over age 10 who want short reads and no fantasy [if you still want to read this book].

The Magicians Elephant

The Magician’s Elephant

Reviewed by: Griffin H.

This unusual little tale begins in the French town of Baltese, where a young boy named Peter Duchene lives with an old soldier. His mother, father and sister are all dead. Or so he thought. One day when the boy was sent to the market to get some food, a mysterious fortune teller appears. She states that an elephant will lead him to his long lost sibling, Adele. A little while later, an elephant crashes through the roof of an opera house during a magic show. There then begins a most peculiar adventure, involving a police officer, a homeless man with an amazing voice, a blind dog, a man that is bent sideways and cannot control his humor, a noblewoman, a manservant, and most important of all, an elephant. Filled with unusual dreams, what seems to the public eye as insanity, joy, sadness, magic, wonderful news, and loneliness, this is a great book for most ages 10 and under.

Great book if intending to read with family, no violent themes, and many interesting people, back stories, and details that all great writers would include makes this book worth reading for most. A short, simple story if you can spare 5 minutes.