Book Reviews

review by Jacob Chon, age 15 There’s Someone Inside Your House by Stephanie Perkins Summary: Love hurts… Makani Young thought she’d left her dark past behind her in Hawaii, settling in with her grandmother in landlocked Nebraska. She’s found new friends and has even started to fall for mysterious outsider Ollie Larsson. But […]

review by John Chon, age 15 Blight by Alexandra Duncan Summary: Seventeen-year-old Tempest Torres has lived on the AgraStar farm north of Atlanta since she was found outside the gates at the age of five. Now she’s part of the security force guarding the fence and watching for scavengers—people who would rather steal […]

review by Kira Toal, age 16 Neighborhood Girls by Jessie Ann Foley     Wendy Boychuck has had a difficult junior year. Her series of unfortunate events begins when her father, a former Chicago cop, is arrested for his brutal treatment of prisoners. The Boychuck family becomes ostracized (even hated in some instances) by their […]

review by John Chon, age 15 Jane, Unlimited by Kristin Cashore     Jane, Unlimited is a book with limitless possibilities. Jane, an orphan, has recently been invited to a mansion by her old tutor, an offer she was told to never refuse by her late aunt. She goes to the mansion, and her […]

review by Jacob Chon, age 15 Eight Days on Planet Earth by Cat Jordan Summary: How long does it take to travel 13 light-years to Earth? How long does it take to fall in love? To the universe, eight days is a mere blip—but to Matty Jones, it may be just enough time to […]

review by Nina Dinan, age 14 Chasing King’s Killer: The Hunt for Martin Luther King, Jr.’s Assassin by James L. Swanson     In this dynamic, engrossing narrative, James L. Swanson recounts the life, times, and death of Martin Luther King, Jr., and leads the reader through the furious pursuit of the man who […]

review by John Chon, age 15 Boy Meets Depression by Kevin Breel Summary: Kevin Breel burst into the public’s awareness when at 19 his TED talk became a worldwide phenomenon. Star athlete, ace student, and life of the party: in short, he was every parent’s dream. From the outside his life looked […]

review by Sylvie Bower, age 16 The Arsonist by Stephanie Oakes     The Arsonist is the story of Ava, Molly, and Pepper. Ava Dreyman is a world-famous martyr of the Cold War, whose life and possibly death are memorialized in her diary. Molly Mavity is the daughter of a murder-arsonist about to be executed, […]

review by Alicia Zhang, age 13 Zenn Diagram by Wendy Brant     In the book Zenn Diagram by Wendy Brant, the lives of two extraordinary teenagers come together to form a cohesive storyline like no other. One of these characters is seventeen-year-old Eva Walker, a math genius who can see a person’s […]

review by Nina Dinan, age 14 How Dare the Sun Rise: Memoirs of a War Child by Sandra Uwiringiyimana with Abigail Pesta     This is a story of loss and discovery, of grief and triumph, and of unflagging resilience in the face of tragedy and hardship.     Sandra Uwiringiyimana lives with her family in […]