Looking for Alaska (4ème/Groupe 2)

Title : Looking for Alaska

Author: John Green

Genre: Romantic and tragic

Blurb:

Miles Halter is a shy teenager who transfers to Culver Creek Boarding School, in search of the “Great Perhaps”.  His roommate Chip “the Colonel” Martin takes Miles under his wing, nicknames him Pudge, and introduces him to smoking, drinking, pranks, and Alaska Young.  Alaska is beautiful, witty, moody, and self-destructive girl , and Pudge is fascinated with her.  When some of the weekday warriors drag Pudge out of his bed, mummify him in duct tape and throw him in the lake, the Colonel vows to have revenge.  The weekday warriors dunked Pudge because they believe that the Colonel ratted out Paul and Marya, two students who were expelled the previous year for drinking, smoking and other things. I don’t want to ruin anything for you readers. Enjoy reading this book!

Personal Opinion:

What I really liked about this book is that there were some parts which I was not expecting. It did eventually have some twists and turns. I really like it for another reason, for learning about the experiences of students going to a boarding school.

I recommend this book to people who like sad and moving stories.

Level:  4eme and over.

I rate this book 5 stars because it is just amazing and John Green is just an amazing writer.

Sonia, 4ème

Décollage immédiat

Décollage Immédiat de Fabien Clavel     

Lana Blum, une jeune lycéenne, rentre à sa maison quand le téléphone retentit. Sa mère à l'appareil lui crie de quitter la maison. Mais un homme a déjà ouvert la porte de l'appartement...

Un très bon livre, qui commence dans l'action !
Une super affaire pour Lana, qui essaye de retrouver sa mère.

UN GROS COUP DE COEUR !

Je conseille ce livre aux lecteurs impatients d'action et aux amateurs de livres policiers.

Ma note pour ce livre : 5/5

Percy Jackson, the titan’s curse (4ème/Groupe2)

Title: Percy Jackson, the titan’s curse

Author:  Rick Riordan

Cover photo

Genre: fantasy and adventure

Blurb: Percy Jackson, a demigod, loses his best friend Annabeth, in a fight versus a manticora but he feels that she isn’t dead. She was saved from the manticora by Artemis and her huntress. As Percy wants to save Annabeth he goes to her rescue, but the adventure will lead them to a terrible titan. Will they survive and save the world or will they fail? All depends on our heroes.

I chose this book because I finished it in only 3 or 4 weeks because it’s a very interesting, frustrating and full of suspense. I’m not a fan of reading but this book really captivated me, I loved the way the author narrates the book, and it was very clear to imagine, every day you want to read more and more, you can’t stop!

I recommend this book and actually the whole collection: not very expensive, you can have it in a lot of languages and really it would be one of these books you are proud to have read. For those who like ancient gods,  mystical powers and all this stuff, this book is the perfect one.

Level: this book is for young people, but many adults reads it.

Rating: I would say five stars, it’s the best book I’ve ever read! Even if it is in English!

Arthur 

 4ºB

Kensuke's Kingdom (5ème/Groupe3)

Title: Kensuke’s Kingdom

Author: Michael Morpurgo

Genre: Adventure

Blurb:  Kensuke’s Kingdom is about a boy called Michael. His parents chose to sell all their things and buy a boat to sail around the world.

One night Michael falls into the water while his parents are sleeping. When he realises he is in the middle of the ocean floating on the football he bought in Brazil, he faints.

When he wakes up he has been washed up on a deserted island with his dog. He realises after a day that the island has another living human who then takes care of Michael.  He is called Kensuke.

If you want to know more about how Michael survives and tries to get home, read the book.

Why I chose this book:

I chose this book because there is a lot of action, adventure and drama.

I would recommend this book to readers who like survival guides and stories that happen at sea. I think that this book is good for girls and boys even for adults.

Level : you need to be a good reader in  English otherwise it will be quite hard.

Rating: 18 out of 20

Thomas 

12 Years a Slave (5ème/Groupe3)

12 YEARS A SLAVE

Solomon Northup

GENRE: autobiography

The  narrative of Solomon Northup, citizen of New-York, kidnapped in Washington city in 1841, and rescued in 1853, from a cotton plantation near the Red River in Louisiana

Solomon Northup is a free black man who was kidnapped and sold into slavery. He then tried to survive and regain his freedom.

I chose the book because I found the film unbelievably AMAZING and wanted to know if the book was as good.

What I enjoyed the most about the book are the details that really make the reader feel how much Solomon suffered for 12 entire years.

I would recommend this book for all the people looking for the best book to read ever.

Level : The book is from the 19th Century, so the vocabulary is quite hard to understand.

Rating :

10/10   EPIC! 

Noor

Mr Stink (5ème/Groupe3)

Mr Stink

By David Williams

Genre: comedy

Blurb: There was a girl named Chloe who was 12 years old and felt extremely lonely.  There was this rather rusty man with an equally rusty dog who kept him company.  She often saw them sitting on a bench: this was Mr Stink and his dog Duchess. They were homeless and they stank quite a bit too.  One day Chloe took all her courage and went to talk to Mr Stink and even invited him to come with his dog to live at her house.  The only problem was that Chloe’s parents would never accept a homeless stranger in their house so Chloe made Mr Stink sleep in the shed in the corner of the garden.  After several days, Mr Stink and Duchess went in the house to meet Chloe’s parents but unfortunately, Chloe’s mother did not receive him very well but her dad felt sorry for him and let Mr Stink stay a few more days but, unexpectedly, Mr Stink did not want to stay long because he was a wanderer and not a man who would live in a shed all his life.

I chose this book because I read another book by the same author, before, Millionaire Boy, and I loved it. 

What I enjoyed about this book is that it is hilarious but with a  serious message of love, friendship and tolerance, too. 

I would recommend this book to anyone who is interested in reading a page-turner!

Level: 9 years old and above

Rating: 9/10 at least!!

Maxime 

5eme c

Cherub : The Recruit (5ème/Groupe3)

Title: Cherub   The Recruit

Author: Robert Muchamore

Genre: Action and adventure

Blurb: A terrorist doesn’t let strangers in her flat because they might be undercover police or intelligence agents, but her children bring their mates home and they run all over the place.

The terrorist doesn’t know that a kid has bugged every room in her house, cloned the hard drive on her PC, and copied all the numbers in her phone book. The kid works for CHERUB.

CHERUB is not James Bond. There are no master criminals or high-tech gadgets. CHERUB kids live in the real world. They slip under adult radar and get information that sends criminals and terrorists to jail.

I chose this book because it is amazingly detailed and well written. It has everything I could hope for.

What I enjoyed about the book : everything! But to give example: each chapter ends with a “cliff hanger” which makes you continue reading. Every chapter has its own story but all the stories are related.

I would recommend this book to people who like adventure and action novels. In fact the book is suitable for almost anyone because it is a really fun read and it is exciting. It keeps you on your toes. 

Level: Intermediate

Rating: 5/5

Ludovic

Cherry Crush (5ème/Groupe3)

CHERRY CRUSH ( THE CHOCOLATE BOX GIRLS series) 

Cathy Cassidy

  

Genre : girly/  romance

CHERRY. Dark almond eyes, skin the colour of milky coffee, wild imagination, feisty, fun . . .

Cherry Costello's life is about to change forever. She and Dad are moving to Somerset where a new mum and a bunch of brand-new sisters await. And on Cherry's first day there her head is turned by the gorgeous Shay Fletcher. But Shay already has a girlfriend, Cherry's new stepsister, Honey. Cherry knows her friendship with Shay is dangerous - it could destroy everything. But that doesn't mean she's going to stay away from him …

I chose this book because of the blurb that was really suspenseful. Also the cover was intriguing.

What I enjoyed the most in this book was the suspense. I read it in one night: I couldn’t stop! Also it is an easy book which you can read even if you are tired.

I would recommend this book to girls from the age of 10,  Also girls who like Romance.

Level :  easy book with every-day vocabulary.

I give it  :   4 stars or 17/20  because it is great but not exceptional or perfect.

Louison 

5ème 

The Hunger Games (5ème/Groupe3)

“The Hunger Games”

Suzanne Collins.

Genre :  science fiction novel.

Every year each district of Panem sends a girl and a boy between the ages of 12-18 to the Capitol. At the 74^th Hunger Games, Katniss Everdeen, not being able to see her sister, Primrose, die, volunteers to take her place in the Games. She goes along with Peeta, a baker’s son.

Together, they go to the Capitol with their coaches Hymitch and Effie. They meet their stylist Cinna, along with the crew. They are since known as the Star Crossed lovers and cannot bear to kill each other...

Why I chose this book:

I chose this book because everyone who had read it, was recommending it saying how much they had loved it and it was also the next big thing.

What I enjoyed about the book:

I loved the book because there was always suspense and action, there were also no dull parts.

I would recommend this book:

 to anybody who likes science fiction novels.

Level:

Maybe for more experienced reader (12-13 yrs and over).

Rating:

I am going to give this book 5 stars because it’s the best and favourite book I’ve read so far. 

Louis 

The Devil's Triangle (5ème/Groupe3)

The Devil’s Triangle

Mark Robson

Adventure book 

Sam and Niamh’s mother died or vanished when they were small, they do not how it happened and where it happened. Their dad, Matt, thinks that it has to do with the Bermuda Triangle so each year he goes back there to search for his wife. Sam gets bored and tired of his father’s obsession with finding his wife so he decides to “borrow” his dad’s boat and goes fishing with his mate Callum. What starts with a laugh soon turns into chaos. They are trapped in the Bermuda Triangle. It was now a question of survival. Will they be stuck forever?

What I like about the book:

I really like the book because I love adventure.

A great book, with a lot of description and atmospheric moments.

I would recommend this books to reader who are 9 to 13-year-old kids

Rating

I give this book a 8.5/10

Hugo

Shadow (5ème/Groupe3)

SHADOW                                                        

Michael Morpurgo                                                                                      

Genre: realistic fiction

Blurb: Aman lived in Afghanistan in his cave in a small village called Bamiyan peacefully and was bored of being alone with his parents.

And one day, he found a dog, a springer spaniel, outside his cave. He decided to keep him and soon they became good companions.

But one day, some Taliban came to Bamiyan and killed Aman’s father and many other people. Aman and his mother decided that it was time to leave Bamiyan and take Shadow, their dog companion, with them.

I chose this particular book because I found the story very emotionally touching.

What I enjoyed about this book is the fact that it is very realistic and the story is told in a very elaborate way.

I recommend this book to people that enjoy emotional types of books, slightly cruel and grieving.

Rating: *****

Dan

Look Into My Eyes (5ème/Groupe3)

Look Into My Eyes (Ruby Redfort Series)

Author: Lauren Child

Genre: Adventure

Blurb: This is the story of a young girl who loves to crack codes and to be involved
dangerous, but fascinating, adventures. Since she was little she has kept notebooks with different odd things that have happened. Nobody, including her best friend Clancy Crew, the son of the president, knows about them. One day, she is recruited in a secret society that she can tell no one about, even her best friend.  Will she be able to resist the temptation to tell her friend?

What I enjoyed about this book:

This is a spectacular novel because all you want to do is keep on  reading until you finish unravelling the mystery.

Level: I think that this book is suitable for most people from nine to thirteen or fourteen depending on the level of English.

Rating: 4/5
Anaïs 

 5ème

The Curious incident of the dog in the night-time (5ème/Groupe3)

The Curious incident of the dog in the night-time

Mark Haddon

Detective story

This book is written in the first person and is about a 15 year-old-boy who has Asperger syndrome. His name is Christopher Boone and he lives with his dad: Ed Boone in Swindon. At the beginning of the book Christopher explains that his mother died 2 years before he wrote this book.

The book all kicks off when Christopher discovers the dog of his neighbour Mrs Shears speared by a garden fork and he is one of the suspects.

He then starts searching around for clues about who killed the dog although his father tells him to stay out of other people’s business.

He meets a lot of people while he is searching for clues including the old Mrs Alexander who tells him that his mum is not in fact dead but divorced because she had an affair with Mr Shears.

This is when Christopher starts to suspect his dad of suspicious behaviour and one day he has a slight argument which results in the confiscation of the book that Christopher's writing

When Christopher finds his book in his dad’s room he comes across some letters that his mum wrote to him well after her supposed death…

What I enjoyed about this book:  it was very inspiring.

I would recommend  this book to anyone who likes mystery in books.

I give this book a 5/5

Aaron

5emeB 

The Help (4ème/Groupe2)

Title: THE HELP

Author: Kathryn Stockett                                    

Genre: Historic Novel

Summary: 

The Help is set in Jackson, Mississipi and begins in August 1962. 

Miss Skeeter, a 20-year- old young woman, leaves Ole Miss University and comes back to her hometown, Jackson.

There, she discovers how racist her white ‘friends’ are towards their black maids.

Being racist was seen as normal at the time.

However, Miss Skeeter  went to university so she is more intelligent and respectful than her friends. She is disgusted by the situation and decides to write a book entitled « The Help » in order to make things change in her town.

 

I chose this book because I heard about the movie (inspired from the book).

What I enjoyed  about this book  is that I learned a few things thanks to it: I didn’t think that in the 60s (which are not that far away) there was still such discrimination in the USA! 

I would recommend it to readers who like learning about the past and to those who like beautiful friendship stories. 

This book is quite easy to read, I think anybody who has an intermediate to good level in English can read it.

Rating:  4/5

Camille B 4ème

Divergent (4ème/Groupe2)

Title: Divergent

Author: Veronica Roth

Genre: science fiction

Plot: Beatrice Prior is living in a future Chicago. Her society is divided into five factions, each dedicated to a different virtue:

Candor (the honest), Abnegation (the selfless), Dauntless (the brave), Amity (the peaceful), and Erudite (the intelligent).

On day all sixteen-year-olds must select a faction in which they will live for the rest of their lives. For Beatrice, the decision is between staying with her family and being who she really is.

So, she finally makes a choice that surprises everyone.

During a really competitive initiation that follows, Beatrice calls herself Tris and tries to understand who her friends really are. And she is falling in love with a very peculiar boy.

But Tris also has a secret; one she's hiding from everyone because she knows it can mean death. And she understands that her secret could really change her life.

Why I chose this book

I wanted to read it before seeing the film, in order to compare both. Also I was recommended to read it by most of my friends who had either read the book or seen the film.

What I enjoyed about the book:

I think the book was really great. It is interesting to see how the society that we have today could change and turn into the one in Divergent.

I also really liked the way that Tris needs to make a tough choice but prefers to live her life rather than stay with her family and never live the life she was meant to live

I would recommend the book to everyone who enjoys reading because the book contains many subjects (even if the genre is mostly science fiction). And also it isn’t so hard to read and once you read the first two chapters you really are into the story and it’s almost impossible to stop reading.

Level : I think the book isn’t hard to read and anyway it is so captivating that you can understand it.

Rating : between four and four and a half.

Shaan

The Fault in our stars (4ème/Groupe2)

Title: the Fault in our stars

Author: John Green

Genre : fiction, Romance

Blurb : The narrator is Hazel Grace is a 16-year-old cancer patient.

She is forced by her parents to attend a Support Group. One day, she meets Augustus, there and he catches her eye. Augustus is a 17-year-old ex-basketball player, now an amputee.

They get to know each other, and Augustus, Hazel's new love, starts to feel the same feelings as her. She shares her favourite book with him, and together, they are obsessed about the book’s unsolved ending. They manage to contact the author, are invited to visit him in Amsterdam. Hazel’s dream has come true. Everything seems to be perfect for her, and her relationship with Augustus is going very well. But things don’t exactly go as planned... The author they meet in Amsterdam, Peter Van Houten, is actually really different from what they could imagine and Augustus’s cancer has returned... How are Hazel and Augustus going to get over it?

Why we chose this book:

“A lot of my friends recommended me this book and I don’t regret reading it.”

“A friend of mine told me that she cried a lot when she read the end of the book and that she found it awesome. She also kept telling me to read it because she was sure that I was going to love it.”

What I enjoyed about the book is that “it was simple to read and very

humorous, deep and tragic at the same time. This book is full of surprises. Unexpected things happen without you suspecting just little bit of it. Even though the book is really good the end is quite tragic and

emotional !”

“It is my favorite book because it’s a hilarious and heart-breaking story at the same time. You feel the emotions of the principal character/narrator, Hazel Grace.”

We would recommend this book to readers who like romantic, tragic and philosophical stories, teenagers and young adult girls who like being touched when they read a book.

Caution:  emotional girls get your tissues out!

Level: There is a lot of vocabulary and it is philosophical. We don’t recommend this book for beginners.

Rate: 5/5

Manon, Lisa, Louise B, Camille 0. , 4è

The Book Thief (4ème/Groupe2)

Title: The Book Thief

Author: Markus Zusak

Genre: historical, adventure

Death is the narrator of that fantastic story about a little girl stealing Jewish books during the dangerous period of a Nazi Germany. The story takes place during the Second World War, when Liesel Meminger is sent to a richer family as her mother can’t keep her anymore. On the way to their new home, Liesel steals her first book: The Gravedigger’s Handbook. She then meets her new parents, a severe mother (Rosa) and a lazy father (Hans) who both love her very much. She also makes her first friend, Rudy (who’s secretly in love with her). Liesel steals her second book from the fire when Jewish books are being burnt for Hitler’s birthday. She also discovers that her real father was a « communist » and that’s why her mother had to leave her with another family. One night, a Jewish fugitive called Max comes to her home. His father has saved Hans in World War 1: they have to take him in. Liesel discovers a new religion and an awesome friendship begins between the two of them… What will happen next? Will Max be discovered? Read to know…

Why I chose this book? My mother told me it was (and it is) the no.1 International Bestseller and that I could really enjoy the story.

What I enjoyed about the book:  I LOVED this book. The story is perfect, the sentences are simple and short, the vocabulary isn’t too difficult for me and there’s a lot of little hints of humour.

Level I would recommend it to pupils from group 2 and up as the vocabulary is sometimes tricky.

Rating: 5/5 If I could, I would put 6/5 =D

First Name of the reviewer: Jeanne

Class/ English group: 4°/ 2group