Monday, January 09, 2012

More Guest Reviews from Voorheesville Middle School


Park, Barbara. The Graduation of Jake Moon. New York: Atheneum Books for Young Readers, 2000. Print.

If you know anything about Alzheimer’s, Alzheimer’s is a bad thing. The Graduation of Jake Moon by Barbara Park is set in New York with a young boy named Jake Moon. His grandfather, Skelly, has been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease and Jake must cope with the fact that his grandfather has a terrible disease. All-the-while, Jake must maintain a normal life. But, as he tries to make friends and maintain his, “normal” life, Skelly can destroy it in seconds.

Jake feels angry with Skelly for how he acts even though he knows he has Alzheimer’s. Jake
will soon realize how much he does truly love Skelly when he wanders off and gets lost in a city. If you like depressing, funny, or heart-warming books, this is the perfect book for you. This book truly shows the problems of theaverage boy; plus, an Alzheimer’s diseased grandfather. ~Alex

Woodson, Jacqueline. Locomotion. New York: G.P, 2003. Print.

The day Lonnie Motions parents died his whole life changed. He was separated from his sister and moved into a foster home in New York. He has a new teacher, Miss M, and a foster mom, Miss Edna. Lonnie lives in a foster home near his old home where all the memories come flooding back.
Lonnie’s challenge in the book is to mature and move on with his life after his parents’ death. His sister moves away to a friendly home but doesn’t take Lonnie with her. His relationship with his sister starts to get distant; soon the parents decide they don’t want him to come around her anymore. He finally realizes that his life is never going to be the same and accepts it. He uses poetry to get out of his head and find happiness. I think this book would
be good for kids around 10-13 years old because you can understand the pain of Lonnie and relate to it. ~Brianna


Prellar, James. Six Innings. New York: Feiwal and Friends, 2008. Print.

The title of the book is Six Innings by James Preller. Imagine that you are playing in a
championship game of baseball tied at 3 going into the bottom of the 5th inning. The main characters are Sam Reister, Nick Clemente, and Tyler Weinberg. Tyler and Nick are players. Nick plays for Northeast Gas & Electric. Tyler plays for Earl Grubb’s Pool Supplies. Sam is the announcer of the game. The coming of age moment is that Tyler’s parents are never there. It makes him feel upset and abandoned.

If you like a book about hard work in sports and not giving up, this is the book for you. The game was tied 3 to 3 going into the bottom of the 5th inning and well I guess you will just have to read the book to see who wins the game. ~John

No comments: