Building Blocks by Cynthia Voigt

This book begins with a boy named Brann. Brann right now is suffering from his parents constantly fighting. He is so tired of his parents fighting with his father is always backing down and being the loser. So he decides to go to inside a huge toy block fortress that his father made. Tired, he falls asleep in the fortress and wakes up in a different time and place. There Brann meets a boy named Kevin who will teach him a very important lesson in friendship.

This book is very well written but can be a little slow in parts. I don't recommened this book to people who procrastinate in finishing a book. To the rest of you, happy reading.

Devin R. 7th grader

Interworld by Neil Gaiman and Michael Reaves

Joey Harker is taking one of the craziest tests in his life. Mr. Dimas, his social studies teacher, uses very unconventional methods of teaching and testing. Joey is dropped off with two partners somewhere in town, and has to find his way to a designated checkpoint. While venturing ahead, he passes through a strange mist, and finds himself in from o a McDonald’s with an M that’s colored like a Scottish kilt. Strange. Then upon returning to his group, he finds that suddenly one of his partner’s hair has become a lot shorter. Stranger. Before he knows it, the entire world has changed, and just as suddenly, he leaves that world to find himself at a place with hundreds, maybe thousands of alternate versions of himself. Now he’s fighting against two evil organizations using his special power of Walking to prevent them from taking over the Altiverse.

This is honestly one of the very best books I’ve ever read, with an extremely unique and exciting plot; in fact I wish it had sequels. But even still, it is an amazing book for anyone who likes fantasy at all. To tell the truth, this book was so good I was tempted to go to the library and pay them so I could keep it. Please, if you don’t read this book, you’re missing out on a great piece of literature. I beg you to read it.

Eric F. - 7th grader

The Night Tourist by Katherine Marsh

One day, Jack Perdu was walking home from school, translating a Latin book he was reading, when suddenly he was hit by a car. Very luckily for him, he lived, and was able to go home two days later. That was when things got weird. One night, he heard a door slamming, and assuming it was his father, went to go look. However, he found a complete stranger, just sitting with his feet up on his father’s chair. The man at first seemed to know Jack was there, but acted as if he wasn’t, talking to himself as if he was alone. When Jack asked him who he was, he fled out the window. Jack thought he was going crazy, and his father sent him to a doctor in New York City, where his mother had died eight years ago. While there he met a girl named Euri, who took him nine floors below New York’s Grand Central Station. Jack has now entered the New York Underworld. Suddenly he is on a desperate hunt to find his mother, who may not even be there any more, while avoiding Cerberus and the Underworld guards trying to find him.

I hate to repeat myself, but this book was just as good as the last one I reviewed, Interworld, to the point where I wanted to buy it from the library. A fantastic tale, combining imagination with some Ancient Greek mythology and putting it in NYC, and Katherine Marsh has a brilliant story that will be hard to forget. Anyone who likes anything fantastical will love this novel about life after death in New York City.

Eric F. - 7th grader

A Great and Terrible Beauty by Libba Bray

A Great and Terrible Beauty is beautifully written. All teenage girls will fall in love with some of the characters and be attached to the book.
It is about a girl named Gemma Doyle set in the 1800's. She deeply wants to leave India and attend school in England, but her mother disagrees. After running away from home, Gemma's mother dies and Gemma thinks it is partially her fault. Later she encounters many adventures as she goes to a religious girls boarding school in England. Gemma has strange visions and mean while begins to fit in at her new school with the most popular girls. From there, they start a tribe called The Order and go into the realms.
I recommend this book to anybody who likes suspense, thrills, literature, and fantasy.

By Dana H. -7th grader

The Thief Lord by Cornelia Funke

Deep inside Venice lives a mysterious boy known as the Thief Lord who houses runaway children. When Prosper and Bo meet him after running away from their aunt, their world flips upside down. The boys encounter a cheating merchant, a strange inspector, and a mystery beyond their wildest dreams. What will happen?
I highly recommend this book to any one searching an adventure book with a healthy dose of suspense.

By Allex B.- 7th grader

Heat by Mike Lupica

Heat is a very well written book. It is about a boy name Victor Arroyo and his love for the great game of baseball. Supposedly, Victor can throw a fastball up to 80 mph. Victor lives in the Bronx with his older brother Carlos. He is on a little league baseball team called the Clippers with his best friend Manny. Problems arise when Victor is challenged by other teams in the Bronx to get his birth certificate that can not be reached because it is in Cuba. Also, if anyone should find out about his secret, Victor will be split up from his brother forever.
I do recommend that you read this book for yourself about a boy and his love for baseball in this heart stopping thriller, Heat, by Mike Lupica.

Daniel D. -7th Grader

The Wish List by Eoin Colfer

This book is about a girl named Meg Finn. She dies while trying to rob a house owned by a man named Lowrie McCall. She was too bad of a person to go to Heaven, but too good of a person to to to Hell. In order to get into Heaven, she must help Lowrie McCall complete a wish list of things he had wanted to do. While she is trying to help complete the wish list, a friend of hers who had also died while robbing Lowrie's and went to Hell is sent by demons to get her.

This book is very suspenseful and well written. I suggest this fantasy book to everyone.

Justin M.- 7th grader