I absolutely adore the book called Insignificant Events in the Life of a Cactus and everything in it. I liked it because I feel like the book was really unique, because the plot was different from any other book I have read. Here is a short summary of the book: Aven was just another kid at middle school, except for the fact that she was the only one without arms. Aven had never felt out of place, but when her dad gets an offer to manage Stagecoach Pass (An amusement park probably as old as your grandpa), she has to leave behind the tornadoes, chilly winters, and not to mention ALL of her friends. When Aven gets there she realizes that the amusement park is not at all like Disneyland. At her new school in Arizona, Aven feels like an alien. Then, one day she meets a guy named Connor who has Tourettes, which is where you get tics; She also meets and befriends a kid named Zion. Aven, Zion, and Connor all try to figure out who exactly is running the park, like their own mystery! Though armless, Aven is the kind of protagonist, (along with her best friends), are the type of characters every book needs.

I absolutely adore the book called Insignificant Events in the Life of a Cactus and everything in it. I liked it because I feel like the book was really unique, because the plot was different from any other book I have read. Here is a short summary of the book: Aven was just another kid at middle school, except for the fact that she was the only one without arms. Aven had never felt out of place, but when her dad gets an offer to manage Stagecoach Pass (An amusement park probably as old as your grandpa), she has to leave behind the tornadoes, chilly winters, and not to mention ALL of her friends. When Aven gets there she realizes that the amusement park is not at all like Disneyland. At her new school in Arizona, Aven feels like an alien. Then, one day she meets a guy named Connor who has Tourettes, which is where you get tics; She also meets and befriends a kid named Zion. Aven, Zion, and Connor all try to figure out who exactly is running the park, like their own mystery! Though armless, Aven is the kind of protagonist, (along with her best friends), are the type of characters every book needs.

I've always liked the tale of Sleeping Beauty, so I might be biased-BUT, this book was absolutely STUPENDOUS, period. Maleficent wasn't always evil, she used to be a kind faerie. Then a human named Stephen came along. He betrayed her by cutting off her wings, only because he wanted the throne. Maleficent responded by cursing his baby, Aurora. Time passes, and Maleficent finally decides to bring teen Aurora to the Moors, a.k.a the land of faeries. They grew closer to each other every night, until the day of the curse had come. Will Aurora find out the truth of Maleficent? Has Maleficent's heart been changed? Find out in this wonderful, engaging book! Like I said before, I personally loved it! I think it was the perfect backstory to go with the movie. Some reasons why I liked this book are: I liked how they showed Maleficent wasn't always bad, and how the author gave more to the story. I also liked it because of the characters. From Aurora to the three faeries that looked after her, the characters made the book more interesting. I would recommend this book for: Ages 8+, fairy tale lovers, and people looking for a good book.

Everyone knows that a good book can-and will-make you feel sad, happy, angry, etc. And this is exactly what this author did. There is a stereotypical storyline for this genre that goes something like this: Kid moves to the Americas, gets bullied, solves the bullying problem, becomes popular and happy at the end. Apple (the main character) has moved in from the Philippines, and constantly gets bullied for her looks. Her one dream: be able to play the guitar and become famous for it. Only, there's one problem. Her mom thinks that a guitar is a waste of time, and thinks that she should focus instead on her grades. Apple feels miserable for three reasons: Her friendships are falling apart, she's being called ugly, and she can't buy a guitar. But, when two unexpected friends, and music lessons for free-if she can get a guitar-Apple, might just be able to survive the year. Okay, I was a bit disappointed with the ending, because the whole book they mentioned this field trip to Georgia, and how Apple was going to play on the streets and make a living in Georgia, but in the end, we don't get to read about it. I was kind of looking forward to it, so it kind of let me down that we didn't get to read about the field trip. But all in all this book deserves five stars, and NOTHING less. My reasons for this are: Like I said before in my review, this book really made me emotional. Also, I just think that the plot was nicely woven together. I would recommend this book for ages 9+ and for people who are interested in music stories.

Have you ever read or heard something and said to yourself, “Something isn’t right here. There’s more to the story.” That’s how Lark felt after reading a newspaper article on Swallowtail Island, where she and her sister, Pip, have a summer house that their mom left them after she died. Going to the island with Thomas, her stepdad (who loves family photos just a little too much), and her stepbrothers, she finds a newspaper article telling of a 75 year old tale of an accidental death. She is later hired to investigate the incident for a book as a favor for a friend of her late mother. Digging deeper, there is more to the story than meets the eye. Can Lark find the missing piece of the story before it affects a new friend of hers? This thrilling mystery will leave you on the edge of your seat! I would recommend this to someone 12-15.