Kids Books - Action

Explorer Academy: The Nebula Secret

Explorer Academy: The Nebula Secret

By Trudi Trueit

WOW!!! That was my only reaction after reading this book! Just WOW! This book totally surprised me. Cruz Coronado lives in Hawaii and loves to surf. At least, he LIVED in Hawaii. The very exclusive Explorer Academy had accepted his application to attend... in WASHINGTON, D.C.! His deceased mother had gone when she was his age, and Cruz feels she would be proud of him going. At the Academy, they train kids and teens about how to explore. Pretty cool, right? Cruz definitely thinks so! There's augmented reality rooms to simulate what life will be like when they set sail to take an ACTUAL EXPLORATION! YEAH! They get to actually go out into the world and explore using the skills they learned at the Explorer Academy! Sounds like my kind of school!! But something sinister seems to be going on amidst all of the hubbub. Nebula (a medicine company) wants to stop the explorers from finding a special substance from jellyfish that can cure every single disease in the world, which would eventually put Nebula out of service (because no one is getting sick and buying their medicine)! LIKE, WHO WOULD DO THAT?!? Nebula is the DEFINITION of evil! And a strange man keeps popping up in Cruz's life... more like following him! Why is all of this happening to Cruz? Find out in Explorer Academy: The Nebula Secret. This book is spectacular! I loved it because it had fun codes, and awesome story and writing style, and showed how cool exploring is! I would absolutely LOVE to attend Explorer Academy! This book was overall FABULOUS! I recommend this book to anyone, at any age!

Keeper of the Lost Cities

Keeper of the Lost Cities

By Shannon Messenger

Have you ever imagined that elves could be real? Or that dinosaurs were still alive? Even that places like Atlantis were real? Well all of those things are real in The Keeper Of The Lost Cities. Here are some things that happen in the book. Sophie was shocked when someone told her she was an elf. He was also an elf too. So that explained to Sophie that she can read minds after she hit her head when she was 5. When someone picks her up and gets her to the elvin world the council there tells her that she is an elf. She is now living with 2 people Grady and Edaline. They used to have a daughter named Jolie and died in a fire. She almost went to Exile for breaking the law. She is sad because when she went to the elvin world to live there they had to brainwash her family. She soon realizes that she was the project of the moon lark, meaning that the Black swan made her In the elvin world you have powers and if you had more than one it was really rare and Sophie has a lot more than one power. People kidnapped her while she was in a cave. They tried to brainwash her but didn’t work. They took off her tracker and put it in the ocean so it looked like she died. She sent out a signal to Fitz but Fitz thought it was a trap because he went to her funeral. They told him that if you don’t come then I will die. A theme I learned from this book was, ‘don’t be afraid to do something’. Sophie was scared at times but she always overcame it. For example when she was at the top 2 at the splotching match. She was going against Fitz who has been winning for years but she still ended up winning. Sophie never loses courage in what she does even if it means risking her life. Some memorable characters are Sophie and Dex. Sophie is good at everything; she beat Fitz in a splotching match and Fitz has been winning for years. Sophie was told she was an elf and had multiple powers. She goes to a school named Foxfire. Her group of friends always had her back when Stina always teased her. In that group of friends there is Biana, Dex, Fritz, Keefe, Marella, and of course Sophie. Dex is Sophie’s best friend. He is smart and is not failing alchemy. Most people fail alchemy. There are some memorable fictional places that Messenger uses in Keeper of the Lost Cities. There are similar buildings in the elvin world that we have here, such as gates and big houses, trees that take in pollution, gardens and cliffs and even caves. Despite the great parts that I enjoyed from Keeper of the Lost Cities, there were some parts that were confusing. I just didn’t understand how a brainpush worked. After you get energy after years does your brain just push the energy out like a powerful blast? I will still give it five stars because you could feel how the character feels. When Sophie left her family you could feel the pain she was feeling like leaving your family after living with them for so long was heartbreaking. I also liked how the book could be very unpredictable, and you find out new things page after page. Overall, I would recommend this book to 3rd grade and older, as there is some violence, but it seems that it would be very enjoyable for people who like exciting books that give you a rollercoaster of a ride.

Holes (Thorndike Press Large Print Literacy Bridge Series)

Holes (Thorndike Press Large Print Literacy Bridge Series)

By Louis Sachar

Stanley Yelnats is always in the wrong place at the wrong time, and it's all thanks to his no-good-dirty-rotten-pig-stealing-great-great-grandfather. When a pair of shoes inexplicably fall on Stanley's head, it's the last straw: it turns out that they belong to the famous baseball player Clyde Livingston, who had donated them to the orphanage to be auctioned. In court, Stanley's "they fell out of the sky" reason sounds pretty lame to his own ears, and it does to the court judge, too. He gives Stanley and his parents a choice. Either Stanley serves time or he goes to Camp Green Lake. Stanley was never rich enough to go to camp, so of course, he picks CGL, but it turns out to be beyond his wildest dreams - in the worst way possible. Barely any water, scorching conditions, hostile campmates, selfish camp directors, and having to dig a six-by-six foot hole every day is nothing like the camps Stanley has heard of. But when a miraculous encounter with Zero, a fellow camper, shows that their family lines may have crossed before, Stanley's wrong-place-at-the-wrong-time curse has a chance to be lifted.

Star Wars Ahsoka

Star Wars Ahsoka

By E.K. Johnston

The Ahsoka in this book is not the same Ashoka as the one in the Clone Wars that we all know and love. But surviving a war, leaving the only family you know, and then hearing they've all been brutally slaughtered can change a person. As we begin this action-filled story, we find former Jedi padawan Ashoka Tano carving out a miserable existence on the remote planet Thabeska, posing as Ashla, a mechanic who works hard and doesn't ask questions. But when the empire reaches its hand to the remote Thabeska, Ahsoka fearfully runs. She finds an almost-home on Radaa, a non-exciting farming moon that seems obscure enough. Until the Imperials decide to land on the planet and take over, taking Ashoka by surprise. She is torn between revealing herself and pretending to be Ashla. She and her new family must decide whether to rebel or to watch as everything and everyone they love is destroyed. After reading this book, I don't feel like it can stand on its own. I would love to see it become a series, like some of the other Star Wars series I've read. Star Wars: Ashoka didn't lack any of the grit and harsh reality of how cruel the empire truly is, and I liked it for that. This book was a really interesting read that I recommend to all Star Wars fans!

The Adventures of Captain Underpants (Captain Underpants #1)

The Adventures of Captain Underpants (Captain Underpants #1)

By Dav Pilkey

There's these two kids named George and Harold. They're best friends and they like to play pranks on people. They also write and sell this comic book called Captain Underpants. One day, they play a huge prank and get caught by their school principal who hates them. The principal blackmails them and they have to do whatever he says. So they buy this hypnotizing ring. Then they hypnotize him, so he'll do whatever they say. They accidently hypnotize him into thing he's Captain Underpants, so then they go off to find him. That's as far as a I got. What I though of it: This book was so unbelievable boring and poorly written, I couldn't stand it. I didn't even make it half-way through the book. I was physically incapable of continuing. The characters were extremely flat. They had no personalities what so ever. I'm guessing I was supposed to like George and Harold, though I really wasn't given a reason to. I'm guessing I was supposed to dislike the principal. I really didn't dislike him anymore than George and Harold. They said he was mean and he didn't like smile and laughter, but that was about the only reason I could think of to dislike him. He did punish George and Harold, but that's not a reason to dislike him. They deserved it. He didn't use the proper method, but still... The illustrations were extremely creepy. If this book was supposed to be funny, it failed miserably. There was nothing even remotely funny about it. Overall, this I couldn't bring myself to finish this book, but what I did manage to read was horrendous.

Dog Man: Lord of the Fleas: From the Creator of Captain Underpants (Dog Man #5)

Dog Man: Lord of the Fleas: From the Creator of Captain Underpants (Dog Man #5)

By Dav Pilkey

I love Dog Man. I started reading the books in 4th grade when I was introduced to it. I was given a free paper dog man book with 33 pages. Anyways, I loved it. I bought two hardcover books for a total of $20. I read them both in one hour. My brother's school had a book fair and he bought to for $20, as well. Same thing happened with him, he read them both in one hour. I love these books, but that's just too much money for, 1. something (I know it purposely looks like that) that does not look like it took too much time to make, 2. something that takes you 30 minutes to read, 3 something that does not have many pages. Dog Man is the best, and I have read this one, it's about the adventures with his cat friends. I would definitely recommend that if you have not yet read the other books, I think you should before you read this one because you can get a better understanding of everything. I also have some pros and cons about the books for younger children, one of the cons is that they don't use "proper" language, but a pro about this book for younger children is that it does not take long to read, it's humorous, and it does not use a lot of big words, only one or two a book. Closing, I just don't think that this book is worth $10 dollars just for you to read it in 30 minutes. I am not trying to hate on Dog Man, y'all!! This review was thought out, and took time to be written, so please respect that. Follow me to get the inside scoop about books!! Bye y'all!! ☺

Project Mc2: Smart is the New Cool: Includes Science Experiments!

Project Mc2: Smart is the New Cool: Includes Science Experiments!

By Jade Hemsworth

I enjoy spy books and mystery books and this book really entertained me. McKeyla is a spy in an all girl facility. She moves around to different states infiltrating schools. In this book McKeyla is assigned to keep Prince Xander safe before he goes into space. She teams up with the three smartest girls in the school and saves the day, obviously. If you are interested in STEAM, this is a good book to read, too.

How I Survived: Four Nights on the Ice

How I Survived: Four Nights on the Ice

By Serapio Ittusardjuat

these series are so intersting and when you start reading it you cant stop

Moon Rising (Wings of Fire, Book 6)

Moon Rising (Wings of Fire, Book 6)

By Tui T. Sutherland

The previous dragonets of destiny have stopped the war, and have decided to build an academy to teach younger dragons to get along better than their ancestors, so another war like that won't happen again. The story is in the point of view of Moonwatcher, or Moon, for short. Moon is a very special Nightwing, and not just because she was raised in the forest away from the other Nightwings. Moon can read minds. Not only that, but she can see the future, at least a little bit. No Nightwing has had those powers, or any for that matter, for centuries, if they even had any at all. All Moon's mother has ever told her was to "Stay hidden, stay secret, stay safe". But when Moon goes to the Jade Mountain Academy, the school set up by the Dragonets of Destiny, there are more dragons there than she's seen in her entire life, so that means so many of others' thoughts swimming in her head she can barely take it. She sees the horrible memories of dragonets who fought and those of ones who lost loved ones. Then she overhears someone saying that they're planning a murder, and needs to find out how to stop it. Suddenly a mysterious voice appears in her head teaching her how to use her powers. Will Moon be able to keep her new friends and solve who the to-be murderer is, or will everyone find out about her secret and not trust her? One disappointment was the death of Carnelian, a Skywing dragon: I was excited at the possibility of finally getting a book in a Skywing's point of view, and there was a great deal of wasted potential I saw in the character (although I still do love the other characters dearly). Wings of Fire in general touches on some pretty mature themes for a slightly younger-audience series, and Moon Rising seemed to up the ante in this regard, touching on the many psychological traumas that can result from a long and grueling war fought partially by youths. Peril, Sora, and Flame especially struck me as very tragic characters, but pretty much all of the characters seemed to have some major issues involving the war and I hope that these theme threads will be continued in the future books of this series arc. Witnessing the healing the characters go through would be very rewarding, considering all of the pain and loss the war caused them. If you liked the previous books in the series then you will most certainly like this, maybe even better! I know I did.

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