Sense and Sensibility - Jane Austen

The Gist

Sense and Sensibility
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After Mr. Dashwood dies his beloved family is left impoverished. They are forced to move into the country. Mrs. Dashwood and her three daughters:Margaret, Marianne, and Elinor, try to make the best out of what they can and soon find a new home and friends in their small cottage in Barton.

Marianne and Elinor are both of an age to be finding husbands. They are as close as sisters can be but as different as it gets. Soon enough they both find love, but it is ruined when Marianne’s foolish young heart falls for a player and Elinor’s stoic senseful heart falls for a man who is already engaged. The two sisters have to endure the many obstacles of social class at the time and it shows them how much love can actually endure.


What We Think

Reviewed by ShoreWhisperer

Number of Pages: 406

Jane Austen is a classic writer and I absolutely loved this book. I feel that all the stories that we read today about love and relationship were based off of the classics like Wuthering Heights and Sense and Sensibility. You see the darker side of relationships and all the scandal that we have in the books today in the books written by the Bronte sisters and Jane Austen. Onto the actual book though. This book was really good. It’s on the harder side of the reading level though because of the language. It’s not in the English that we speak today. They say things differently and it takes a little while to get the hang of reading Austen’s writing. It took me a couple of other classics and a little Shakespeare to be able read Austen or any classic with ease. My favorite part of the books were the characters. They seemed so real. When I read other books I sometimes feel that there is no way that the characters could be real, especially the men. The men in this book could very well be my next door neighbor for all I know. My favorite was Edward Ferrars. He was the most diffident person I have ever read about. They way she described him and his lines were the most revealing of this. I don’t know how she did it but she made him come to life. I was able to picture him and his stuttering perfectly. It was amazing. She did this with all of her characters.

The plot, although predictable, had some unexpected twists. There were many points of the book that I thought would be impossible to add-on too. Then she came up with something unexpected, it made the book interesting. The best part was that there were no extremely cheesy love scenes. Not like the Twilight books where they are so cheesy that it’s awkward to read them. There are a couple of scenes though that make you say ‘oh that’s really cute.’ but nothing over the top. It is all very realistic.  Besides being realistic it is really hysterical. If you can picture the scenes in your head you feel everything that is going on in the book. You can tangibly feel the awkwardness or the sadness or the business, it’s like you are living the book. That’s what books are supposed to do and she did it wonderfully. I always was able to get into the book and become part of the Edwardian eighteenth century. I know it sounds weird but I even felt happy and not disgusted with a marriage between a seventeen year old and thirty-five year old. It seemed natural and it was normal for the time period, I even found the match a good one because they really did love each other. I am trying to describe how you slip into the book but it really isn’t working. The only way you can actually understand it is to read the book. Jane Austen is an amazing writer, in that sense. On the other hand, the ending bugged me. There is all this happiness in the end but everything gets resolved, nothing ended up not happy. There were chances for it too, that is what depressed me. I wanted it to be a happy ending but I like it when there is someone who ends up not right in the end because either they deserve it or I didn’t like them. This story ended with everyone being happy in a sense and that seemed like a weird ending considering that I was thinking that she was realist. That is my only complaint about this book. Otherwise, I loved it. There were parts when it got boring but not a lot. This book is definitely worth reading.

Real Teen Rating~ A- : Read it!

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Paranormalcy (Paranormalcy #1) - Kiersten White

Real Teen Award
-Best Writing Style of 2010

The Gist

Paranormalcy
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Evie, despite her best efforts, has never and will never be normal. When she was just a baby her parents abandoned her, leaving her at the mercy of the foster care system. At eight years old she was found by the IPCA (international paranormal containment agency), an agency focused on capturing paranormals - vampires, werewolves, mermaids, hags – to keep the world organized and the humans safe. The day they find her, the IPCA realizes something ground-breaking about Evie: she’s special. She can see through what the paranormal world calls “glamours”. Instead of seeing a normal-looking human – like the rest if the world – she sees the creature for what it really is. The yellow eyes of werewolves. Dead, peeling skin of vampires. Blackened teeth and moss-covered hair of hags. She sees it all – when no one else can. So the IPCA takes her in, and makes her one of them. She captures werewolves, vampires, hags, whatever they ask her to get she gets for them. Until a special type of paranormal breaks into IPCA. An unknown, unclassified kind, who steals faces and makes them his own. Stealing as many faces as necessary to break in, he’s searching through ICPCA documents when Evie finds him. And tazes him. Once contained and interrogated, the creature tells them two things. One: his name is Lend. Two: mass amounts of free paranormals are mysteriously dying every day. Hearing this, Evie is determined to find out more. She visits Lend’s cell every day to try to learn more about what he is, and what’s happening to all the paranormals. Then Lend asks her an important question. What is she? She can’t be human if she can see through glamours. As Evie begins to question everything she’s known all her life, her ex-boyfriend/faery chauffeur starts stalking her. Following her. Kidnapping her. Evie’s paranormal world begins to crumble with each new question she asks herself. What’s up with the faery? Who’s killing the paranormals? And what exactly is she?


What We Think

Reviewed by Dream Catcher

Number of Pages: 335

Fun fact: I read this book when I was sick with acute bronchitis. Okay. So maybe that wasn’t such a fun fact. But it was true. Since I had all the time in the world to do absolutely nothing at all, I went out to Barnes and Noble and got myself something to do. From the moment I started reading, I didn’t want to put it down. I loved the idea of a secret paranormal society, and the IPCA. The characters were another great part of the story, Evie and Lend were the best, because they were relatable. They were very different, but they were teenagers that were believable. They were cute together and certainly made the story interesting. Reth, Evie’s ex-boyfriend, completely creeped me out the entire book. But I think that’s a good thing. He was supposed to be the creeper character, and if I was creeped out, the author pretty much succeeded, right? The great thing about all the characters is they made me feel something. Evie and Lend got me to feel bad for them, and they got me to like them. Reth made me angry and obviously creeped out. So, basically, characters were a major plus of this book – I LOVED them. Like I said earlier, I loved the whole idea of the book. The plot was interesting and completely unique, which was awesome. Now: the writing. I have only one complaint. And it’s about complaining. Evie always complained that she didn’t know who she was, what she was, why she was. Now, the first few times I felt kind of bad for her. It would really stink to find out after sixteen years of life as simply a gifted human that you might be WAY more than a gifted human. Identity crisis! But after reading her saying I don’t know who I am anymore dozens of times it got to be annoying. But other than that, I thought the writing was amazing. The style made me feel as though I knew Evie and that she was telling me the story. One last thing: COVER and TITLE. AMAZING. The cover is so dramatic and cool looking! The first time I saw it I immediately thought, hey that looks like a really good book. And do I even have to say anything about the title? Anything called Paranormalcy is worth checking out! Overall, I thought this was a really, really good book. I’m so glad I read it and would certainly recommend it to people to read. It was the best book I’ve read in a long time.

Real Teen Rating~ A : Go Buy Now.

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The Breakfast Club - Molly Ringwald, Anthony Michael Hall, Emilio Estevez, Judd Nelson, and Ally Sheedy

The Gist

The Breakfast Club
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Saturday detention is probably the worst punishment you can get in school.  It is 9 hours of sitting in a library doing nothing but twiddling your thumbs and staring at the ceiling.  Not to mention you are stuck with people from completely different cliques.  So, when Andrew (the jock), Brian (the brain), Claire (the princess), Bender (the criminal) and Allison (the basket case) all get stuck in detention they all have an unwritten agreement to be silent and just finish their essays.  That is until Bender decides to be the criminal that he is and stir up some trouble.  While being rude and offensive to everyone else in the room they decide to let loose a little and have fun in detention.  As the minutes pass by they realize that they have a lot more in common then they thought and begin to open up to people they wouldn’t have talked to if you had paid them 1,000,000 dollars.


What We Think

Reviewed by The North Star

Run Time: 93 Minutes

Rating: R

I have now successfully watched this movie 2 times and loved it just as I much as I did the first time I watched it.  This movie is the one of the examples people use when making an argument about how much better 80′s movies were than movies now.  The characters in this movie I don’t think can ever be dated.  Schools are always going to have the jocks, princesses, brains, trouble-makers and “strange” people.  So anyone can watch this movie and relate to one of the characters whether it was 20 years ago or 20 years from now.  In my mind the best character is Bender.  He is a complete jerk but since he isn’t being a jerk to me I find his lines hilarious!  There were times when I found myself with my jaw to the ground with disbelief at some of the things he said because they completely crossed the line.

Most movies usually have a huge cast but in this case it was really only the 5 kids, the principal and the janitor (sort of).  I kind of liked the small cast because I felt like I really got to know more about each character whereas if you have a huge cast you don’t get to know much about each character because there just isn’t enough time in the movie. Fun Fact: This movie was that it stared a lot of the key players of the “brat pack”.  The “brat pack” was an 80′s group of actors who appeared frequently in popular movies at the time.  In this movie Molly Ringwald, Anthony Michael Hall, Judd Nelson, Emilio Estevez and Ally Sheedy were all part of the “brat pack”.  In the case of plot, there wasn’t any (really).  I mean it was just about kids that go to detention and what happens but there is no larger underlying theme but I think that simplicity of plot is what makes it good.  In short, this movie is great to watch anytime, any place and you won’t get sick of it.  Even though some of the things are quite unbelievable and could never happen in real life you just have to think.  Well, it is the 80′s.

Real Teen Rating~ A+ : If you haven’t seen this movie you are a deprived soul!!


Reviewed by Living Destiny

First of all, I just wanna say that North totally STOLE MY LINE!!!! When we watched this, it was me, her, Dream and another friend of ours.  Dream and our friend had never seen it before, so every time something offensive happened (which was pretty often), they flipped out, and I’d just laugh and say, well it was the 80′s.  So yea I’m probably gonna beat up North for stealing that.  Just kidding.  Maybe.

Anyway, I’ve seen this movie at least five times.  Every time, it’s better than the last time I saw it.  This is one of those movies where the more you watch it, the more strange things you notice.  Also, the shock factor starts to wear off, but in a good way, so while Norths jaw was touching the floor, I was just laughing, because it was funny once you got past the whole ‘oh my gods what did he just say’ thing.

This movie is totally excellent.  Everyone can relate to at least one of the five kids.  It’s true that the movie is still relevant today.  There are obviously still cliques in high school, and that will probably never change.  It’s just the way teenagers will always act, separating themselves into groups for reasons I’ve yet to understand.  The jock people don’t talk to the drama people, and the nerds don’t talk to the preps.  It’s an unwritten social code, and if you break it, you’ll be burned in your sleep (not really).  But this movie is a cool example of what could happen if those social rules were suddenly, forcibly broken.  It’s pretty incredible.

My favorite line was when Bender is crawling through the air vents and telling himself a joke.  It’s such a ridiculous little scene, and we replayed it at least twice.  We literally couldn’t stop laughing!  All of the actors in this movie do a great job.  The brat pack, which is like the 80′s version of the rat pack (for those of you who know who that is, gold star for you!), is a talented group of actors, and most of the good 80′s movies had at least one of them starring in it.

This movie will never die out, and will be a classic forever and ever and ever.  It is amazing, and is one of the best movies I’ve ever seen.  It’s entertaining, but it also gets a pretty clear point across.  It shows us that no matter what anyone says or thinks, “We’re all bizarre.  Some of us are just better at hiding it, that’s all.”

Real Teen Rating~ A+ : If you haven’t seen this movie you are a deprived soul!!

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Catcher in the Rye - J.D.Salinger

The Gist:

Catcher in the Rye
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Holden Caulfield is a sixteen-year-old boy who was just kicked out of yet another boarding school, for failing four classes and not applying himself.  Deciding he can’t stand to stay at Pencey Prep until the end of the term on Wednesday, Holden leaves the school to roam around New York City for three days.  During those three days he crashes around New York City, causing his own inner turmoil, and forcing himself to do more soul searching and serious thinking than partying in the Big Apple.


What We Think:

Reviewed by Living Destiny

Number of Pages: 214

This book was one of those read-in-class-but-not-really-during-class-or-as-a-class novels that we all get saddled with at some point each year.  What I’d heard about it was mostly neutral comments from our class.  Some people said their parents loved it, some said their parents hated it, everyone said they’d never read it before, and our teacher didn’t really give her opinion.  So after reading the first couple of chapters as a class, we were set loose on the world of Holden Caulfield.  I would rather have left it at those first few chapters.

First, characters.  Holden Caulfield was an awful main character.  He always complained about how people were phony and fake, and he made all these snide comments about life and society.  But in reality, he was a huge phony.  He lied all the time, mostly about his name and his age.  Also, he would comment on how he hated some aspect of life, like how rich people always seemed snobby, but he was actually rich himself.  His hypocrisy was incredibly irritating, and how I managed to make it through the entire book without screaming is a wonder.  Then there was the fact that he was a huge scaredy-cat, although he pretended to just be aloof.  Throughout the entire book, he talked about his old friend Jane Gallagher.  She comes back into his world picture in the beginning of the book, while he’s still at Pencey Prep, and while he looks back at their time spent together fondly, he never talks to her.  He considers calling her at least five times, but every time he doesn’t because “you have to be in the mood for those things”.  That’s ridiculous, and is just an excuse to not call her because he’s afraid that she’s changed since the last time her saw her.  He’s afraid of people changing and betraying him, or becoming fake.  He just needs to accept that everyone changes, but that doesn’t mean they won’t still like you.  Of course he never sees this, but continues to not call Jane and only like little kids, because they’re still innocent and perfect.  Holden was the only character that was in the whole story, which bothered me.  I know it’s a story told from his memory, but still.  He’s the only consistent character, and smaller, static characters circle around him during the entire book.  I only got to know one person throughout the whole book, and since I really didn’t like that one person at all, the book wasn’t exactly enjoyable.

Next, plot.  I was bored to the point that I wanted to throw the book against the wall.  I usually read any assigned chapters in books a day or two before they’re due, but with this book, I put it all off until the very latest I possible could.  Which was usually around nine or ten the night before it was due.  The only thing that kept me reading was the knowledge that it was a graded assignment.  And even knowing that, I read grudgingly.  The first chapters were the most interesting, but after he left Pencey Prep to go on a little jaunt around New York City, it got horribly dull.  It seemed like he really only did three different things: thought about calling Jane, got drunk, and reflected on his younger brother Allie’s death.  And he did this for 214 pages.  You can just imagine how repetitive it got after a while.  Lucky for you, you only have to imagine, not read all 214 tortuous pages.  Also, in the very first page of the book, it tells you where he ends up.  It’s like, ‘Hi I’m Holden Caulfield, and I’m in a mental hospital, so now I’m going to tell you part of the glorious story that is how I came to be here.’  So now I know the ending, and there’s absolutely no suspense as to what will happen to Holden, because I know where he ultimately ends up.  And it actually was only part of the story.  He tells up to a point, and then says he’s not going to tell the rest because he doesn’t “feel like it”.  I bet the parts he didn’t tell would have been more interesting than the parts he did tell.

This book was on the banned books list for a long time.  It was only recently taken off the list, and teaching it in schools still causing controversy in some places.  Hearing this before reading it, I admit I got excited.  Reading a book that was illegal for however many years?  Well, it’s got to be on the banned books list for some reason, and it’s probably a super intense book!  Don’t get your hopes up, because I sincerely wish mine hadn’t skyrocketed.  Huge let down here.  I’m still not sure why it was on that silly list.  I’ve heard it was because of language, but the language really isn’t that bad.  There are swears, but nothing you wouldn’t hear in any high school in the country.  Although I suppose it was extreme for the 40’s.  My dad said it was because it incurred teenage rebellion.  Hello?  Rock music did the same thing in the 50’s and 60’s, but that wasn’t banned now was it?  Lame!

Overall, this book was just not enjoyable.  I dreaded reading it, and it sat in my locker like some evil presence, always threatening my good mood with its foul chapters.  My teacher told us that this book was either one that you loved or you hated, and I hated this book so very much.  It wasn’t worth reading, and the essay I’m creating from this review is not going to be worth the time it takes to cut out my witty thoughts and add in more conforming, school-worthy lines.  Ick.

Real Teen Rating~ D-: If you have ABSOLUTELY NOTHING to read…

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iCarly- Nickelodeon

The Gist

When 13-year-old Carly Shay and her best friend Sam Puckett are  forced to judge the talent show auditions they don’t believe life could get any worse.  That is until they start cracking jokes at the auditions and getting it all accidentally recorded on camera.  They soon post their jokes on splashface.com (their version of YouTube) and get people demanding more of Carly and Sam.  Intrigued by the idea Carly, Sam and Freddie (Carly’s other best friend, who is hopelessly in love with her) put together a web-show titled iCarly.  Carly and Sam as the hosts and Freddie behind the camera as the technical producer.  The show follows the crazy things that happen to the group as their show becomes bigger and bigger as they post more web shows and Carly’s crazy brother Spencer.  Spencer is an abstract artist just trying to get a break and along the way he finds himself in some interesting positions and meeting some interesting people.  Together they create a hit web and TV show!

What We Think
Reviewed by The North Star
4 Seasons
I remember when this show first came on air and everyone was excited because it was a new funny show.  After the first few episodes I was hooked and wanted to watch the show all the time.  As the seasons went on I found myself disappointed because the episodes were no longer funny or creative.  Every new episode was a TV movie and their was no normal regular episodes.  There was also the fact that Miranda Cosgrove was getting older.  Not to be mean or anything but I find her really annoying and not genuine.  Don’t get me wrong I loved her on Drake & Josh but on this show… she seems….. extremely stuck-up.  In the beginning when Freddie would ask her out she would let him down gently but on the later seasons she became more rude to him when he asked her on a date or to a dance.  The lines are meant to be portrayed kinder but the way she says them comes off impolite and that she doesn’t care whether or not his feelings get hurt.  In truth, Spencer is the only character that sometimes gets a giggle out of me but besides that I just sit and watch with an expressionless face.  Sam can be funny on VERY rare occasions but mostly she is just obsessed with food.  Freddie is just kinda there most of the time, sometimes I forget that he is in the scene.
Enough about characters and on the plot of the show.  The thing that I do like about this show is that the plot line of show is really original and interesting.  The only problem that this show has is that they can’t come up with entertaining episodes.  It doesn’t matter how amazing your plot is to make it a great show you have to follow an idea with good episodes so people will keep watching.  Again no offense but the writers for this show are lacking in that department.  Overall, this isn’t a great show at all and even though you may get a rogue episode that is watchable and somewhat funny don’t expect it every time you watch.
Real Teen Rating~ D: If there’s absolutely nothing else for you to do…then maybe…

Reviewed by ShoreWhisperer
I personally love this show. My little brother has a obsession over this show because of this I end up watching this show on a regular basis. Not only does my little brother like it but my dad and the rest of my family think that it is a great show. The first couple of seasons were funny and then they went downhill  from there. I will admit I still find them funny but they aren’t as funny as they used to be. I think that the characters are played well but I don’t like Miranda Cosgrove or Carly she just isn’t that funny. I like Spencer and Sam. Alot of the time I find that Sam annoys me because her jokes have been reduced to “I like beef strips and chili”. That is what her response to everything is now, that or some stupid joke about Freddy’s clothes or hair. That also bugs me. I am pretty sure that Freddy has gone through puberty now and is quite attractive no, so they can’t make fun of him really anymore because he dresses really nicely too. Other than that the show is good. I enjoy watching it and it still makes me laugh. They still have good concepts and Spencer, is really the only thing holding the show in my opinion right now. He makes the show. The guest-stars are good too. I was happy when Jane Lynch starred as Sam’s mom it was quite funny.
Now I know that North doesn’t agree with me but the acting is decent and if the producers weren’t trying to aim the show at little kids then the show would be hysterical. There have been comments that are what I deem not Nickelodeon ediquette and belong on a channel more like ABC or something. Thisis what drew me in. I thought that it wasn’t going to be like every other Nick show. It was refreshing, and it still is at points. There are points that I will find myself really laughing hard.
What really gets me is when they advertise these hour long episodes and make it seem like it will tell you all these things and then it’s the most pointless episode ever made and you are disappointed. Thats my only complaint about the show though. Otherwise the show is pretty decent. I think it is a show that will get very many different reviews so its a hit or miss whether you will like it or not.
Real Teen Rating~ C + : Just Average

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Lady Gaga- The Fame Monster

Reviewed by The North Star

Song Time: 34 Minutes and 9 Seconds

The Fame Monster
Buy it here and support our blog

As everyone probably knows Lady Gaga is one of the biggest rising stars of todays pop culture.  She has had countless number ones in the past 2 years and can be recognized almost anywhere she goes (not only from her crazy outfits).  Her songs can be found in almost any country and have people who listen to country listening to pop and adults actually listening to pop radio again.  Lady Gaga has definitely gave me hope for this generation of music to turn around and become something unique and awesome again.  This is her second CD titled The Fame Monster when her first CD was titled The Fame.


Bad Romance- 10/10- This was her first single off of the CD and it made it HUGE!!!!!  When I first heard it I didn’t like it but after hearing it 5 or 6 times it really grew on me and to this day I am not sick of it.  The vocals of course are amazing and one of my favorite Lady Gaga songs.  Props to the people who designed this music video it is pure genius!  Also, who hasn’t caught themselves singing the rah’s to themselves at one point or another?  (:


Alejandro- 8.5/10- At first I really liked this song but after hearing it 100 times I started to get sick of the name Alejandro.  She is singing about a guy who is abusing his girlfriend and how she doesn’t want to be in this relationship anymore. This song has a really nice beat but almost no lyrics and the lyrics that there are just get repeated over and over again.  Still a good song that I don’t skip if it comes on shuffle but I wouldn’t pick it if I was looking for a song to listen to. 


Monster- 9.5/10- This song wasn’t one of the ones that made it to the radio but strangely I like it.  This song reminds me of a friend warning her best friend of a guy that she used to go out with and how he is terrible and to be really careful of him.  I love the concept of this song and the way she sounds on this song is really cool.  One to check out!


Speechless- 11/10- This is my absolute favorite Lady Gaga song EVER!!!  This is one of the only slow songs that I have heard her sing and I LOVE it!  She is talking about a boy who let her down but she will still love him forever and won’t love anyone else because no one could replace him.  This is a topic that a lot of people can relate to and it really shows that Lady Gaga can actually sing and she isn’t all techonizied (not a word).  This is one I listen to on repeat for hours and one to check out on YouTube or iTunes. 


Dance in the Dark-8/10- This is another song that didn’t make it on the radio but is actually really good.  This is a song I like to freestyle to in my room to. (Yes, I dance in my room) (:   The reason it is getting it an 8 is because like most songs on her CD it is quite repetitive.  This is a song that I would expect to find in a club and everyone dancing to.  I’m not quite sure what  this song is about….. but with songs that are strictly dance songs the lyrics don’t really matter as much. 


Telephone- 7.5/10- This song features Beyonce and is one of the singles of this CD.  This is about a girl who really doesn’t want to talk to her boyfriend and she is telling him that she is really busy dancing at a club and she doesn’t want to talk AT ALL.  Again like all of Lady Gaga songs this has a nice beat but the same lyrics repeated.  I also don’t like the concept of this song, not sure why it doesn’t strike me as very creative but overall a great duet song but for the radio, no thank you. 


So Happy I Could Die- 7/10- This song is just kind of there for me.  I don’t love it, I don’t hate it.  She is just talking about how happy she is on this night and doesn’t want it to end.  There isn’t much to say about it but I wouldn’t recommend buying it. 


Teeth-8.5/10- I’m going to warn you right now, this song is really inappropriate.  I really like the feel of this song it has a country- hip hop kind of tempo and it is a song you either like or hate.  As I said before this is inappropriate so I try not to listen to the lyrics but think of all the cool dance moves you could choreograph to this song and if she ever makes a video for it I’m sure the choreographer will have a lot of fun! 


Bad Romance(Starsmith Remix)-1/10- This is one of the worst remixes I have ever ever heard!  The first 30 sec of the song is just “Caught in a bad romance” being repeated.  Then you can barely hear her singing because the beat is so strong and loud.  The only reason this song isn’t getting a O is because I can see where it would work at clubs or weddings (where there is a DJ).  Listening to it alone gives me a headache I strongly recommend not looking it up.


There is no denying the craziness that comes along with Lady Gaga but she is definitely a roe model for teenagers to be crazy and show the monster inside of them and to not be shy.   She is slowly changing the face of music for the better and this CD was for the most part an example of that.  This is worth buying but you don’t need to run and buy it this second.

We are just curious here but we would love if you would comment on what your favorite Lady Gaga costume is!  My favorite is the Kermit the Frog outfit. (:

Real Teen Rating~ B: Check it out, but, really, there’s no rush

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Exclusive Interview with Brenna Yovanoff (Author of The Replacement)

We heard of the new book The Replacement over the summer and just had to talk with author Brenna Yovanoff!

RTR:If you could have lunch with anyone, alive or dead, who would you choose and why?
Brenna: I thought about this a long time and I would pick Sarah Silverman.  She seems like she’d be fun.  In a totally disruptive way.

RTR: What’s your guilty pleasure?
Brenna: Oh man, I have so many of these—it’s actually hard to choose. But one favorite: lunch alone at a Chinese restaurant with a Stephen King novel.  Best rainy afternoon ever!

RTR: Is The Replacement the only book you have ever tried to publish?
Brenna: I queried one book before I wrote The Replacement.  Let’s just say, I hadn’t quite figured out that pacing was a thing yet.

RTR: Do you have any weird talents or hobbies?
Brenna: Hmm.  I don’t know about weird, but I do love survival-horror video games and I have a pretty big collection of pretty obscure ones, which is not something people expect when they meet me.

RTR: What is one word you could use to describe The Replacement?
Brenna: Eerie.

RTR: Who is your favorite character from a book?
Brenna: Today I like Roswell best because he is personable and easy to get along with.  Sometimes though, I like the Morrigan best because she is . . . not.

RTR: Juiceboxes or jukeboxes?
Brenna: Although I do love juice, I’m going to have to go with jukeboxes.  I love flipping through the records

RTR: How did you discover the idea for The Replacement and what made you want to become a writer?
Brenna: I don’t know that I discovered the idea so much as just had it bouncing around in my head for a really long time.  I’d seriously been thinking about it since high school, and then one day it just seemed like a good time to write it.


RTR: What is your favorite book at this very second?
Brenna: Jellicoe Road, by Melina Marchetta—I love that book so much, and even though it has a lot more going on than just the romance . . . what a romance!

RTR: What are some odd jobs you had before you were a writer?
Brenna: I had a few different jobs in high school—not the interesting kind, mostly just dishwashing.  But in college, I worked in a photo shop, and that was really great.  I liked it a lot and stayed there all through undergrad and grad school, because I like machines and I also like looking at other people’s photos.  (Because I am nosy like that.)
Thanks for having me!

And thank you for agreeing to talk to us!!!  We can’t wait to get our hands on The Replacement!

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Looking for Alaska - John Green

The Gist

Looking for Alaska
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Miles Halter is a high schooler in Florida, he s an outcast and his parents want to believe that he has friends. He has remarkable tendency to remember last words. He also has a dream of finding the  ”Great Perhaps” He surprises his parents when he says that he want to go to boarding school in Arizona. He ends up in Culver Creek Boarding School. He meets Chip “the colonel” Martin, and Alaska Young. He now has friends who like to pull pranks and get into trouble on the risk to get back at the “Weekday Warriors”. He gets a nickname “Pudge” despite is un-normal skinniness. He finally fits in and along with that he falls in love . With the ever mysterious Alaska, none-the-less. She is definitely not free and who is he kidding, why would someone like her ever like a guy like him? Him and Alaska grow closer and he is perplexed by the deep and reckless girl that he finds. When he can’t stop Alaska from regretting her life something tragic happens. This is touching story of growing up and forgiving.


What We Think

Reviewed by ShoreWhisperer

Number of Pages: 221

I read this book for summer reading. So naturally I read this book really fast.  I love reading but forced reading is tedious. Lucky for me I got to choose this book for myself which made it a little bit better. It turned out that the book aided in my speed reading of it. It’s such a fast paced book that I never wanted to put it down. The characters were original and funny. I loved reading from a guy’s perspective. The only time I have read from a normal teenage boys perspective is almost to never. The way that he saw things is a lot different from what girls think. I also love the girl in this book Alaska is really different from other girls. She is daring and ambitious  but other ways she is just like other girls. She has her one issues. She is troubled by her past and has regrets, so she is just like everyone else. But because she is who she is her troubles become these major issues. Despite all these issues and over reactions Miles still loves her which makes the story even better. Half way through the book you are like “Oh my god, this guy really loves her!” He wants to help her and won’t give up until she loves him and except him. Then we get to “The Colonel” he is the most amazing guy ever. I love him. He is goofy and different and doesn’t care. He loves his mom and is proud about it and he cares for her. This book is really on the top of my list. The message and events make this book so powerful that you have to love this book. It really captures what it’s like to be a teenager and I felt really connected to the characters. They seemed that they were people who could be sitting next to me in math class or the kid who sits in the back of my English class. Really if you haven’t read this then you should as soon as possible it will change your life.

Real Teen Rating~ A+ : Why are you still reading this?? Go buy the book now!!!!


Reviewed by Dream Catcher

One year ago I read this book for summer reading.  I’d heard from a few people that it was a good book. But, considering it was on the summer reading list, I wasn’t too hopeful. But it was amazing. It was seriously a great book.  I can’t decide what the best part of it was. The characters? Or the whole idea Miles has of the Great Perhaps? Either way, both things made the book real and relatable. THE GREAT PERHAPS. Everyone wonders about it. Though some may call it a different name, it is something everyone thinks about one time or another. I found this very thought-provoking. I did a lot of thinking while reading this book, and even after I had finished reading it. It made me think, which most books don’t succeed in doing. It was refreshing and inspiring, even. Characters were another key aspect of this book. Each one of them was different but they were all so real it was like I knew them. I especially loved how Miles remembered people’s last words. I thought it was insanely weird and insanely awesome at the same time. Some people had some pretty interesting last words. Alaska was so mysterious and complex and full of secrets that you never really know what to make of her. But she was definitely one of my favorite characters. Together the characters were probably the best part of the whole book, which is really saying something, because the rest of the book was so good. Now, there wasn’t some huge jump-out-and-grab-you plot. In fact, there really wasn’t much plot at all. But I only realized that looking back on it. While I was reading I was so focused and so eager to find out what happened that I never would have noticed the book’s lack of serious plot. So I think the rest of the book (in all it’s greatness) made up for the simple not-plot. I would recommend this book to everyone. It’s a great book for guys and girls, and it really gets you to think. Is there a way out of the labyrinth? Read and and find out!!

Real Teen Rating~ A : Go Buy Now.


Reviewed by The North Star

Well this year I had no clue at all what to read for summer reading because there were no new books on the list.  Dream kept telling me to read this book and then Shore finished it and told me to read it.  I thought I would give it a try so I picked it up and finished to it in two days.  Personally, I didn’t really like this book.  The beginning started off really interesting and had me turning the pages but by the time I got to page 150 or so I started to get really bored and it felt the same thing kept happening over and over again.  The book was also split into 2 different parts; before and after.  The after part was not worth reading AT ALL.  I felt it to be really slow and pointless.  The before part was really interesting though and definitely worth taking the time to read.  Now on to characters.  Miles “Pudge” was the strongest character of the book and I agree with Shore in saying that I almost never read from a guys perspective so this was a refreshing change to get into a guys head and see what they are thinking.  I also liked how persistent he was on trying to get Alaska and most people wish they had the quality in them, so it makes him a good roe model for teenagers reading the book.  Unlike most people I really didn’t like Alaska.  I don’t know what it was about her but she annoyed me.  Maybe it was because she flirted with every guy she met while she had a loving boyfriend or that she had such massive mood swings, whatever it was I wasn’t crazy about her character.  The writing style was just OK,  this book just wasn’t my cup of tea (strange saying) but give it a shot sometime.  Overall, just an OK book not bad but not amazing either.

Real Teen Rating~ C: Ehhh….


Reviewed by Living Destiny

In an impressive impersonation of a broken record, I read this book for summer reading this year.  I know, great minds think alike, right?  Well, given that there is nearly NOTHING interesting on the summer reading list, it isn’t surprising that we all happened upon this little delight.  And I didn’t really like it.  It wasn’t the worst book I’ve ever read, and it was certainly better than most of the boring sludge that fills the reading list, but I doubt I would’ve read it for fun.  First, the characters.  The main character, Miles (Pudge) was irritating.  He obsessed over Alaska for the entire book, but also dated Lara.  It always irritates me when people like one person but date another because they think they haven’t got a chance, or some other equally ridiculous reason.  It’s so fake.  I liked Alaska more than North did, because she was a strong and funny girl who did exactly what she wanted, but I still didn’t love her.  She was very…erm…promiscuous would be the kind term I think.  My favorite character was Chip (The Colonel).  He was a great person, very cunning but also very caring.  He mouthed off a lot, but it made me respect him more.  He was the best.  The plot itself was ok.  The whole concept of ‘The Great Perhaps’ was intriguing to me.  Otherwise, it wasn’t too fascinating.  Boy goes to boarding school to escape.  Boy makes friends, does crazy things, and, of course, falls for girl.  And that’s just the ‘before’ section.  I didn’t care too much for the ‘after’ section.  It was important to the story, but most of it bored me.  So this book was just average.  But I will admit that it got me to think about how to get out of the labyrinth.

Real Teen Rating~ C: Ehhh….

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Rufus Wainwright- Hallelujah

Reviewed by ShoreWhisperer

Song Time: 4 Minutes 36 Seconds

Hallelujah
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I first heard this song in Shrek. I know that’s really sad but it’s the truth. Then my friend asked me if I knew it and I only knew the hallelujah part. Then another friend had me memorize it so I could learn how to play it on the piano and sing at the same time. I love the lyrics of this song. I had to do some research on it to actually understand it but it helped me understand it. So this is what I got.

First off there are many biblical references, such as Samson and Delilah and King David and Bathsheba. These are the most obvious. The story about Samson is that Delilah betrayed him and tied him to a kitchen chair so that she could cut his hair. His hair was the source of his power, so when she cut it all off she in reality cut off his pride. In the story of King David he sees Bathsheba on the roof and falls madly in love with her. In his passion he has her husband killed in battle so that he can marry her and eventually she becomes pregnant. In this he commits a sin and feels guilty when God kills the child. These can relate to the song and the character in the song.

Obviously, there is this guy in love with this girl.  This girl (let’s call her Debby)… Debby is very free and doesn’t see love the same way that the boy does (let’s call him John). So John gets upset that Debby doesn’t feel the same way that he does. She uses him to make herself  look good. This is implied in the line “I’ve seen your flag on the marble arch/love is not a victory march”. Debby sees John more as a prize while John sees Debby as something special. Not only does she not respect him but she cuts him down to size but he still loves her. He remembers the times they had together: “There was a time you let me know/ what’s real and going on below/ but now you never show that to me do you”. The last line and stanza sum up what Debby has made him realize. That love is not fair and that it’s not as glorious as it sounds. It’s hard and painful, and not as easy as it’s made out to be.

This song makes me want to cry every time I hear it. I love listening to the beautiful melody and it’s a real reality check from other songs that tell about how great love is and this is one of the best examples of how it really isn’t. I would love to hear our reader’s thoughts about this song and what they think it means! So please comment!
Real Teen Rating~ A: Worth Buying!!!

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