Look In A Book

  By: Dilan Mehta Ok, first off, I really like the Wimpy Kid Books. This post is not to say they are garbage. They are hilarious and unconventional, and millions of kids around the globe love reading about the hilarious antics of Greg Heffley. But I think the quality of the books are declining. Books 12-15 so far have not been as good as the other ones. One of the main reasons is the story isn't as good. The first 11 books are so are clever in story and character arc, and we see Greg in his daily, humorous life. You never know what to expect. But the newer books follow the same basic plot: Something happens that is supposed to be good, but things get complicated, and a bunch of crazy stuff happens. The one that is kind of an exception is the Meltdown, #13, but even that didn't have a story as good as the first ones. Another thing is that they aren't that funny anymore. I've noticed a lot of the jokes have been reused and there isn't a lot of witty, sarcastic humor w

By: Pranav Marrey     Recently in my LA class in our non-fiction topic, I read the book "Bomb:  The Race to Build—and Steal—the World's Most Dangerous Weapon " by Steve Sheinkin. The book is about the creation and the race to make the atomic bomb during a growing and violent World War 2. It might be non-fiction but fans of action, mystery, and sci-fi could enjoy it. The book is a thriller and will take you on a roller coaster of action. The book switches from person to person so it might be a little confusing but still a really good book. It is a MUST read for people in 5th grade and above. I hope you enjoy this good World War 2 book!😀 

  Artemis Fowl - Review and Summary/Plot Synopsis (CONTAINS SPOILERS!!) By: Samvi Raj If you don't want any spoilers of the book, please only read the review. Thank you, and I hope you enjoy it! - REVIEW - I would recommend this book to people who love action, mysteries, and sci-fi. It is a great book with lovable characters, and you can learn a lot from it. This book is for very advanced readers, for it has many tricky words and things in it, however, if you are an advanced reader and are looking for a new book, this is the book for you! - SUMMARY/PLOT SYNOPSIS (very long) -      In the book, “Artemis Fowl,” by Eoin Colfer, a 12-year-old boy’s father, Artemis Fowl senior, has gone missing, and Artemis wants to restore his family’s legacy by getting fairy gold. The first step of this criminal mastermind’s plan is going to a fairy to get The Book, the thing that all fairies have, that stores all of their knowledge and history. Artemis tricks a drunk fairy into giving him The Book fo

 By: Annika Raj Ok, a couple of things, I wanted to let you know that this is the second book in a series and I'm writing about it because I forgot some of the details from the first book. Secondly, I haven't read the full book yet so I'm not sure of the ending.  DO YOU LIKE PERCY JACKSON? DO YOU LIKE RICK RIORDAN ONE OF THE GREATEST AUTHORS OF ALL TIME? DO YOU LIKE CRAZY MYTHOLOGY? Well then read the series, Magnus Chase and the Gods of Asgard!  Magnus Chase is the story of a teenager named Magnus Chase who defeats a fire giant and dies...and then gets revived and goes to the Norse afterlife for heroes. He meets a plethora of wacky characters and he has to stop Ragnarok from happening by strengthening the chains that bound Fenris Wolf. These books focus on Norse Mythology, while The Kane Chronicles series focuses on Egyptian mythology and the Percy Jackson series and the Heroes of Olympus series focuses on Greek and Roman mythology.   (This is Magnus by the way) I really e

  The Turnover By Mike Lupica By: Dilan Mehta Celebrated sports fiction author Mike Lupica tells a story of what's right, on the court and off.      Lucas Winston respects and loves his grandfather, Sam Winston. His dad died of cancer right after Lucas was born, so his Gramps is the closest thing  to a father he has. Lucas cares deeply about Gramps. They both love basketball, and that's familiar ground for them. Gramps coaches Lucas's sixth-grade basketball team, the Claremont Wolves, and Lucas loves it. Lucas and Ryan Moretti, his best friend, are both on the wolves, and Gramps is the best coach and knows the game inside-out. Gramps also frequently comes over for dinner with Lucas and his mom, and they watch basketball on TV. When Mr. Collin, his English teacher, tells them to write a biography about someone he admires, Lucas is pumped. He knows exactly who he's going to write about: Gramps. But Gramps is reluctant. He seems unsure and waves it off. He wants Lucas to p

 The Bad Guys By Aaron Blabey By: Dilan Mehta We have been posting a lot of things aimed at Adults, Teens, and Kids, so today I'll be talking about a popular book for little kids. The Bad Guys is a hilarious, unconventional book by Australian author Aaron Blabey. In this book, The Big Bad Wolf, Mr. Wolf, is tired of always being bad and wants to be a hero. He invites a few friends to be part of his "Good Guys" club. They are: Snake, Pirhanna, and Shark. Each has committed several crimes and are known to the public as evil. At first, they are skeptical. All they want to do is eat things, and don't want to become good. But they agree to come with Mr. Wolf. Mr. Wolf and the gang drive in a super fancy car, looking for trouble to stop. They find a kitten in a tree and stop immediately. They try to get the kitten down but end up scaring it. They each take turns trying until Snake gets fed up with Piranha and swallows him. Mr. Wolf swings Snake around until Piranha launches

How To Win Friends And Influence People By Ojas Mehta Key Ideas: -Don’t criticize -Appreciate, praise; make people feel good about themselves - Bait the hook to suit the fish, not suit you, and arouse an eager want - Show genuine interest in people - everyone even low-level employees  -Smile but sincerely -call people by their names - Be a good conversationalist by intently and genuinely listening. It gives them a feeling of importance -Read up on subjects people treasure most. Talk about their interest, not yours -make others like you instantly by making them feel important  -You can’t win an argument. Why make someone else feel inferior? -People hate to be told they’re wrong. Can show them without them knowing. Start by saying I may be wrong but  -When we are wrong. Admit it quickly and emphatically  -Begin in a friendly way. You can catch more flies with honey  -Start conservations by getting a person to say yes twice (start where you agree not disagree) -Let the other person talk -

  Review: The Postmortal - A Unique Dystopia By: Dev Menghrajani 2/5/2021 The Postmortal by Drew Magary is yet another great dystopian read. What’s the unique twist to this dystopian novel? The cure to aging has been found, and everyone scrambles to get it, without thinking or caring about the consequences of it all. Magary predicts that this will be the demise of the world, as overpopulation and a lack of resources leads to utter chaos. The Postmortal doesn't just provide a unique viewpoint to society, but helps us realize the value of life and how important it is to make the most out of it. Focused in the late 2010s and skipping 10-20 years twice, The Postmortal focuses on the life of John Farrell, a young lawyer in New York City. John is your typical lawyer: wealthy and young. As soon as John hears of the new “cure” for aging, he rushes to get it. Soon after John gets the cure and realizes that he is trapped in his body forever, he is desperate for change. John spends t

   Reviewed By: Anjana Menghrajani  First They Killed My Father is a breathtaking and heartbreaking memoir written by Loung Ung on her childhood journey. It is a must-read. Ung was only five years old when the Khmer Rouge (Communist Party) took over Cambodia in 1975.  The Khmer Rouge reigned over Cambodia for four years. When Ung and her family were forced out of their home in Phnom Penh, Ung faced many struggles such as surviving the training camp where she was sent to be a soldier, the treatment that she faced as a girl/women, and the bond that she had with her family that the Khmer Rouge soldiers tried to destroy.       Ung lived in Phnom Penh until she was five. She grew up as a privileged citizen and her father was part of the government. Her comfortable lifestyle is something often referred to, as she is receiving a good education and does not have chores because the cleaning lady does them, unlike many children. Because of this, the family always had some fear looming over them

  By: Deepak Menghrajani Ellen Foster grew up in a household where she was always scared. Her mother was always sick and her father always drunk. Eventually both her parents passed away. The father is abusive and the parents do not have a good relationship. She refers to the rest of her family as either “dead or crazy.” She has one friend, Scarletta. She did not have a stable home life and a happy, normal childhood. It was only after she left the house that she started to get a more stable life and a therapist. Her childhood trauma impacts the ways she thinks and acts, as well as how she views life.       The book intertwines between the past and the present which I like. It shows the differences between her old life and her new life. It is clear that her new life is so much better and her life changes in her new life are filled with more protective factors. However, the old risk factors from her previous life still impact her. Since she keeps going back to the memories of her old life

       Framed by James Ponti is a great book! I love it a lot!! The title means both the definitions of framed.  It is like a framed painting or being accused of something you didn't do! It is a really good mystery. 12-year-old Florian Bates and his best friend Margaret try to solve the case of who stole paintings! I love the book Framed and you should read it as well. Bye, Vaibhavee

Warning: Post Contains Spoilers! Review By: Dilan Mehta This is a great book of Gordon Korman's that I have just read. It is about Eli, Amber, Malik, Hector, and Tori. Eli bikes to the edge of the city with his friend Randy, but suddenly gets very sick fast and has to get picked up by the mysterious Surety, the police force of Serenity. He stays in the hospital for a bit and then finds out that Randy is leaving Serenity. Serenity is where they live. It's supposed to be a perfect place to live. It's an ideal community, with no crimes, no poverty, no murders, etc. They value hard work and honesty. When Randy leaves, he's supposed to be going to help his grandparents on a farm. Later, when Eli finds a secret note that Randy left him, he says he's actually going to boarding school, and that something very screwy is going on in Serenity. And something is. Eli shows the note to his father, who has him take pills that make him forget about the note. Eli doesn't take th

Author: James Patterson By: Dilan Mehta You've probably heard of James Patterson. He's an American author with TONS of books for kids and adults. Some of my personal favorites are Treasure Hunters, The Middle School series, Pottymouth, and Stoopid, I Funny, and more! He's also written a lot of adult books, including the acclaimed Alex Cross series and the President Is Missing. He's probably more known for his adult books, but if you search up James Patterson kid books, there are tons of good reads! He was born on March 22, 1947, and studied English at manhattan college. He then landed a job at an advertising agency, J. Walter Thompson Co., but later left to focus on writing. His first major book was a thriller and mystery called Along Came A Spider. After that, many more books followed. He won many awards. After learning his son did not like to read, he started making books for kids, tweens, teens, and young adults. His first book which was aimed at young adults was Max

  The Next Great Paulie Fink By: Ali Benjamin Review By: Dilan Mehta Caitlyn Breen, who has just made the uncomfortable move with her mom to Vermont, leaving behind her friends,  discovers that her new school, The Mitchel School, isn't an actual school. It's an old dead guy's house. And there are only a few teachers. AND they do weird things like feed goats. Caitlyn's classmates each have unique personalities, one's really nice and obsessed with a reality TV show, one loves soccer, and one loves facts, and is always nervous. When Caitlyn shows up to school, things are very different for her. The kids don't act like how normal kids act. Caitlyn thinks there are a set of rules. And these rules are basic, and everyone is born knowing them, of what to do and what not to do. But when she learns about a legendary troublemaker named Paulie Fink, who has suddenly disappeared, and who no one can't stop talking about, Caitlyn has to wonder what's normal. She finds

  Sorry I haven't posted in a while! Here are some of the books I have been reading to catch you up!  Dilan Mehta 1. Shoe Dog Phil Knight Shoe Dog is a memoir by the creator of Nike, Phil Knight. It's a poetic biography of how Nike, the sneaker empire, was founded. Phil had the idea in business school to import Japanese running shoes to the US. Nike's first original name was Blue Ribbon, and it started in Phil's parent's basement. It was later changed to Nike, inspired from Phil's trip around the world, when he saw the temple of the goddess of victory, Nike, in Greece. The Japanese company Onitsuka was working with Phil until problems started sprouting up, and Nike left Onitsuka. This was a great book and shows how much effort Nike took to become a success. From working with his old track coach, Bill Bowerman, to develop a new, advanced sneaker design, to rebounding from numerous problems, and finding a family, Phil Knights' story is one for the ages! 2.Cave

 By: Dilan Mehta Okay, so I'm cooped up inside the house, no school because of the COVID-19 Coronavirus. And I know a lot of things are shut down, everything is closed, people have to stay home. But you can still be active and do things. I encourage you to go outside every day, get some sunshine. I am always in my backyard, playing with my brother, and that helps a lot. And it is also an opportunity to learn something new. I am trying to pick up new chords on my guitar, for Stairway to Heaven, and I've been improving my sprint time. So since a lot of us are bored, it is time to pick up a new project, something to do. Here are some websites that can help, because doing something new can be very beneficial, so I thought I would add this post.  https://www.kennedy-center.org/education/mo-willems/ This website can help you learn to doodle and draw with Mo Willems, the celebrated children's book author. Press the arrow buttons to see past episodes. https://www.duolingo.

 By: Dilan Mehta Even though you are an adult, that doesn't mean you stop learning and reading. The way to do this is to learn about the stuff you like. I like sports, biking, business, and drawing. So I get books about those things. But not just get. Actually, read. How many people will admit to having a shelf full of books in their study but have never pulled down a single one? But I'm not going to spend a lot of time talking about why you should read, I'm going to focus on  how. The reason being is, it's like anything else. You hear the benefits, you get really pumped up and motivated, but you don't know how to do it, and you often forget about it and move on. So how exactly do you do read? Good question. 1. Pick books you like I wrote about this a little above. You just need to find something for yourself. You like _____. You read _____ books. Whatever your hobby or interest is. And it doesn't just have to be nonfiction. There are tons of good ficti