On
The Devil’s Court. Carl
Deuker. New York: Tom Doherty
Associates, 2001. 254pp. On
the Devil’s Court.
Carl Deuker. Canada: Little, Brown And Company, 1988. 252 pages.
The
main character in the book On The Devil’s Court is a young man
named Joe Faust. He is
seventeen when he moved from Boston to somewhere on the West Coast.
His father is a famous scientist, and his mother is into art. When
he moves to the West Coast his life changes in a dramatic way. Joe has
made no friends and his parents start to worry if he is going to make
friends. Every morning he
watches these kids play basketball. So
Joe goes to meet them and he makes some new friends.
The first one is Ross, who is very good at basketball. Then he
meets John, and Joe thinks he is too uptight.
In this book Joe sells his soul to the devil for twenty-four games
of perfect basketball.
On
The Devil’s Court is very interesting and kind of mysterious. Joe
gets his wish and is playing great basketball, from the power of the
devil.
Rank =9
Reviewed by Darin L.
On
the Devil’s Court
is a sports-related booked based on a seventeen-year-old kid named Joe
Faust who is struggling with many problems in his life. His father gets a
new job in Seattle where they move and he expects to try a new public
school, which he isn’t used to. His father has kept him in a private
school all his life but this all changes when he makes some early
mistakes. He then has to enroll in the local private school. He joins the
basketball team and isn’t doing so hot. Joe finds an old gym, plays
there, and then thinks of a book he is reading of a man with his last name
who sells his soul to the devil. Will he do anything and sell his soul?
You will have to find out by reading it. Some of the main characters are
Joe, his father, his mother, John, Ross, Coach Raible, and Eddie. This
book will appeal to those who enjoy sports and mysterious twists.
This
book has captured my interest quite well because I enjoy sports and the
book has to do with basketball. What makes this book unique is that I kept
wondering what might happen next to Joe. I thought the author left out a
clear ending on what resulted from Joe’s actions. The book compares well
to other sports-related books. Some points of the book that I thought were
realistic were the descriptive details of his basketball games. Rank 7 out
of 10
Reviewed by Mike
Return to list of reviewed books.
The book that I read was Outbreak.
The book is a chilling thriller novel about a horrible disease
inflicting the United States. Outbreak
is a fictional book that portrays what could really happen if this disease
was infecting people throughout the U.S.
The Ebola virus that is a disease found in Africa, has made its way
into the U.S., seemingly by mistake.
Dr. Melissa Blumenthal works for the Center of Disease Control (C.D.C.).
She is sent to investigate the virus and find out why it is
inflicting citizens in the U.S. She
works in a hospital helping treating the virus, when she stumbles on to a
conspiracy. The virus
didn’t just get there accidentally it was purposely spread out through
the country. This is a cover up operation by the U.S. government.
I don’t want to go any farther because if I did then it would
give away the ending, and that I something I want you to experience for
yourself.
I like this book because it seemed to be what could happen in real
life. This is a great fiction
book for someone who is into government and spy operation type fiction
books. There are not a lot of
books I like but this is one of the best books I have read.
Robin Cook is great at capturing the attention of readers and
keeping that attention throughout the whole book.
Unlike some fiction writers who draw in your attention at the
begging but lose interest as it goes on, Cook always throws more exciting
and suspenseful drama at you. I
hope you as a reader go out and read this book if you haven’t already,
and if you have go and read it again.
I rate this book an 8 out of 10.
Reviewed by Jared
The Pact. Jodi Picoult. New Hampshire: Harper Collins, 1998. 389 pp
Two People, Chris Harte and Emily Gold, have been
neighbors and best friends their whole lives. When their relationship
suddenly goes from friendship to something more, neither of them knows
that the mistake they make could change the rest of their lives. Chris and
Emily’s parents weren’t ready for the call they got at midnight from
the hospital saying that Emily Gold is dead at seventeen from a gunshot
wound to the head. Chris explains to the police that he and Emily made a
suicide pact, but a detective had doubts about whether Chris is telling
the truth or whether he really wanted Emily dead. The story gets even more
complicated when they discovered from the autopsy that Emily was eleven
weeks pregnant. The main characters in the book are Chris Harte, Emily
Gold, Chris’s parents, Gus and James Harte, Emily’s parents, Melanie
and Michael Gold.
The Pact is a love story that relates to
what teenagers go through. This is a very good book but it is sad. It’s
exciting, and readers will want to continue reading to find out what is
going to happen next. The author explains what it’s like to go from best
friends to an intimate relationship, and communicates that for every
action there will be consequences. In this book Chris and Emily had to
deal with those consequences. Each chapter has a heading, Now and Then.
That is the only thing about the book I don’t like. I think it would
have been better if the author didn’t skip around. I rate this book
about an eight out of ten.
Reviewed by Katie
The
Pact. Jodi Picoult.
New Hampshire: Harper Collins, 1998. 389 pages.
The
Pact is a love story between Emily Gold and Christopher Harte. They
have lived next door for eighteen years. They have been best friends all
their lives and as they get older their relationship gets more intimate.
It is hard for Emily to tell the difference between love for her brother
or love for her boyfriend. One night both of their parents get a call that
there has been an accident and they need to go straight to the hospital.
When they get there their parents realize that Emily is dead and Chris has
a head injury. Chris is the only person who can tell what really happened
that night, and their parents are left wondering how well they really knew
their kids.
This
book really captured my interest because it was exciting, funny, and scary
all at once. This book is unique because it had an incredible plot and it
was well written. I don’t think that Jodi Picoult could have done
anything more to improve The Pact, it was already great. The
Pact is similar to other books of similar genre, but they don’t
compare. This is one of the books that stays with the readers throughout
their lives. I thought that she wrote a great description of Chris Harte
because I felt like I almost knew him. Audience is teenagers 13-19. I rate
this book a 10 out of 10.
Reviewed
by: Tara
The
Rescue. Nicolas Sparks. New York: Warner Books, 2000. 339pp.
The crisis of a lifetime will bring two strangers together and will lead
to the biggest commitment of a person’s life, being viewed around the
world by teens. Denise, a single mother, and her son Kyle, a mentally
challenged child,find love and hope on their way to a new town to start
over again. Interrupting their trip is one of the worst storms seen for
years in the town causing her to lose control of her car and lose her son
for days. Taylor, a firefighter, finds her unconscious in her car and her
son missing, and begins the search to find Kyle who can’t respond
because of his disability. The search continues until Kyle is finally
found by Taylor, and Denise can’t thank him enough. Little did she know
that Taylor was interested in her and fell in love with her, but Taylor
has a problem with commitment and their love hangs on the rocks. It will
take a major event to change Taylor’s mind and allow him to let go of
his horrifying past that he’s never spoken of.
The
Rescue is
a romantic drama that touches bases on different personal levels. The
story separates the things that Taylor wants with the physiological needs
of a regretful past. Nicholas Sparks makes readers believe that everything
is going to work out for Taylor and Denise, but the second it seems this
way their love will be torn into sheds. The plot of the story is deeper
than two people in love; it shows obstacles, both mentally and physically,
that two people with inerasable problems overcome to be at peace with
themselves and with one another. An exciting and suspenseful, but
traditional love story, this book will cause readers to step back and
analyze their relationships and appreciate them.
Rank=10
Reviewed by Ashley G.
Running
Loose.
Chris Crutcher.
New York, NY: Greenwillow Books,1983. 109pp.
Imagine
having everything you could hope for and it all falls apart.
Louie Banks, a senior in a small Idaho high school, experiences
emotional and physical challenges throughout his last year.
By being truthful and seeking out help from friends, Louie conquers
all his problems. At first he
seems to have it all: a loving girlfriend, a starting spot on the varsity
football team, a good job, loyal friends, caring parents, and decent
grades. In the second game of
the football season, Louie’s coach tells the team to take down their
opponents’ best player. Louie
refuses to do what his coach asks and decides not to even be associated
with a team that plays unfair ball. During
the game Louie quits. After
the word spreads, Louie becomes the town loser to all the football fans. Becky, Louie’s girlfriend, stays by Louie’s side no
matter what. Louie thinks he
has gotten through the worst until a true tragedy occurs.
The primary characters consist of Louie Banks, the main character;
Becky; Louie’s best friend Carter; and Boomer, who was initially
Louie’s enemy.
Running
Loose deals
with death, moral problem solving, and teenage sexuality.
Chris Crutcher does a good job making the story mirror real teen
life during high school.
This book so caught my interest right in the beginning, that I read
it in one day.
I couldn’t put it down.
This book is unique because it is written in first person from the
perspective of a young man’s life.
I don’t think the author left out much but he could have added a
little more at the end to finalize the story.
This modern-day fiction novel with realistic characters is a
wonderful book for teenagers.
Running
Loose. Chris Crutcher.
New York: Greenwillow Books, 1983. 190p.
Louis Banks, who is 17 years old, has it all.
It’s his senior year in high school; he has good academics, is a
good athlete, and has parents who love and respect him.
Most important on his list is the girl of everyone’s dreams,
Becky. Becky
is good-looking, very smart, and a cheerleader.
His life dramatically changes, though, when his football coach
demands that he take out the star of the opposite team.
Not only does he refust to do this, he refuses to play period
because he doesn’t want to play for an immoral person.
As Louie goes through all of the mean comments people make about
him, he becomes stronger as a person.
Becky stands by and comforts him, although everyone else backs
away. Louie
makes some tough decisions, but it is all worth while in the end.
I would recommend this book to teenagers who are ready to face the
mature content of life.
Running
Loose contains wonderful examples of the consequences of decisions
that teenagers face.
I was really able to relate to the book.
Louie had to decide on his reputation or what was morally right to
him. It’s
a great book, perhaps one of the best I have read because of the great
aspect the book reveals about life.
(Rank:
9 out of 10)
Reviewed By Brandee
Shakespeare’s Scribe. Gary
Blackwood. New York: Dutton Children’s
Books, 2000. 265 pp.
There is an outbreak of the lethal Black Plague in London, and the
Globe theatre is closed by order of the queen. The players are forced to
take their theatre elsewhere. They embark in a long, agonizing adventure
across England looking for somewhere to perform. Widge, the orphan who
turned to acting, gets to go along as an apprentice. Widge doesn’t mind
because it’s his only chance. Widge knows “charactery,” also known
as shorthand, which his former master taught him to do. This comes in
handy when Mr. Shakespeare breaks his arm in a brawl. While Widge stays up
late taking dictation there is a fellow apprentice who is scheming to take
over Widge’s roles. However, Widge meets someone who claims to know a
secret about his past. Could he actually find his real family after all
this time? Does this mean he could leave the theatre—possibly forever?
This book is great for the young and the young-at-heart.
This book was extremely suspenseful with a new conflict at every
turn. As Widge conquers one task, he is faced with another. Widge’s
fellow players and apprentices are there for him every step of the way. This book is great because it is suitable for everyone. A
book rich in a drama and comedy is sure to be a high in everyone’s list.
Rate:10
Reviewed by Sam
