Student Saturday: Restart by Gordon Korman

Genre:  Middle Grade, Realistic Fiction

Student Reviewer:  Olivia S.  

In the book “Restart” Chase Ambrose is a 13-year-old boy whose has forgotten his whole life and the people in it. Chase gets amnesia after falling off his house's roof and wakes up surrounded by total strangers. He doesn’t remember his family, his friends, or even who he is. When Chase gets well enough to go back to school, he is greeted by various reactions. Some of the kids think he is a hero, others are afraid of him, and some clearly hate him. Chase has no idea who the real Chase was and does not know why people clearly dislike him. Will Chase get his memories back and become who he used to be, or will he decide that who he used to be is not who he wants to be anymore? 

Chase Ambrose is a big kid with brown hair and is very athletic. When Chase gets amnesia, he is athletic, intelligent, and funny and he gains a moral compass from his injury. Chase becomes more empathetic to other people and becomes nicer to the people surrounding him. This book reminds me of the book “Masterminds.” Both Chase and the Masterminds go on a journey to discover who they truly are. In both books, the protagonists must solve a mystery. I would recommend this book to ages 10 and up, since it teaches kids good morals. This book teaches people that you decide what choices you make and that you can decide to change your actions.  

Student Saturday: Nightbooks by J.A. White

 

Genre:  Middle Grade Fantasy

Student Reviewer: Elijah S. 

This story is about a boy named Alex who became trapped in a magical apartment by a witch named Natacha. But in the apartment, there was also another person there. Her name was Yasmin and she tried to escape many times but couldn’t escape the witch’s grasp. Every night Alex had to read a book to the witch to survive. If I was in Alex’s place, I would try to deceive the witch into making me leave the magical apartment, but I don't think that would even be possible considering Yasmin tried countless ways to escape. I recommend this book to people who like hair-raising stories. If I had to rate this on a scale from 1 to 10, I would rate it a 6. This book was good, but it did not meet my expectations.

Student Saturday: “Captured by Alvin Townley

 

Genre:  Young Adult, Biography

Student Reviewer:  Camden P.  

The book, “Captured”, by Alvin Townley, is a true story about the main character named Jeremiah Denton, who tells about his experience during the Vietnam War. The story takes place in a prison in North Vietnam. I can connect this book to other true stories I have heard from my friends and family members about peoples’ experiences during the war. I would recommend this book to my dad, or anyone who likes learning about wars and history, since he watches movies based on true stories from soldiers in the war. I enjoyed reading this book and it exceeded my expectations greatly.