Book Reviews from a Teacher's Perspective

Author:  Victoria Aveyard Themes:  Individual vs Society Genre:  Science Fiction Recommended Age for Reading:   The AR reading level is 5.2, but in my opinion, the content level should be 9th grade an up.  Inappropriate language is not used too often, but the language used is fairly strong.  For instance, the b word is used a few times by some of the characters.    The book also has a few violent scenes. Plot:    The setting of this book takes place years into the future.  There are two types of humans at this time...those with mutated silver blood, and those with ordinary red blood.  The "silvers" rule the society, while the "reds" serve the silvers.   The "silvers" all have special abilities which gives them the power to rule over the "reds."  Mare is a red girl who lives in a very impoverished part of the kingdom.  She is about to turn 18 years old, which means she will be forced to serve in the military.  Mare prides herself i

Author: Joseph Bruchac Themes: Coming of Age, Adventure, Family/Tradition Genre: Historical Fiction Recommended Age for Reading:  The reading level for this book is a 6.5, but the content is appropriate for students in lower grade levels.  For some of the gifted readers, students in grades 4-6 may enjoy this book.  There is some violence since the premise of the story is World War 2, but it isn't anything that isn't appropriate for students in the elementary grades. Plot:   This book tells the story of a young Navajo boy who begins his life on a Navajo reservation.  He speaks only Navajo until the age of 6 when he begins school.  His school is ran by white people who are trying to "educate" the Navajo.  Speaking Navajo is forbidden at this school because the white people think there is no purpose for Navajo boys and girls to keep their language.  The boy has a Navajo name, but when he starts school, the white people change his name to "Ned Begay

Author: Marissa Meyer Genre: Science Fiction/Fantasy Themes: Coming of age, Freedom, Good vs. Evil, Unconditional Love, Don't judge a book by it's cover Recommended age for reading: Middle School, High school The reading level in the series ranges from 4th-6th grade, but a small portion of the content is for slightly older audiences.  Most of the book is appropriate for younger audiences, but there is mention of "escort" androids.  The story doesn't go into too much detail about these types of androids, but older readers can infer that their purpose is for romantic companionship.  I wish this detail wasn't included in the books, but it kind of plays a role later in the series.  It never gets too inappropriate, but the fact that is there is somewhat concerning.  There's also some mild language in a few of the books.   Cinder Plot:  The first book in the story is a futuristic version of the fairy tale, "Cinderella."  Cinder l

Author: Markus Zusak Genre: Historical Fiction/ Fantasy Themes: The Power of Words Recommended Age for Reading: Middle School and up. I'm not going to lie, it took me a while to finish this book.  I started it while on vacation with my husband this summer in June, and didn't finish it until sometime in October.  Usually I finish books at a much quicker pace, but I am a busy working mom, and it took me a while to really get into it.  Honestly, I don't think I really ever got "hooked" into this book, but that doesn't mean that it isn't worth reading.  It's actually a book that I think everyone needs to read.   The protagonist of the story is Liesel Meminger who is for some unknown reason is willingly orphaned by her mother.  She is taken in by her foster family during the Nazi Germany era.  The most interesting aspect of this book in my opinion is that it is told from the point of view of "Death."  We see the Nazi Germany and