Reviews

The Merry Devils
Author: Edward Marston (fiction)
Reviewer: Rachel, Queen of Murder Mysteries

My very favorite books in the entire world are murder mysteries. However, when those aren’t available (or when I’ve already read all the good ones the library has) other good books have to be substituted. For example, I just finished reading a book today (during Algebra): The Merry Devils by Edward Marston. It’s a story about a play, set in Elizabethan times. It begins when playwrights Edward Hoode and Ralph Wolloughby compose a play, The Merry Devils, only to have it completely flop during the final dress rehearsal. However, when the curtain goes up at the beginning of the play, everything is transformed into a wonderfully miraculous play. Until Act 5. There are only supposed to be two merry devils, which are conjured by the main character, but three appear. The play continues, and ends successfully, but the company has bad luck for the next few performances. Nicholas Bracewell, one of the company’s main actors, tried without avail to figure out what has been haunting them. He ends up in prison for the next few nights. Eventually he finds something that may lead him on the right track, but it turns out to be a dead end. At the end of the book, the culprits are discovered, and…read it for yourself. I will say, though, that the ending is a huge surprise. It totally shocked me, because Edward Marston never hints as to what will happen. It’s great! This isn’t necessarily a murder mystery, rather a twist on a mystery. When Edmund begins his search for the reason behind the hauntings, he has no clue what he is to find. There are all kinds of mysteries, and this is one of the best.
 
P.S. If you like murder mysteries too, I recommend reading anything by Stuart Woods (they’re really gory!), Laurie King, Michael Crichton, and/or Willard Scott. There’s a lot more, I just can’t remember them at this moment. Go to the library and find out!

Warriors Don't Cry
Author: Melba Patillo Beals (Nonfiction)
Reviewer: Caroline

A young girl deals with abuse and ridicule when the first African American students enter a white high school. She gets isolated from her friends, at school she endures serious threats to her safety and no one talks to her. This book thoroughly depicts how hard it was for African Americans to rise up and prove themselves equal to any white person. This book is easy reading and very absorbing. Go read!!

Into Thin Air
Author: Jon Krakauer (Nonfiction)
Reviewer: Caroline

An avid mountain climber joins a group of skilled climbers on a mission to climb Mount Everest. A fatal storm hits the mountain and many people die due to lack of oxygen, freezing temperature, and feelings of total surrender. Jon Krakauer writes this book sharing his firsthand experience of this tragic endeavor. Great for adventure lovers!

Movie: Austin Powers, Goldmember

This is the second sequel to Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery. As I expected, the theater was packed full of anxious moviegoers. Basically, the plot is that Dr. Evil and a new villain: Goldmember. He is obsessed with gold, hence his name and both them have kidnapped Austin's dad, Nigel Powers and are working on a laser beam that will melt the Arctic, causing a worldwide flood. Austin's new sidekick is Destiny's Child's Beyonce Knowles who plays Foxxy Cleopatra. Downs to this movie? The body function jokes get tiring after awhile and some things are repeated from the last movie. Overall, this movie is hilarious with special appearances by Britney Spears, Steven Spielberg, Tom Cruise, etc. Go see it to make your own opinion!

Book: Tomorrow's Sphinx
Author: Clare Bell
Reviewer: Shea

The book takes place thousands of years after man has moved to space, and in a dying world a young cheetah struggles to survive. Cast out by the other cheetahs because of her strange coloring-deep black with gold markings around her eyes and the tips of her ears-Kichebo can't stalk prey and is being targeted by strange whirring bird-things from the sky. Then she rescues Menk, a two-legged creature, from a burning wreck. She is amazed yet comforted by her affection for Menk.

Then another black cheetah joins her, but only in her mind. Joined by a powerful link, he shows her visions from his life as a royal and faithful companion to the pharaoh Tutankhamen. Could this be the answer to Kichebo's strange coloring, her unusual affection for Menk, and the birdlike hunters from the sky?

Book: Absolutely Normal Chaos
Author: Sharon Creech
Reviewer: Rachel

I just finished reading a book, Absolutely Normal Chaos by Sharon Creech. Mary Lou Finney is required by her English teacher Mrs. Z, to keep a journal over the summer and to turn it in to her new English teacher in the fall. When she starts her journal, she has no idea what the summer will hold for her, no
clue how to deal with her mysterious and weird cousin Carl Ray, and certainly no hints as to what will happen with Alex Cheevey (a potential love interest). It has a hilarious plot, unique characters, and will stay in your mind for days to come.

Book: Sophie's World
Author: Jostein Gaardner
Reviewer: Rachel

In the beginning, Sophie Amundsen was just an ordinary 14-almost-15 year old, who lives in Norway with her mother. Then one day she finds herself enrolled in a philosophy course written by a mysterious professor. With the professor, Sophie learns about the history of philosophy and how it became what it is today. Sophie and her professor (whose name, she finally learns, is Alberto Knox) have to travel to different places in history, all in their minds, to rescue a strange girl in another time whom Sophie has never met, Hilde Moller Knag.

Game: Dracula-The Last Sanctuary
Reviewer: Mari

Dracula-The Last Sanctuary is the sequel to Dracula Resurrection, and is about a young man named Jonathan Harker.

Dracula wants Jonathan's wife Mina to become his queen, so he captures her, and as you are playing the part of Jonathan, you must go after Dracula and destroy him. You travel all around England, visiting an abandoned house, an insane asylum, two cemeteries, an old abandoned mine, a prison littered with thousands of bones, and Dracula's Castle, also known as the Last Sanctuary. There are puzzles to solve along the way, villains to fight (although there could be more), and places to explore.

I personally thought the game was very fun, but extremely hard, and I still would be on the first level, wandering around Dracula's hideout (Carfax), if it weren’t for the walk-through that I found at
cheatcc.com.

The plot is very good, and the graphics are amazing. There is only one problem; the mouth's of the characters don’t quite move with the voices. It’s really funny.

This game isn’t very well known, yet. You can buy it online, at Costco, and at select electronic stores. If you happen to come upon it, I suggest you buy it, it is certainly worth it.